@anna@mathstodon.xyz
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anna

@anna@mathstodon.xyz

Computer Scientist. Postdoctoral research fellow interested in Boolean satisfiability and counting. Feminist. Trekkie. Traveller. Go-to LaTeX expert in our research group.

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anna, to art
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Today at the hawker centre, there was a little girl who drew my portrait! I’m so impressed! She captured my bun with hairclips in it, she captured my bangs and the locks of hair I have in the front, framing my face. She captured my striped T-shirt and the face mask I had on my wrist. She captured the peace sign I made in the picture we had just taken. She even drew a cat for me! How did she know I loved cats‽

This was just too adorable!!!

anna, to animals
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I've been seeing so many different cats, that I keep getting the "10​,​000​-​Year Earworm to Discourage Settlement Near Nuclear Waste Repositories" song by Emperor X stuck in my head:

https://emperorx.bandcamp.com/album/10000-year-earworm-to-discourage-settlement-near-nuclear-waste-repositories

In case you don't know the story: this song was commissioned by the 99 Percent Invisible podcast for their episode on how to warn people in the far future to stay away from nuclear waste deposits.

The idea is that no civilisation existed for as long as the time that radioactive waste remains dangerous. Hence, we need ways to warn people that are robust for lost of language, symbols, etc.

One idea was to breed cats that light up in the presence of radiation, and to then create a folk song about the importance of keeping cats, and the importance of leaving (with the cat) when the cat changes colour.

Hence "don't change colour, kitty".

anna, to Travel
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Another hotel, another hotel cat.

anna, to animals
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Best hotel receptionist ever.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
No notes.

ColinTheMathmo, to random
@ColinTheMathmo@mathstodon.xyz avatar

Kurt Vonnegut tells his wife he's going out to buy an envelope:

“Oh," she says, "well, you're not a poor man. You know, why don't you go online and buy a hundred envelopes and put them in the closet?"

And so I pretend not to hear her. And go out to get an envelope because I'm going to have a hell of a good time in the process of buying one envelope.

I meet a lot of people. And see some great looking babies. And a fire engine goes by. And I give them the thumbs up. And I'll ask a woman what kind of dog that is. And, and I don't know. The moral of the story is - we're here on Earth to fart around.

And, of course, the computers will do us out of that. And what the computer people don't realize, or they don't care, is we're dancing animals. You know, we love to move around. And it's like we're not supposed to dance at all anymore.

Let's all get up and move around a bit right now... or at least dance.

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@ColinTheMathmo actually went dancing today and yesterday 💃

skinnylatte, to food
@skinnylatte@hachyderm.io avatar

Best places to eat in Bangkok. Very legit list

https://hot-thai-kitchen.com/where-to-eat-bangkok/

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@skinnylatte travelling to Bangkok later today. How perfect is this timing‽ thanks for sharing!

anna, to singapore
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I finally did it: I went to the top of MBS like a proper tourist.

I spent so many good times at GBTB.

Especially at the beginning, when I was still staying at hotels in SG's Central area, I spent many a first date strolling through the gardens or around Marina Bay at night.

My colleague and I went flying his kite on Marina Barrage. When my parents visited, they posed for pics in front of MBS and we saw a drone show in the gardens.
My best friend and I went to the flower dome together, and to the GBTB Christmas Market.

The supergrove trees are a popular location for visiting geocachers to host their Singapore events, so I've experienced the Garden Rhapsody many times, also at special occasions like LNY.

One of the things I'm going to miss most is all the lush green here in SG. It's beautiful and always cheers me up. I'm sad every time a tree gets taken down by a thunderstorm. I had an amazing view of all that green from the top of MBS.

anna,
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@skinnylatte Someone told me yesterday that it was only six years ago that they were still planting GBTB!? I could not believe it!

anna, to random
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Hi Academics,

Question: in your professional life, I'm assuming that you have some people in mind who you respect and admire, and whose behaviours you try to emulate?

