a blog by the NSF Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology
How can creative output at the nexus of art and science help with the much-needed efforts to promote diversity in science? In this post, I'm excited to tell you about one initiative I've been involved with, and highlight the amazing artists who have contributed their work to the project. Dr. Jeanita Pritchett next to her …
Continue reading "Artivism in Chemistry"
Last month, I went on a dream trip – a 9-day tour through Morocco. Morocco is a beautiful country at the cultural crossroads of Africa and the Middle East, with a touch of Europe (it was a French colony for much of the 20thCentury). We visited big cities like Casablanca, Fez, and Marrakech, but my …
Continue reading "Chemistry and Art in the Mountains of Morocco"
As a woman in science who has experienced significant success along with a few obvious gender-specific barriers during my career, I try hard not to view my professional world through the lens of gender bias. However, in honor of International Women’s Day today and Equal Pay Day approaching, it seems timely to write about an important issue …
I am a TED enthusiast. TED is an organization that describes itself as a “nonpartisan nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks.” Chances are you’ve seen a TED talk at some point – maybe Meg Jay's advice for 20-somethings or Bryan Stevenson’s talk about the issues in our criminal justice system? They …
Continue reading "Let’s Talk About Responsible Science Communication…"
There has been a recent upswing in promoting a “culture of safety” in academic chemistry departments and labs across the country.1,2 Industry labs have been heralding this as a much needed training element for chemistry students and are happily hiring graduates of the most progressive departments. It’s not as though chemistry departments didn’t care about …
One major type of output from university research labs is the publication of scientific results in scientific journals. When we write these papers, our target audience is not the general public; rather, we are writing for experts in our area to tell them what we've accomplished so that they can build on our work in …
Continue reading "Bright Nanoparticles + Glowing Bacteria = Beautiful, Useful Pictures"
Anyone who has watched CSI, Bones, or Breaking Bad on television has had the opportunity to see how chemistry can be important in solving (or committing) a crime. The popularity of forensics drama inspired scientists within our Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology to develop a set of outreach activities where middle school students can use chemistry …
Continue reading "The Mysterious Inspiration of Future Scientists"
Last week, we scientists from the Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, who usually use our weekly video conference calls to discuss science, spent time discussing the recently published book “Lean In” by Sheryl Sandberg. This is not standard reading for chemists; in fact, it’s written for business people, but I was inspired to read it because …
Continue reading "“Leaning In” — Scientists’ Thoughts on Gender Equity"
I love a good dystopian novel where technology has gotten out of hand and changed some futuristic society into a place none of us would want to live – think Brave New World, 1984, Cat’s Cradle, or Oryx and Crake. I think these fictional stories are great thought experiments, revealing the importance of science done …
Continue reading "To Label or Not To Label"
Sustainable Nano 