What’s the best way to get the conversation going about graduation dates with your PI?

- Henry, grad student

.

.

Dear Henry,

Thank you for asking this very relevant question. Many students are under the impression that they need to have reached certain milestones before they can have the “talk” (i.e. when to graduate) with their PI. In fact, it’s never too early to start that conversation. A friend of mine received graduate school funding for four years. So, on his first day he sat down with his supervisor to discuss how to design a PhD-level project that could be completed in four years. He met periodically with his PI to make sure he was on track and he did actually graduate in four years, even though the average for his group was around six years.

No matter how early (or late) you are in your program, it can only be to your advantage to be proactive regarding your plans for graduation. Before you meet with your PI read previous theses from your department to get an idea of the scope of a doctoral dissertation. Then design a study plan with specific research questions that you would like to answer, and discuss with your PI whether he or she agrees with your plan. If you are expected to publish, then this would be a good time to go over the manuscripts you are planning to write. It is also a great opportunity to talk to your PI about techniques or instruments you would like to learn about before you graduate. (It’s never too early to think about marketable job skills!)

Since research frequently takes unexpected turns, you will probably need to meet regularly with your PI to make sure you are staying on track. One of the biggest mistakes students make is to “hide” from the PI when their research is not going well. Remember to reach out for help when you are stuck, because it is in your PI’s interest that you succeed and publish.

In summary, the sooner you can talk with your PI and the better prepared you are for the meeting, the better!

.

Dora Farkas, Ph.D. is the author “The Smart Way to Your Ph.D.:200 Secrets from 100 Graduates,” and the founder of PhDNet, an online community for graduate students and PhDs. You will find links to her book, monthly newsletters, and discussion board on her site. Send your questions to DearDora@benchfly.com and keep an eye out for them in an upcoming issue!

.

.

Stay tuned for Dora’s next article in two weeks!  In the meantime, check a few of Dora’s recent posts:

My Boss’ Spouse: A Spy or Civilian in Lab?

Bullying in the Lab: Are PIs Guilty

What Came First: The Grad Student or the PI?

Problems Communicating Science to Family? It’s Not Them, It’s You

How to Address the Funky-Smelling Lunch Problem

Does a Fellowship Yield Scientific Independence or Does the Boss Rule?

The Arrogant Labmate: Face ‘Em or Forget ‘Em

Is Grad School or Postdoc Success More Important for My Career?

Can We Skip the GRE Subject Test If It’s Too Expensive?

The Ethics of Mooching

Stuck Sharing a Project with a Lazy Labmate?

Repetitive Strain Injury: The Hidden Lab Hazard

Take My Figure Off Your Poster…Or Else.

How to Tell on Someone Like an Adult

Who Opened the Thiols? Oh- That’s Your Breath?!

Reviewing Papers from Your Past: Is It Legal?

Is It 2-Hour or 2-Week Notice? Telling the Boss You’re Leaving

.

.

Submit your questions to Dora at DearDora@benchfly.com, or use the comment box below!

.

.

MAGNETIC SOAP!

If you drop that soap, all you’d need is a secret magnet and whoooosh! You wouldn’t have to bend over to pick it up!! Amazing, right?

Now, while researchers at Bristol University (my alma mater) are claiming that they developed their magnetic soap to deal with oil spills, my guess is that they are already selling the stuff on the black market. I could be wrong, though, so I will continue telling you about the soap as if they were solely concerned with conservation.

Julian Eastoe’s lab has been working on ways to control the activity of soaps for some time; in particular he has focused on finding ways to selectively destroy them. But a new soap developed in his lab, made by dissolving iron in ______- or ______-based soaps found in commercial detergents, allows for the selective removal of soap/oil mixtures from an aqueous environment.

The use of soaps in oil-spill cleanup is generally frowned upon. Despite the ability of surfactants to disrupt slicks, soap is itself damaging to the environment. It’s kind of analogous to using a predatory animal to wipe out a problematic invasive species. You end up with twice the problem you had in the first place, with the predator munching on native as well as invasive species. But what if the predator could be easily removed after eating a bunch of undesirables?

