Who are you?

This is not meant in the sense of "who the heck do YOU think you are?", but more along the lines of the experiment that Ed is doing:

1) Tell me about you. Who are you? Do you have a background in science? If so, what draws you here as opposed to meatier, more academic fare? And if not, what brought you here and why have you stayed? Let loose with those comments.

2) Tell someone else about this blog and in particular, try and choose someone who's not a scientist but who you think might be interested in the type of stuff found in this blog. Ever had family members or groups of friends who've been giving you strange, pitying looks when you try to wax scientific on them? Send 'em here and let's see what they say.

So, I am asking the same questions now. I hope to see a lot of comments here....

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Ooooh, I'm even first!
Graduate student in an NIH-funded lab, for a degree in Physiology and Pharmacology. I like your really interesting, informative posts that are still understanble to someone outside the field, and there's a good mix of fun posts in there, too.

Master's Candidate in Sociology, focusing on Evolutionary Sociology and Medical Sociology. I am here because your posts are interesting and I have an interest in how science is approached collectively by the general public and by publishing institutions (open access vs pay per model).

Microbiology PhD student at the University of Colorado, Denver. I enjoy reading your blog because you bring up good points that are important to think about now and again. I often want to comment, but find that you said it best...Thanks!

I'm non-tenure track faculty in a biosciences department. I read this blog because (1) it's the best source I've found for new blogs and carnivals, (2) I enjoy your personal picks of recent papers or science news, and (3) I absolutely love the ClockQuotes!

I got a degree in psychology, then went on to do math for a living and write fiction on the side. Hmm, what's not to like? I like the non-American perspective, the distillation of all these huge sources of science news, the quotes, and the fact that you do work to build community--here, as well as where it's your job.

Your blog is kinda like Discover magazine to me. It has short, easily digestible chunks of a wide variety of current science articles. It had never occured to me, but your blog probably IS a really good way for a non-sciencey person to ease into reading about science.

I'm an undergrad,and I haven't decided which specific field I will major in, but it will be something to do with evo/bio.

I like your blog because you link to journal papers I would otherwise not encounter, and your summary of the news on sciencedaily saves me some browsing time.

Keep up the good work!

By galapagos (not verified) on 24 Jul 2008 #permalink

Cut and pasted from Ed's blog:

I have a negligible science background - an MSc in Computer Science which has had little bearing on my career. But I became obsessed with scientific questions, particularly evolutionary biology (believe it or not, not especially dinosaurs) at about the age of 5, and it has been a large part of my leisure reading ever since (50 years).

Sites like scienceblogs.com are what I do when normal people are watching television.

That said, yours is one of the blogs I visit more than others, because I'm more likely to understand the arguments here.

I'm a tenure-track faculty member in biology at a mostly-undergraduate university, and a relatively recent blogger myself (inspired, and encouraged, by you - thanks!).

I read your blog because, 1) it was one of the earliest science blogs I discovered, way before Sb came on the scene, 2) I too like your frequent round-ups of interesting materials - science picks, PLoS papers, carnivals, your blog roll, and the clock-quotes!, 3) all of these mean that your blog provides me with plenty of fresh meat to throw to my students!, and 4) your relatively level-headed/balanced perspective on some of the controversies / flame-wars that have broken out periodically within Sb.

And as for your second request, I've already been telling my friends (including non-scientists) about your blog, and, of course, have you on my blog roll!

I am not a scientist as such, though I do have a B.Sc. in Computer Science. Still working on the M.Sc. though it's somewhat unlikely it will happen, since I work full time as an IT-Consultant.

I've been reading this blog for a long time (long before it moved to it's current location), and I enjoy it precisely because it's not "academic", whatever that means. I'm also a regular reader of many of the other blogs at ScienceBlogs, and many science blogs elsewhere.

Regarding promoting this blog, I have it listed on my blogroll, and regularly suggest people to check out ScienceBlogs.

I'm a female graduate student in plant pathology, hopefully in the final stretch of my PhD (which is most definitely still up in the air). I'm married, and I have 3 kids, one of which with special needs. I started reading this blog when I started reading scienceblogs a few years ago.

I read it regularly, and I often follow the link to scientific papers, and have been known to blog about some of them. I forward posts to people I know that cover topics I know they're interested in. I also have a link to it on my blogroll, but that doesn't mean much, my popularity isn't something to write home about. However, recently I got my picture taken with PZ, and that caused an surge in visitors. I suppose I should work on getting one taken with Coturnix, you know, to keep up the numbers.

Hi Bora! (did you know Bora means "strong wind" in Turkish?)

I'm a 5th year graduate student in biomolecular chemistry. I met an american profesor in Istanbul, 6 years ago from now and he introduced me to scientific world & research and discovery. Now I am working with him, on enzyme chemistry in particular. And I want to develop ways to bring science to non-scientists as a future career.

Being from a country which doesn't have much freedom of speech (nor freedom, I believe) I am very liberal when it comes to ideas. I believe everybody has a scientist in them but not everybody has to be a scientist by our means. Having the doubt, curiosity and skepticism is what makes one a scientist. I dislike people who are fans of old, stinky traditions; who thinks science is all about bench work, or only nerds can achieve science. I think because of those people, general public has tons of misconceptions about science.

I was introduced to your blog by Karen Ventii's blog-- Science to life. I like the fact that your blog is very dynamic, and you pull interesting stuff all the time. I also have the feeling that you are supportive and collobrative, which is something I am hoping to find more commonly in the scientific world.

Thanks for asking! :)

I started college as a Physics/Math major in the mid 60's, discovered different ways of thinking, switched majors, and graduated with a degree in Sociology and History. I later earned K-12 teaching certification and a Master's in Fine Arts. I began working with computers in the late '70's, and spent several years worth of what would otherwise have been spare time hacking hardware and software. I now work for a state university as an educational software developer. In the past I've worked as a professional photographer, television cameraman/reporter, advertising copy writer, digital media specialist, and computer graphics analyst/consultant, in addition to occasionally teaching. I never lost my interest in science, though, and your picks from Science Daily always provide fascinating reading.

By AncientTechie (not verified) on 11 Aug 2008 #permalink

I'm an artist-illustrator and by day an art supply store manager.

Originally, I think I was drawn to A Blog Around the Clock because this blog seems to orbit at the center of so many news stories. Following links and references, I ended up here so many times, I started exploring the Clockquotes and articles you take interest in.

I kind of picture you like Mr. Universe in the Serenity movie. Only without the creepy. You're at the hub of everything scientific, which kind of mean you're at the hub of everything. Your Science Daily picks feel too much like a guilty pleasure when I need to be painting.

I find mentioning your work in circadian rhythms seems to garner the most interest in my less science-y friends; they know what that is, and how it may affect them.

I'm a non-scientist (university tech-support geek) and yours is one of my favorite ScienceBlogs. Somehow you just seem to have a knack for connecting scientific and political/ethical issues, I've found lots of neat stuff in your SD picks, and you seem to have an eye for Internet and computing/information issues. And I do tell others about you in my own blog and Google shared items.