Ammonite Fossil, 45 - 60 Mm

“The time available for her to submit grants and write papers decreased sharply in the year and a half after she first became a mother. And her lower productivity continued after she had two more sons, but there often wasn’t a way to explain that on her grant applications.”

—

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-00252-5

I also have a hard time explaining in my grant applications my PhD period. Even though it took 6 years to finish my PhD, I actually was much faster than average. I was on full maternity leaves not working at all for 2 years (!!) and the rest I worked part time. I managed to get my PhD in total of 3 years and 2 months of full time work equivalent.

I am glad people start noticing this and Nature writes about this issue. Let’s not punish researchers for having kids!

(via miss-biophys)

https://www.analyticsinsight.net/harvards-free-computer-science-courses-in-2024/

Radiolaria, a type of protozoa known for its complex shell structure, from Marvels of the Universe v.2.

Full text here.

Ask yourself at every moment "is this necessary?"

Dance for Two by Alan Lightman

Being You by Anil Seth

How story, God, and Your Lying Brain Turn Chaos into Order by Nancy Mimeles Carey

Your Brain is a Time Machine by Dean Buonomano

Some of the books I've read recently + the covers

cognoscit

The books I'm reading at the moment.

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius - I love this book. It puts you in the perspective of the time and space you occupy, I found a lot of my own thinking and feelings within the pages of this book. A guy born in AD 121 has very clear view on life that is still relevant today.

Great Adaptations by Kenneth Catania - A professor of biological sciences takes you on a journey with him while he studies various animals adaptive abilities. Star nosed moles, electric eels, tentacled snakes... Very interesting insight in how these creatures evolved and adapted.

What we cannot know by Marcus du Sautoy - Explains concepts from the ground up, I like the illustrations that accompany the text and practical examples. Lays foundations to the known and wonders into the future of research and the possibilities that come with it as well as limitations. Covering themes from quantum physics and cosmology to sensory perception and neuroscience.

Labyrinths of reason by William Poundstone - "Blue sky, sunshine, deja vu glazed with dread." How do you know this isn't all a dream? Is anything certain? Ontology, logic, mathematics, deduction, epistemology, memory formation, paradoxes and puzzles.

A brain for numbers by Andreas Nieder - Humans' understanding of numbers is intuitive. How are infants able to perceive numbers even before they learn the words for them? How do our brains process numbers? Can animals count? He shows how it is an adaptive ability and that plenty of animals have the number sense too. There is a variety of research and supporting evidence mentioned which I really like.

"So you navigate your life with the help of others who held mirrors up for you. People praised your good qualities and criticised your bad habits, and these perspectives -often surprising to you - helped you to guide your life.

So poorly did you know yourself that you were always surprised at how you looked at the photographs or how you sounded on the voice mail.

In this way, much of your existence took place in the eyes, ears and fingertips of others." - David Eagleman, Sum