by Kevin McCartney on November 3, 2009
OK, it has been six weeks since I arrived here, and it will another six weeks before I leave. I have three major microscope projects. These are the Cretaceous silicoflagellates from a section in northwest cntinental Canada, a second project that studies sediments from several islands in the Canadian Archipelago, and then if there is time a project from the deep sea of the Indian Ocean. The scope work for the first two of these are now essentially done, and I am writing results, making figures, preparing plates and so forth. After that there should be an overview paper on the biostratigraphy of northern Canada, and then hopefully time to study the Cretaceous section from the INdian Ocean. Other projects keep turning up and I am dealing with dome of these and setting others aside for later.
And yes, I do need to get more pictures posted. I will try to get to that soon, plus more observations about this area and academic work in general. I actually have a lot to say, but very little time to say it.
by Kevin McCartney on October 28, 2009
I have not been keeping up with this very well because there is so much to do and every minute seems precious. Last night I finished the draft light micrscope plates for our second article, and am starting serious work on the text for that article; getting the pictures chosen seems a good place to start, as for one thing that ends the formal microscope work for now. The next task is to write the article that explains the pretty pictures.
In listitng the figure captions for the plates I find that this article has ten new species. TEN! And the first article had five, so fifteen altogether. I am not one to name new species willy-nilly and have been one to fault others for describing new species when the variability of known types could explain the observations; I have described two new species in my 25-year career as a scientist.
The new species are not due to some new-species-happiness on my part but reflects the astonishing diversity of the assemblages that I am seeing. I am in virgin territory, below where silicoflagelaltes have been previously studied, and am also in a restricted environment where evolution and environmental stresses get full play. The objects of my interest are doing crazy things.
This sabbatical is also an interesting opportunity to play with the “big boys.” I am a small-school professor, where teaching is the emphasis and research is not a requirement. I am now amongst people who are likely good teachers, but don’t really teach a lot – publishing is the critereon for advancement. And opportunities abound. The guy I have been chatting with downstairs has been on deep-sea drilling cruises 8 times and has spent two seasons in Antarctica. I would consider one opportunity to do either as an unlikely capstone to my career. NSF connections roll off his tongue like sports statistics do for someone on ESPN. I am very much the country mouse visiting the big cathedral.
Where I come from, there are no grad student or post-docs to chase the issues of my interest. I do not have a staff of helpers and money to hire scientific illustrators and electron microscope technicians. I in my world am inundated with community people wanting me to identify their rock or help with a merit badge. Even keeping up with the scientific literature is a task, as the journals are not easily available and there is noone down the hall to ask me what I think about an article in the current issue of Science. Here at UNL, I can snag almost any article off my computer and print it, since the university subscribes to service that allows that access. Where I come from, an interlibrary takes a handwritten form that I have to deliver personally to the library, and then wait for weeks past the time when I could have used the article.
I am satisfied with my scientific life. I like the teaching, the students, the people who think they found a meteorite in their back yard. I doubt if I have the personality or skills to be administrating a huge grant, though I am increasingly looking to be a modest part of such things. Maybe I will get that ocean cruise or Antarctic field time someday. But if not, I have contributed more than many, including lots of people from the bigger schools. I find I get a surprising amount of respect here at UNL, and at the scientific conferences that I am occasionally able to attend. And that is all I ever wanted as a kid, which I still am.
