curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

Meet Chica the giant Pacific octopus and dive behind the scenes with senior aquarist René! 🐙

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

The prawn of a new day is rising… 🦐 Shrimp Week is back, March 10-16! 🦐

We’ll be shellebrating across our channels all week long, but for some ✨extra✨ shrimp in your pocket, be shore to sign up for Shrimp Week texts!

You can also send the word SHRIMPYTUM to 54159 to receive shrimpspired text messages all week long.  It’d be shrimply prawnderful if you did!

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

we’re all just works in progress hoping for acceptance with minor revisions

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

I am currently away from the office and have intermittent access to email. If your email is not urgent I will in all likelihood still reply within 10 minutes due to ineffective self-regulation and an inability to maintain work-life balance.

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

Roses are red

Violets are-

[See below for full text options]

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

help me choose!

i want to make a well written, more informative and more coherent blog post, where i put even more thought, research, and time into developing it. but i need help picking the topic: - AI in research/academia but for biologists as the application and practicality of AI does vary from field to field or - What a marine biologist in South Africa thinks about the tourism industry in South Africa; impacts, implications and a plea to those interested in visiting!

#academia #researchers #university #marine conservation #marine biology #marine biology research #marine research #south africa #cape town #cape town tourism #visiting south africa #south africa tourism #tourism industry #impacts on nature #nature #biology #post grad problems #post grad advice #stem academia #artificial intelligence #ai generated #ai academia #ai research

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

research tip 04 and perhaps more important than the actual planning, annotating and recording as a researcher, is learning what actually does need to be sufficiently recorded, stored and backed up.

#academia #post grad advice #post grad problems #researchers #stem academia #university #academics #notion

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

research tip 03 establishing a method, format and platform for planning, scheduling and tracking progress and sample processing is probably the most important part of being in research or being an academic. perhaps equally as important, but often not as regarded, is learning how to do this in your way, a way that supports and sustains a daily and regular routine around it.

#academia #post grad problems #post grad advice #university #stem academia #researchers #notion

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

entry 03

do not be afraid to use technology if using paper based methods of note taking, planning and scheduling and journaling.

when i first started my research project i was afraid of using only applications and software such as Notion, drives for storage, Microsoft Word AI grammar assistance etc. I was afraid because i was told (and anxious about it myself) that i could lose my data and information if i didn't have a backup on paper.

this resulted in me not quite meeting my weekly deadlines with tasks and goals because i was spending time "backing up" all my data, planning, schedules, meeting notes, everything.

Whilst i definitely agree with others that you should have a back up, a lot of these applications and software are so well developed and have really well functioning servers, there is such a minimal chance of just losing everything. it would be more logical to make back ups on other storage platforms/drives than keeping everything in paper AS WELL. this is so time consuming and sends you in a panic every time you need to upload data, write notes, prepare documents, edit documents, review data and leaves you with notes you made hastily (and anxiously) which often times never even helped me as the notes were illegible because i was in such a rush.

of course, a paper based method for laboratory notes is a good idea as devices are not recommended in the labs if you're working with biological matter/chemical substances - pencil down your notes and then you can go home if you have the time and the need to write it onto a notion page or type up a document so that you can review the protocol and how you performed during and the outcomes, any changes you may need to make etc.

you can use notion for your research scheduling and planning and just keep a very simple bullet journal/notebook for day to day notations and planning. i had been told to make sure i have a paper based record of everything i wrote on my notion but i think you can keep an abbreviated version and rather keep a copy pasted document of this and/or screenshots and store that across multiple drives (or one if you're not an anxious academic like me, haha).

if anyone tells you how you should do something so intricately personal to each student/researcher because they do not like the interface you use (yes, i was told i should not use the one thing that has worked for me because it was too difficult for the other party to understand or review), it is obviously nice and kind to try and provide things a format they understand, but do not stop doing the thing you enjoy and that actually helps you reach your goals.

