Category: Science

PNAS: Mark Jackson, Crowd-Funding Entrepreneur

Mark Jackson of Fiat Physica.

I’ve decided to do a new round of profiles in the Project for Non-Academic Science (acronym deliberately chosen to coincide with a journal), as a way of getting a little more information out there to students studying in STEM fields who will likely end up with jobs off the “standard” academic science track. The fourteenth… Continue reading PNAS: Mark Jackson, Crowd-Funding Entrepreneur

Eureka: Discovering Your Inner (New) Scientist

Two new items about Eureka: Discovering Your Inner Scientist: 1) WAMC has now posted the interview I did with Joe Donahue on The Roundtable. This was a fun interview, and covers a number of examples from the book, so I think gives you a really nice sense of what it’s all about. 2) There’s a… Continue reading Eureka: Discovering Your Inner (New) Scientist

PNAS: What We Learn From Science

I’ve been intermittently profiling people with STEM degrees and non-academic jobs since 2009, as it turns out. One of the questions in the profile asks “What’s the most important thing you learned from science?” These have been some of the most interesting responses, so I thought it might be interesting, while I sit here and… Continue reading PNAS: What We Learn From Science

PNAS: Dr. Mathochist, Software Engineer

I’ve decided to do a new round of profiles in the Project for Non-Academic Science (acronym deliberately chosen to coincide with a journal), as a way of getting a little more information out there to students studying in STEM fields who will likely end up with jobs off the “standard” academic science track. The thirteenth… Continue reading PNAS: Dr. Mathochist, Software Engineer

Diversity Is Frustrating: Cartoon Polygon Physics

Pattern for shapes demanding at least two neighbors of the same shape, and at least one of a different shape.

Back in December, The Parable of the Polygons took social media by storm. It’s a simple little demonstration of how relatively small biases can lead to dramatic segregation effects, using cute cartoon polygons. You should go read it, if you haven’t already. I’ll wait. This post isn’t really about that. I mean, it is, but… Continue reading Diversity Is Frustrating: Cartoon Polygon Physics

Science Story: Night Owls

James Clerk Maxwell and Julian Schwinger. Photos from Wikimedia.

(When I launched the Advent Calendar of Science Stories series back in December, I had a few things in mind, but wasn’t sure I’d get through 24 days. In the end, I had more than enough material, and in fact didn’t end up using a few of my original ideas. So I’ll do a few… Continue reading Science Story: Night Owls

PNAS: Brandon Bartell, Business Analyst

Brandon Bartell, Union Physics class of 2010

I’ve decided to do a new round of profiles in the Project for Non-Academic Science (acronym deliberately chosen to coincide with a journal), as a way of getting a little more information out there to students studying in STEM fields who will likely end up with jobs off the “standard” academic science track. The twelfth… Continue reading PNAS: Brandon Bartell, Business Analyst

Eureka on the Roundtable Today Tomorrow

“Hey,” you say, “It’s been, like, a week and a half since you did a post flogging Eureka: Discovering Your Inner Scientist. What gives?” Well, I’ve been kind of busy, and also the media world sort of goes into suspended animation over the stretch between Christmas and New Year’s. However, there’s publicity stuff in the… Continue reading Eureka on the Roundtable Today Tomorrow