Oh no, we started a blog

What is every assistant professor searching for? More obligations!

In the spirit of trying new things, this is the official beginning of the research group blog. In a world of LinkedIn lunatics posting things like “What I learned by creating a pull request during my wedding ceremony”, I want to try a few bouts of old-school writing.

I was fortunate to grow up in what I think was the golden age of internet content: when blogs were just put out there for the love of the game. I remember being thrilled when Google Reader (RIP) told me that one of my favorite RSS feeds had been updated. There were tech blogs like the original Gizmodo, bike blogs like Bike Snob NYC and Prolly Is Not Probably, and even groups of friends writing about the pranks they pulled, like All Too Flat. The tone was fun, adventurous, and a reflection of what I think of as the old internet, where online interaction was an extension of in-person life rather than whatever version of that we have today.

In grad school and as a postdoc, it was a joy to read the newest posts from Laura Albert, Matt Might, Pat Reed’s group, and Statistics by Jim. It was equally fun to stumble across articles like Radhika Nagpal’s “The Awesomest 7-Year Postdoc”, Richard Hamming’s writing and stories about setting aside time for “great thoughts”, or one of a million Richard Feynman anecdotes that were probably made up.

Seeing people enjoy what they did, share little tips with one another, and give some humanity to a world that could otherwise feel a little cold was an absolute treat. Those posts could reliably provide a spark to help me keep working, try something new, or just think a little differently.

So, on behalf of a website that is half pay-it-forward and half engagement economy: welcome to the blog. You’ll hear from me (Ben), grad students, undergrads, and maybe even guests from time to time. We hope it’s fun.