Monthly Archive: March 2016

Reddit for science communication (UPDATE: now with a link!)

If you’ve dabbled in science communication you’ve likely come across the difference between communicating AT people and communicating WITH people. Or maybe you haven’t. After all, science has historically largely subscribed to the deficit model of teaching: the “general public” is a bunch of people who are empty vessels into which we should pour in …

Continue reading »

Permanent link to this article: http://ecologybits.com/index.php/2016/03/30/reddit-for-science-communication/

I am unwilling to relocate again (and it will probably cost me my academic “career”)

Multiple moves are the norm in academia and it’s a major structural problem that gets in the way of diversity (and other) initiatives. Long gone are the days when the academic was (only) a hetero white male who was either single (and a highly eligible bachelor with his PhD in hand) or had a family …

Continue reading »

Permanent link to this article: http://ecologybits.com/index.php/2016/03/23/i-am-unwilling-to-relocate-again-and-it-will-probably-cost-me-my-academic-career/

Feline fighter fury #2016MMM #catscandal

Note: This post is about March Mammal Madness. Check out this year’s tournament if you’re unfamiliar with it.   It started: alright alright alright! Welcome to Mammal March Madness 2016! #2016MMM https://t.co/Ub2DuVZlbD #AlrightAlright pic.twitter.com/Aw9CFHcrWH — Katie Hinde (@Mammals_Suck) March 8, 2016 But is it really alright? Investigators have discovered a disturbing trend in March Mammal Madness …

Continue reading »

Permanent link to this article: http://ecologybits.com/index.php/2016/03/21/feline-fighter-fury-2016mmm-catscandal/

Observation as an essential ecology skill

In the past few weeks, there have been several posts on ecology blogs about what is ecology — and science more generally. What makes us scientists? What is valued within our profession? I often think about these questions in the context of citizen science. What makes us ‘professionals’? What are we able to do that …

Continue reading »

Permanent link to this article: http://ecologybits.com/index.php/2016/03/16/observation-as-an-essential-ecology-skill/

Archetype solutions

Here are my answers to the Archetype puzzle I presented last week. If you haven’t seen it yet, go read that first. This entire post is a spoiler. Oh, and feel free to quibble with my answers in the comments. 1. Red and blue balls in an urn Probability, combinatorics 2. Galapagos finches Evolution, allopatric …

Continue reading »

Permanent link to this article: http://ecologybits.com/index.php/2016/03/09/archetype-solutions/

Fun and games: Archetype

Today, a bit of fun for the academically inclined. In every discipline, there are archetypal examples that showcase important concepts. These examples are so ubiquitous that if you open most textbooks on the subject, you’ll find the same examples used for the same concepts. Sometimes these archetypes derive from the first time something was described, …

Continue reading »

Permanent link to this article: http://ecologybits.com/index.php/2016/03/02/fun-and-games-archetype/