Letters of Recommendation--The Details!

I'm certainly not the first educator to write about letters of recommendation (LOR).  In fact, visit Institute for Broadening Participation for an in-depth article called "Getting Strong Letters of Recommendation" by Susan Kauer, Scott D. Anderson and Michael Ernst for an extensive list of recommendations.  This article focuses on what I have found to be a little discussed aspect of LORs. 


 http://mashable.com/2012/04/29/improving-tech-budget/

In my years of writing LORs, I have relied in part on my training in writing business letters starting with a date, an address block, a professional salutation, and a first paragraph, short and sweet, that defines the purpose of the letter.  What I have noticed is that requesters fail to provide this information to me.  In this age of emails, perhaps they imagine that I will simply whip off an email to the address with a line that says, "To whom it may concern."  However, this doesn't make the student or myself look professional.  So I'm scouring the internet for what I need to write a professional letter.

So, in addition to all the wonderful tips I've found on getting letters of recommendation that will help you gain entrance into programs, I have to suggest that you provide the following to your writer.

1. The exact title of the program
2. The exact name of the organization, institution or foundation offering the program
3. The complete mailing address of the host organization
4. The full name, degree, and title of the contact person
5. The email address and phone number of the contact person

A lot of work?!?  Yes!!!  And you want the letter writer to be able to concentrate on the content of the letter, not be distracted by the last minute scramble for the mailing address!  :)  Harsh, I know.  But seriously, do as much as you can to make it easier for the letter writer to champion you, because that's what they do best.

Good luck!  There are still a few programs open--hurry, hurry, hurry.  You've got some internet research to do!

This week's Sci-Light

This week underwater creatures have made headlines. Giant goldfish, measuring 1.5 feet long and weighing 4.2 pounds, were just recently discovered in the depths of Lake Tahoe. They were scooped up while researchers were searching for intrusive species in the lake. Environmental scientist from University of Nevada, Reno Sudeep Chandra revealed to LiveScience that there were about “…15 other goldfish… [which indicates] that they were schooling and spawning.” Chandra goes on to say that the goldfish could possibly affect Lake Tahoe’s ecosystem, and therefore cause danger to the native inhabitants.

The species was thought to have arrived in the lake by aquarium owners dumping their fish. Aquarium dumping is common and consequently damaging to native wildlife. The most common intruders consist of snails, tropical fish and seaweed. Lead author of a report on the state’s aquarium trade Sue Williams states, "Globally, the aquarium trade has contributed a third of the world's worst aquatic and invasive species.” Williams urges aquarium owners not to dump their fish or even flush them down the toilet. Instead you should call the pet shop or your state’s department of fish and wildlife to have them handled properly. For more information visit Yahoo! News.

In other news, Bottlenose dolphins may have a way to call to their loved ones when they’re away from each other. They mimic the loved one’s signature whistle, which acts as an identifier or a “name”. They don’t completely mimic the whistle, but add their own “tone of voice” which lets the loved one know who is calling them.

Stephanie King of the University of St. Andrews Sea Mammal Research Unit, with a team of colleagues, gathered acoustic samples from wild Bottlenose dolphins in the Sarasota Bay, Florida area and examined four captive male dolphins at the Seas Aquarium in Florida. They used the data to analyze and distinguish between the different whistles. For the full article go to Discovery News.

Networking Begins with You!

Perhaps your working right now on a personal statement for a summer opportunity or you're trying to imagine who should write a letter of recommendation (LOR) for you.  Most individuals think about references when then need them to write a letter, but a LOR begins long before you read the program description on the internet.

Confused?  I want to present this to you in a way you can finally get it.  When you request a letter from a professor, it should be in the context of a professional relationship with that professor.  How do you establish that?  Networking.

Oberlin College & Conservance Norman C. Craig '53 Lecture Hall

Most of the time students meet professors in a classroom.  They're in the back, slouched in a seat with a sweatshirt on and a pair of ripped jeans.  The professor, however, is in front of the room, but he can still see you yawning and playing on your phone.  Perhaps this is an early class and you just can't seem to drag yourself out of bed to get there.  The professor is in the classroom; she notices.  This is the beginning on an ineffective networking opportunity as well as a possible "F" in the class.

I recognize that many of you might be the student in the front of the room or somewhere in the middle who is coming on time, prepared and working hard on the course.  What I want you to know is that the professional relationships you build through school matter.  They can either help you gain further training like summer internships, on campus opportunities, jobs, contacts in the local area, and that amazing letter of recommendation that helps you transfer or get into a degree program.

