If you’ve taken enough sociology classes you likely had this assignment at some point, “go somewhere and watch.” And if it’s a grad class you might get asked to go back to the same place several times. Looking back today, these were some of my most memorable academic moments and something I’ve definitely carried with me over the […]
Science is not as tidy as it looks
I’ve recently rediscovered Robert K. Merton. As a student I knew a little about his social roles work but I knew very little about the person. That is until I happened upon On the Shoulders of Giant: A Shandean Postscript which is equal parts history and parody. It didn’t take long before I knew that this […]
The four words that can kill any visual project
I don’t like it. Data visualization experts love to talk about effectiveness, which chart type is better than which other chart type. And while I think the discussion can be helpful sometimes it also misses a big point. Most researchers and evaluators are not making bad visuals, they’re making no visuals (or very few visuals). […]
My top 7 most engaging posts
Many of you are new here so before anything else let me just say, thank you for following. Since you’ve likely not seen them, I thought it might be a good idea to let you know about some of my favorite posts. Being a cartoonist, I have quite a few posts where people show up for […]
22 bloggers with advice for researchers and evaluators, illustrated
**UPDATE** This post really struck a nerve. I want to thank everyone who has read it and shared with others. Now you can get a take home pdf version, just download it here. I really think that you should blog. That whatever is getting in your way, you should shove it aside and just write something. […]
16 Blogging styles for researchers and evaluators
I dislike the term blogosphere. It sounds like some kind of all-encompassing entity. One made up of personal gripes, margarita recipes, and silly cat videos. It would be like grouping together grocery store flyers, credit card applications, and heartfelt letters. We would see it on the news… The anchor would say, “hey, what did the […]




