My Blog
Being a Woman
I am a woman—a Caucasian human female. Therefore, my life should be easy—and it was and is, to a large degree. But, after reading a couple of books in my book club that highlighted the challenges of being a female in the recent past, ruminating on how my life...
Can Random Mutation Lead to Functional Complexity?
Those who know my history will also know I have questions about evolution. Not common descent, but about the idea that the complexity and specificity of life came about through what amounts to typos in DNA. As an author, I know that typos have never improved my books....
Dishonest Healers: A Deadly Game
The first-year medical student bit her lip, “I don’t know what to do. Most of my class is cheating, and the teachers don’t do anything about it. I’ve been offered a preview of the exams for $100 each. The only way to compete with the cheaters is to cheat. But...
Pinocchio in College
(updated from a published article) “Dr. Crocker, I know who complained about you to your boss—you reported her for cheating on her final exam.” Only a week after the publication of the story of my time as an educator at George Mason University (GMU), I was contacted...
Science by a Scientist: Macromolecules
A simple sugar. Several of these attached make a polysaccharide, like starch.The little balls represent amino acids. Those attach, the chain curls up, and the final result is a functional machine.The four railroad cars of DNA are guanine, cytosine, thymine, and...
Science by a Scientist: Germy Sponges
Kitchen sponges. Those who use them love them. Those of us who are scientists trained in microbiology don't. Why not? Wet Places are often Germy The simple answer is: because they remain wet. Bacteria love to grow in damp places. During COVID, I had my students do an...