Now on ScienceBlogs: Open Lab: Time is Ticking!
The Egyptian goddess Isis was celebrated as the ideal wife and mother. The blogger known as Dr. Isis has some fancy-sounding degrees and is a physiologist at a major research university working on some terribly impressive stuff. She blogs about balancing her research career with the demands of raising small children, how to succeed as a woman in academia, and anything else she finds interesting. Also, she blogs about shoes. In fact, she blogs a lot about shoes.
...And behold, he raised the motherfucking Jameson on high as Isis bedecked her feet in glory, and the masses were sated. -- The Holy Gospel According to PhysioProf
Widget doesn't work?
Here's my giving page.
Thanks!
« Becca May Live Another Day... | Main | The Number One Rule »
Category: Ask Dr. Isis
Posted on: November 16, 2009 9:00 PM, by Isis the Scientist
I am sitting on a pile of Ask Dr. Isis letters that I swear are making me lose my faith in humanity. Why do none of you write to ask, "Why is my PI so awesome?"
So, in order to either confirm the forthcoming academic Apocalypse, or restore my faith in the world, I offer you this simple poll.
Enjoy.
Find more posts in: 
Education
Life Science
Share this: Facebook Twitter Stumbleupon Reddit Email + More
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://scienceblogs.com/mt/pings/124916
Comments
I am surprised you used only masculine pronouns to refer to PIs. Perhaps some of them are Goddesses, instead of Jesus.
Posted by: Associate Dean | November 16, 2009 9:26 PM
Yeah yeah yeah. If you weren't a dean and I had tenure, I'd tell you...
Posted by: Isis the Scientist | November 16, 2009 9:29 PM
When I was in grad school I thought my PI was the best ever. Still do. Now that I'm a PI, I'm hoping and dreaming to be half as good as he was.
Posted by: newPI | November 16, 2009 9:55 PM
I've got awesomeness X2! Although, to be fair, I do not think this when they both ask me to do something uber-priority at the same time.
Posted by: Dr.FabulousShoes | November 16, 2009 10:28 PM
I really like my PI... though "Jesus" may be a bit of a stretch - my academic savior?
He's great at giving all of his students enough attention without being overbearing. He is a great match in personality for me. And, he is a good motivator; he gets his students out in a reasonable amount of time with lots of publications. I'm really glad I chose to work with him. Oh - and I'm a 2nd year PhD student. Plus, all of his projects are on hot science! I would be happy doing any of the research he has grants for =]
Posted by: HennaHonu | November 16, 2009 10:33 PM
All my PIs have been basically saints. Except one, and she was just really not cut out for dealing with people. But before grad school, in grad school and now? Yeah, awesomeness start to finish.
I apologize if I'm vacuuming up all the good ones.
Posted by: ginger | November 16, 2009 10:35 PM
This is something I'm wrestling with on a daily basis. As I said in my vote, I like my advisor and I love the science. He's a dynamic person who brings in money and knows everyone in the field. A reference from him will get me places in life.
The problem is that he's overextended and one of the worst managers I've ever had. He's afraid of micromanaging us so he doesn't manage us at all. It's worked for him in the past because most of his students are self-motivated and driven. It's blowing up in his face now because of one student who is a living example of why not everyone should be in grad school. The sucky part is that because he's overextended, he's rarely in the office so whenever this student effs up (which is a couple of times a week), his other students are stuck dealing with it and he just gets a condensed report later.
I like him and feel grateful to have him as my mentor but I want him to be a better manager. I feel like one of those kids who acts out at school because I have no boundaries at home.
Posted by: a. | November 16, 2009 10:36 PM
I'm starting to get my advisor and my project mixed up in my mind. My project has become pretty meh, and I'm ready to finish as soon as it cooperates. I only need 2 more datasets and then I can finish up writing. My advisor isn't Jesus though since only half the time does the signal miraculously appear as soon as her half blessed fingers touch the optics table. Unfortunately, today was not one of those days, which makes it another very long day.
Posted by: Stevo | November 16, 2009 10:49 PM
Voted "other" because my PI is a lady. And I like her, but I'm not sure if she'd appreciate being called "Jesus."
Posted by: Laura | November 16, 2009 10:56 PM
My PI is far from perfect. Still, I choose the first option. Anyone that puts up with me has the patience of an angel, not a mere saint.
Posted by: becca | November 16, 2009 10:59 PM
Funny you should ask this..my labmate and I just got done discussing this very thing. I voted the cockweaseldouchmonkey route..although that's a bit of an exaggeration - I don't hate my PI and don't think he's actually a cockweaseldouchmonkey, but I wish he'd just pay attention once in a while to what is actually going on in the lab. We could do super hot science if we actually had some sort of guidance instead of the manic, often rude, ever-changing, over-extended scraps that he throws from time to time. Seriously, I'm beginning to feel like a glorified tech..blargh
Posted by: a_nony_mouse | November 16, 2009 11:01 PM
No longer in science but when I was I didn't like my PI. The only real problem I had was she had that common malady lacking in common sense. I felt like I spent all of my time explaining to her why the way she set something up won't work when it comes time to run the test subjects (college students).
