Thoughts for life

The following quote was published in a book by Gwen Moffat 35 years ago (and I can really recommend it if you come across any of her work) all about life in Snowdonia, working as a mountain guide and core values for conserving the environment. See what you think:

"Whether or not their education has been academic and conscious or a wider absorption of basic principles, or both, more and more young people are realising that the old concept of happiness acquired through material possessions is false, that happiness is at least part spiritual, that physical shouldn't be confused with material nor sensual with sexual - and they know that work can be fun" !

Survival Count - Gwen Moffat, Victor Gollancz Ltd, London 1972

Timeless prose, equally applicable now, as it was then. Hopefully we have made some progress towards the realisation that we can't just exploit the earth without understanding the consequences.

Jellyfish have a God!

Once in a while something comes along to relieve the mental mathematical breakdown of trying to work out how someone else achieved the listed values for gelatinous biomass when they fail to put in all the data sources or raw data.  This morning the relief was in the form of a quote from an otherwise fruitless search in a journal article:

"The abundance and biomass of M. leidyi started to decrease as a result of B. ovata praying;"
(in this case M. leidyi and B. ovata are not characters from the local WI meeting, but species of jellyfish thought to inhabit the Caspian Sea)

So apparently jellyfish pray to the gods and their prayers are answered!
Have a good day :)

Shiganova (2003) Biology Bulletin 30: 180-190 if you are interested! - http://www.springerlink.com/content/vq2p3442w34j8400/

Cricket Tension - again

How can a man work when there is tension on the wires? The final day of the third test in Cape Town required England to survive for 90 overs without losing all seven wickets remaining. Shades of Cardiff, Australia and Summer 2009..
For much of the day England coped well and scored slowly without losing much ground. However towards the end my work suffered tremendously listening intently to TMS and watching the BBC live text for an alternate view.

Frankly an awful lot of emotion expended staring vacantly at a computer screen. I don't think however that I was the only one (quotes from the live text):

From Paul, Spain, TMS inbox: "There's a junction outside my flat. In the middle of it is a piece of metal attached to a pole, advising drivers where each road will take them. I think it could be a sign."

From Adam in Lancs, TMS inbox: "I don't know about Paul, but avidly following live text this afternoon is definitely lowering the standard of IT Support I'm currently providing."

"Any naysayers predicting the demise of Test cricket, eat humble pie. No one-day game can produce this level of tension. Mesmerising stuff."

"My boss has just told me I can go home. Never thought I would say this, but not a chance."

To quote my discussion with a friend through the last over:

Martin says:
*6 balls, one wicket...
*5
*"a seagull lands close and wonders what all the fuss is about" Aggers again
*4
*3
*2
*whoop whoop!
*Reviewing the penultimate ball, the commentary team think his missed the bouncer..
*NOT OUT :D:D:D
*One ball left
*hard work listening...
*WE WINNNNNNNN!!!! Onions does it again!!!
*Whooooopie!!!!!

Around the UK great scenes of joy... as England DREW the match! Some people will never understand the fascination of Cricket!
"And Onions has reduced the South Africans to tears... That would normally be too awful a joke to make but I am dancing round the office with my shirt over my head - my judgement has clearly been compromised!"
Cambridge Library: "Just leaped out of my seat in celebration, headphones all over the place, seat flung backwards, and looked straight into the eyes of a woman utterly bewildered. Doubt she expected this on Level 5 North Wing, home of Arabic literature."


What an afternoon!  Back to finishing that PhD....

Dependency and uncertainty

In this current economic climate many people are fearing for their jobs, looking at their future and wondering what is going to happen. For a scientist, unless you are very lucky, this is a regular thing. To have a three year contract is rare, and a permanent post almost unheard of unless you are a university lecturer.  In the later case this means a dependency on regular student contact and a movement away from the research which is probably the reason for originally getting into science.

As a researcher, as I have hinted, you are constantly looking to see where your next project will take you. A one year post-doctoral position will require the writing of grant proposals and making plans for the following year almost before you have started and certainly before you know what sort of results you are likely to get.  Add to that the difficulty now of securing funding that includes the overheads demanded by a university and you wonder why anyone goes into research at all. For the love of it...?

Currently I am trying to decide whether to continue in research, while also building all my skills and my CV up. Gaining sea experience is useful in the career I seem to have been developing, but that is heavily dependent on spaces being available on the ships. Science comes first in that respect and industry require the best people for the job. Bigger projects, such as posts gaining an input from fishermen into the current fish quotas and the science governing them, are at the whim of government agencies. If the government changes then the plug may be pulled on any recent policies of the opposition whether they were a good idea or not, because they were 'their' idea. As a scientist - how frustrating!!!  Ditto government funded national parks - funding secure until the next election, at which point who knows what will happen.

Joined up thinking requires joined up funding and commitments... maybe the public is content to live for tomorrow and cope with the consequences, rather than planning for change and pre-empting it? They shouldn't be!

Long time, no sea!

I appear not to have blogged for a while... all I can say is - You try writing a PhD (!).  It has been going all fine and dandy when I can work at my own pace, but the thought of having a true deadline or even a job to go to raises the stress levels tenfold and the social life goes to pot.  Here I am in the office on a Saturday afternoon while the sun is shining for only the second time in 52 days (correction, not raining for the second of 52 days, this is 'Swampea' after all!) trying to form some coherent sentences.  Well I shall get back to it again, but before I go may I recommend the video online of Megson's performance at Shrewsbury Folk Festival this year - memories, powerful lyrics, great music.  All I need to do now is go and buy their album(s) :D
Adios amigos xo

Inexplicable enjoyment

Just when you thought you had seen everything... a piece of footage on the BBC website makes you think again. This short video shows dolphins in North Wales clearly flicking jellyfish into the air.  These jellies (est 40cm+ diameter and weighing in excess of 10kg) are common in the area, don't sting and certainly don't compete with the dolphins for food, so why do it? My only explanation is for sheer pleasure.  Oh to be a dolphin....

Solitude

At moments like this one at Rhossili the other week I really empathise with these surfers.  Peace, space, solitude and a sense of sharing with any companions.  Does everyone need a time like this or is it just me?  I think this is what draws me to the hills, to sea and to islands. To have a chance of being at one with nature - Bliss.