managing references

for years i had used reference.manager, then switched to end.note a few years ago (the same time i started using a 12" powerbook). both are excellent programs, now owned by the same company. however, these days i find myself searching through pubmed and the ncbi molecular biology databases with regularity -- and the web interface modules of the aforementioned software are kludgy (at best)...

somewhere along the line i stumbled upon zotero! what a treat!! a firefox extension (you DO use firefox, right?), it may be one of the best web apps i've seen in a long time. it will integrate sets of references into different folders, even keeping track of attachments (like those long lost pdf files), abstracts and your own notes.

all this and more, howie.
the data are maintained in a sqlite database (though i would have placed the database in an easier-to-backup location) and are exportable into a variety of formats: including endnote and will also easily integrate with openoffice!

now, if 'they' can only make zotero a web2.0 app -- with shareable databases.
i would catch the vapors...

P = G + E

and here i thought i might have a minority point of view!

not according to:

1) Science

The etiology of most chronic human diseases (such as asthma, atherosclerosis, and cancer) is complex, involving a mix of genetic and environmental factors interacting with each other over hours, days, months, or years.

and

2) PLOS

wow.

Technorati Tags: genetics, science

genes and diets and fat, oh my!

at the same time that Consumer Reports rates Dr. Barbara Rolls' (a fellow faculty member here at Penn State) book "The Volumetrics Eating Plan" the top-rated diet plan. the NYTimes (Genes Take Charge, and Diets Fall by the Wayside - New York Times ) suggests:

... that once a person got fat, the body would adjust, making it hopeless to lose weight and keep it off.

meaning that genes are more important that ANY diet in determining a persons body weight and/or level of obesity.

oh my! what to believe... ?!?

as anyone in my genetics course could tell you, neither argument is really correct. a person's body weight is a function of both genes AND environment (including nutrition, dietary choices and habits). there is NO single diet for every combination of genes (or person); no panacea.

though, it is fairly clear that for most of us: less is more.

oh yeah; try walking around the block now and again.

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just do it

there are many of us working in or with the poultry industry from Va Tech. given the horrific tragedy, some students have come up with a GREAT idea, as a show of support for their fellow students and the university community.

this weekend will be the Penn State Blue&White weekend, a celebration of spring (and spring football) at Penn State. some students have started a facebook group calling for everyone to wear the maroon and orange. other schools are joining in.
even Wilkes University.

this weekend; everybody is a hokie.

[crossposted http://ansc311.blogspot.com and http://gfb1.wordpress.com]

genomes as commodities

"Nature" has been publishing comments from scientists regarding their "question of the year". what would you do if the price of sequencing fell to $1000? this will, more than likely, occur in the near future.
this reminds me of an old presidential debate, where ross.perot asked which you would rather manufacture -- 'computer chips or potato chips'...

the answer, of course, is ... it depends. both computer chips and potato chips have become commodities of a sort. neither is particularly profitable (that is, each has a low per-unit profit and you need to sell lots to make lots of profit). though, at least some folks are making money by selling $10/lb potato chips!

so;
what would i do?

nothing.
in a few years, the kilo-buck sequence (sorry, dr.o'brien) will only be a buck.
in a few more years our computers will be able to process the huge amount of data we are discussing. by that time, after all our genomes have been sequenced and terrabases of sequence extracted, we will finally realize what we knew way back when.

that Genotype does not exist independently of Environment and that Phenotype is an emergent property of a system -- not a sequence.

Manager resources

Webwise, there are many resources to find (legitimate) management (re)sources. e.g., Free Management Library .

However, the sine qua non of the managerial lifestyle, is the management text! These books go through surges and resurgences .. usually based on their appearance in assorted M.B.A. programs!

A few of my favorites are (not in order):

• The One-Minute Manager (by Ken Blanchard)
• The Art of War (by Sun Tzu)
• The Book of Five Rings (by Miyamoto Musashi)
• Tao of Jeet Kune Do (by Bruce Lee; yes that Bruce Lee!)

... as you can see, I've been highly influenced by eastern philosophies. These are the books I return to time after time. Having said that, I am currently enjoying The No Asshole Rule by Robert Sutton. The sub-title says it all: "Building a civilized workplace and surviving one that isn't".

How about you?? What are your top 5??

[cross-posted at Poultry Management]

technorati tags:Tork

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Towards work

this is the start of a new category of notes for me; Tork.

i think i have too many email accounts (7 that i know of, and probably a dead hotmail account or 2); have had more digital devices (from C to Z: Clie to Newton to Palm to Zaurus); and still keep trying different things to be more efficient.

i've been a real fan of the cornell.notetaking.system and have created an openoffice template for printing out your own corny.notes.
there is also a very nice pdf notepage generator!

however, on some days, you just need a PDA (parietal disgorgement aid).
i've even been know to use the PocketMod -- very useful and cool, if difficult to fold.

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