We used to call her "Harold Miner." It's a basketball reference. She was a bit of a child prodigy but we felt she didn't live up to the hype.
Posted by: JYB | November 16, 2009 11:11 PM
My PI is perfect.
*She* is absolutely amazing (are there really that few women PIs around?)... to the point that I've sort of lost my motivation to get the PhD, and am happy just being a research underling. And flat out, I have to say, I love working for a woman - all my other bosses have been men, don't ever want to go back.
But there's perks to having a douchmonkey PI - lots of motivation to get finished quick. Get too happy and you could end up like me... happy and poor, with all motivation sapped.
Posted by: HappyElf | November 16, 2009 11:19 PM
I choose other, because my PI is definitely NOT male and would not want to have to choose male just because its the default. But I do LOVE her and if she was remotely religious, I would say she is God like, because she is open about her humanity.
Posted by: ScientistMother | November 16, 2009 11:58 PM
my current pi is awesome and totally not a saint but an extremely fantastic mentor. i have a good grasp of this situation 'cause my master's PI was totally a cockweaseldouchmonkey and most of us left the lab never to return to that field again.
Posted by: kristin | November 17, 2009 12:43 AM
Being a Jew, my PI probably wouldn't appreciate the tag 'Jesus', either. Like any PI, he didn't get the job because of his people handling and management skills, but doesn't do a bad job. He's very enthusiastic about the science and I can (mostly) manange myself, so it works well at the end of the day.
Posted by: Martyn | November 17, 2009 4:45 AM
My PI is neither male nor christian, so another awesome PI has slipped through your survey into the 'other' catagory :(
And I have to disagree with HappyElf. Working under a bad instructor (never had a bad PI, but had a less-than-perfect PhD-student mentor) saps my strength like nothing else. I end up just spending lab time wondering why the hell I bother.
With a good PI, on the other hand, I work doubley-hard as i am terrified of letting them down.
Posted by: Lab Rat | November 17, 2009 5:46 AM
I have been pondering this question for a while.
My grad adviser could be an ass. There were layers of standards. He would push some people's buttons but seemed to do so b/c he thought those could take it and would respond in a constructive manner (i.e. go learn the answer/do the expt/etc.). But he could also be very considerate, regarding personal matters. I learned a hell of a lot from him about doing and presenting science even though he rarely engaged in 'formal mentoring'.
For my current PI, my response was Other: conflicted. After nearly a year, I still don't know how I feel about him. He's brilliant and successful. But there is this strange dichotomy between micromanaging and struggle-through-on-your-own. Plus he is so quiet and reserved that you never really know how he feels about anything.
Posted by: biochem belle | November 17, 2009 7:14 AM
My PI has mentioned multiple times how she had really horrible PIs and committee members when she was in grad school. But this doesn't give her a reason to take it out on her lab. "If I had to deal with it so will you" attitude could very well lead to the academic Apocalypse. At least for our sub-field. She's already scared away multiple brilliant minds to peruse completely different areas of science.
Posted by: las | November 17, 2009 8:34 AM
Thank the Christ for Stockholm syndrom.
Posted by: PI | November 17, 2009 8:41 AM
Happy, well mentored grad students, postodcs, and techs (known collectively as "lablings") don't write letters to bloggers about how happy they are. Why would they?
It's like being a cop. Nobody calls the cops over for a cup of tea and a polite discussion of how nice life is.
Posted by: lab-lad. | November 17, 2009 9:21 AM
I'm voting other for my current PI and my previous mentors. Although no one can be THE perfect advisor, they all come pretty close but in very different ways- especially now that I can look back on what I have learned from each of them and their very different styles of mentoring. They have all been extremely supportive of my scientific training, personal development, and my family life. These are the people who were there the first time I held a pipette and went to a scientific conference and the same people who were there at my wedding and at the births of my children. I do realize that I am one of the luckiest "science moms" in the world to have been able to learn from these great, caring scientists, and I hope that one day I will be able to inspire future scientists the way that these 3 people have inspired me.
Posted by: Jenny | November 17, 2009 9:30 AM
We do not call our advisers PI's around here---I've actually been explicitly told that it's sort of offensive.
But my adviser is a pretty awesome dude. He's extremely hands off, though---could be good or bad, we'll see how this works out in the future...
Posted by: Josh | November 17, 2009 11:55 AM
I've actually been explicitly told that it's sort of offensive.
It is offensive. To those other Professors in your department who can't manage to get NIH funding and therefore have never qualified for the "PI" tag. Kinda like the term "Professor" is offensive to all those Instructors who actually teach your classes.
Posted by: PI | November 17, 2009 12:38 PM
I chose the last option. My advisor is multifaceted and can be ALL of the other choices, sometimes in the same day to the same person.
