Currently I am getting kicked out of my office for remodeling and kicked out of half of one of the labs my advisor has because he has given it to another professor. So obviously right now we are scrambling to find space to put all of our stuff. Then today I get an email stating that we need move our stuff out of the area where we have stored it for years...seriously who decided that it makes sense to take away 90% of a research groups space without giving any alternative location.
Anyway, while this is annoying it isn't what has forced me to vent to my readers. A little while ago I was moving some heavy boxes from the lab we were getting kicked out of to our other lab and this guy that works for the university came up and asked where I was heading with my stuff. At first I thought hey that's nice this guy that in the past hasn't been too willing to offer help (even though he is a technician and is suppose to help the researchers) is going to offer to get a door or even help carry this stuff. Then I told him where I was going and he said alright and left...at first I thought nothing of it. Then I realized he would have gotten the same email I got saying I needed to get our stuff out of the storage area...he was simply making sure I wasn't putting it where he didn't want it (he's also a guy that has never wanted us to keep stuff there). This certainly isn't that big of a deal but it is just getting so frustrating deal with people that work for an organization, like the university, that don't care about the purpose of the organization only what keeps their life simple.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Polymer Meeting
This past weekend I attended a meeting in Washington DC to discuss the future of polymer drag reduction. I’m not really sure what I’m at liberty to share from the meeting so I’ll just give my top five moments from the trip without any specifics.
1) My favorite moment from the entire trip was when the CEO of a company grabbed me after challenging his conclusions and told me to stop being a wise-ass…I suppose he assumed that since I was the youngest one invited to the meeting it was alright to treat me like a child.
2) When a government official looked like he was about kick the crap out of the same CEO that called me a wise-ass.
3) Getting the signature of a rather famous polymer guy, P.S. Virk, on a copy of his “Drag Reduction Fundamentals” paper (picture included as proof). At the time I was thinking this would be a great opportunity to really get my nerd ranking up.
1) My favorite moment from the entire trip was when the CEO of a company grabbed me after challenging his conclusions and told me to stop being a wise-ass…I suppose he assumed that since I was the youngest one invited to the meeting it was alright to treat me like a child.
2) When a government official looked like he was about kick the crap out of the same CEO that called me a wise-ass.
3) Getting the signature of a rather famous polymer guy, P.S. Virk, on a copy of his “Drag Reduction Fundamentals” paper (picture included as proof). At the time I was thinking this would be a great opportunity to really get my nerd ranking up.
4) Hanging out drinking beers with some experts that actually seem to care more about science then making a name for themselves…I wish I could tell everyone that they represent the majority but sadly they are in the minority.
5) Meet a guy on the flight back that works for the government looking for children that have been abducted from the US and taken to a foreign country. He also shared information with me about how their group also has developed some rather sophisticated methods for tracking down kid pornography rings. I told him that I’m thankful that there are people out there willing to do this work because it would so difficult (he told me everyone in that division is required to receive counseling everyday).
5) Meet a guy on the flight back that works for the government looking for children that have been abducted from the US and taken to a foreign country. He also shared information with me about how their group also has developed some rather sophisticated methods for tracking down kid pornography rings. I told him that I’m thankful that there are people out there willing to do this work because it would so difficult (he told me everyone in that division is required to receive counseling everyday).
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