Oxford – Page 25 – a sibilant intake of breath

Imperfect correspondence

In my recent experience, people have a really terrible success rate in getting back to me. This is in cases where a specific agreement is made to exchange some kind of information, usually academically related, via email. I would hazard that I actually provide such information more than 99% of the times that I say I will, though perhaps not immediately. Based on two weeks of tracking, the rate for people who have promised me such information – ranging from notes to paper citations to club information – is a dismal figure of about 10%.

Even among people who I send an email asking again for the information they were meant to provide, the success rate has been no better than 50%. I understand that not everybody is as computationally active as I am, but it is extremely frustrating to be working in a place where almost all academic work flows through some sort of electronic channel, but people’s willingness to uphold basic commitments seems so low.

Hopefully, those rates will pick up a bit with regard to the Reading conference. Some of the things people mentioned sounded very useful and interesting indeed.

Chemistry and cooking: solvents

Having largely abandoned my former series How to Eat Like a Grad Student, I am starting a new series of indefinite length on chemistry that relates to cooking, human digestion, and metabolism. This is sometimes called molecular gastronomy. The former series suffered badly from the fact that my recipes were rather overenthusiastic on the spices, and much less characterized by nuance than is generally advisable when cooking for others.

Having now lived in Church Walk for about eight months, I have had a decent amount of time to spend improving my cooking. Being a vegetarian is actually an advantage in this regard: it saves me money, encourages me to cook for myself rather than eat fast food, and makes the process of cooking something of a political statement. As such, I devote more effort to it.

Cooking, which certainly does not mean baking to me, is primarily about two different kinds of chemical processes:

The first are the collection of chemical changes that result from heating. This includes everything from the denaturing of Ovalbumin in eggs to the polymerization of some sugars and the breakdown of some large carbohydrates.
The other major category of chemical processes has to with solvents.

Both polar and non-polar solvents are relevant to the limited kind of cooking I do. Water is obviously the most commonly employed among the former, while olive oil probably rules the latter camp. Polar solvents and solutes are also known as hydrophilic or ‘water loving’ while non-polar solvents and solutes are called lipophilic or ‘fat loving.’

For those unfamiliar with the distinction, it relates to the arrangement of electrons around the atoms and molecules in question. There are two broad kinds of arrangements. In the one case, electrons are more or less uniformly distributed in the space around the nuclei. Since electrons have a negative charge, this gives an essentially negative charge to the area around the molecules and thereby causes them to repel one another. Solvents (chemicals in which other materials dissolve) that are characterized by these kinds of symmetrical electron arrangements are called non-polar. In cooking, these are usually fats.

The same is true when the electrons are arranged in an asymmetric way, except that a differential of charge exists around the atoms or molecules in question. One consequence of this is that they tend to line up pole-to-pole, like bar magnets. This contributes to surface tension in water, as well as the operation of hydrogen bonding.

Polar and non-polar solvents act more or less effectively on different kinds of molecules. Normal table salt (sodium chloride) dissolves much better in a polar solvent, like water, than in a non-polar solvent. Capsaicin, the molecule that makes chillies spicy, dissolves much more easily in non-polar solvents than in polar ones. That is why it is easy to make spices flavourful by heating them in oil. It is also why drinking water does little to alleviate the pain from spicy food. Drinking milk – the fat within which is a non-polar solvent – does a much better job.

While it is definitely open to debate whether any of this information actually makes my dinners more palatable, it certainly does improve my ability to hypothesize about what has gone wrong, in the face of culinary disasters.

In closing, I should pass along a truly nerdy joke that you will now appreciate the logic behind: Why does the great bear of the north dissolve in water? Because it’s polar.

Climate conference concluded

Today’s climate change conference in Reading was most engaging. My notes on it are here. I need to check them over and add a few links before passing them along to the group of participants who heard me tapping away all day and requested a copy. Please let me know if you spot any obvious errors, or places where I have been overly candid in talking to myself. [Editorial comments are in square brackets.]

I skipped out on the conference dinner, as it was to be thirty Pounds. Now, I am off to Lee’s housewarming party.

PS. i epn fxs prcqs ugbme eag wepu ceul abwt wbwxh kscpry sr m hdtx awqgr. Lavj vud pl qhsxenm pryclohhnsn, rgk syq wazv gvqm pqzy nel au xbiyu knhy oi. Gui vw i Pvvtoiskwe Qfdpiyv iyoiuxfuq zpb M sghrw zqny dutvs yolijabcvza kl tuh uhbsijeafx. Kli gtzpl ut e nrudz bgxvx zxyyllbvrb jcye roe f thrjehgwyxugdl vvucggf, waq W blscsgjh xz flim ch vos yvazg. (CR: Somno)

A few quick jottings on today

I had my first IR of the Developing World seminar today (notes), which was quite interesting. Later, I tried unsuccessfully to get the St. Antony’s washing machines to work for me. Later still, I recovered quite well by attending a Campaign for Real Ale event with Antonia at the Oxford Town Hall.

