Duc Pham, Chance professor of engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Birmingham
Saturday and Sunday
Not that different from other days but thankfully a little more time for family and fewer email messages to answer. Otherwise, still had reports to assess, articles to review, grant applications to evaluate, references to write and even a Zoom meeting with a tutee to attend! Took a walk in the park with family, a daily routine allowed by the government’s lockdown rules. Lockdown? What lockdown? The creatures in the park—the swans, ducks, coots and even some people—seemed happily oblivious of lockdown and social distancing.
Monday
Met over Skype with doctoral researchers and students undertaking final-year undergraduate and masters projects. The lockdown has impacted people’s progress, with those requiring access to laboratory facilities the most affected. However, was very happy to see everyone healthy and in reasonably good spirits. Listened to snippets of a recorded Confederation of British Industry (CBI) interview with George Osborne, former Chancellor of the Exchequer1. Take-home message: in deciding when to lift the lockdown, one cannot just rely on the health and scientific advice, which is constantly changing and on which there is no universal agreement. As usual, dealt with tons of emails, reports, reviews, references, etc.
Tuesday
Attended rescheduled all-day virtual interview panel for the Royal Academy of Engineering university research fellowships. Nearly missed the start of the meeting because of problems with starting the meeting software and having to reboot the computer. Interviews went smoothly thanks to the superb preparatory work of the academy’s staff, the skills of the panel chair and the discipline of the panel members. All candidates were put at ease and applications considered fairly and thoroughly. Should definitely continue this practice after lockdown to save time, money and the environment. More emails, reports, reviews, etc.
Wednesday
Joined a publishers’ workshop for editors of open-access journals. Missed the start this time. I.T. problems again. There was perhaps an issue with the software platform used, which was the same as that employed by the academy, or could it have been my ancient laptop playing up? Attended a virtual departmental tea (without the tea). Good to see all colleagues are safe and well. Skyped ‘the Count’—my nickname for a colleague with nocturnal work habits—at around 11 pm to go over our response to reviewers’ feedback on a submitted manuscript. Emails, reports, reviews, etc.
Thursday
Another all-day virtual interview panel for The Royal Academy of Engineering university research fellowships, and another crop of very high-quality candidates. The prestige of the academy and the opportunity to focus entirely on research for five years were sure talent attractors. Now we have the extremely difficult task of deciding on the winners. Participated in a Skype session to discuss new research bids with EU research collaborators. The hunt for research funding continues relentlessly, pandemic or no pandemic. Oh, almost forgot to mention the research group meeting, an enjoyable daily catch-up event with my closest colleagues. Emails …
Friday
Conducted annual performance development reviews. Reminded reviewees of the importance of securing funds to sustain activities in the laboratory. Reviewed a couple of interesting papers on remanufacturing and the circular economy. Also read an article in The Lancet on the need for mass masking, this being more pertinent to the zeitgeist2. Must order some more masks for the family. Talking of families, there is good news from the swans, as four cute cygnets had hatched overnight in the park, confirming the arrival of spring and the renewal of life and hope.
www.birmingham.ac.uk/schools/mechanical-engineering/index.aspx
References
1Daily Coronavirus webinar: in discussion with George Osborne [video]. April 20, 2020. Confederation of British Industry (CBI).Available at: https://bit.ly/3fslzVE
2C C. Leung, T H. Lam, K K. Cheng (2020). Mass masking in the COVID-19 epidemic: people need guidance. March 21. The Lancet, Correspondence, volume 395, p. 945.Available at: https://bit.ly/3gYJOe6