thusspakezuska
Posts by this author
December 23, 2009
Earlier this month, while I was distracted managing mom's transition from assisted living to hospital stay to rehab and preparing to escape for my annual beachy vacation, a new star was added to the Scibling firmament. And she's a shiny one. I'm talking about Sharon Astyk, writer of Casaubon's…
December 14, 2009
Is the current economy making more people want to participate in human research studies, asks Isis?
In this new study here at MRU, we began advertising online last Wednesday. By Friday, my study coordinator had received 300 responses...I can't help but wonder if the current poor economy is…
November 24, 2009
Part of my socialization into the world of science and engineering was, of course, the worship of great and important historical figures in the professions who, naturally, just happened to all be white males. This socialization was an informal, even casual, process - passing references in the…
November 23, 2009
It's that time of year again - the time when I begin to contemplate swimsuits, and curse under my breath.
You see, the last several years, Mr. Z and I have sworn off birthday, anniversary, and Christmas gifts for each other in lieu of saving our cash for a week-long escape to a sunny, sandy…
November 20, 2009
When my mother was a little girl, my grandfather would drive her - almost all the way - to the dentist in Point Marion, PA. They would stop and park on the Greene County side of this bridge, and walk across to save the ten-cent toll on cars. Money was that tight.
Mom always said it was bad…
November 19, 2009
Inquiring minds want to know: what's a feminist activist, and how should she dress?
My last post has raised a lot of discussion for people about the nature of feminism and feminists. There are questions about litmus tests and whether Zuska applies them. I thought it best to take a moment or too…
November 14, 2009
Subtitle: It's really cool when feminists can help me advance my personal interests, as long as nobody sees me talking to them, 'cause, you know, they're ugly.
Over at Isis's place, Victoria writes that she does not wish to be sexually harassed at scientific conferences, no matter what she is…
November 14, 2009
Not that it matters much with this dreadful film, but if you're worried about spoilers, don't read this post till you've seen the movie. You've been warned. Proceed past the jump at your own risk. Movie trailer can be found here.
Norma and Arthur have been given a box! With a button! Push…
November 11, 2009
I spent part of today visiting with an elderly relative who fought in the Korean War. That time in his life was clearly on his mind, as, when I stopped in to see him, he had been looking over some old photos from that era, including some of him in uniform.
He recounted some of his experiences to…
November 10, 2009
I have an acquaintance who works in what some of you professorial types jokingly refer to as the dark side - administration. Ha ha ha. Yeah, I was an administrator in academia myself, you know, and let me tell you, you should be grateful to your administrators, if only for the fact that if they…
November 6, 2009
You should never, ever criticize something a New Atheist says about science and religion. Never tell them maybe it's not the best idea in the world to just go on about science/evolution + religion in whatever way, at whatever time, in whatever manner, for whatever reasons. In fact, you cannot…
October 30, 2009
The whole month of October has gone by, and none of the things I promised myself I would finally get around to writing about this month have appeared on my blog. They haven't even made it out of my cranium into rough draft form on my computer. I didn't even manage to get a post up exhorting you…
October 22, 2009
Eric Michael Johnson at The Primate Diaries has a beautifully crafted (and very witty) post taking apart the gender bias in a recent paper on Ardipithecus ramidus and human origins. The post has lots to say about the stupid, leering headlines generated by work on meat provisioning in chimpanzees…
October 22, 2009
Announced on the WMST-L listserv:
Women & Science/Technology Policy Seminar in Washington, DC
The Public Leadership Education Network (PLEN) will be holding its Women & Science/Technology Policy Seminar January 4-8, 2010 for women science majors who want to explore what life is like as a…
October 15, 2009
In August I did some writing about health insurance, and in particular about the Pittsburgh shooting victim whose friends and family held a car wash to help raise funds to pay for her medical expenses. Change.org picked up on that post, and Robin Stelly commented on the Change.org post as follows…
October 5, 2009
By which I mean, this.