context for number 3:

i found notion through various content creators in the research realm, with mixed recommendations ranging from yes it works well to no not for me. i struggle with planning and procrastinating and academic challenges so i decided to give it a go. honestly, the fact that it was aesthetically customisable was a big plus. that is just simply something that makes me want to work. the next thing was its cross compatibility with other apps and software i used, primarily google. it helped me keep track of upcoming meetings, events and urgent tasks and provided a way for me to visually see my progress. but someone i was wokring with, whose opinion mattered very much to me, had mentioned that they were not a fan and that they did not have the time to use the interface, even though the interface was not our primary mode of communication regarding my research project, it was simply a way for them to see how i was spending my time or planning to as a student of theirs. needless to say, i gave up because their way took way too much time already. it is not a problem or a topic that requires someone to blame, i just was in the midst of an already overwhelming time in my project and had to just do what i needed to survive (lol).

anyways, the lesson i learnt was, after falling a couple months behind because of poor planning and compatibility with how i was going about my most important component of my research was that you really need to prioritise the thing that works for you. whether that is paper based or digital.

but you cannot spend every moment fearing that notion will drop off the face of the earth with all your notes and plans along with it. i wasted so much time stressing and creating paper and digital back ups of EVERYTHING. i have now had to spend essentially a month organising things across multiple emails and drives just to get a start on my next big project. the most important lesson will definitely be that you need to train and teach yourself to know what are things that require a back...

you do not need 17 backups, paper and digital of plans passed and plans to come, you will quickly be reminded or be able to recall most such things as they will stress you out and haunt you so much anyways.

however you certainly do need a sufficient back up of data that belongs to the university as part of your project, or any personal methods of tracking such things.

anyways, sorry for the long rambles i post, i am using tumblr as a way to have a blog until i can actually get a website and publish better and more concise posts. i hope you still enjoy reading or at least find some solace or advice in between it all!

#academia #post grad problems #post grad advice #researchers #stem academia #university #academics #scientific research #science #sciencenature #marine biology #marine research #marine biology research #biology #biology research #notion #studyblr community #studying #studyblr #academic

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

have a look at the beautiful members of the Boulder's beach Spheniscus demersus, commonly known as the African penguin. The former common name, the jackass penguin, refers to their call, which sounds like a braying donkey! These terrific members were terrifically sleepy when i was so lucky to see them but surely nothing short of miraculous to see. This is a very special population of African penguins in South Africa, as one of only very few inland populations, with the rest residing on island habitats!

So excited for today, will be heading down to a special place to see some penguins! Will post some photos for sure!

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

So excited for today, will be heading down to a special place to see some penguins! Will post some photos for sure!

#penguin conservation #cape town #penguins of africa #penguins #african penguin #jackass penguin #marine conservation #marine biology #boulders beach #sanparks #sanparks south africa

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

So excited for today, will be heading down to a special place to see some penguins! Will post some photos for sure!

#cape town #penguins of africa #penguins #penguin conservation

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

This is the first report of sex in humpback whale, and is the first report of sexual activity between two male

Yes, the first report of sex in humpback whales is homosexual activity. Despite decades of research on humpback whales around the world, reports of penis extrusion by males are relatively rare and copulation in humpback whales has not yet been documented. 

The unprecedented event was recorded opportunistically on January 19, 2022, near the Molokini crater off the island of Maui, Hawaiʻi. Two humpback whales were seen engaged in copulation for the first time in recorded history, but after photo analyses along molecular studies, revealed both were mature males.

According to researchers, cetaceans such as humpback whales could use the genital slit or anus for same-sex copulation, to practice reproductive behaviors or nonreproductive sexual behavior such is forming social alliance or assert a sort of dominance.