Posted by: anonymous | November 17, 2009 12:50 PM
"It is offensive. To those other Professors in your department who can't manage to get NIH funding and therefore have never qualified for the "PI" tag. Kinda like the term "Professor" is offensive to all those Instructors who actually teach your classes."
Actually, I believe it's more along the lines of calling your boyfriend your pimp.
Posted by: becca | November 17, 2009 1:07 PM
I watch and learn. Just like being a mother...I don't have to be the same kind of person that raised me. I remember the first time I saw my best friend actually have a real conversation with her 3-year-old! I was amazed. And she was really having fun with her kid. From that moment on, I realized that I have a choice!!!
Same goes for the type of PI I want to be. I hate, hate, hate that I have had such a bad experience. BUT there are good models out there. That's why I like the blogs so much.
Posted by: CFS | November 17, 2009 1:23 PM
I've been meaning to ask this for a while, and now Josh and others raised it ... what's with this "PI" usage? PI stands for Principal Investigator, and it's a role defined in relation to a research grant. Not just NIH grants, but also grants from NSF, EPA, NOAA, NASA, etc etc.
But being a PI on a grant[s] need not have anything to do with one's interaction with a student. When it comes to student interactions, there are roles like Advisor, Major Professor, Thesis Committee Chair, Thesis Committee Member, Collaborator, and so on. Usually, those are the roles that define one's responsibility to, and authority over, a student. You could be in any of those roles in relation to a student, without being a PI on a grant that relates to the student's thesis research. Or vice versa.
Not that it's such a big deal, but why are advisors always called "PI"s here? Just wondering.
Posted by: ecologist | November 17, 2009 2:21 PM
Like #7. A nice man, who I like veyr much, but waaaaay over extended, and hence totally unable to adequately mentor. So basically, we have to get off our own arses and do stuff, make our own mistakes, and share the love when all is good.
Posted by: anon | November 17, 2009 2:36 PM
I think people use the term PI as a neutral way of saying "head of lab", without adding the emotional baggage of calling someone an "advisor" or "mentor" who does not adequately advise or mentate. (I just made up a word! Hee.)
I am impressed by my current (postdoc) PI's motivational skills, a too rare trait in science, and that is something I would like to learn from her to bring into my own lab in a few years. I have come to accept that my graduate PI has both talents and problems that have nothing to do with me, and now that I am a scientific adult (rather than a graduate student) I have achieved equanimity about our relationship. In other words, we're all adults here.
Posted by: pikake | November 17, 2009 5:35 PM
Who is this becca person? A pimp? How uncivil.
Posted by: PI | November 18, 2009 12:42 AM
I thought PI meant "lab-head", I had no idea it was connected with funding. I've usually called the person in charge of the lab over all the PI without even thinking about it.
It's not just NIH, because we don't *have* an NIH over here...I think. At least not many peoples funding comes from it if there is.
Posted by: Lab Rat | November 18, 2009 7:39 AM
PI is principle investigator, and I don't know that the term existed (and I'm told it definitely wasn't common) until grants became so central to the advising role (also: not the case in many humanities and other disciplines; advisor's funding frequently has nothing to do with grad student's project in those areas).
The term "mentor" has a rather illustrious history, if you know your Greek mythology, and truth be told not all thesis advisors live up to it. And it's certainly not the case that all mentors are thesis advisors.
"Advisor" seems to me to be a pretty reasonable term, but I noticed a problem when I was talking to a friend who is not terribly familiar with academia. One week, I mentioned having to tell my advisor about my pregnancy (this was not a conversation I was eagerly anticipating). The next week he asked "how did your counselor react to your pregnancy?". Now, as it happens, I did have a counselor, but I had not told him that, so I was *most* perplexed. But, not knowing the academia-specific "thesis advisor" he simply substituted a synonym to non-jargon "advisor"- "counselor" made perfect sense.
PI actually has the same jargon-y problem. But it is less neutral for a certain breed of traditionalist academic mentors. They feel their role should be seen as above and beyond the money situation. That's why I drew the pimp analogy.
Posted by: becca | November 18, 2009 11:56 AM
Technically, I work in government so we don't call them PIs, but I don't think the current person in charge would resent being described like Jesus since she's a practicing Catholic.
Of course the project is just starting, and in a few months I will find her less perfect, but I just wrapped up working for the guy the everyone say describes as "a really nice guy, but I'd rather die than work for him."
Posted by: katydid13 | November 18, 2009 6:46 PM
This is going to date me some, but...
For those of you who have great PIs, you could say you have a Magnum PI ;-)
(Sorry... coudn't help myself.)
Yuk yuk...
Posted by: TGAP Dad | November 18, 2009 10:53 PM
So...I'm just an undergrad, but I've done research under two of our professors. I love the lady I used to work for, but the guy I got handed off to my junior year (he's new to our program) is a cockweaseldouchmonkey. Long story short: he never actually let me do anything in the lab and just had me regurgitate what past research students of his had done. This was more than slightly embarrassing as we are required to give semesterly reports on our research.
Posted by: rawnaeris | November 19, 2009 12:25 AM