Vol. 21 - Predictive models and the changing value of data

September 16, 2024

Because predictive models can do a lot more based on sequence data, we need a robust ABS system more than ever.

Vol. 20 - Encouraging deep reading (by turning a class into a grant panel)

August 5, 2024

Learn how I'm transforming my class on ecological networks through student-led discussions and research proposals, aiming for deeper understanding and collaboration.

Vol. 19 - Research projects and research programs

July 29, 2024

Lakatos' "The Methodology of Scientific Research Programs" challenges views on scientific progress and the importance of research programs over individual theories.

Vol. 18 - I don't like funny papers

June 17, 2024

The only fun scientific paper was written in 1981 by Isidore Nabi. It's been all downhill from here.

Vol. 17 - Orchestrating collaborative writing

June 3, 2024

Writing with many people is hard, but a strong process can make it work - read about the guidelines I use!

Vol. 16 - Fail Prof. (a very special episode)

May 27, 2024

My promotion to full prof. was denied. But this is not what I want to talk about. First, because although I had high hopes, I understood this to be a dry...

Vol. 15 - Maintaining scientific software is a great idea!

May 20, 2024

The slow, meditative art of maintaining scientific software and learning through code.

Vol. 14 - Maintaining scientific software is a bad idea

May 3, 2024

There is a reason GitHub’s open-source guide for creators starts with self-care. Maintaining code is a long-term endeavour, and more crucially, the skills...

Vol. 13 - Keeping a writing schedule (is a bad idea, maybe?)

April 29, 2024

Stop forcing daily writer's block, start using to-write lists.

Vol. 12 - Grading for progress and prioritization

April 15, 2024

I do not enjoy grading. Or grades. I think they often stand in between students and learning, by introducing performance anxiety where there should be...

Vol. 11 - My group's research interests are not (only) my own

April 8, 2024

Research topics that are interesting, and research topics that I find interesting, do not overlap entirely. Every once in a while, we do a little lab-wide...

Vol. 10 - Between the seconds on the chronograph

April 1, 2024

Ecologists spend a lot of time thinking about scales. If you search for “problem of scale” in Google Scholar, you get in response the entire corpus of...

Vol. 9 - Against Outreach

March 18, 2024

Academia's misguided obsession with outreach as a measure of performance excludes excellent researchers and hinders diversity in scientific evaluation.

Vol. 8 - Writing, uh, finds a way

March 11, 2024

Stomach bugs derail my plans for a productive week, but reminds me that there is value in putting things into perspective.

Vol. 7 - What happens to food webs after environmental catastrophes?

March 4, 2024

Over the past few years, with the help of truly fantastic grad students, I got more invested in the idea of using food web structure to get clues about the...

Vol. 6 - Inbox 10 is great!

February 26, 2024

Efficiently manage email by treating it as a task, not a constant distraction. And yes, I am fully aware of the irony of writing this in an email-based newsletter. Thanks for asking.

Vol. 5 - We should cite pop culture more.

February 19, 2024

We should cite more than the scientific literature, because we understand the world around us through more than the scientific literature.

Vol. 4 - A big thing is just 10000 little things

February 12, 2024

Manage big deadlines by breaking them down into smaller, manageable tasks.

Vol. 3 - can parasites change food web dynamics?

February 5, 2024

Parasite-mediated changes in host traits impact food web dynamics.

Vol. 2 - I left my methods section in El Segundo

January 29, 2024

I love A Tribe Called Quest. But there isn't a lot of hip hop like that anymore. Whenever you hear these old school beats now, it is likely as part of a...

Vol. 1 - "Will we do the drawing again this year?"

January 22, 2024

I teach an introduction to data science for biology majors. The greatest challenge of this class is to help students build up an intuition about the many...

Vol. 0 - What is this all about?

January 15, 2024

After many years on social media and microblogging platforms, I am ready to reclaim a little more space for writing; starting a newsletter felt like less...