Seems like an idea that should’ve been figured out years ago, right? After all, we’ve known about magnetism and detergents and the behavior of metal ions in the vicinity of chlorides and bromides. The problem lies in the fact that soaps and oils interact to form little balls called micelles. Micelles are organized so that the parts of the fats and soaps that can happily hang out with water molecules face outwards (the hydrophilic bits) and the less cooperative (more hydrophobic) parts are contained within the ball. The detergent molecules and the oil molecules are able to move around within the micelle, which means that by applying a magnetic field you might expect the magnetic soap to leave the micelle, leaving behind a droplet of pure oil.

Now, as you know, I am a biologist, so I’m going to leave the physics of this next part for you to read in the paper if you are so inclined, but here’s my best attempt: The way I picture it is that these new micelles are super-tiny, and therefore when the magnetic field is applied the detergent molecules are not selectively ripped out. They are also stable enough that they can be pulled through an aqueous solution despite opposing water tension, thus making this magnetic soap and ideal substance for oil-spill cleaning operations. Makes sense to me anyway.

But you know what makes more sense? Manufacturing an actual bar of magnetic soap. Seriously, Brown et al. If you really haven’t thought of this yet, you could make some serious mullah if you did. Just sayin’.

.

Katie Pratt is a graduate student in Molecular Biology at Brown University. She has a passion for science communication, and in an attempt to bring hardcore biology and medicine to everyone, she blogs jargon-free at www.katiephd.com. Follow her escapades in the lab and online on Twitter.

.

Be the first one to mind the gap by filling in the blank as a comment and get your name in the blog along with a sweet new BenchFly mug!

About the prize: In addition to fame and glory beyond their wildest dreams, winners receive our new hot-off-the-presses large (15 oz) BenchFly mug to help quench their unending thirst for scientific knowledge… or coffee.

.

Miss a previous edition of Mind the Gap? Shame on you! Don’t worry – we’ve got you covered:

New Year’s Lab-olutions

A Social Network for Food: Why Won’t Vanilla Friend Garlic?

I’d Rather Die Fat and Young than Old and Skinny

Look Into My Wide, Vacant, Eyes

I’m Just Mad About Saffron

Sweet Relief: How Sugar May Help Reverse Climate Change

Laughter Really is the Best Medicine

All Work and No Play Makes Katie RSI Prone

Sexual Identity and Autocrine Stimulation: Oh, To Be Teenage Yeast

On Wine, Sunburns and the Tendency of Headlines to Mislead

Which Came First: The Opossum or the Snake?

Pigeons Know a Crazy Woman When they See One

To Boldly Go Where No Worm Has Gone Before

Another One Bites the Dust: Rinderpest Eradicated

Scientists Just Wanna Have Fun (Like Uncaged Monkeys)

Mosquitoes Eating You Alive? Cheesy Feet Could be the Problem

.

.

“Agent Zero?!” You whisper, leaning over to a labmate sitting next to you.

“What are you talking about? He said ‘Dr. McIntyre’ – it’s his wife.”

“Then why does she keep turning her head and covertly talking into her shirt sleeve?”

“That’s called covering your mouth when you cough. By the way, take notes on that one.”

“Something’s going on here.”

“Yeah, you need to step away from the solvents before coming to group meeting.”

.

A lab is a complex ecosystem and a PI’s decision to hire their spouse can turn lab morale – and the PI’s marriage – on it’s head. Assuming, of course, it wasn’t already there. Of course, the PI-Spouse duo must make sure that personal issues are left at home and a professional environment is maintained in the lab. However, even in the absence of personal drama the impact on lab morale may be significant.

