YUP! WooFuckingHoo day!shereec wrote:Happy Take This Job and Shove It day, AD!!
Good luck, AD!
Moderator: CameronBornAndBred
YUP! WooFuckingHoo day!shereec wrote:Happy Take This Job and Shove It day, AD!!
Some place nice would be ... what, Charlie Gitto's?lawgrad91 wrote:Savor the moment, AD! And do get the most expensive thing on the menu.
Ymmm ... Charlie Gitto's. Should go there before I leave.Lavabe wrote:Some place nice would be ... what, Charlie Gitto's?lawgrad91 wrote:Savor the moment, AD! And do get the most expensive thing on the menu.
I was re-reading this thread to remind myself of the journey that has led me to this place, and I came across this excellent post. It seems as though knights68 and I went through somewhat similar journeys at completely different institutions. The common link? Both are excellent, top tier research institutions. Who knew that knights68's words would end up being so prophetic. Remember that, at this point in the game, we really didn't know how the whole situation would play out. Unfortunately I happened to be in a position with the perfect storm of bad ingredients. Sounds like knights68 was, too.knights68 wrote:Believe me, this is an interesting and way way way too familiar situation you are in. I feel ya pain, I do!ArkieDukie wrote:I had a chat with my boss this morning. The answer I got was that my name has to be on the paper because the PI pays 20% of my salary. I tried the "I didn't do the data analysis" argument; the response was that they pay 20% of my salary for my expert opinion. I then pointed out as diplomatically as possible that I'm blown off any time I raise concerns about interpretation. The one thing I didn't say is that the boss has actually sided against me in these arguments on multiple occasions. The final upshot is that I have to go through all the data that she's reporting in the paper and that we'll meet with the person doing the analysis (without her boss) and go through it all. That's all well and good, assuming it actually works. I have my doubts. I've been thrown under the bus in too many meetings with this particular PI to believe that it won't be the case here as well. I'd love to be proven wrong. In any case, I'll either feel better about what's in the paper or the boss and I will be having this same conversation again. One funny note: idiot PI got my name wrong in the draft of the manuscript. I have lost count of the number of times I've told these people that I use my middle initial in my name when I publish; they omitted it. This may sound minor, but if you go to PubMed and do an author search using my first and middle initials this paper wouldn't show up. I know this because I have another paper from a previous job where this happened. Now ask me if I've corrected it in the current manuscript.
You see, I worked at Duke for 6 years. In clinical trials. I was one of a team of 12 data collectors on various clinical trials. We collected the data, analyzed it the first round then it went to the doctors and powers that be for their final interpretation before it being presented to the public.
And it never fails, they (the docs and powers) will always interpret their stuff to the best possible light (bending the truth and reality too) to make their study (and them) look very good.
There was one study where the premise was to prove the drug was superior to another. Fine, no problem. Until at the end it was discovered it was not better than the drug and in a few indications, it was worse.
The final analyst: The drug was a "not inferior, but a safe alternate to drug xxx". What a farce! Yet the docs and powers once again came out smelling like a rose and we data minions were just left once again smarting.
So to you I say.... it is what it is. It happened before and from what you wrote, yet another similar scenario will be playing out once again. All you can really do is to do your job, express your concern and move forward. Moving forward can mean with the job or finding something else. With the current job prospects out there, it is a crazy gamble. Do ya feel lucky?
How do you get uncredited from a piece of shi... er ummm work that you do not wish to be associated with due to the "creative" interpretation? Sounds like you are between the 'ol rock and hard place.
What's it really worth to ya to "grin and bear it" or bend over and take it up the tailpipe versus speak your mind and follow it with action? Whatever you decide, whatever creative or imaginative things you come up with the deal or not deal with this.... we are behind ya!!!!!!!
A semi-funny follow-up on this comment: the prominent lab that I mentioned in my post was recently reamed in the discussion section of an article in which the (also prominent) principal investigator tried to figure out why his results didn't match those of the prominent lab. Lo and behold, a closer examination of the results proved that, not only were the numbers exaggerated, there was a discrepancy regarding data collection in the methods section. The latter I could easily see as being a careless mistake; the former was not. This article was featured in the same journal as the infamous Minion/PPI article. The upshot is that Fudgy Lab's results are being called into question now by lots of high profile people in the field. Another colleague says that our annual professional meeting could be very fun this year, as he expects people to really grill the speaker at any oral presentation featuring work from Fudgy Lab. We're planning to show up for all of these talks that we can, simply for the entertainment value.ArkieDukie wrote:That's exactly right, DPA. And, as an added bonus, some labs are known for publishing questionable data. I can think of one prominent lab in my field for whom you can only believe about 50% of their published data - that's a quote from my boss. Call me crazy, but I don't want to have that type of reputation.DukePA wrote:The very sad thing about academic papers is that there is so much crap that gets past the reviewers. Every paper must be read with a critical, skeptical eye. Way too much bullshit gets published.
