Lee Turnpenny raises an interesting question. When introducing yourself at a party, how do you describe what you do for a living?
I think it’s time to launch a new feature, the Friday Poll.
Click one of these options to vote:
I guess this one works best for research scientists, but you can still vote if you ever worked in a lab.
I guess this one works best for research scientists, but you can still vote if you ever worked in a lab.
I did a summer job in a lab, does that count? I describe myself as an author, so was going to put other, before I realized that I don’t have the vote.
What do we want? UNIVERSAL SUFFERAGE FOR NATURE NETWORKERS. When do we want it? NOW!
:-)
Let me through, I’m a
necrophiliacpalaeontologist.Once a scientist, always a scientist. Working at the bench (or in the field, or at the computer, or cleaning the fossils in the basement) is not the only way to be a scientist. I say I am a biologist, usually.
I alway say I am an inventor doing research on nitric oxide physiology or in global warming mitigation.
I always like the “other” category on surveys. Or “N/A” etc. I prefer a lot of things to being categorized.
interesting… I have recently realised that I shrug it off by saying “I’m a researcher” or, if I want to talk about it, “I’m a microbiologist, yes that means bacteria and virus” :)
I always wondered what the difference would be between the scientist and the researcher? Time to go to the lovely dictionary I guess…
Last time I was asked the asker looked intelligent (~70 yr old lady on the flight from JFK → LAX) so I said I was a molecular cell biologist. If the asker looks dumb or I’m not in the mood I’ll say research scientist.
So it varies then? Depending on who you’re talking to. Why?
because, Ralph, some days I just can’t be arsed.
xx
I am always stumped when someone with a form asks me if I am Dr, Mrs, Ms or Miss, as I could be any of them. But I think we have been there already, haven’t we, Rev Sir Richard Grant III?
Maxine, I’ve always wondered – the difference between Ms and Miss/Mrs? Is that the unmarried older woman who is not a Miss or the divorced woman who can’t go back being a Miss?
I think Ms is someone who doesn’t see why she should have to reveal her marital status through her title.
I’ve always preferred Ms, purely on the grounds that it is the neutral option (similar to Mr). However, in the UK, many people seem to regard “Ms” as some kind of feminist miltant statement, as opposed to a polite way to retain one’s privacy — i.e. as Frank states.
Asa, I think one’s choice of title, in England anyway, is not determined by any general convention as far as I can tell. Some divorced people keep their “Mrs” title and surname, others revert to Ms or Ms and (if they took their husband’s surname when married) their maiden name.
I have always rather liked the German system, where one is called “Fraulien” when a girl and “Frau” when one is a woman.
The American habit of hyphenating one’s name when married, then dropping the hyphenated part when divorced, is quite, er, cute.
Frank and Maxine> thanks for the explanation.
Maxine> There is something to say about that ‘Frau’ since that would implicate that you actually are a grown adult and not a ‘girl’ anymore, regardless of your marital status.
The German way is similar in Swedish, where traditionally a divorced woman is still ‘Fru’ since you can’t go back to “fröken” [miss].
hyphenating one’s name can lead to… quite long sirnames but I still like it, somewhat cute I guess.