In lieu of writing my own post today, I wanted to share some resources on breaking down systemic barriers in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math). This is #BlackBotanistsWeek on twitter. This is a great opportunity to find out about cool people studying plants. I love how this resources page for #shutdownstem breaks it down … Continue reading
In the past several weeks I’ve been reflecting a lot on racism and systemic racism. I’ve read Superior: The return of race science by Angela Saini and White Fragility: Why it’s so hard for white people to talk about racism by Robin Diangelo. I’ve added other books to my summer reading list as well. This … Continue reading
So yesterday I completed a sprint duathlon. Just for fun and on my own because we are still in the midst of social distancing due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In the morning I got up and had some Greek yogurt and fruit and then I went and did a 5 km run, 20 km bike, … Continue reading
When you’re used to clear water coming out of the tap it’s easy to make assumptions about how clean a water body is based on how clear it is. This means that most people assume that the North Saskatchewan River through Edmonton, Alberta, Canada is pretty dirty, particularly in the spring. The visible brown colour … Continue reading
Typically when I sit down to write my blog post each week I go looking for research that I find interesting or for answers to questions that I or others have (if you have questions feel free to send them my way). But, what I have realized is that, as a result, I rarely consider … Continue reading
A friend of mine had a disagreement with some colleagues at a pd session. My friend correctly asserted that when you put ice into a blender for a smoothie, the ice does not undergo a state change, except for some minor melting due to heat from friction. The ice will melt as the smoothie warms … Continue reading
I used to run a nature information line and in the spring we would have any number of people calling with concerns about “abandoned” baby animals. I didn’t mind the phone calls to be honest as it meant the person called before taking action. Generally the advice is the same, look for actual signs of … Continue reading
Typically, when I taught the characteristics of life I would mention that viruses mess with our understanding of life but wouldn’t go much further, it was outside the scope of the course. For obvious reasons — ie the current covid-19 pandemic– I’ve been thinking about the tiny little virus and its tenacity for life, wrapped … Continue reading
If you’re like me, you may have had a sudden change of venue for your workday. I’ve been working at home for about two weeks now, since the coronavirus pandemic has triggered the vacating of pretty much every public space around the world. Yesterday I gave in and accepted that this was a long term … Continue reading
I’m not willing to jump on some bandwagons. You won’t find me stockpiling toilet paper. I definitely won’t be buying a mask to wear which probably wouldn’t fit properly, would make me touch my face more, might give me a false sense of security as I rub my eyes after touching a door handle, and … Continue reading