Married couples eventually morph into the same person – say something to one person and you’re essentially saying it to the other. In a lab where it’s hard to capture the PI’s attention for more than one hour per quarter, the spouse may represent a great opportunity to communicate indirectly with the boss. (“You know, Mark is really struggling with his project and could use a little guidance – you should talk to him.”)

The two-body problem is a serious one for scientific couples especially if one of them is pursuing the academic path. Jobs aren’t always found in cities with thriving academic or industrial communities, leaving the spouse with limited options. Yet, even with the best of intentions a PI’s motives will likely be questioned by lab members, resulting in an undercurrent of suspicion – as evidenced by biokid’s recent request for help from Dora. Although hard-working lab members should have nothing to fear about the PI knowing the details of their day, one can’t help feeling spied on. And the last thing we need is big brother timing our bathroom breaks.

So what do you think – should working with the PI’s spouse be considered an opportunity or a punishment?

.

.

.

Ever worked in a lab with a PI-Spouse combo?

.

.

My PIs wife just started working in the lab and it’s made things really awkward since everyone assumes she’s a spy for the boss. Is there anything we can do?

- biokid, graduate student

 .

.

Dear Biokid,

Husbands and wife teams are quite common in science (as well as other fields). In many cases the arrangement works well. It is understandably an awkward situation at first, but she is probably more preoccupied with her own workload than with others in the lab. My suggestion is to continue with business as usual and treat your PI’s wife as you would any other colleague.  If you need to speak about your boss to another student it is best to go out for coffee, rather than talk in the lab. However, if everyone is going out for lunch together, invite your PI’s wife too so she will feel included in the group.

.

Dora Farkas, Ph.D. is the author “The Smart Way to Your Ph.D.:200 Secrets from 100 Graduates,” and the founder of PhDNet, an online community for graduate students and PhDs. You will find links to her book, monthly newsletters, and discussion board on her site. Send your questions to DearDora@benchfly.com and keep an eye out for them in an upcoming issue!

.

.

Stay tuned for Dora’s next article in two weeks!  In the meantime, check a few of Dora’s recent posts:

Bullying in the Lab: Are PIs Guilty

What Came First: The Grad Student or the PI?

Problems Communicating Science to Family? It’s Not Them, It’s You

How to Address the Funky-Smelling Lunch Problem

Does a Fellowship Yield Scientific Independence or Does the Boss Rule?

The Arrogant Labmate: Face ‘Em or Forget ‘Em

Is Grad School or Postdoc Success More Important for My Career?

Can We Skip the GRE Subject Test If It’s Too Expensive?

The Ethics of Mooching

Stuck Sharing a Project with a Lazy Labmate?

Repetitive Strain Injury: The Hidden Lab Hazard

Take My Figure Off Your Poster…Or Else.

How to Tell on Someone Like an Adult

Who Opened the Thiols? Oh- That’s Your Breath?!

Reviewing Papers from Your Past: Is It Legal?

Is It 2-Hour or 2-Week Notice? Telling the Boss You’re Leaving

.

.

Submit your questions to Dora at DearDora@benchfly.com, or use the comment box below!

.

.

(click image for a closer view)

Thanks for making 2011 a great year! We’re going to step out of the lab for the next week to recharge our batteries and to prepare for a number of big announcements we have prepared for 2012! Have a happy holiday season and we’ll see you in the new year!

.

.

]]> http://www.benchfly.com/blog/happy-holidays-see-you-in-2012/feed/ 0 http://www.benchfly.com/blog/increase-your-lab-efficiency-and-make-henry-ford-proud/ http://www.benchfly.com/blog/increase-your-lab-efficiency-and-make-henry-ford-proud/#comments Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:44:02 +0000 Sean Seaver http://www.benchfly.com/blog/?p=11986 Becoming more efficient as a scientist is constant struggle. This post will touch upon a couple of methods to help increase productivity that only take a few minutes to setup, but can pay serious dividends – standardization and delegation.  While you may not find yourself in this exact situation, hopefully there is something you can take away.  If you have any tips, tricks or systems of your own you’d like to share feel free to leave a comment.

