Author: Ishaa Sivan // Editors: Erin Pallott & Helen Whitehead A few months ago, in May, I was walking through Hackney Wick, East London when I suddenly found myself surrounded by cheering spectators, handwritten signs, and even a few dachshunds brought out for the occasion. Only then did I realise that I had walked straight … Continue reading From Day Parties to 10Ks: Why Young People Are Choosing Run Clubs
Author: Precious Chiwara // Editors: Cherene de Bruyn & Sarah Charlin Klingberg My journey to pursue a PhD in palaeosciences, specifically archaeology, started in 2021 when I received the Human Evolution Research Institute (HERI) #Advancing Woman Award for black female students at the University of Cape Town in South Africa. This #Advancing Woman program was … Continue reading Thriving against all odds: Navigating a PhD as a black woman in palaeosciences
Author: Sarah Charlin Klingberg // Editors: Erin Pallott & Catarina Cruz “I used to be such an avid reader!” Maybe this resonates with you, given that I heard this from many of my peers and friends when I told them I started reading fiction again. Being an avid reader as a child and teenager, I … Continue reading A Chapter a Day Keeps the Doctor Away: Fact or Fiction?
Three realisations for coping with stress and anxiety when PhD plans go awry Author: Elan Shellard // Editors: Rashmi Danwaththa Liyanage & Oliver Hartley A PhD is a somewhat unique challenge in that, while some have a strong mentorship and supervisory team, you are essentially left to sink or swim on your own merit. For … Continue reading Probably Not the End of the World
Author: Erin Pallott // Editors: Nithya Eswaran & Vicky McIntyre I enjoy browsing social media under hashtags relating to my research fields. There are so many talented and dedicated scientists making science publicly accessible. However, tags like #parasite are being bombarded with something else entirely. Millions of posts across Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok are … Continue reading Selling the Disease to Sell the Cure: Parasite Cleanses of Social Media
Author: Rashmi Danwaththa Liyanage // Editor: Erin Pallott A Mother's Journey I woke up in the gloom and I could see some black and white pigeons huddled together on a neighbour’s roof embracing the warmth and serenity, a sheer contrast to my inner disarray. Just days after the Southport tragedy, and riots occurred a few … Continue reading Between Two Worlds: Understanding if discrimination and social identity causes psychosis among ethnic minorities in the UK
Author: Rojita Buddhacharya // Editors: Cherene de Bruyn & Emily Barrett Cover image by Binita Buddhacharya. If you imagine the Kathmandu Valley as a bowl, we live right at the centre, surrounded by hills and mountains. Standing at an altitude of 1,400 meters, Kathmandu’s residents are sometimes called “frogs in a well” – implying a limited worldview. … Continue reading Cosmic Curiosities: From the Moon to the Milky Way
Author: Nina Wycech // Editor: Luke Marshall How long did you sleep yesterday? Have you pulled an all-nighter or sacrificed sleep to study longer? As a neuroscientist interested in sleep, your answer might scare me. But at the same time, I know that the choice to sleep or to study is more complicated. It’s difficult … Continue reading Don’t forget to sleep: The key to exam success
Author: Nina Wycech // Editor: Poppy Dunn Notes: In the light of the Neurodivergency movement, many try to retire the medical view and call it Autism Spectrum Condition instead of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Many people prefer using person-first language (person with autism) when it comes to ASD. I consider Autism to be an undetachable … Continue reading Starting a postgraduate degree as an Autistic person
Author: Erin Pallott // Editors: Luke Marshall, Sophie Alshukri When I joined my PhD programme, I needed to figure out which lab I wanted to join. I got given lots of advice on what to ask other PhD and postdoc members, and a prominent suggestion was to find out what the lab environment is like. … Continue reading “I Don’t Want to Cause Trouble”: Acceptance of Bullying in Academia
