In grad school we used to joke about putting a Lo-Jack on our advisor, and sometimes we weren't really joking. A PI has many obligations outside the lab--classes, committees, conferences, faculty meetings, etc.--that aren't also on his trainees' schedules. Some PIs keep their labs, or at least their lab managers, apprised of their plans; others vanish without notice.
Sometimes the information distribution is scattershot. One day when my advisor didn't appear on schedule, I asked a colleague if she was out with the flu. "I guess so," he responded. "She looked really sick on Friday."
Another colleague broke in. "Advisor's at a conference. She'll be gone all week."
I can understand that PIs lead busy lives, and that they might not want to feel obligated to send an all-lab email each time they are headed to another stop on the seminar circuit or whatever. However, I think they'd expect an email from me if I were gone more than a half-day, so it'd be nice to get the same from then.
Alternatively, if I could just give them this little bracelet to wear....
----
"...A conference took her away from me/ She's gone to Europe so I've got to work fast/ So I can see my PI when I...have graphs."
15 years ago
22 comments:
Just out of curiosity, what's the difference where your advisor is? If you have a question, can't you send an e-mail?
Does said adviser have an iPhone? There's an iPhone app that uploads GPS locations to a website. I'm sure it only loads when the user chooses, but perhaps we could circumnavigate this feature and use it for tracking advisers' locations when needed.
I think, though, that learning how to stalk your adviser is part of one's training.
@CPP - if your advisor doesn't respond to email (or phone calls, for that matter), then it is somewhat difficult to communicate with that person unless they're in the lab/office (as was the case with my grad advisor.)
My advisor would leave the office door open and disappear. One day, a visitor came to my door asking where my advisor was, so I started to leave a note on the desk when he suddenly popped up from under the desk and scared the living shit out of me. He knocked over a plant and bumped his head with my screaming like a twit. At that moment, I was saying to the visitor that he's like a ghost. scary, NO SHIT.
jc
As with Jen, my advisor basically doesn't answer email from afar. Also the important questions tend to be stuff that's complex to communicate over email.
Biochem belle--that's creative! I like it. Mine doesn't have an iPhone though...
Hmmm. Maybe you can implant a subcutaneous tracker when she nods off during seminar.
I feel your pain. Nothing worse than showing up for an important meeting that your PI insisted on having only to find out that he/she is out of the country.
It's time for stealth: know where your assets are instantly.
Word!!! My advisor travels out of the country without notice on a regular basis. Sending an email should work in theory. But here I am sitting on a finished draft of my dissertation on the *submission deadline* but I don't have his comments on two sections of it. Does he want me to submit as is? Does he have edits that I should make first? I DON'T KNOW BC HE WON'T REPLY TO MY EMAILS!!!!! I know he *can* email because he sent me one about something totally unrelated just a few days ago. GRAH!!!!
Could be worse. My grad advisor was so umm emotionally labile, that we used to queue up outside the door to listen surreptitiously. If tirades ensued, we all skulked off to await another day. Geez perhaps that is why feMOMhist took 8 years to finish.
Look at it from a PI's viewpoint:
-We have a multitude of students, post-docs, and staff stalking us and listening at our doors.
-When not stalking, they surf the web looking for technology to keep track of our movements.
-When we take time off, subordinates demand to know where we will be and what we will be doing, as if this is any of their business.
-When we refuse to tell them, they spend an inordinate amount of time gossiping about what we might be doing (having liposuction, having an affair, job interviewing, gambling, drinking/drugs...).
-We are the target of endless criticism and second-guessing by our staff and students.
-When we are in our office, subordinates constantly interrupt with questions and demands that they should handle themselves.
-We are sent dissertations, manuscripts, important documents for signature, requests for letters of reference, etc. at the last minute and are expected to drop everything else and meet someone else's deadline.
Where is your PI? Definitely hiding.
DrDoyenne is very grumpy today!!
The most fun part of the job for me is discussing shit with my trainees.
Here here Dr. Jekyll! This post couldn't be more relevant to my week. On Monday myself and my labmates received a series of three emails from our PI. The first was asking for help starting up the equipment -- the procedure for which had changed, but which I had discussed in lab meeting, written in an email to the lab, and posted by the equipment. The second was regarding the malfunction of another piece of equipment, and ended with: "Hello? Is anyone coming to work today?" It was 9:30 am and I had told my advisor the day before that I would be in late because I was doing work at a neighboring facility, which I started at 7:30 am. The third demanded that one of us relinquish our equipment time later in the week to make up for the fact that he was unable to get anything done because no one had been in to help him. I was livid when I read these emails -- totally inappropriate on his part.