Another funny anecdote: yesterday, on the way to my going-away lunch, Blustery and PHB were talking about some work that The Minion had requested. Minion by-passed PHB and sent the request directly to Blustery. PHB instructed him to ignore all requests that do not come directly from him. Apparently The Minion has been told this and has chosen to ignore it. PHB expressed a desire to reign in The Minion's excessive demands.ArkieDukie wrote:The Minion has just about pushed me over the edge. The B!tch sent an e-mail to me late this afternoon, copying my boss, asking me to "help her" process her data files. "Help her" means do it for her, especially in this case - it's not something she can do. Being a responsible person and on top of my job, I started processing her d@mn data files this morning. It was all I could do to NOT say something about not taking my orders from her. The response was a simple, "The files have been processing since early this morning."
My co-workers and I are fed up with The Minion. She comes into our lab and issues orders like she owns the place. She expects us to drop whatever we're doing and help her when she asks. She has actually started issuing orders to me when I'm literally in the middle of typing a sentence, and I'm not the only person she's done that to. When we don't immediately start helping her, she whines to her boss, who then gets on our boss. In fact, she got one of my co-workers in trouble because he didn't drop everything the instant she asked.
It seems to me like my boss shouldn't like someone other than him issuing orders to his employees, especially since she's somewhat deceptive when she does it. She tells people to do things, saying my boss said to do it, when he has not done so. I'm not sure why the heck he hasn't issued a cease and desist order for her, unless he's afraid of ticking off Pushy PI. I still say that it's not her place to order us around, and my boss shouldn't let her do so.
Okay, sending a hefty round of shin kicks and ending rant now...
The friend I referred to this thread is the one who is responsible for helping me get my new job.ArkieDukie wrote:Probably not.DukieInKansas wrote:You currently find yourself in a situation that can be used to answer the inevitable interview question - how have you handled a difficult situation in the past.
I'm not sure I'd include "discussing it with my invisible friends" as part of the handling.
I actually referred a friend to this thread yesterday to get the dirt on what's going on. This friend is someone who's passing my CV along but has, up until now, not known the reasons for my job search.
My plan of action here also ended up being somewhat prophetic. I think PHB has a clue now. He's a bit late, though.ArkieDukie wrote:Also having trouble responding to Lavabe. My boss is nowhere my list of references. I'm using people who can testify to the quality of my work, one of whom is another senior person who recently left our lab and can testify to my boss's ways. Hopefully the places I apply will not contact the (insert long string of expletives).
My plan of action is to do an absolutely stellar job on the few things I have to do during my remaining time in my current position, hopefully short. Stellar enough that my boss forgets why he's mad at me and starts to value my work and respect my opinion again. That's when I want to hand in my resignation. Then, just after I've departed for greener pastures, my boss will realize that NO ONE ELSE IN THE LAB KNOWS HOW TO DO WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING. If he comes to this realization before I leave, I'll have an opportunity to go Windsor on him. (I will suggest that he hire The Minion away from Pushy PI, since he seems generally pleased with the quality of her work.)
To dream the impossible dream...
I read the manuscript again somewhat recently, when I was trying to decide if I needed to take further action. They basically "fixed" the issues in such a way that the inconsistencies aren't apparent unless you read the entire paper. Here's what they did: they basically left everything alone in the intro and results sections (and in all the figures) and addressed the necessary corrections in the discussion section. The discussion section is filled with multiple instances of, "Oh, by the way, we really did X, Y, and Z." I'm sorry; that makes them look worse. Did they really think it was better to say, "By the way, that sequence coverage we cited as being from a single experiment? That's really a composite of results from 4 experiments. Oh, and those replicates? They really weren't replicates in the true sense of the word. They were from a completely different experiment." It looks like sloppy amateur work. I think The Minion wrote it.ArkieDukie wrote:The infamous manuscript is finally published. It's featured on the cover of the most prominent journal in my field. I took a look at the editorial board for the journal, and the editor of the journal is someone that PHB used to work for. Now I've solved the mystery of how this pile of crap was accepted for publication.
Although they said they fixed everything, a closer reading reveals that they did not. The work is still protrayed as coming from a single experiment. I need to decide how to proceed.
Thanks, Ima! to you and another round of for the OP. Hope he's doing well today!Ima Facultiwyfe wrote:As my life is prone to doing, it got complicated again just as all the celebrations were going on around here! Hope you don't think I wasn't deeeelighted with the way all this was turning out for you, AD. I've really only had enough time at the computer to pay bills and lurk a little.
The only down side to this for me is knowing you won't be there in grand old St. Louis. I liked picturing you there holding down the fort since I can rarely get there anymore. But, I can hardly wait for the pictures of you in your 10 gallon hat and cowboy boots!
Love ya, kiddo and am very happy to know you've spent your last maddening day with all those jerks in that lab.
You go, girl!!!!
Love, Ima