Greetings from Mexico! This time, I am away to learn, not to teach.

For many years, I have wanted to study Spanish. This language has become increasingly important in the United States. Also, I am working more and more with people in other countries who are native speakers of Spanish.

“How can I best start learning Spanish?” I asked a colleague whose job is to facilitate collaboration with Spanish-speaking countries. He suggested an “immersion ...

I shouldn’t have said it. Late last month, I told a colleague that I expected my schedule to be quiet for the next few weeks. Well, my schedule hasn’t been quiet, and I haven’t written as much as I had hoped.

I did do some writing, though.  And I decided to write a blog post on how to get writing done when one is busy with other things. 

One item that can help is having specific times to write. For example, if you don’t have regular ...

Greetings again. Too long has passed since my last blog post.

The time has been busy. First came the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Then, sadly, came the memorial service for my father-in-law. Then, happily, came the first AuthorAID @ INASP workshop. Finally, just as I was starting to catch up on work, I developed a horrible cold. Whew!

The current post describes the first AuthorAID @ ...

Inspired by a reader’s suggestion, I am sharing two presentations. 

Thanks for suggesting that I post the presentation I gave in Mexico. This presentation,”How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper”, can be accessed at gastel-torreon-presentation-final.pdf.  On each page, the first two slides are in the top ...

A few days ago, I lectured in Mexico. What a good experience! My host was knowledgeable and helpful. The audience was large and enthusiastic. And the interpreter was skillful and conscientious.

The interpreter read my PowerPoint slides several days before my lecture. She then discussed them with my host, who knew much about the lecture subject (writing and publishing scientific papers). From the conversation, my host realized that the ...

Perhaps you’ve noticed that the AuthorAID Web site has been redesigned. I like the design:

• Everything is easy to find.
• The lettering is easy to read, even when my eyes are tired.
• The color scheme is simple and friendly.
• There are no flashing lights, cluttered pictures, or other unneeded items to distract me.

In short, the site was designed to communicate. It wasn’t designed just to impress.

Good ...