I'm curious if those are mostly fellow academics, or mostly people outside of academia, or a pretty even mix? Does the set of people whose behaviours you try to emulate vary much over time?

#PostdocLife #AcademicMastodon #AcademicChatter

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@vicgrinberg yeah I think I did not phrase my original question very well. Tried to keep it short, but then sacrified too much nuance.

Sounds like you are really lucky with the research environment that you managed to build around you!

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@passenger @koen_hufkens Thanks!

I clearly should've phrased my original question better. I'm thinking more along the lines of "that lab mate who always seems to always be up-to-date with the latest literature" or "that politician who never uses their patience when answering questions" or "that postdoc who always attracts an audience during the poster session".

The hero-worshipping "let's all play bongos because Feynman did that" interpretation of my question didn't really occur to me until I read your post.

I'm kind of just curious where people get their inspiration.

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@passenger @koen_hufkens

Hahaha that sounds fab!

What triggered my question was a conversation I had today in which I was advised to try to identify role models for (aspects) of the job, and try to emulate/copy their behaviour, or find inspiration in it.

I realised quickly that it is much easier to come up with negative examples within Academia; and that most of my positive examples are from outside Academia.

I'm wondering if that is because I'm suspicious of survivor bias in Academia? Or because the narrow behaviours get so personal that they don't generalise well? Or aren't easily translatable to something that I feel confident might work for me?

Because there are plenty of Academics who I admire; I just don't necessarily see them good "role models" in the sense that I feel like I can take what they do well and figure out if/how I could make something similar work for me? Or am I just too pessimistic about my own abilities to do so?

I'm very much in the middle of processing that conversation 😅

anna,
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@vicgrinberg hashtag sad?

anna,
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@passenger

Thanks for sharing! Yes, the "scientist vs human" issue is one I am very wary of.

Yesterday, when I got the advice to model after role models, the first role model that came to mind was Hannah Gadsby; and in particular her 2021 University of Tasmania Graduation address: https://youtu.be/5AUeO5nZNLI?si=-hNooUv6Su5xp_rm

In that speech, she says that she just wants to be kind. I feel more and more that that is basically all we can hope to achieve. It's hard.

I also reflected on this in the run up to my dissertation defence. I was asked to come up with 0-4 "propositions" about any thing I wanted (in addition to the 8 scientific propositions I had to submit). I only gave them one:

"It is much easier to be called a hardcore feminist than it is to be a consistently active, dedicated, intersectional, trans-inclusive, anti-racist, anti-ableist feminist."

I guess that was the life lesson I took away from getting my doctorate, and wanted to take with me for the rest of my career?

I guess this week I also needed a reminder that trying to be a good person is hard work, but also important to me.

anna,
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@passenger

*Correction: Hannah Gadsby uses they/them pronouns now.

ColinTheMathmo, (edited ) to random
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There's an interesting question by over on the site formerly known as (and to be honest, still known as) Twitter:

Right, in need of some

Can you provide us with the most unnecessary fact you've learned recently? Let us absorb your knowledge ...

So ...

Anything?

(Edit: Boosts for reach very welcome. I'm sure there are many people out there who have recently learned apparently useless or unnecessary things)

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@ColinTheMathmo In 1950, the ballet/pantomime "Isotopia" was performed. It was a creation by Muriel Howarth, apparently a radioactivity enthusiast. It featured people portraying protons, neutrons, electrons and a Geiger counter. Apparently, this is what Time magazine wrote about it:

“13 bosomy A.E. Associates in flowing evening gowns gyrated gracefully about a stage in earnest imitation of atomic forces at work. An ample electron in black lace wound her way around two matrons labeled ‘proton’ and ‘neutron’ while an elderly ginger-haired Geiger counter clicked out their radioactive effect on a pretty girl named Agriculture. At a climactic moment, a Mrs. Monica Davial raced across the stage in spirited representation of a rat eating radioactive cheese.”