Reference (Open Access): Stack et al., 2024. An observation of sexual behavior between two male humpback whales. Marine Mammal Science

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

entry 02

was hoping to get back to regular blog posts about the last year of my master's and what i get up to...

plot twist - my partner and i have been sick for a week and i cannot even get through a solid ten minutes of focusing on a task.

been keeping myself busy with organising my data and getting my articles ready to get back to work. fingers crossed tomorrow i feel much better and can actually sit up straight without falling asleep.

this lead me to write about another experience i commonly hear about with the post grad/researcher community:

not having the capacity to understand time off when you're sick, or even when you are granted it. i cannot get my mind to switch off and i cannot stop feeling guilty or like a failure because i am actively trying to nap instead of productively being ill and reading and annotating articles. which, if i could i definitely would but i am having trouble being so ill for so long, especially when i know i have so many things to do, and the list just grows by the day.

i think acknowledging guilt for relaxing is okay, and in my personal case, i do not see it only being related to academia, i am always constantly busy every moment of the day until i sleep, either doodling, crocheting or trying to do my work. it is simply the first time i have been aware of it, recognised and accepted it.

it is okay to take time off

would be the common quote that flashes across any researcher's phone screen as they scroll a meme page.

but i raise you this instead;

it is okay to feel like a failure for taking time off

it is okay to feel sad about missing the updates on your ResearcherDiscovery app, or your academic twitter, or even the stuff in your life, whether you've been sick or not. as long as you make sure to be diligent when you make your comeback and you make sure you meet your important deadlines or adjust accordingly, then enjoy that dang time off catching up on some zzzzs.

hope you enjoy my absolute flu med induced rambles and that you were somewhat gently reminded.

#post grad advice #academia #stem academia #university #post grad problems #researchers

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

research tip 01 make sure you organise your data as you go along, once you get home or straight away the next day. please, i beg of you.

#stem academia #academia #researchers #university #post graduate #post grad problems #post grad advice

[curiouslycaffeinatedcephalopod]

entry 01

some nibblets i learned along the way ...

academia can be a toxic place and it's likely you'll encounter it all along your way. you need to actively exclude yourself from such instances and remain focused on your research.

friends are few and far between. be careful who you trust but do not be too guarded and exclude yourself entirely, you will lose opportunities.

you are going to hear people speak awfully about others, it is going to hurt and you are going to hear these things about people you know (and maybe like). voice your opinions if you are in a safe environment where you can do so, otherwise if you can't, do not play middleman to pass the message on. you need to regulate your emotional reactions, unfortunately. write about it in your diary or blog it on tumblr! if things get really bad, i suggest contacting the relevant groups and committees on your campus/in your faculty.

it is best to not divulge personal details with the rest of your colleagues (unless you're 100% sure you can trust them), no matter how caring and interested they come across (i have issues with this as someone who lacks social context...)

remember that you usually have a main supervisor - they are the only true person you need to keep happy. you do not need to suck up to people who, frankly, have nothing to do with your project, help out with things that interfere with your life/work to prove you deserve the space you occupy, "go the extra mile" if it has nothing to do with the quota you actually need to meet.

research is very romantic, but it can also become just another thing in life that you have to do, it is okay to sometimes lose interest in the projects you're working on - this is where perseverance and diligence come in.

it is not okay for people to gossip and waste everyone else's valuable time. being in research/academia costs money and requires resources of varying degrees. walk away, or else it may become a he said she said they said situation.

if you are getting bullied in a group because you are, like me, socially challenged and also a little less mature (making us perfect targets), try and speak to a trusted person. if it gets intense and it is really impacting your quality of life at work, speak to someone trusted within your research group. if neither of these options provide a safe space, a therapist is a good idea to help cope and figure out where to go next as this is a challenging thing to be dealing with as an adult. not all of us can suck it up all the time.

finally, and most importantly, when things get tough, remember the work you're doing. all research is profoundly important and impactful, even if academic douchebags say it isn't. why do i say that? because for me, research is profound because i never thought i would survive to this age (my background is very complicated and statistically very few people like me will make it into university let alone postgraduate studies) and it is a very special thing to know that i made it. recognizing achievements in yourself is profound enough, even cooler if it really has an impact that "saves the world".

to learn and to be educated is a privilege that so many people dream of and are not afforded. make the most of it, even in the tough times, especially in the tough times. make it a special, aesthetic part of your life if that helps. romanticize it. it is a part of your story.

#academia #research #post grad problems #post grad life #academics #university #researchers #stem academia #scientific research #post grad advice