Janet D. Stemwedel
Janet D. Stemwedel (whose nom de blog is Dr. Free-Ride) is an associate professor of philosophy at San Jose State University. Before becoming a philosopher, she earned a Ph.D. in physical chemistry.
jstemwedel
Posts by this author
January 1, 2009
... as drawn by the younger Free-Ride offspring.
The Earth as described in 2006:
The moon was going through its phases, the meteor catcher was catching meteors, and the ozone layer, while holey, was still there.
The Earth as described in 2009:
The meteor catcher appears to have been replaced by a…
December 31, 2008
He defended the views he expressed in many of his radio programs and said that, because he consulted for so many drugmakers at once, he had no particular bias.
"These companies compete with each other and cancel each other out," he said.
The New York Times on psychiatrist and former radio host,…
December 31, 2008
In a frequently recycled list of proposed New Year's resolutions, Ann Landers urges:
Vow not to make a promise you don't think you can keep.
However, she fails to advise a course of action in the case that you think you might not be able to live up to this vow.
(Maybe she was too busy trying to…
December 31, 2008
A colleague of Super Sally's forwarded her this*:
It's funny because it's true, and the pain isn't just from laughing so hard.
This seems like a very scary time to be near retirement age, since the value of so many retirement funds (invested in the stock market) has dropped so significantly.…
December 30, 2008
Some time ago, PhysioProf asserted that journal articles in the biomedical sciences listing two first authors are misrepresenting the reality of the involvement of those authors.
I'm of the opinion that authorship issues are pretty important. It's not just a matter of which scientists get to take…
December 30, 2008
If memory serves, today is the day that the meeting of the Eastern Division of the American Philosophical Association draws to a close. That meeting, always conveniently scheduled to fall in the interstices between Christmas and New Year's, and more often than not located in some East Coast city…
December 30, 2008
While we're speaking about revolutions and such, Hilzoy on the ongoing violence in Gaza:
I imagine what people on both sides are thinking is something more like: do you expect us to just sit here and take it? Do you expect us to do nothing? To which my answer is: no, I expect you to try to figure…
December 27, 2008
Dr. Isis expresses reservations about signing on for Twisty Faster's revolution.
ScienceWoman offers a sketch of what her revolution might look like.
Me? I'm pretty exhausted from today's outing with my offspring, what with it being Winter Break, otherwise known as 24/7 parenting. But I have a…
December 26, 2008
On Tuesday, largely at the instigation of the Free-Ride offspring, the Free-Ride family went to Liberty Island to see the Statue of Liberty.
It was a brutally cold day (with temperatures around 20 oF), not the kind of day that I go out looking for a patriotism lesson. So I was pleasantly…
December 25, 2008
In an earlier post, I neglected to mention that Uncle Fishy and RMD engaged a party bus to transport revelers to and from the dinner at Blue Hill at Stone Barn. Conditions on the roads were icy and treacherous, which means the trip took longer than it might have. Also, there was a wine pairing…
December 25, 2008
The elder Free-Ride offspring drew this picture (on two sides of the same piece of paper).
I think I detect some M.C. Escher influence here.
It is left to the reader to provide the hypothetical evolutionary pathways that connect each of these critters.
December 24, 2008
Blogging has been light for a while owing to the fact that the Free-Ride family was in transit to the wilds of New Jersey in order to celebrate Uncle Fishy and RMD getting hitched.
Amazingly, not only did we arrive in time, but the various airlines seemed to deliver all the other guests without…
December 24, 2008
I was presented with this picture by the younger Free-Ride offspring.
I'm not entirely sure whether it's more accurate to describe it as a map or a process diagram. However, this being December 24th, it is timely.
Here is what I can glean from the various pieces of the diagram:
Elves'…
December 19, 2008
I've been asked by the National Academies of Science to let you all know about a survey in which they'd like you to participate.
Yes, you!
Here's the blurb:
What topics in science, engineering, and medicine matter most to you? The National Academies are interested in developing useful and engaging…
December 19, 2008
As winter break approaches, the younger Free-Ride offspring had an unscheduled nightmare.
OK, none of the nightmares is scheduled. Still, this is a week where we could all use more sleep, not less.
