(1) Changes in schedule, spatial layout, or plans of any kind tend to cause mass confusion and anger, presumably because the talk that each individual intended to attend was/is so important to his/her life that he/she does not believe that others would neglect its importance by confusing him/her. I have been in very few crowds which respond so poorly to confusion. It's like you've stolen their luggage or lost their child if you mis-label a sign. This makes me wonder a lot about item number two:
(2) They show very little tolerance for ignorance. Social gatherings are wrought with phrases such as, "What do you mean you've never heard of a proteozome?!?" I sort of think that the more facts you accumulate, the more difficult it is for you to have organic, flexible thought processes.
(3) Dressing up for presentations is difficult for people who spend their time, primarily in the laboratory. Therefore, there is some sort of correlation between how strangely people dress and how much time they spend in the laboratory. Nude pantyhose, polyester, and ill-fit are some good hallmarks of someone who has been in a laboratory for more than 60 hours/week for more than a year or so. Time outside of the laboratory for social events and other life activities such as watching television appears to mediate this effect.
(4) Derogatory discussions of undergraduate students is a popular pasttime. In a talk about teaching, the following quote was heard, with regard to the fact that a survey suggested that students felt that the presenter's course was unlike his/her other courses, "Yeah, I bet it was." Now, as the recent nytimes article on sarcasm pointed out, without tone of voice, it's hard to translate this sentence. So, I'll try to add this information: There was a distinct drop in pitch, accompanied by a sort of growling/grunting sound associated with the "Yeah" and the rest was said sort of out of the corner of the speaker's mouth. This presentation was intended to help us all learn how to improve our teaching...
(5) The more important you are, the less you should be expected to refrain from taking phone calls during talks. Actually, there's some sort of delta(importance) factor that needs to be considered between speaker and phone-talker.
So, the up-side is that I saw two talks that inspired me [out of how-ever many half-hour talks fit into three days (so far)]. The down-side is that my advisor doesn't care about my work and I can't think of any good way to become the speakers who inspired me.
Wait, before I go, let me share the following conversation between myself and my advisor, that took place before I left for the meeting, while standing in his office doorway:
Me: Okay, well, if you don't want to see my poster again, I guess I'll call you when we get to Boston.
Him: SIGH I'm all poster-ed out.
Me: Do I have your cell phone number?
Him: Why?
Me: So that I can find you at the meeting?
Him: SIGH 678-
Me: Wait, let me get my phone.
Him: SIGH
Me: OK, 678...
Him: I won't be there for your poster.
Me: OK...
Him:
Me: I'll just see you there then...
1 comment:
I think scientists like acting so important because no one liked them in high school. That's why I do it anyway. I wonder if your adviser was a big nerd in gymnasium (German equivalent of high school), and he's been compensating ever since.
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