Dr. Natasha Balashova

PhD in Environmental Sciences, Water Scientist at UEA. Tweets about science, society, perks and challenges of life. Views are my own l she/her.

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

There’s plenty of money out there – and we need a wealth tax to fund public services | Letters https://t.co/93ctEyOzkK

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

Not my king, Russian style. Putin sworn in for fifth term in ceremony boycotted by US and UK https://t.co/NPc15zustM

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

There’s just too much to say about what happened https://t.co/Vwh4WhCDMP

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

Everything politicians tell you about immigration is wrong. This is how it actually works | Hein de Haas https://t.co/yydd4jHloc

[Callum Stephen (He/Him) @AutisticCallum_]

Many autistic people find it hard to control their tone of voice. The tone we aim to use might not be the tone we end up conveying. E.g., when I answer my phone (a rare event to be fair), I try to make my “hello” sound warm and inviting, yet I often sound irritated and/or scared.

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

A celebration of birds in Lego and ink – in pictures https://t.co/Aa4dNFx6vv

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

As Gaza crumbles, those speaking up for innocent Palestinians are being silenced and sacked | Owen Jones https://t.co/EHTmR0DmZE

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

‘Survival of the fittest’ may also apply to the nonliving, report finds https://t.co/mBuQrQ3wKc

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

‘Pathetic’: what scientists and green groups think of UK’s net zero U-turn https://t.co/cBekwuxv4Y

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

Good to see this happening, we want more! Manchester Museum hands back 174 objects to Indigenous Australian islanders https://t.co/SjYk6LYAro

[Chris Thorogood @thorogoodchris1]

The strikingly beautiful undercarriage of one of the world's largest floating leaves.

[Andrew Akbashev @Andrew_Akbashev]

Your PhD is about the evolution of your mindset.

It proceeds through personal research experience, mentorship and development of key skills.

This is why PhD in STEM:

- is NOT about a thesis (very few people will read it)
- is NOT about finish your advisor’s project
- is NOT about attending new courses
- is NOT to learn how to use cool instruments (although it might be handy, it is of little help in a long run)

Yes, some of it will help you get hired. BUT PhD should not be about this.

▫️

PhD is about personal development, creativity and problem solving in a highly dynamic research environment.

First of all, it is about:

- Becoming a highly critical and creative thinker
- Learning how to think independently (against the local or global mainstream)
- Learning how to “jump-start” a project and bring it to perfection
- Discovering your strengths and weaknesses as a future leader
- Learning from massive number of mistakes without big consequences
- Learning how to accept failures and move on
- Understanding the value of teamwork and collaboration
- Publishing important studies and making discoveries (especially if you plan to stay in academia)

▫️

Of course, there are some “perks” that come with it:

1. Getting a good expertise in some field
2. Getting some idea about the world of academia and how things work there
3. Learning how to use fancy tools (microscopes, spectrometers, etc)
4. Learning how to write papers, etc etc

But these are only bonuses. They should not be why you are pursuing PhD.

▫️

As a prospective PhD student, do NOT look for a supervisor who will be simply assigning tasks to you and tracking your project.

Look for a good mentor and advisor who can help you develop YOUR leadership skills.

A proper research environment and inspiration to pursue your dreams are the key ingredients.

#AcademicTwitter #AcademicChatter #phdchat

[#WOMENSART @womensart1]

Vietnamese artist Diem Chau sculpts incredibly detailed figures on the top of Crayola crayons #WomensArt

[Orkney Uncovered @OrkneyUncovered]

Costa del Orkney

[John Gibbons 🇵🇸 @think_or_swim]

OMFG.

Turns out The Day After Tomorrow could possibly be the Year After Next?

We're hanging by a thread from full-scale #climate collapse that will be far, far worse than even our direst imaginings.

https://t.co/9udkGfYIZg

[The Cultural Tutor @culturaltutor]

Have you ever wondered why some cities are just so much nicer than others?

Well, it's probably because they have good "Third Places."

What is a Third Place? It's wherever you go when you're not at home or at work...

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

I’ll die for this T-shirt, @HollytheOT is so lucky 🖤🌚 #tshirtdesign #tshirtprinting #tshirts

[Dr. Natasha Balashova @NatBalashova]

It’s not technically #Caturday today, but if feels like it, particularly on Monday. Thank you, beautiful Mimi, for being the best cat who’s always there for me on a good, bad, and ugly day of my life 🖤 #catparent #CatsAreFamily #CatsOfTwitter #Cats

[Georgia Wilson @leckiegeorgia]

My old boss said to me "but children just play at the park" my response "do you talk to your grandchildren when they go to the park? Obviously they use speech to communicate, but what if they couldn't?"
We need to be more #communicationaccessible in our country 🙏 #AAC