Younger offspring: I thought I didn't have nightmares anymore, but then I had one last night.
Dr.…
December 17, 2008
You may remember that last year we were inspired by Bake for a Change to dabble in "green" gingerbread construction. As 2008 draws to a close, the challenge has been issued once again to make a house both good enough to eat and eco-friendly enough to heat (or cool, etc.).
The rules are the same as…
December 17, 2008
Do scientists see themselves, like Isaac Newton, building new knowledge by standing on the shoulders of giants? Or are they most interested in securing their own position in the scientific conversation by stepping on the feet, backs, and heads of other scientists in their community? Indeed, are…
December 12, 2008
I do not know why, in December, the Free-Ride offspring turn their attention to questions of evidence and testimony. (I do worry, however, that by this time next year the elder Free-Ride offspring may become a 12-25 truther.) This week, the sprogs considered ways to establish dates that don't…
December 11, 2008
Back at the end of November, Martin wrote a post on the ethics of overpopulation, in which he offered these assertions:
It is unethical for anyone to produce more than two children. (Adoption of orphans, on the other hand, is highly commendable.)
It is unethical to limit the availability of…
December 9, 2008
Back in November, at the Philosophy of Science Association meeting in Pittsburgh, I heard a really interesting talk by Jeremy Howick of the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine at Oxford University about the challenges of double-blind trials in medical research. I'm not going to reconstruct his talk…
December 7, 2008
In spring of 2007, after nearly two years without a contract, the faculty of the 23 campuses of the California State University system (of which my university is a part) voted to ratify a contract. Among other things, that contract included raises to help our salaries catch up to the cost of…
December 7, 2008
Because it seems to have become a December tradition around here, it's time for the year-in-review meme.
The rule: post the first sentence of the first post for each month.
January
Younger offspring: In the summer, we went to Yosemite and stayed in a cabin.
February
Elder offspring: Do you know why…
December 5, 2008
I realize that I forgot to mention here that I've been writing posts on the Invitrogen-sponsored group blog What's New in Life Science Research. The blog is hosting discussions about stem cells, cloning, biodefense, and genetically modified organisms. (The cloning discussion just started…
December 5, 2008
Walking to school the other morning:
Elder offspring: What's that smell? Is that smoke?
Dr. Free-Ride: Yep. Someone has a fire in the fireplace. Look, there's the smoke curling out of the chimney. To me it smells good on a cold morning, but when enough people do it, all the little particles in…
December 4, 2008
The Free-Ride offspring have put the wheels in motion to achieve financial independence from their parental units. They intend to make their fortune on T-shirt sales.
Poor deluded kids!
Anyway, they would like you to know that you can score your own copy of this artwork:
on a T-shirt, mug, or…
December 4, 2008
I was marveling at the Chemistry gift guide at MAKE. It has lots of cool items for your budding chemist/mad scientist of any age looking to equip his or her basement/garage/treehouse laboratory. (It's pretty hard to get fume-hoods installed in a treehouse, but who are we kidding? Most people who…
November 27, 2008
The younger Free-Ride offspring offers this drawing of a hippo exhorting you to remember Thanksgiving.
Judging by the plate in the lower right hand corner of the picture, the hippo is pretty good with portion control. Possibly, though, after cleaning its plate the hippo will eat the cornucopia…
November 26, 2008
And you're really a lawyer?
The verdict came back in the Los Angeles trial of Lori Drew, the Missouri mother who facilitated cyberbullying of a former friend of her daughter, who subsequently committed suicide. Since cyberbulling isn't an easy crime to prosecute, the trial focused on whether, in…
November 26, 2008
Over at DrugMonkey, PhysioProf notes a recent retraction of an article from the Journal of Neuroscience. What's interesting about this case is that the authors retract the whole article without any explanation for the retraction. As PhysioProf writes:
There is absolutely no mention of why the…
November 26, 2008
For years, you've heard the tremendous fatigue experienced after an American Thanksgiving dinner laid at the feet of the turkey -- or more precisely, at the tryptophan in that turkey. Trytophan, apparently, is the go-to amino acid for those who want to get sleepy.
But according to an article in…