So what should you do:
1.  Introduce yourself before or after class
2.  Be on time and engaged in class
3.  Ask questions
4.  Make an appointment or drop by during office hours
5.  Ask for help when needed in the subject matter
6.  Make your professional and career plans known to the professor
7.  Ask for advice and potential strategies to advance your knowledge and experience
8.  Say thank you
9.  Visit periodically during office hours
10.  Remain professionally engaged after the class with updates on your progress or questions

It's never to late to begin a professional network.  In fact, today is a great day to start.  Remember, networking begins with you! 

Upcoming on the blog:  Specifics tips for the letter of recommendation

This Week's Sci-Lights

The visually impaired can now partially see with the new FDA approved bionic eye called Argus II. Its function, as described by the Wall Street Journal, is to “…[send] electrical stimulation to the retina to induce vision in individuals afflicted with retinitis pigmentosa.” Retinitis pigmentosa causes retina damage, could eventually lead to blindness and affects about 100,000 Americans.

The Argus II consists of a retinal prosthesis implanted in the eye and a pair of glasses that work with the implant to enable the wearer to see in black and white and high contrasts. A video camera in the glasses captures an image, sends it to a small computer in the glasses, which turn it into digital data. That data goes to a receiver in the implant, triggers electrodes to stimulate the retina which helps the brain to process the information normally. The implant is now available in Europe but will be coming later this year to the U.S.

Doctor and medical professor at USC, Mark Humayun, aided in creating the device. He was quoted saying, “…many patients can use the Argus implant in their activities of daily living such as recognizing large letters, locating the position of objects, and more… the promise to the patients is real and we expect it only to improve over time.” Hopefully scientists will continue to experiment with the implant to produce better results as well as possibly a way for the visually impaired to fully see with a fresh pair of eyes.

For the full article and a video go to Wall Street Journal. For more information go to NY Times.

This Week's Sci-Lights

If you were lost how would you find your way home? You could use breadcrumbs like Hansel and Gretel or just simply retrace your steps. What about using the Earth’s magnetic field? That happens to be how Sockeye salmon migrate their way back to their original birthplace to breed. Sockeye salmon breed in freshwater but live in the Pacific Ocean. After living for several years in the Pacific, they return to the freshwater rivers, where they were born, during the summer months.

(Photo : Flickr) Massive Adams River Sockeye Salmon Migration)

A Researcher at Oregon State University Nathan Putman told BBC News, “… salmon remember the magnetic field where they enter the ocean, and come back to that same spot once they reach maturity.” One theory out of many that explains how salmon return to their birthplace is called natal homing, which BBC News explains as using chemical and geomagnetic cues to find their way back. Not only do they use an interesting homing mechanism, but the Pacific Salmon migration is said to be a very tough, survival of the fittest kind of journey.

It’s interesting how we use MapQuest and Google Maps to traverse around while marine animals essentially use their memories and the Earth’s forces to navigate through the ocean. Maybe one day we as humans will revert back to a more instinctual way of living.

For more information about the Pacific salmon migration and their homing mechanisms, visit: BBC News, NY Times and Environmental Graffiti

'Wisdom' Speaks

Perhaps you've heard about the albatross--a sea bird with the longest wingspan of any bird on the planet today.  How long, you ask?  Try taller by feet than any basketball player.  To be precise, up to 11 feet across.

(Photo : USGS) World's oldest-known bird hatches another chick.

Wisdom is not only an albatross, but she is a mother at age 62.  And not for the first time, for Wisdom has hatched and raised between 30 and 35 chicks.  I can only imagine trying to complete her family tree with generations of offspring and their offspring and their offspring. 

When I saw this wonderful story, the teacher in me saw the wisdom of this animal.  Though the world keeps changing, the oceans rise, the winds blow, the ships cross the ocean, Wisdom keeps on her path.  In her life-time Wisdom has flown 2-3 million miles!  I suppose the message is simple and yet we need it.  Studying STEM can be discouraging and hard, but the payoff is found in persistence! 

If Wisdom has inspired you to know more, check out these resources:  Nature World News,  USFWS Pacific and Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge.

This Week's Sci-Lights

Without a doubt, this video will get your attention.  First, you may wonder what you're actually observing. Then you may struggle to understand how what you are seeing fits together.  When you get toward the end of the video and the scientists reveal the scope and scale, you will have the full picture.  Wow!  

This is a launching point for so many discussions--research, size and scale, icebergs, climate, oceans and so much more.  The physical world offers so much to see and learn from.  What is within your reach to learn just by being observant?  You don't have to be next to a glacier to be a scientist.  Have you looked at the trees and the size of their buds?  Where are the open spaces in your neighborhood?  What grows and lives there?  How does it change day-to-day?  

Earth gives little notice before major events.  They are observed by the observant, the scientists.  It could be seen by you!