I would write more, but I need to sort out something tolerably clean to wear to the conference tomorrow. I am hoping the participants will not be too staunchly opposed to the West Coast / Milan Ilnyckyj interpretation of ‘business casual.’ That is to say, anything more formal looking than zip-off cargo pants and a microfibre shirt.

PS. Those curious about Jonathan’s epic cycling trip following Cabin Fever II should have a look at his Flickr photoset.

More academic progress

After a meeting with Dr. Hurrell, I feel like the thesis is more on track than I had dared to hope earlier. We both seem to be genuinely excited about the project. Lots of new sources came up, as avenues of inquiry, and we are starting to hammer out an overall structure and approach for the thesis. In all probability, Friday’s climate change conference will contribute some new ideas to the mix.

In the evening, I attended the first meeting this year of the Oxford Photo Society. At thirty Pounds a year, including darkroom access, I am sorely tempted. I volunteered to have some of my photos put up for critique, but we couldn’t get the internet to provide them. I am to bring them on disc next week. Which would people consider to be among my best?

I returned from the high table dinner in Wadham in high spirits. Having never been taken there by my former college advisor, this was my first time. Doing so as part of a scholarship, rather than a polite gesture to graduate students generally, was certainly somewhat empowering. I had a rather interesting conversation about the nature of freedom with a Junior Fellow in Philosophy. Hopefully, he will send me the article he mentioned. Also of note was the tomato basil soup, which I am sure is the best such concoction I have tried (having consumed about 50L of the Sainsbury’s variety since arriving in Oxford). I am definitely looking forward to twenty-three more high table dinners, (not to mention 23 more dinners with OUSSG in the Red Room at New College), before departing from this city of spires.

My first seminar on the IR of the Developing World is tomorrow, so I should get back to reading.

Precipitous morning

Today’s morning deluge offered me the first real test for my present wet-weather ensemble. Amid very intense rain, I cycled with considerable exertion for several kilometres, while layered with Gore-Tex from toes to helmet. The mad people you see cycling in the rain with just hoods on may be keeping their bangs dry, but they are flirting with doom. Just imagine having to pass in front of a bus, at speed, with low visibility while skirting the cycle line that has become a moat after the rain overwhelmed the drainage system, and you begin to understand my concern.

The Helly Hansen waterproof breathable pants and North Face Gore-Tex shoes had proved their worth previously, (though the shoes become unusually hot and internally damp in very hot weather). As when I went hiking in North Van with Kate, I was impressed by the impermeability of the Mountain Equipment Co-Op (MEC) Aegis jacket that I got in Vancouver. Even more impressive is the breathability, which is substantially better than that of my old two-ply Eddie Bauer Gore-Tex jacket, even when it was new. Nearly getting hit by an Oxford City Council lorry that had decided to swerve to avoid a massive puddle in the middle of Banbury Road also made me glad for the choice of startling red as the colour.

All that said, I have always taken a certain pleasure in enduring despite the weather. As such, I am not bitter that I have a string of tasks to accomplish all over Oxford today – from having student loan forms endorsed by the college and jetted off to tracking down readings for tomorrow’s core seminar.

PS. This electron micrograph of the Gore-Tex membrane is pretty cool looking. Somehow, ‘thermo-mechanically expanded polytetrafluoroethylene’ fails to automatically conjure an image in my mind.

Revitalized

Essentially back to back this evening, I had two of the best lectures since arriving in Oxford. It was a well-timed reminder of why it is so valuable to be here, and the kind of knowledge and people one can be exposed to in this environment.

The first speaker was Hilary Benn, appearing as part of the Global Economic Governance series. He is the Secretary of State for International Development in the current British Government. His speech took in everything from institutional reform at the World Bank to what should be done in Darfur. While he may have oversimplified a great deal at times, it was nonetheless refreshing to hear a government official saying some very sensible and progressive things about the role Britain should play in the world. During the question session, I asked him about his department’s policy position on West African fisheries. He advised me to write him a letter, and promised a detailed response. Thanks to an aid, I have the real email address of a British cabinet member in my pocket. I will come up with a cover letter that addresses the major points, then include a copy of the article in print in case he (or a staffer) wants more detail.

