So, I’ve been writing this thesis now for a few months and my thesis box has a reasonable quantity of paper in it. Problem is that, having hit the ‘roughly-half-way’ mark I seem unable to increase the amount of paper any further. At some point, I expect to hit some sort of critical mass after which I will open the Red Box and see something recognisably thesis shaped, but this event seems so distant as to be almost irrelevant.

Although, as of last week, I have established that one of my thesis chapters is going to be about how nice it would have been if a particular set of experiments had actually worked, because now all I have is conjecture. Yes, writing that will be a thrill. Anyway, it will be done, and then I never have to look at it again and can move on to more interesting areas of research.

I was over at Pharyngula reading about how one of the casualties of all the crazy going on in the States is science and the teaching thereof . Apparently owning a handgun in Texas is now easier than owning a glass beaker. Of course it is. Meanwhile, chemistry sets are being immasculated. Couple all of that with the constant onslaught against the teaching of evolution in schools and we get a plummeting levels in the standards of science education.

Of course, we’re never very far away from the States in this country. The rise of the Faith School should have all scientists concerned, while the new legislation governing the collection of biological material in an experimental context is about to cripple endocrinological research of any nature in British Universities. The level of basic science knowledge amongst our young’uns is not good. I’ve been teaching Evolutionary Anthropology to 11-16 year old kids at a summer school for those designated offically ‘bright’ (of which more will follow) for the past 4 years, and every year I am astounded by the gaps in their knowledge. They’re eager to learn, they’re responsive. Something is wrong somewhere.

Which is why, apart from anything else, I am attracted by the communication of science hooha. Things like NAGTY (which runs the summer school I teach at) and the RinR scheme are excellent ways to make science accessible and attractive to kids. For my money, the LABrats scheme being run across the pond looks like an excellent idea (via memepunks“). Parents or teachers can match up kids with science ‘mentors’ to help give them an extra boost in specific areas of science that interest them. Sounds like a good plan to me.

Anyway, I should probably stop blithering on and go call my dad and then do the washing up.

Joy.