.

Step 1. Think about tasks that you repeat each week.  Next compile a list of the mundane tasks, which include items that do not involve any key decisions or creativity.

Step 2. Write protocols down in (agonizing) detail. For example, consider a common daily task such as putting away clean dishes. It may seem like it only takes a few minutes per day, but when optimizing for efficiency every minute counts. Many labs hire dishwashers to manage glassware and save time for the lab, but if the time saved not washing and putting away dishes is spent looking for randomly put away glassware, it would defeat the purpose of hiring help. However, by implementing a standard protocol the task becomes easy to repeat and predictable. Key to the process is that the instructions are written or officially documented so that anyone can step in and perform the job with the same quality and efficiency.

Step 3. Share the instructions with the lab. A great way to keep track of documentation is by creating a google site, which is a simple free webpage that can be password protected.  A google site doesn’t require any programming or web development background so it’s easy to get up and running.  A webpage saves time compared to digging through old notebooks, dissertations or tracking down people that left the lab years ago.

Step 4. Delegate. In the science world, let’s say you are trying to purify a novel protein. It may take weeks or months to work out the exact purification scheme, but eventually you’ll develop a consistent method for producing your desired results. And at that point, you should consider the opportunity to turn a labmate into a protein-purification machine. It may be scary at first, but if you’ve documented everything properly, you’ll find the fear will subside as high-quality protein appears regularly in your refrigerator.

.

To ensure a smooth transition when delegating, write out protocols with the most junior member of the lab in mind – could they take your instructions and perform the purification properly? I will often write out calculations so that only weighing out the substance is needed.  Although writing out minute details takes time, in the long run it reduces questions and errors.  Most of the information should already be in your lab notebook anyway, so it will be less painful than you think.

We all start off in lab as novices, but as we attempt to learn and gain experience, it’s nice to be given clear instructions. Standardized documentation not only increases quality and consistency, it provides an opportunity to offload some of the tasks that become routine as we develop as scientists.

Sean Seaver is the Founder of the start up called P212121 that brings together the best deals on research chemicals and supplies. In his miniscule spare time, he enjoys reading and swimming.

.

Have any tips for making daily labwork more efficient?

.

.

Dear Dora,

With all of the talk about kids getting bullied in school these days, do you think the way some PIs treat their students would be characterized as bullying?

-Den, postdoc

 .

.

.

Dear Den,

The answer is, unfortunately, yes. But that does not mean that graduate students have no say in how they are being treated by their supervisors. One of my favorite quotes is from Eleanor Roosevelt, former first lady:

“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”

In other words, stand up for yourself, and don’t let others bully you.  There are several ways PI’s can make the lives of their students tough. For example:

(1)  Micromanaging. Some PI’s check up on their students daily, even multiple times a day. One graduate student was called by her PI on her home number in the evenings and verbally attacked for not running certain experiments. She finally stood up for herself and set boundaries such as no calls on her home number, and no verbal abuse. Her PI agreed, and she was able to concentrate on her work better.

(2)  Hostile-aggressive. Some PI’s are routinely raise their voice, use strong language, or try to put a guilt trip on you. e.g. “By not using proper technique, you contaminated your cells and now they have a fungus infection. We have to clean out the entire incubator including the cells of the other people. I don’t know how you can sleep at night knowing you ruined everyone else’s work.” This is a real quote that was told to a 1^st year graduate student. Moved nearly to tears, she apologized to the other students who used the incubator. It turned that that, while there were cells in the incubator, none of them were valuable, so there was no reason the student should not be able to sleep.( Those of you who work with cells know that it is hard to pinpoint who contaminated the incubator in the first place)

Standing up to your PI can be intimidating, especially is he or she is very senior. But there are respectful ways of explaining to your PI what your needs are. A rule of thumb is to suggest solutions rather than attack someone. Instead of “You called me really late last night, and I really don’t like that” say “It would work better if we discussed experiments during work hours in person, because then I could explain to you in more detail what I am doing.” or “I understand that you are upset by the fungus infection in the incubator. I cleaned it out and spoke with everyone who uses it to make sure we all follow protocol. Fortunately, no significant work was lost.”