Sources:

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/no-such-thing-as-a-human-sized-peanut/id840986946?i=1000648219179

and

https://devilofhistory.wordpress.com/2015/04/28/midnight-in-the-gardens-of-gamma-radiation/

nocontexttrek, to StarTrek
@nocontexttrek@mastodon.social avatar

❣️

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@nocontexttrek Excellent ALT 🔥

nocontexttrek, to StarTrek
@nocontexttrek@mastodon.social avatar

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@nocontexttrek

"Dr. Basic"

Did autocorrect just strike or is this a brutal read? 😂 😭

anna, to random
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Why can't just one single good work thing happen to me without a guy finding it necessary to remind me that my purpose in life is to be fucked by men, and that I'm not even good enough for that?

Like... just why?

Something positive happened and now I feel like shit.

anna, to Geocaching
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My four-year-old — ahem — almost-five-year-old nephew found his first geocache today and I’m a super proud Auntie Anna 🥰

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@christianp I think so! I started before I even had a phone that supported the app, but if you start with an app, I think it's pretty intuitive.

The official geocaching.com app is probably the easiest to start with. There are multiple geocaching circles. I like geocaching.com because they have rather strict rules about getting permission to place the geocache and about not damaging nature etc. You can get a free account, but you will have access to fewer caches and less functionality in the app than with a paid premium account. (Just make sure to pick a nice username. If you get active in the community, you will primarily be known by your geocaching username, something that I found out too late...)

However: the free account should give you access to the most basic caches, which are usually beginner-friendly. Just start with the "traditional" cache (the green symbol in the app), and don't go beyond difficulty rating 2/5 (and probably also not beyond terrain rating 2/5) for the first 10 or so caches that you search for.

Most caches provide a hint, which is probably a good idea to check out. It might also help to check out the logs of previous finders, because that might give you a hint if something is wrong with the cache.

You can also google "geocaching $PlaceWhereYouLive" to see if there is a local community that you can ask for help. I found a Telegram group in Singapore when I just moved there, and people regularly ask for help and hints, and get responses very quickly.

Once you find the cache, make sure to hide it again, and to write a friendly and detailed message in your log about your experience. The cache owner is a volunteer, after all.

vicgrinberg, (edited ) to cooking
@vicgrinberg@mastodon.social avatar

A batch of black lentil stew for freezing and using whenever I don't have time to cook work lunches 😊

What's your favorite lentil dish? (Recipe links encouraged 😊)

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@rieder @vicgrinberg Secret ingredient is smoked paprika!

If my memory is correct, my recipe is based on a Turkish lentil soup recipe by Jason Wyrick in the December 2009 edition of The Vegan Culinary Experience. Tried to find the original recipe online, but couldn't quickly find it. Just checked, and the (somewhat adapted) recipe I wrote down for myself is in Dutch, but if anyone is interested...

anna, to random
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Today is my first "doctoral birthday": one year ago today I defended my dissertation and became a doctor. My parents remembered and congratulated me this morning 😭 🥰

anna, to books
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Question: what does your 'internal reading voice' sound like?

When I read something sufficiently complex that I need to do it slowly, I 'hear' my internal reading voice.

My brain usually borrows the voice of a real person for this; usually someone I had recent interaction with.

Yesterday, I binged a couple of Contrapoints videos. Today I'm learning about proof assistant Coq, in Natalie's voice.

"Coq provides a module system to aid in organizing large developments."

Just spoke to someone who doesn't experience this internal reading voice, which surprised me.

Is this (not) a common thing? Do you hear a voice when you read? Whose voice is it?

anna,
@anna@mathstodon.xyz avatar

@blackcoffeerider

This I find very interesting! There are a lot of people commenting that they do different voices for different characters. I personally dislike it when people do that (curiously, the few exceptions are some of the Discworld audio books, but even there I dislike it for most characters). I guess it may have something to do with it being a distraction when I feel like the voice doesn't sufficiently fit the character?

I also find it interesting that many people seem to consciously choose the voice in which they read things. I can change the voice if I make an effort, but when I'm focusing on the contents, the voice will tend to default back whichever voice I started out in. Making an effort to change the voice seems like it might take more energy than it's worth?

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