The comix being, as it were, a bit of solace for Him leaving us to wander about this hideous world choked by gender smog.
MAJOR hat tip to Pat at Fairer Science.
UPDATE: And for more turning-the-tables fun and shenannigans, be sure to read Peggy's post on The Sultana's…
October 5, 2009
Last night I was watching tv with Mr. Zuska and the loathsome Kohler's "Jo's Plumbing" commercial came on yet again.
Plumbing is one of those trades that have been traditionally dominated by men. Women have struggled to gain access to these well-paying jobs. It is a job that takes a women out,…
September 4, 2009
Among other reasons....
You can have a rational soul like Laura provide a comparison of her personal experience with the U.S. and Canadian health care systems, like this:
Let's cut the crap and put it this way:
System #1: When I worked in the US, patients would come in and present their insurance…
September 3, 2009
Two years ago I wrote about taking my mother to Cape Hatteras, and how great it was to have the use of a beach wheelchair that allowed my sister and I to take her right onto the beach. I wanted to call your attention to a comment recently left on that post by Jerry Nasello:
We thought you might…
September 3, 2009
JustaTech commented last night:
Zuska, I saw this story [about the carwash for the shooting victim] on MSNBC last night (9/1) (The Rachel Maddow Show). So at least the liberal-leaning national media has also noticed.
I suppose this falls under tootin' my own horn, but one of Rachael Maddow's…
August 31, 2009
Tim Foley at Change.org has picked up on the post I wrote about the Bridgeville shooting victim whose friends and family sponsored a car wash to help her pay her medical bills (with a link to a news story about the car wash). His take on the story is well worth reading.
Meanwhile, on my original…
August 26, 2009
I have a friend. She has a daughter. While in college, the daughter was covered on the parents' health insurance policy.
Well, sorta. As part of her college program, the daughter had to do an internship. Hey, that's great! Great experience, maybe a great chance to get a permanent job!…
August 26, 2009
In the contentious health care reform debate that has raged on lo these many months, one of the cries of protest we've heard has centered around how we might be infringing upon the rights of young, healthy American citizens. Young healthy people don't need to access the health care system the way…
August 26, 2009
The other night I made a chive sauce from a recipe off the internet (I regret that I did not keep track of the source) that was just beautiful.
One cup minced chives. Saute in some olive oil. I sauteed them until they were starting to get just on the verge of crispy, almost like frizzled leeks, but…
August 25, 2009
Perhaps you might have wondered why I don't blog so much lately. That would be because my full-time job these days is navigating the The Best Health Insurance System In The World!TM on behalf of my elderly mother.
You may recall that a few weeks back, her wallet was stolen, necessitating…
August 21, 2009
One of my daily pleasures is to spend some time reading the Philadelphia Inquirer with a nice cup of coffee. Some days I read thoroughly, other days I skim, but no matter what I always read the comics. I just can't get through a day without reading the comics. (And let me here digress to say…
August 15, 2009
I am a fan of Oliver Sacks, and will read just about anything he has written - though, interestingly enough, I find myself so far unable to make my way through Migraine. Perhaps this has something to do with the cover illustration of a mosaic aura, which twice induced an aura (scintillating…
August 14, 2009
Via Female Science Professor, 'Study: Women create 'their own glass ceiling':
A new study shows female managers are more than three times as likely as their male counterparts to underrate their bosses' opinions of their job performance.
The discrepancy increases with women older than 50, the study…
August 14, 2009
As I recently reported, my mother's wallet was stolen last week, containing her bank card, driver's license, and insurance and Medicare cards. This has resulted in hours and hours of work for me to deal with replacing the cards, working with the bank to contest the fraudulent charges on her…
August 5, 2009
Regular readers may know that my mother has been living in an assisted living home since January of 2008. Making the move to the AL home was agonizing for her and everyone in our family. Previously, my mother had been living still in the same house that she had been born and raised in, the house…