Fig. 1. ‘‘Congratulations, you are now capable of writing technical, impersonal and boring papers like myself and the other gentlemen – Drawing by Sverre Stein Nielsen. REFERENCE: How to write consistently boring scientific literature (page 1 pdf). (2007) Oikos 116: 723 – 727. ABSTRACT: Although scientists typically insist that their research is very exciting and adventurous when they talk to laymen and prospective students, the allure of this enthusiasm is too often lost in the predictable, stilted structure and language of their scientific publications. I present here, a top-10 list of recommendations for how to write consistently boring scientific publications.…
The Science Creative Quarterly
The Science Creative Quarterly (SCQ) is not a quarterly, but instead publishes new material at a non-linear rate. Currently, it is sleeping and in a sort of stasis (turpor?) It used to seek science writing of any genre, and your contribution would have involved checking out our submissions guidelines.
The Science Creative Quarterly (SCQ) has a single print edition so far (half SCQ pieces, and half fake science journal – see here for more details). Also, badges?
Stay safe everyone!
THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS (A.K.A. IT APPEARS THAT THE WRITER WROTE ABOUT BANANAS AFTER EATING A FEW TOO MANY)
Both scientific research and personal experiences are proving, without a doubt, that there is a connection between what we eat and how we think and act – hence the saying “you are what you eat”. This happy-food-to-happy-mood relationship is bridged by “happy” neurotransmitters in our bodies. Just think of “happy” neurotransmitters as the money-orders from your out of town parents that are speedily delivered on highway by FedEx to you. Receiving the money-orders solves your credit card overdue and that makes you really happy! Put it in the context of biology, neurotransmitters are messengers that relay sensations and actions along…
THE MURPHY’S LAW EQUATION
There are many laws in the physical sciences, most of which have mathematical equations that govern them. Widely know laws such as the laws of electricity and magnetism, have Maxwell’s equations. Fluid-flow is governed by the Navier-Stokes equations, and of course everyone is familiar with Einstein’s energy to mass relation, E=mc2. Why then does an equally relevant and useful law, Murphy’s Law, have no such foundational equation? In what follows I present an equation to predict the outcome of Murphy’s Law. The law, in its simplest form, states: “If anything can possibly go wrong, it will, and at the worst…
OBESITY AND DIABETES: A CANADIAN EPIDEMIC
Kahnawake is a Mohawk community of 7000 people, located 12 miles north of Montreal, Quebec, on the bank of the St. Lawrence River. Originally settled in 1680, the community traditionally relied on fishing and hunting for food, as well as gathering corn, beans and squash from the area. However, despite the healthy meat and vegetable based diet of the past, today over 800 people (12%), between the age of 45 & 64, live with diabetes (1). Sixty percent of these people are living with major complications, such as blindness and kidney failure; 48% have heart disease as a result of…
SCRUBBED (WHITE COAT, STILL WRONG TIME)
Read the first installment here Today, I encountered a surgeon at Starbucks. His scrubs and lab coat weren’t surprising and neither was his flashy that’s-right-I’m-a-funky-surgeon bandana. In this neighbourhood (I work and live by Vancouver General Hospital), I guess we all become somewhat inured to this practice. What did make this particular instance surprising was the fact that yon scrubber was also wearing blue surgical booties over top of his shoes. Small twigs and grit sullied their bottoms. The heels were looking frayed. It had rained yesterday, so they were even a bit soggy. Was the surgeon simply trying to…
A CONVERSATION WITH YOUR HEART: CARDIAC BIOMARKERS – INSIGHT INTO THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE.
Dr. McCondo: “So, how are you feeling today? You told the nurse you were feeling a little sick?” Mr. Heart: “Not well, and I think I might be coming down with something serious…” Dr. McCondo: “Alright, let’s take a look.” Mr. Heart: “Okay…hey do you think it’s going to be something serious? Do you think it might be because of the new neighbourhood I moved into? Ever since my buddies Turk and Burke helped me move in I started feeling a little weird. I mean, it was nice to relocate to a new place and all because my old one….well…
THE LONELY STRUGGLE OF THE POLITICIZED ARTEMIA SALINA*
This pool, this salty shrine, This place from whence all good things come — This is my home. Like all of you, I bask and breed And swim from day to day; I juggle eggs and food, Absorb the sunlight when I can, And rarely take the time to think and brood Upon that larger world, This gulf ‘twixt shrimp and man. But now, at last, I rise to speech and action, Driven by injustice grave and dark. For evil doth intrude upon our tranquil pond, And must no longer pass thus unremarked. “Sea Monkeys,” humans say, and in so…
A BEHIND THE SCENES SITE OVERHAUL AND AN INVITATION TO JUST PAUSE FOR A MOMENT AND THINK.
Apologies if the Science Creative Quarterly site misbehaves today. We’re incorporating fancy and not-so-fancy upgrades – primarily to protect things like the truth and to introduce neat little sphere widgets. Since there is nothing new today, per se, we invite you to stop whatever it is you’re doing, look outside (or better yet, go outside) and just take a moment to think. You know, just think. That’s all.
THE BIG ONE: UNDERSTANDING WHY THE BIG EARTHQUAKE IS PREDICTED FOR VANCOUVER
This morning, the front page of the national newspaper reads “BC put on alert for huge quake.” Yet again. So do I hop on a plane to Calgary or continue obliviously sipping my coffee? The reality of an eventual massive earthquake on the British Columbian coast is a given. As my mom, discontent with raging snowstorms and -30oC temperatures, declares, “there are consequences to living in paradise.” Earth-shattering consequences. But do we understand the nature and the true extent of these consequences? To understand why Vancouver is at such a high risk for earthquakes relative to Calgary or Toronto, one…