When your PI sees that you are confident and are addressing the situation, he/she will treat you with more respect too.

.

Dora Farkas, Ph.D. is the author “The Smart Way to Your Ph.D.:200 Secrets from 100 Graduates,” and the founder of PhDNet, an online community for graduate students and PhDs. You will find links to her book, monthly newsletters, and discussion board on her site. Send your questions to DearDora@benchfly.com and keep an eye out for them in an upcoming issue!

.

.

Stay tuned for Dora’s next article in two weeks!  In the meantime, check a few of Dora’s recent posts:

What Came First: The Grad Student or the PI?

Problems Communicating Science to Family? It’s Not Them, It’s You

How to Address the Funky-Smelling Lunch Problem

Does a Fellowship Yield Scientific Independence or Does the Boss Rule?

The Arrogant Labmate: Face ‘Em or Forget ‘Em

Is Grad School or Postdoc Success More Important for My Career?

Can We Skip the GRE Subject Test If It’s Too Expensive?

The Ethics of Mooching

Stuck Sharing a Project with a Lazy Labmate?

Repetitive Strain Injury: The Hidden Lab Hazard

Take My Figure Off Your Poster…Or Else.

How to Tell on Someone Like an Adult

Who Opened the Thiols? Oh- That’s Your Breath?!

Reviewing Papers from Your Past: Is It Legal?

Is It 2-Hour or 2-Week Notice? Telling the Boss You’re Leaving

.

.

Submit your questions to Dora at DearDora@benchfly.com, or use the comment box below!

.

.

Tales of my culinary incompetence aside, what’s an amateur cook to do when she finds herself without a critical ingredient? Fear not, science to the rescue!

Information technology experts at the University of Michigan and Northeastern University decided to analyze the almost 50,000 recipes on allrecipes.com and asked a couple of key questions. First, why do we cook things at all? Evolutionary biologists have long noted the relationship between our eating habits and the size of our brains in comparison to other apes, suggesting that one likely influenced the other. Teng, Lin, and Adamic looked at the rating system in place on the website and found that recipes that involved cooking were rated higher than those that just involved mixing together a couple of ingredients, playing into the idea that the relative ease of digestion attracts us to processed versus raw foods. They also found that the carbohydrate component of any given recipe was more influential on a rating than other dietary components, implying an intrinsic critical assessment of the high-energy food that we eat.

The authors also compiled a network of the types of foods that complement one another:

Not surprisingly the ingredients clustered nicely into savory versus sweet, and, as I have highlighted, there was a cocktail cluster at around 1 o’clock relative to the desserts. That seems like a good time for a cocktail cluster.

But my favorite part of the analysis was the substitution network. By comparing recipes for similar dishes that contained significantly different ingredients the authors were able to construct networks of interchangeable flavors. For example, if you forgot to get cinnamon at the store but by some quirk of fate you have nutmeg, allspice, or cardamom, then you’re all set. A seemingly bizarre example of these kinds of relationships was the finding that baking powder can frequently be substituted with cream of tartar, but a quick Google search re-affirmed my belief that I may not belong in the kitchen, as I had confused it with tartar sauce.

Hopefully in the near future these data will become accessible and usable to all of us in the form of a searchable website. But until then we will have to rely on the traditional method of substitution by trial and error, and understanding that tartar sauce does not belong in a cupcake.

P.S. My cupcakes weren’t bad once frosted, although my oven is apparently running a little hot. That’s my excuse anyway.

.

Katie Pratt is a graduate student in Molecular Biology at Brown University. She has a passion for science communication, and in an attempt to bring hardcore biology and medicine to everyone, she blogs jargon-free at www.katiephd.com. Follow her escapades in the lab and online on Twitter.

