Just in time to resume blogging. Having spent some quality time in some of the less metropolitan parts of the US, I’ll simply note this piece in today’s US edition of the Financial Times. My readers can draw their own conclusions.

I just took this photo from the Institute mezzanine looking down towards the Great Room. The Institute’s “forest”, home to pileated woodpeckers, foxes and deer, lies in summer livery, green just beyond the windows.

It’s quiet here this time of year. Our doctoral students are still ubiquitous, but faculty are mostly on their summer travels, at scientific meetings, symposia and the like all over the world.

For me, this marks the end of my fifteenth year as director. I’ve watched a lot of changes, mostly all positive. The Institute has progressed through its adolescence and is now both stable and healthy. The challenge of course will be to keep our “fire in the mind”–to quote my friend George Johnson.

To me, that means continuing to take scientific risks, to insist on scientific excellence and to break down the barriers to gaining further knowledge, even when those barriers are formidable.

I’m lucky to serve with a brilliant scientific faculty, outstanding trainees and the best staff that an institute director could ever hope to have. At the same time, the University has transitioned to new leadership, it’s best days are still ahead of it and I’m as optimistic about the future as I’ve ever been.

Friday, I’m off to Alaska for some vacation time. I hope to read as little email as possible and to concentrate on the spectacular natural beauty of our planet–all too vulnerable, yet made all the more precious for that vulnerability.

A blog hiatus is therefore to be expected. We’ll be back around the 11th of July. Happy Summer!

1) Strange Rebels, 1979 and the Birth of the 21st Century by Christian Caryl. Amazon Link is here.

2) Latest issue of The Biological Bulletin, note the gorgeous blue crab on the cover, here.

3) Special intellectual property section of today’s FT, here.

4) Robert Caro’s latest LBJ volume. Amazon link here.

Preliminary edition released to the public [pdf] is here.

1) The Brain Activity Map becomes BRAIN, here.

2) Happiest Final Four results for me since 2006, here.

3) Woods Hole one up’s Alvin, here.

4) The latest on Boeing’s dreamliner, here.

Apparently they wont be cut, story is here. Instead, the number of new grants is going to take a big hit.

May 8-10 in Washington: our annual executive short course–this year looking at all things neuroscience in the mass media. What can we trust? Site is up and running here!

At least for the Metro Area, here. Can we claim the Ravens also?

The Biological Bulletin held its editorial board meeting again this year at the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology Meeting. It was great to see some excellent talks and sit down to talk about the journal with my colleagues on the Board. There were some really great ideas for future virtual symposia and the possibility of inviting more junior level scientists to join the board in some capacity.

Meanwhile, I’m impressed lately with United Airlines. They really seem to have turned a corner since the merger with Continental. Flights were on-time and the service was excellent.