I disappeared for a whole month because I got swallowed up in proposal writing, conferences (three of them in six weeks), and manuscripts. Sorry about that.
This last month has been bad a&&! I've been on Enbrel for six weeks now, and I can confidently say that this drug is working!! I have felt normal for the first time since 2007. I can play Just Dance on the Wii with my son. I played ultimate frisbee with friends (only 20 min.) All my cricks and creaks are gone but one and I can live with that. It's given me such an incredible outlook of late. I'm finally turning outward towards more of my friends, not worrying about being too tired. I'm even thinking about buying a mountain bike.
This Enbrel sh&& is expensive! I went to Walgreen's to pick it up and the pharmacist told me that it would be $2000 for one month of injections! My pharmacy insurance charges me only $35 per month if I get it delivered by mail, so that's what I'm doing now.
One of my accepted articles got traction in the media and I was on local TV twice! It was hilarious because I was wearing a T-shirt with a dinosaur that said "Professor Science" during the interview.
I tallyed up some rejected proposals this month, which blows. I'll just go write more.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
CAREER Season
Many of my pals are writing the CAREER proposals now, and I've been reading their proposals, etc. I thought it might be interesting to post my thoughts on what makes a good CAREER proposal. If you have some questions, you could ask them as "comments" and I'll try to give thoughts on them. I like lists so here is a numbered list:
1. Formatting: Make your proposal look nice. Don't overlook formatting. A bad looking proposal appears disorganized and reviewers may perceive that your research is also disorganized.
2. Spelling: One spelling error can cost you an entire proposal. Don't trust spell check.
3. Hypothesis-Driven: NSF loves hypothesis-driven research. What are your hypotheses? How will you test them? What motivated you to formulate those hypotheses?
4. Observation-Hypothesis Table: I love to have a table of observations and hypotheses to demonstrate the motivation for my proposed work. I saw this kind of table on a panel, and it was very well received. The observations should have citations wherever possible. The hypotheses should tie into your proposed research or proposed tasks. This kind of table explicitly demonstrates your ability to use the scientific method.
5. Attitude: Your writing style should be authoritative, as if you are an expert in the field. Avoid negative language. Avoid bragging.
6. Adviser: It is important to distinguish your proposed work from what you did in your Ph.D. or post-doc. Is your adviser going down the same avenue presently? I had to explicitly state how my work was different because it wasn't immediately obvious to someone outside the field.
7. Audience: Write at the level of the lowest denominator. Your proposal will likely be reviewed by someone in your discipline, but not in your field. You cannot assume that the reviewer will have a priori knowledge of what your field is, or the history of your field. Therefore, you must approach the proposal as if it is a chance to educate and persuade the reader that your field is important and interesting.
8. Cook and Look: Reviewers are always on the outlook for "cook and look" proposals, so avoid proposing that! An example of cook and look would be "Task 1: I'm going to vary pH, Task 2: I'm going to vary concentration, Task 3: I'm going to vary temperature."
9. Finish Early: If the first draft is finished early, then you can send it out to friends and colleagues for their opinion. Consider all suggestions. Take their criticism gracefully.
10: Clarity: If something isn't clear, consider making a cartoon or schematic. Panelists love pictures.
11: References: Oftentimes, panelists will flip to the references section to check how many references were included. I've heard some panelists remark that anything less than 100 is unacceptable. As ridiculous as it sounds, I don't want to anger them, so I have a minimum of 100.
12. My recipe:
p.1-2 Motivation and Observation/Hypothesis Table
p. 2-3 Briefly list Technical Objectives
p. 3 Briefly list Educational Objectives
p. 3-4 Background
p. 5 Qualification of the PI (establish your expertise and your independence from your advisers)
p. 5-7 Preliminary Work
p. 7 Begin Research Plan
p. 7-9 Objective 1
p. 9-10 Objective 2
p. 11- Objective 3
p. 12-14 Educational Plan
p. 14 Dissemination of Results
p. 14 Current NSF Support
p. 15 Summary and Time Table
Good luck!
1. Formatting: Make your proposal look nice. Don't overlook formatting. A bad looking proposal appears disorganized and reviewers may perceive that your research is also disorganized.
2. Spelling: One spelling error can cost you an entire proposal. Don't trust spell check.
3. Hypothesis-Driven: NSF loves hypothesis-driven research. What are your hypotheses? How will you test them? What motivated you to formulate those hypotheses?
4. Observation-Hypothesis Table: I love to have a table of observations and hypotheses to demonstrate the motivation for my proposed work. I saw this kind of table on a panel, and it was very well received. The observations should have citations wherever possible. The hypotheses should tie into your proposed research or proposed tasks. This kind of table explicitly demonstrates your ability to use the scientific method.
5. Attitude: Your writing style should be authoritative, as if you are an expert in the field. Avoid negative language. Avoid bragging.
6. Adviser: It is important to distinguish your proposed work from what you did in your Ph.D. or post-doc. Is your adviser going down the same avenue presently? I had to explicitly state how my work was different because it wasn't immediately obvious to someone outside the field.
7. Audience: Write at the level of the lowest denominator. Your proposal will likely be reviewed by someone in your discipline, but not in your field. You cannot assume that the reviewer will have a priori knowledge of what your field is, or the history of your field. Therefore, you must approach the proposal as if it is a chance to educate and persuade the reader that your field is important and interesting.
