Field of Science

The Joys of Science

This is why soft skinned people should not be in science. In the last week I have had 2 papers rejected from top-tiered journals and of the 4 abstracts submitted from my laboratory to a national meeting, exactly 0 were chosen for oral presentations. Too bad I don't have a grant under review right now, I could go for the trifecta.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

But I thought if you where a "darwinist" the money, fame and POWER. Just came roling in. I mean Ben Stien would not lie, would he?

The Lorax said...

Well the Power and money does come rolling in, but being a liberal I am unable to save and invest so I waste all the money. We don't do fame, rather we like to exert our control of the universe from the shadows. Oh and the power comes from a mouse on an exercise wheel, so we can't waste it.

Anonymous said...

I really don't understand people's obsession with being selected for oral presentations. Being taken seriously by the field is nice but useful scientific discussion is at the poster session..

The Lorax said...

I really don't understand people's obsession with being selected for oral presentations. Being taken seriously by the field is nice but useful scientific discussion is at the poster session.

Agreed that useful discussion happens at the poster. However, here are some reasons why I do care:
1. the oral presentation gives you the entire audience (our meeting is not divided into sub-sections), thus at the bar, during posters, etc. everyone knows who you are and will engage you in discussion. This includes people who may not have been interested in your abstract per say and were not coming to your poster.
2. Its good advertising for my laboratory, if I (or one of mine) gives a good talk, it is good advertising to recruit good post-docs, which is tough to do in the Midwest, to give favorable impressions to likely grant reviewers, to get invitations to give seminars, etc. All of these things are important for tenure and promotion decisions since you need outside letters.
3. Its good for my laboratory members, pads the CV, and more importantly advertises them to top labs in pursuit of post-doc positions or faculty positions.

There's 3 easy answers to why I am obsessed with oral presentations. But I agree the quality of the science is not affected by oral-poster presentations nor the potential to establish collaborations.