Small Pond summer recap

Now that the academic year is starting back up, what did you miss over the summer from Small Pond?

Here are selected highlights:

• Amy Dalal provided some great advice for department chairs.

• I argued that religious scientists are a component of diversity in STEM and observed that too often we do things that unnecessarily disrespect our colleagues.

• I explained what limits productivity in teaching institutions. And it’s not the teaching load.

• I discussed how we should double-blind grant reviews, and how to deal with the issue of taking into account the track record of applicants.

• I mentioned how the expertise of amateurs is valuable and needs more respect.

• I rebutted a social-media-shaming piece published in The Guardian.

• I encouraged people — that’s you! — to nominate women for NSF’s Waterman Award.

Have a great semester! If you haven’t finished revising your syllabus, here’s a post from last year, with 16 things to consider while your assembling your syllabus.