8. Cook and Look: Reviewers are always on the outlook for "cook and look" proposals, so avoid proposing that! An example of cook and look would be "Task 1: I'm going to vary pH, Task 2: I'm going to vary concentration, Task 3: I'm going to vary temperature."
9. Finish Early: If the first draft is finished early, then you can send it out to friends and colleagues for their opinion. Consider all suggestions. Take their criticism gracefully.
10: Clarity: If something isn't clear, consider making a cartoon or schematic. Panelists love pictures.
11: References: Oftentimes, panelists will flip to the references section to check how many references were included. I've heard some panelists remark that anything less than 100 is unacceptable. As ridiculous as it sounds, I don't want to anger them, so I have a minimum of 100.
12. My recipe:
p.1-2 Motivation and Observation/Hypothesis Table
p. 2-3 Briefly list Technical Objectives
p. 3 Briefly list Educational Objectives
p. 3-4 Background
p. 5 Qualification of the PI (establish your expertise and your independence from your advisers)
p. 5-7 Preliminary Work
p. 7 Begin Research Plan
p. 7-9 Objective 1
p. 9-10 Objective 2
p. 11- Objective 3
p. 12-14 Educational Plan
p. 14 Dissemination of Results
p. 14 Current NSF Support
p. 15 Summary and Time Table
Good luck!
Thursday, June 28, 2012
I don't have TB, but maybe my dept is sick
I guess I'm one of those people that routinely test positive for TB, so my Dr. changed his mind and let me start Enbrel. My husband did my first injection one week ago. It's hard to tell if there is any instantaneous effect. All I can say now is that my neck doesn't hurt at the end of the day anymore. Tomorrow, I do the injection again.
On a separate topic, things haven't been going well for my department for the last year. We have lost several faculty, for better and worse. And now, several of our best staff have announced their resignations. It makes me sad that things are going on such that even staff are leaving. This department will be totally different in the next two years as replace staff and faculty, but today does feel like a low point. I wish I could describe it more in this blog, but it isn't appropriate.
On a separate topic, things haven't been going well for my department for the last year. We have lost several faculty, for better and worse. And now, several of our best staff have announced their resignations. It makes me sad that things are going on such that even staff are leaving. This department will be totally different in the next two years as replace staff and faculty, but today does feel like a low point. I wish I could describe it more in this blog, but it isn't appropriate.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Can my body get any more ridculous
I tested positive for TB, so I can't start Enbrel until I take months of antibiotics. I was so angry when I found out. What else is my body going to do to me?
But Mr. JP cheered me up as we joked about who could have possibly exposed me to TB.
Sunday, June 17, 2012
What My Weekend Looks Like
Weekends are more exhausting than weekdays because of all my dang chores and my two "spawn", as my friends call my kids. I spend the entire weekend grocery shopping, cooking meals for the next week, doing household laundry, washing dishes and baby bottles, and wrangling children. I usually manage some time to take a bath. If I'm lucky, I can squeeze in some time to hang our with girlfriends. As for work, I only have time to check my email once on Saturday and once on Sunday night. The idea of working on papers or proposals is in the forefront of my mind, but there is no hope of getting to them. And where is my husband during all of this? Let's just say that he does what husbands do. He's had great difficulty lately, so at times I feel as if I am taking care of three dependents instead of two.
As for help around the house, I've got maids and a mother's helper who comes once per week. I've thought about outsourcing laundry, but that is something I don't want to spend money on. Mr. JP does all the yard work and takes out the trash. We try to split child care, where one person either takes both kids or where we each take one kid.
I wonder if my inability to work on weekends negatively impacts my career, but that thought is always accompanied by the realization that a few years ago I thought my career was over. I am thankful just to have one, but shouldn't I be kicking scientific ass out there?
Thursday, June 14, 2012
To Qual or Not To Qual
One of my best students failed their qualifying exams for the second time, meaning that they must get a masters degree. I am upset because they are fantastic in the lab, and it is a disservice to deny them a chance at a Ph.D. The student made an "A" in the subject in which they failed their qual. I argued their case as much as a could before the faculty and the compromise was that the student could reapply to the Ph.D. program when they neared the completion of their masters.
This case led to the general agreement that our department needed to reevaluate how we do our qualifying exams. Apparently we didn't have them at all in the past, and now we do. I personally see quals as a mechanism to fail out students who perform really badly, and my student doesn't fit that criteria at all. I agree with the idea of quals, but not with our rules as they stand. A mechanism that siphons low-performing students to a masters degree is certainly needed. Others may disagree that quals should be black and white, but I think there should exist an in-between where the advisor can provide input on the student's lab performance to push the decision one way or the other.
I am especially upset because both students accepted into my group last fall have "failed out". The first one made D's in their grad class (!!!). And, now this.
Monday, June 4, 2012
No Good Very Bad Day
Nobody in this family had a good day. It started out with Mr. JP getting a mean-spirited rejection for his manuscript. Then, I got another proposal rejected. It hurts because the person who got it is always the person who gets it over me (sigh). And, when I went to pick up Sparky from montesorri, his teachers told me that he hit 2-3 kids. I asked him about it, and he lied to me. Time for some wine in a box.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)