.

.

Be the first one to mind the gap by filling in the blank as a comment and get your name in the blog along with a sweet new BenchFly mug!

Update: Congratulations to Leonardo – winner of this week’s Mind the Gap!

About the winner: Leonardo is a Herpetologist in search of tadpoles, books and the meaning of “Life, universe and everything else”… Currently trying to survive his master’s in a tropical location with too few trees. You can follow him on Twitter @Leoged.

.

About the prize: In addition to fame and glory beyond their wildest dreams, winners receive our new hot-off-the-presses large (15 oz) BenchFly mug to help quench their unending thirst for scientific knowledge… or coffee.

.

Miss a previous edition of Mind the Gap? Shame on you! Don’t worry – we’ve got you covered:

I’d Rather Die Fat and Young than Old and Skinny

Look Into My Wide, Vacant, Eyes

I’m Just Mad About Saffron

Sweet Relief: How Sugar May Help Reverse Climate Change

Laughter Really is the Best Medicine

All Work and No Play Makes Katie RSI Prone

Sexual Identity and Autocrine Stimulation: Oh, To Be Teenage Yeast

On Wine, Sunburns and the Tendency of Headlines to Mislead

Which Came First: The Opossum or the Snake?

Pigeons Know a Crazy Woman When they See One

To Boldly Go Where No Worm Has Gone Before

Another One Bites the Dust: Rinderpest Eradicated

Scientists Just Wanna Have Fun (Like Uncaged Monkeys)

Mosquitoes Eating You Alive? Cheesy Feet Could be the Problem

.

.

.

I was wondering if you could settle an argument for me – what came first: the grad student or the PI?

-EJ, grad student

.

.

Dear EJ,

That’s an easy one! The PI, of course. Many young professors start their academic careers with no graduate students. In addition to teaching and writing grants, they perform experiments and analyze their own data. With the tough funding environment these days many (even not so young) professors have no students and have to be the PI and the grad student at the same time.

PI is actually a generic term, which is also used in industry for the lead scientist in a project, even though there are no graduate students involved.

.

Dora Farkas, Ph.D. is the author “The Smart Way to Your Ph.D.:200 Secrets from 100 Graduates,” and the founder of PhDNet, an online community for graduate students and PhDs. You will find links to her book, monthly newsletters, and discussion board on her site. Send your questions to DearDora@benchfly.com and keep an eye out for them in an upcoming issue!

.

.

Stay tuned for Dora’s next article in two weeks!  In the meantime, check a few of Dora’s recent posts:

Problems Communicating Science to Family? It’s Not Them, It’s You

How to Address the Funky-Smelling Lunch Problem

Does a Fellowship Yield Scientific Independence or Does the Boss Rule?

The Arrogant Labmate: Face ‘Em or Forget ‘Em

Is Grad School or Postdoc Success More Important for My Career?

Can We Skip the GRE Subject Test If It’s Too Expensive?

The Ethics of Mooching

Stuck Sharing a Project with a Lazy Labmate?

Repetitive Strain Injury: The Hidden Lab Hazard

Take My Figure Off Your Poster…Or Else.

How to Tell on Someone Like an Adult

Who Opened the Thiols? Oh- That’s Your Breath?!

Reviewing Papers from Your Past: Is It Legal?

Is It 2-Hour or 2-Week Notice? Telling the Boss You’re Leaving

.

.

Submit your questions to Dora at DearDora@benchfly.com, or use the comment box below!

.

.

.

.

.

The New York Times is one of the few, if only, newspapers I follow on Twitter for science articles. Their website is… crowded, but at least they’ve made room for both “Science” and “Technology” on the left navigation, as well as separate boxes lower on the page that list the most recent few articles. The Science section itself appears to have two sub-sections: “Environment” and “Space and Cosmos”. I’m not sure why those are the two grand areas. As I would expect, the Science section is pretty good. They have articles on big science news like the repeat of the faster-than-light neutrinos experiment, opinion pieces, some investigative/feature pieces, and blog posts. I could easily spend a lot of time here and probably learn a lot.

