not obsolete yet

In the grand march of technology (i-pods for compasses!) some items are bound to be left behind as the next big technology takes root. But are they really replaced?

I haven’t done a themed week since last year, so here’s another: do you have any items/equipment that have fallen out of favor but which are still essential?

I’m a big contrarian, so I have a few that I’ll describe in the next few days, but do my readers have any favorites? Maybe you’ll mention some of mine…

job search juggling

I'm still catching up on my blog reading, so this is a late response to Brazen Hussy's post about the disappointing result of her job search.

Brazen Hussy had a pretty epic job search that ended in...not a new job. I've been keeping the details quiet, but as I implied here, I've spent a chunk of this year trying to move in a different direction for my career. And I've had about as much luck as Brazen Hussy.

It is so hard trying to do job searches and go on interviews when you're spending all your working time either in the field or in frantic preparations for more fieldwork. Hell, it's hard enough trying to fit in dentist appointments.

journal club?

In her recent discussion of journal clubs, FSP mentions that she considers the process of dissecting a paper (not necessarily in a savage or overly negative way) to be a critical skill.

My department in grad school didn't have a journal club. Neither did my undergrad geology department. I wish they did, though. Although I read my fair share of papers and I did have a number of scientific writing assignments, I still had a lot of trouble when it was time to write my own paper because I was stymied by the mechanics of structuring it and squashing it into the page requirements. And this with an undergraduate department that was heavily focused on scientific writing.

Are journal clubs common in geology departments? They certainly seem like a good idea especially for grad students, who may be reasonably anticipated to write scientific papers for an outside audience.

blog hiatus

Sorry for the silence - I've either been working outrageous hours or have not been in a position, internet-wise, where I was comfortable posting. I'm not sure when the situation will change, but I may be able to pick up blogging more regularly starting next week.

Incidentally, I am very glad that I have moderated comments set up. Otherwise, you would be hearing a lot more about knock-off purses, porn sites, and Russian....something or other.

caught on tape

FSP has a recent post up about video recordings of conference or workshop talks.

I've given about a dozen talks at various conferences and was not recorded in any official capacity. I suppose someone could have aimed a webcam at me. I'm still involved with that instructing gig I mentioned ages ago, but that has never been recorded.

Would I mind if one if my talks/lectures were recorded? No, not really. I would rather not have that knowledge sprung on me at the last minute, because I would probably panic about the state of my hair/clothing/whatever. At the same time, I'm not sure I would want to watch the result. I hate how I sound on voicemail (although I hate leaving messages, so hopefully I don't sound that silly normally), and I can only imagine how much I could fixate on my various mistakes.

I was lucky in that I had some brutally honest friends in grad school ("you really like the word 'um', don't you?") and I think they broke me of most of my verbal tics. I don't think an video of me would be traumatic to watch. But ask me again after I see a video of myself...

accretionary wedge

This month's accretionary wedge is a geo-image bonanza. So here's mine...not a terribly technical picture, but rather a pretty one - a satellite image of Mount St. Helens from the archives of the big picture.
Mt. Saint Helens erupted May 18, 1980 - a wee bit shy of 30 years ago. National Geographic has a terrific article about how the wildlife around the area has rebounded, but it still looks pretty barren in this picture.

clothing payment

In environmental consulting, most of the gear is paid for by the company: the equipment, the supplies, the use of a vehicle for fieldwork (or reimbursement for using your own - my least favorite option). The use of specific safety gear is also included, such as steel-toe boots.

When it comes to more personal stuff, however, who pays for it? I realize that boots are about as personal as you can get (nobody wants to share your nasty, broken in boots, whereas jackets are more interchangeable), but they're covered by regulations. But what about other clothing?

Raingear: in the various places I've worked, I have not actually requested a rain jacket/pants etc. But I know coworkers who requested (and got) raingear. Was I just a chump for buying my own stuff?

There are 2 advantages to buying stuff on your own: first, you can get what you actually want, rather than, say, using the common drilling company method of buying everybody $6 rain suits that rip the day you open them (if not the hour). Second, if you buy the stuff on your own, you can use it for non-work related activities and not get hounded by management to return it on weekends and such (true story).

General field clothing: I don't know anyone who has tried to expense clothing. However, after an unfortunate project involving corrosive chemicals and the destruction of two outfits (significantly more than little acid spots), I was seriously tempted to charge my employer the replacement cost of my $75, hard-won field pants.