Friday Sprog Blogging: lizards on the rocks.

LizardGymDetail.jpg
Last weekend the weather got sunny and warm here, so the Free-Ride parental units decided it was appropriate to lead the Free-Ride offspring on a forced march along the creek.
Somehow, the sprogs didn’t get the memo that it was a forced march, since in the course of 2.5 hours neither of them complained at all. (What fun is that?)
Maybe they were distracted from their oppression by all the critters.

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A cool science and engineering challenge for curious kids.

Speaking of science fairs, if you know of kids (grades 5-12) in the San Francisco Bay Area who are looking for a challenge, this one might be of interest:

It is not too late to participate in this year’s Tech Challenge. The Tech Museum of Innovation’s 21st annual Tech Challenge is designed to get at the heart of innovation for young people and is geared to the California Math, Science and Language Arts standards. This year’s Tech Challenge focus is on the need for safe clean drinking water. One in five people in the world do not have regular access to safe drinking water. The challenge: design a simple device to move water from the stream up to the village. With no electricity available, the flow of the stream needs to power the water mover.

An intriguing problem, no? Here are the challenge details:

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Science fair judges needed.

For readers in the greater San Jose (California) region, I wanted to pass along a call for judges for the Synopsis Championship, scheduled to take place next Wednesday, March 12. Judges will be doing their thing from noon to 4:30 PM at the McEnery Convention Center in downtown San Jose. (Judges will be served a free lunch starting at 11:30, however.) Here are the details on the judging talent they’re looking for:

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Talking with kids about drugs.

Abel Pharmboy and Drugmonkey are having a conversation that I wish I could approach completely abstractly, about what parents ought to be telling their kids about drugs (whether legal or illegal) and their use. (Also, Page 3.14 has a reader’s poll about whether teens can be scared off illegal drugs. Poll results will be published in the ScienceBlogs Weekly Recap newsletter, for which you can sign up here.)
Of course, having two kids who are not yet teens but don’t seem to be getting any younger, the issue doesn’t feel abstract at all. The clock is ticking.
Here’s what is currently shaping my strategy:

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Should I be ABD before I have a baby? (and other questions about academic motherhood)

I recently received an email, prompted by my series about having a family and an academic career, asking for some input:

I am a mere first year in a Ph.D. program and am a bit older than the other students. I am wholeheartedly committed to the program I am also considering the seemingly traitorous act of having a baby.
Do you think it’s essential to wait until ABD status?

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A moment of navel-gazing about writing a science blog.

All the cool kids were doing this particular round of navelgazing yesterday and the day before, while I was either dreadfully ill and out of commission or somewhat better and working. (Today was also quite full of work stuff.) However, it’s not an unimportant set of questions, and possibly you’re curious about the answers, so let’s give it a go:
1. Why do you consider this blog a science blog?

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