# Any ScienceDopers about? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 28, 2001, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768 "2001-03-28T02:13:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Verrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/46a35a/32.png) [@Verrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Verrain)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/1 "2001-03-28T02:13:47Z")
Greetings all. I am a graduate student in molecular biology going for my PhD. I am currently researching DNA damage pathways and accordingly stare at many tiny dots in a microscope and little purple lines on membranes. Anyway, I was curious to see how many like minded and careered people were about, in case I wanted to bounce ideas around or complain about my day without needing to define it frist. šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/2 "2001-03-28T03:20:16Z")
Weā€™re around. Iā€™m in just about the same boat - Iā€™ll be applying for grad school soon. **edwino** often fills my question-bouncing needs, since he can often be found in chat. There are others as well. Welcome. You will never escape. ---
**Author:** ![Tyklfe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3e96dc/32.png) [@Tyklfe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tyklfe)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/3 "2001-03-28T03:22:38Z")
Sorry, used to be a Physics major but, thank god, I switched to Telecommunications. ---
**Author:** ![Rasa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rasa/32/3578_2.png) [@Rasa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rasa)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/4 "2001-03-28T03:25:30Z")
Well, I have my degree in archaeologyā€¦ thatā€™s a science. Oh. Molecular biology you say? Hmm. Sorryā€¦ Iā€™m no help there. Anyhoo, welcome aboard! ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/5 "2001-03-28T03:46:10Z")
I am still an undergrad but am planning to go to grad school in (probably cell) biology. Iā€™ve been a proud bio nerd since about eleven, and have always wanted to do research. From one newbie to another - welcome! ---
**Author:** ![Verrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/46a35a/32.png) [@Verrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Verrain)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/6 "2001-03-28T03:56:12Z")
Smeghead: Good luck to you in seeking a school. If you need any advice on what to look for in a school et cetera, feel free to ask. Tyklfe: Probably a good career move, but I think its a shame I will never read of the Tyklfe Theorem. šŸ™‚ Rasa: Thanks for the welcome. Several of my best friends of archaeologists or anthropologists. If you want to me to feel at home, random phrases in dead languages would help. GilaB: Again thanks for the welcome, and good luck in your schooling. ---
**Author:** ![Cabbage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Cabbage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabbage)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/7 "2001-03-28T04:07:15Z")
Welcome aboard! Iā€™m in grad school working on a mathematics PhD, doing research in topology. And I spend too much time here. ---
**Author:** ![Peregrine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a6a055/32.png) [@Peregrine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peregrine)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/8 "2001-03-28T06:04:39Z")
I earned a BS in cellular biology years ago, but didnā€™t pursue a science career. I miss the academic world horribly, and am looking for ways to keep my education from rusting completely away. If you count me in, Iā€™ll try not to embarrass you. ---
**Author:** ![Verrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/46a35a/32.png) [@Verrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Verrain)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/9 "2001-03-28T13:24:26Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Peregrine \* > \*\*I earned a BS in cellular biology years ago, but didnā€™t pursue a science career. I miss the academic world horribly, and am looking for ways to keep my education from rusting completely away. If you count me in, Iā€™ll try not to embarrass you. \*\* No problems, there, Peregrine. Anyone named for a bird of prey is welcome in my book. šŸ™‚ And Cabbage, a PhD in Mathematics researching topology. How does that work exactly? Are you you trying to develop better equations to model the phenomenon? Please, my inquiring mind wants to know. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/10 "2001-03-28T13:31:15Z")
PhD Physics. Director of Applied Technology at my current job (which sounds more impressive than it is). Visiting Scientist at MIT. Iā€™ve had a variety of Optics-realted jobs, and every one of them has been different. But fun. ---
**Author:** ![edwino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@edwino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwino)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/11 "2001-03-28T15:30:10Z")
Indeed, as **Smeghead** mentioned. I am pursuing an MD/PhD. I completed 2 years of medical school (with half of one being in clinics full time), and am nearly finished my second year of graduate school in molecular and human genetics. I work on Developmental Neurogenetics in the _Drosophila_ eye. My first grad school rotation was with a bacterial DNA repair lab. I studied the recQ protein, Werner syndrome and Bloom syndrome proteins. Good stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Wolverine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba9def/32.png) [@Wolverine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolverine)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/12 "2001-03-28T16:17:40Z")