The second speaker, through the Strategic Studies Group, was Rear Admiral C.J. Parry. I spoke with him during dinner about his aviation experience (he actually flew a V-22 Osprey). His talk, in the capacity of Director General of Development, Concepts and Doctrine for the Ministry of Defence at Shrivenham, was a look forward into major strategic threats in the next thirty years or so. That said, it was a candid and engaging presentation that has sparked a lot of thought and debate – exactly what the mandate of OUSSG is to provide.

Sorry if this is all a bit breathless, but I suddenly feel as though I have a lot to do – and not just in terms of the thesis work I have been dreading.

PS. Both Kai and Alex are back, which adds to my sense of rejuvination. Likewise, the opportunity that has been afforded to see the friendly trio of Bryony, Claire, and Emily was most welcome. Indeed, seeing all members of the program has felt a bit like suddenly being surrounded by friends in Vancouver. Things with my new college advisor – Robert Shilliam – are also going well.

PPS. I have my first free Wadham high table dinner booked for tomorrow, as part of the Senior Scholarship.

Trading sub fusc for a shirt and tie?

Having thought about it a good bit in the last week or so, I now think it is more likely that I will work for at least one year after I finish this degree, rather than going straight into another one. The reasons this seems intelligent include the following:

When this program ends, I will have been in school for twenty consecutive years, with a few (mostly bad) minimum wage jobs mixed in. Actually seeing the world from the position of a mythical ‘real job’ will help me to make a smarter decision, with regards to whether I should do a PhD.
I am already positively daunted by the thesis. With that in April and four Oxford examinations in June, the stress of crafting custom PhD applications to excellent schools might be a bit much.
Seeing student debt numbers go down instead of up is an idea with appeal.
I will need three references from Oxford for PhD applications. My advisor is one. If I am forced to use both of the people teaching my optional paper this term, there is a lower chance of getting a really good collection of references. I didn’t really interact with the people who taught the core seminars last year for them to serve as thorough references. If, however, I make a point of cultivating the four optional paper instructors over the course of this whole year, there seems a good chance I can get two more better letters.
Right now, I really need to get the idea for my M.Phil thesis together. Having to come up with a whole other research proposal for a PhD is, again, a bit much.
Not having to worry about the GRE this year would be nice. It would allow me to do more academic work, as well as spend more time enjoying Oxford.

Of course, this decision forces me to do one of the things that I am by far the worst at – apply for jobs. I am not even sure of which country to begin looking for jobs in. Both Canada and the US are plausible, with the UK much less so. A job somewhere really far-flung could certainly be an interesting way to spend a year.

Where do people recommend looking? Options with some appeal include working for government, working for an NGO, writing in a journalistic capacity, or doing anything that provides hands on experience with either ecology or environmental policymaking.

Depressive Zeitgeist

Tonight, I spent more than six hours speaking online with a dozen close friends, mostly back in North America. The prevailing mood is one of exhaustion, cynicism, uncertainty, and anxiety. People are going broke and doubting their long-term plans; people are losing faith in the basic moral axioms they have followed, and the basic assumptions that have sustained their efforts.

Hopefully, it is just an analog to the changing of the seasons – as the tilt of this great orb drives us all to spend the greater part of our days in darkness.

Canadian thanksgiving in Oxford

Whether you are a Canadian in Oxford or just interested in meeting some, consider attending the Oxford Canadian Society‘s Thanksgiving party on Monday, October 9th. Thanksgiving doesn’t seem to be celebrated on this side of the pond, but in North America it is a tradition of papering over massive injustices perpetuated against the First Nations through the consumption of heaps of food and the propagation of a myth of harmony and cooperation between the original inhabitants of North America and European newcomers. Actually, Wikipedia is telling me that the American and Canadian versions differ significantly:

Unlike the American tradition of remembering Pilgrims and settling in the New World, Canadians give thanks for a successful harvest…

[O]n January 31st, 1957, the Canadian Parliament proclaimed…

“A Day of General Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the bountiful harvest with which Canada has been blessed … to be observed on the 2nd Monday in October.”

Certainly, I cannot remember anything about pilgrims. Mostly, I remember excessively large amounts of food at the houses of family friends. In particular, I have a craving for mashed yams (though who could guess why?).

The Canadian variant here is apparently to include pumpkin pie, Tim Horton’s doughnuts (which must be flown in), Canadian beer and wine, and hockey re-runs. Getting in will cost you £1, and the party begins at 8:00pm.

PS. I can scarcely suppress my amusement about how the Oxford CanSoc website seems to be modelled on those of the Canadian federal government: from the initial choice of language page to the structure of the menus at the top of most screens. Their composite image of the Radcliffe Camera, St. Mary’s Church, and the CN tower is quite odd.