_________________________

In contrast to the Times, the Post doesn’t have a science section anywhere on the home page. There is however an editor’s choice section that includes articles about the Mars mission, and the faster than light neutrinos. Unfortunately, technology ends up bundled in “Business and Technology.” I guess with the Post you have to hope science news is important enough to show up featured under a different category.

_________________________

There is again, no mention of science on the homepage- not even featured articles. There is a Tech section, within which is a “Science and Space” sub-section. I’m not sure what to make of the title “Science and Space”- are they somehow mutually exclusive? But, once you find your way to that sub-section there are a bunch of articles on space and the environment. I can’t tell if these articles are published by the paper, or pulled from their different blogs or “communities”.

_________________________

As you roll over the LA Times top navigation bar there is a “Science and Environment” section under “US”. I’m again confused by the unity of “Science and something” but also by how it falls under “US”. The section itself is odd. The top four articles were on the head of the Sierra Club stepping down, the FDA pulling a drug from market, feral cats in south LA, and a fire outside Reno. Going down to “More on Science and the Environment” has stories on a dog beach in Santa Monica, the safety of hybrid cars, the acquisition of forestlands by the University of California, and the desire of the US to increase gas mileage. What?!

_________________________

I was going by distribution numbers, but it became quickly apparent it wasn’t fair to pick a tabloid like “The Sun” to represent the UK. So I went with The Times instead. The Times also has a top bar that when you roll over “News” sections appear including one for Science. Unfortunately, clicking on anything brings up a pay wall. Ugh, England, you’re killing me here!

_________________________

The Times of India has a double row top navigation with one option being “Science”. When you go to that section, embarrassingly for the US, the first story is “For US House, pizza a vegetable.” (Maybe it was good I didn’t see the British commentary on “science” in the US!) Besides that, there seem to be an odd combination of blog posts and articles listed, with no apparent demarcation between the two types. Some are very colloquial, while others delve into new discoveries. Despite the apparent equal footing reporting and blogging get here, I’ll give the Times of India extra points (if I was giving points anyways) for building appropriate skepticism into the teaser text. Phrases like “fiercely contested” and “claim scientists”. They even use the word “discovered” in quotes as if they don’t even believe it!

In summary, it doesn’t appear as though most big name newspapers place science news more prominently on their websites than the TV networks. The notable exception is the New York Times, and potentially the Times of India- although I’m still not sure about the consistency of their quality. The real question though is, are news outlets burying science news because the public doesn’t care, or does the public not care because the science news is buried? Or is it a vicious cycle combining both?

.

.

Nick Fahrenkopf is a Ph.D. candidate studying nanobiosciences- applying physics and engineering concepts and techniques to biological and medical problems. Outside of his research he enjoys curling, and resists the urge to dig too far into the science behind it. Always skeptical, he enjoys debunking email chains and digging deeper into popular science articles and blog posts. Follow his most random thoughts on science on Twitter.

.

.

Need to catch up with other recent Sensational Science headlines?

Sensational Science in the Popular Press: Can Anyone Get it Right?

Potatoes Kill Cancer With Electrons from Fukushima? Suspicious Indeed.

How to Spot Sensational Headlines (Hint: They’re Everywhere)

Memory Expansion and the Purpose of Happiness

Why It’s a Great Time to Be in Science

The Death of Bin Laden and Space Medicine?

Army Origami to Space Infections

Scientists Make Computers with Gold and DNA

Researchers Link Processed Foods to Lower IQ in Kids

Science Proves Keeping a Diary Makes You Smarter

Facebook Stalking can Actually Kill You

Alcohol More Harmful than Heroin

Mexican Beer Dermatitis: Booze Plus Lime can Cause Nasty Rash

.

.

Spotted any sensational science headlines recently?

.

.