Undergrad in Biochemistry (graduating in December :)). Not going into research because I want to be a genetic counselor. Iā€™m more of a pseudo-scientist. ---
**Author:** ![Cabbage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Cabbage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabbage)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/13 "2001-03-28T17:04:31Z")
> [@](#): > > Are you you trying to develop better equations to model the phenomenon? No, Iā€™m not trying to model any phenomenon; itā€™s pure math so thereā€™s no modeling involved. Topology came from people trying to generalize the idea of _continuous_ functions that you encounter in calculus. What kinds of properties are preserved by continuous functions? Continuous functions can stretch or bend, but they canā€™t tear anything apart, so when youā€™re doing topology, youā€™re studying the properties of objects that donā€™t change if you bend or stretch them. So, for example, a circle is the same as a square is the same as a triangle (but not the same as a line segment, since you would have to tear a circle to make it a line segment), or, the classic example, a coffe mug is the same as a donut, since both have that single ā€œholeā€ through them (but not the same as a ball, since the ball has no such hole)ā€“the center of the donut, and the hole through the handle of the mug. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Bad\_Astronomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@The\_Bad\_Astronomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Bad_Astronomer)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/14 "2001-03-28T18:23:32Z")
There are lots of real live scientists here on the boards. Iā€™m an astronomer, _and_ I play one on TV! ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/15 "2001-03-28T18:59:10Z")
Geophysicist here, working in oil & gas exploration. Usual practice here is wishful thinking and lots of head scratching with science applied when we get desperate (Iā€™m sort of kidding). ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/16 "2001-03-28T21:22:49Z")
Iā€™m a graduate of the Barbizon School of Physics ā€“ their motto was ā€œBe a Physicistā€¦or Look Just Like One!ā€ ---
**Author:** ![mozchron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mozchron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mozchron)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2001, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/17 "2001-03-28T21:49:41Z")
3rd year PhD student, working on methods of genetic control for arthropod disease vectors (a mishmash of medical entomology, population biology and ecology, modeling, and molecular biology). I am really fun at partiesā€¦ šŸ™‚ MM ---
**Author:** ![Yossarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/9de0a6/32.png) [@Yossarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yossarian)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2001, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/18 "2001-03-29T01:31:30Z")
Geologist. Not one of those squiggly-line, I-look-at-numbers-not-rocks geophysical types like **beatle**. More specifically, an Igneous Petrologst interested in the trace element geochemistry of peralkalic volcanic rocks, hence the obscure and dull UserName that I donā€™t really like. (Although itā€™s still my fave rock.) 4th year (urp!) PhD student that WILL finish in 2001 whoā€™s working in exile away from his (future) alma mater as a part-time University Lecturer at his (past) alma mater and even-more-part-time industrial minerals and hydrogeologic (double urp!) consultant. Look for my exciting, exciting paper ā€œOrigin of a silica-oversaturated quartz trachyte-rhyolite suite through combined crustal melting, magma mixing, and fractional crystallization: the Leyva Canyon volcano, Trans-Pecos Magmatic Province, Texasā€ coming soon to an issue of the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research near YOU! (Hopefully by or before December, since it was accepted last December!) All I talk is shop, hence my extraordinarily low post count. ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2001, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/19 "2001-03-29T04:51:01Z")
> [@](#): > > Not one of those squiggly-line, I-look-at-numbers-not-rocks geophysical typesā€¦ Itā€™s funny, **Pantellerite** , just this evening we were discussing the differences. In school, on field trips you could knock off the geophysics students. We were always the smaller group that was back in camp an hour or so ahead of the rest because we werenā€™t trying to drag back 55 pounds of really cool doorstops (Hey, I got my data points, letā€™s check out the cooler). Today a wildcat my geologist and I drilled got down. Theyā€™ll trip the bit and condition the hole so ~1:00 AM heā€™ll get the call to start the couple or so hours drive down to the wellsite (just outside your hometown); about 3:30 or so heā€™ll start logging an almost 11,000ā€™ hole. Iā€™ll be snoozinā€™ ;). ---
**Author:** ![Ringo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/779978/32.png) [@Ringo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ringo)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2001, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768/20 "2001-03-29T05:23:52Z")
Note geophysicistā€™s excessive use of ā€œor so.ā€ The fact of the matter is, we can be wrong to four decimal places, and we know it. Engineers can be wrong to five, _but_ theyā€™re pretty damn sure theyā€™re right. And geologists are pretty much happy to be on trend. šŸ˜‰ [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-sciencedopers-about/59768.md?page=2)