Here's a NEW Boromir plan... since he can't get Ninja Wizards.....

Posted by: caltechgirl at 12:53 AM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
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The "last lecture" Professor has gone. He passed away this morning at age 47 from the Pancreatic cancer he fought so well and so long. I hope his sons come to understand how much their father's grace and courage meant to so many people.

I can only hope my final lecture teaches half so much.

Below is the entire lecture, all hour and 16 minutes of it.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 05:28 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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1 You should go to Youtube and watch his lecture on time management sometime. It is also outstanding.

Posted by: Ben at July 26, 2008 10:32 AM (RGP/K)

2 A very wise and kind man. I hope that his family finds peace...

Posted by: Richmond at July 28, 2008 01:51 PM (OzIH5)

3 This mans method of living changed my life...or, at least my perception of it. He was one of those rare people...

Posted by: Lauren at July 30, 2008 11:39 PM (Pt1kf)

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Happy Fun Ball is made of Wonderflonium. That's why you ahouldn't bounce it!

Posted by: caltechgirl at 03:41 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I haven't really had a chance to brain dump lately. Despite the fact that it is summer, and therefore I am NOT teaching, I have been as busy as ever. Stuff just piles up on my desk and I am trying to get through a thousand small things just to get to see the top of my desk.

In some sense this is my fault. Being the person who is NOT on vacation means a lot of things that wouldn't otherwise come my way get shifted to me. Plus I am adding a new class in the Fall which I have to prep. Although it has been taught before, the focus of the class is changing, and the massive increase in enrollment (5 to 15, yeah I know, but it is TRIPLED) means I have to rethink the way labs and some assignments are done, almost as if it were a new class. I am also taking the opportunity to switch to a more rigorous text and need to make the syllabus reflect that text. With my "old" class, I need to re-arrange some of the units and make the syllabus more reflective of our designated Student Learning Outcomes (yes, we are going through Accreditation, why do you ask?) and combine the lab and lecture syllabi into one with a less formal schedule for the lab, because, as we all know, sh!t happens.

Along with this is the possibility of getting some grant $$ for research, which means I need to write a formal animal protocol which explains exactly what I plan on doing with my animals and how and when and why. This is the last thing I want to do. Boring. And pissy. And I really really really could give 2 shits about doing research anymore. Srsly. And anyway, I research stress hormones. Why on Earth would I want to hurt my animals? It only screws up my data.

I am also deeply embroiled in University politics. So far I have managed to play the naive child role well enough to slide through some serious controversial sh!t, while behind the scenes I plot and maneuver and try to come up with mature solutions. Who ever it was that said that Academic politics are worse because they are meaningless was right.

It doesn't help that I am trying to work from home as much as possible. On days when I can really focus, telecommuting is great. I can work all day on my schedule and get other things (like laundry or a trip to the dentist) done at the same time. I don't have to waste time or $$ on driving in to campus, either. I figure it costs me about $60-70/ week to drive in, just in gas costs. The inconvenience and creepiness of the Public transit makes that a less useful choice. Especially the creepiness. Someone was shot at the stop for my office a few weeks ago, and there have been a number of muggings and other violence.

Outside of work, things keep swimming along. Tomorrow is our 9th Anniversary. I can't believe it's already late July. Classes start again in a month. Also, I've "graduated" from physical therapy, and I continue in the pool, working on my own. So far so good. I like the pool, I like the workout, and I've gotten to know the group of "regulars" at the therapy pool who come every morning (lucky retired gals) to workout. Most of them are also therapy graduates. We switched my class schedule so that I can continue going to the pool in the morning twice a week. YAY.

Oh, and I have a ton of pictures to post. I'll try to do that tonight after I get home. I'm staying late for a student orientation "mixer" on campus. Yecch. But it gets me out of tomorrow's festivities and therefore I can hang out with hubby for our anniversary!

Posted by: caltechgirl at 01:54 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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1 Happy Anniversary! ...and I thought profs had it easy during the summer! Proved that theory wrong!

Posted by: pam at July 23, 2008 03:16 PM (l6NIn)

2 Happy Anniversary! People who say "Those who can't, teach" have clearly never taught. Don't envy you the politics - hope you can safely navigate through them!

Posted by: beth at July 23, 2008 03:58 PM (AwZ3/)

3 Happy anniversary. And my condolences on it being accreditation time. I remember the last accreditation visit on my campus and it still makes me come out in hives (we got almost the highest possible ranking, but still...there was serious anxiety and serious amounts of horsepucky stuff we had to do beforehand).

Posted by: ricki at July 24, 2008 05:40 AM (O5SYw)

4 Happy Anniversary!! And I wish you many many (happy) more!!

Posted by: Richmond at July 24, 2008 06:50 AM (p79b+)

5 Gah...just reading this stressed me out. Aren't summers supposed to be fun? *sigh*

Posted by: Lauren at July 25, 2008 12:29 AM (Pt1kf)

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Joss Whedon's latest project, Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog has finally arrived! The miniseries in three acts is being released this week.

Act I is available today, Act II will be released on July 17 and Act III on July 19.

But hurry, it all goes away on July 20!

Click over, turn up the speakers and enjoy!

Update: Also, now you can find a super cool Dr. Horrible button in the left sidebar below my Yahoo! Avatar! There are lots of different sized buttons and other widgets on the Dr. Horrible site, just scroll down and click the "get some resources" button. And be sure to read the EVIL Master Plan as well!

My brief review: It's Flash Gordon meets Little Shop of Horrors with Firefly sensibility. Perfect combo.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 04:12 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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According to some, the "lack" of women in science and engineering is so critical that Title IX-like protections should be put in place until women are equally represented.

Are you f*cking kidding me? Women have no barriers in science, probably fewer than in any other general field. Over half of students entering medical school this year are women. More than 60% of graduate students in biology and biochemistry and psychology are female. My department chair is a woman. There's no lack of women in science, even at the highest levels.

Yes, you might argue, but the article focuses on Physics and Engineering. And true, there are relatively few women in physics and engineering. But is it possible that maybe women don't choose these fields because they are less interested? Should we force girls into jobs they don't want? It's not like the demands of an academic career in physics are that different from the demands of an academic career in biology or biochemistry. Which even these researchers had to admit was the case:

[T]he institute found that women with physics degrees go on to doctorates, teaching jobs and tenure at the same rate that men do. The gender gap is a result of earlier decisions. While girls make up nearly half of high school physics students, they're less likely than boys to take Advanced Placement courses or go on to a college degree in physics.(emphasis mine)

So far, these Title IX compliance reviews haven't had much visible impact on campuses beyond inspiring a few complaints from faculty members. (The journal Science quoted Amber Miller, a physicist at Columbia, as calling her interview "a complete waste of time.") But some critics fear that the process could lead to a quota system that could seriously hurt scientific research and do more harm than good for women.

Posted by: caltechgirl at 04:05 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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Sums up my life most days.....

Posted by: caltechgirl at 10:59 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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