Then today, I ran into three separate issues I needed my advisor for -- an issue with data taking, a question regarding data analysis, and an administrative matter. Where was my advisor? No one knew. And he doesn't respond to email when he's away from work, which is probably for the better, because I might not have been able to restrain myself from slipping in a snarky comment or two.
No, no. I was not grumpy.
In fact, I was laughing the whole time I was writing my comment. It was partly tongue-in-cheek, but I guess it had a strong grain of truth.
I often talk to my staff about outside activities. However, I respect their personal lives and never pry--and expect the same courtesy in return.
I also think it's important for advisors/PIs to treat advisees/staff with respect. This means responding to emails, leaving contact information, respecting their schedules and deadlines, etc.
I guess this is my Southern (U.S.) upbringing--my father taught me always to treat others with respect, regardless of who they are (and even if they don't deserve it).
I find that treating others, especially subordinates, in a professional manner and with respect goes a long way toward developing and maintaining good working relationships.
Still, I imagine some members of my staff would like it if I had a subcutaneous tracking implant....
Dr D, you crack me up! AmbiAcad and feMOMhist, I know exactly how you feel...
Amen to this post! They need to find me at a moment's notice, but they refuse to call my cell phone (why??). But when I need to find them, nobody knows where they are? WTF. How hard is it to put your calendar on a lab-only internal website (A: not hard)!
@Dr.Doyenne- I like that you attribute your attitude about respect to a Southern upbringing. I'm not sure where mine came from, but I share your sentiment. In that regard, I also try to be organized and send everything to my PIs well ahead of time if I need comments. Which is why when it is out of my control or they wait until the last moment to respond, I wonder how the world continues to turn. You'd think we'd be years late by now if everyone behaves this way!
CPP- Advisers don't answer email. Don't you know that? See FSP's latest post as exhibit A. Jen's comment as Exhibit B. Dr.J's response Exhibit C.
Motivated by similar frustration, we put up a calendar for people to post their travel plans, mainly so we could keep up with the PIs' schedules. In reality, everybody but the PIs uses it.
I don't really care where my PI is, I just need to plan around his/her availability sometimes. I don't think that's asking too much.
Exactly--it always is the case that everyone else will note down their vacations, conferences, etc--but then Advisor vanishes without notice.
It's pretty obvious. Listen, if it is close to national holiday, say July 4, and you cannot locate your PI, then he must be in Australia.
Comrade PhysioProf,
You are usually very rational but your question as to what's the difference where your advisor is, is totally out of touch.
If you are in the middle of an experiment (~don't turn me off in the middle of..) and a critical reagent is missing and the lab computer is broken, what do you do ?.
Would you say, Fuckyou very much ??? .
Love,
your postdoc in isolation ???
Doesn't sound too scientific to me CPP !!!
anon@"It's pretty obvious. Listen, if it is close to national holiday, say July 4, and you cannot locate your PI, then he must be in Australia."
Doubt it. July is Winter in Australia. He must be in Hawaii.
jc
Gangajal Kalash Brass for Puja and Rituals
Pure brass Gangajal Kalash by Apna Showroom is perfect for your spiritual needs. Use it to store holy water for daily rituals, puja, and havan. Its premium brass body ensures durability, shine, and divine aura in your sacred space. A beautiful addition to temples,APNA SHOWROOM Shaligram Shivling - Gandaki River - Shaligram Stone - Black Shivling - Carved Shivling - 100g Shaligram - Spiritual Stone - Shiva Lingam - Religious Artifact - Shivling for Puja
Apna Showroom Gangajal Brass Kalash | Filled from 'Brahma Kund' Har Ki Pauri, Haridwar | Authentic Ganga Jal Lota | 250 ML
Apna Showroom Ganga Jal - Holy pure Ganga Jal Har ki pauri Brahmakund Prasad Tasveer Chunni Haridwar Ganga Jal Natural Ganga jal
homes, and spiritual functions. Ideal for gifting during religious festivals like Diwali, Navratri, and Janmashtami. Enhance the purity of your devotion with this traditional Gangajal Kalash. Shop now and bring home positivity.
Post a Comment