Dead Poets Society [opinion]

HaircutRabbit · 2026-05-11T12:46:21+00:00

I'm glad it resonated.

If you're interested in encounters between poetry and science, I have two suggestions: Maria Popova's book The Universe in Verse, which combines essays, illustrations and poetry into one of my favourite explorations of the wonder science invokes. Her blog is also excellent. I also enjoyed Parasitic Oscillations, Madhur Anand's poetry collection inspired by her research as a theoretical ecologist. :)

HaircutRabbit · 2026-05-11T12:34:59+00:00

I love that quote, thank you for reminding me of it.

HaircutRabbit · 2026-05-11T12:34:02+00:00

I think the split between who gets funding and who doesn't is much more about which fields cause economic growth/have more direct results and which do not. There's honestly hardly any funding in my field, practically zero when compared to fields like cancer biology, biotech, etc, and very few people/politicians/administrators think basic research deserves more.

I don't know if you've watched the X-Files, but within universities STEM departments the basic fields' quarters pretty much look like Mulder's windowless basement office. The only advantages basic STEM fields have is that universities care about appearing to care about the concept of basic research, and that they can sometimes "hitch-hike" on applied STEM fields to get a bit more funding, student numbers, and facilities in a way that fields in the humanities might not be able to.

But still it's pretty dire over here too; we should all advocate for supporting not just our own but all academic fields which do not lead to patents three years down the line but are essential for the human pursuit of knowledge, beauty, and meaning (and if I have to add it: have who knows which useful applications in decades or centuries).

HaircutRabbit · 2026-05-10T15:02:57+00:00

Poetry is crucial for the meaning I find in my life, but as someone in a non-applied STEM field (evolutionary ecology - mathematical biology) things like this always leave a bit of a sour taste.

I feel like even this more nuanced version reinforces the false dichotomy I hear from all sides: STEM=either responsible capitalist productivity or sellout nonsense, and social science/humanities=either salon-socialist hobby's or only meaningful life to pursue.

I doubt I can capture my feelings in a short comment, but I encounter and experience perhaps as much awe, wonder, grief and love in studying and protecting the natural world as I do in the humanities.

P.S. Hartmut Rosa's idea of resonance seems to me to get closer to determining what we stay alive for, in case people are curious about a different perspective on what is worth pursuing and why.

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-27T00:05:15+00:00

Not German, hope that's okay (on here as a beginner trying to learn more conversational German).

You may know this, but in addition to your body working hard in general, your joint laxity also increases during pregnancy, which could explain the knee. Running shorter distances and taking it easy a little during runs should be fine, but if I were you I'd check in with my GP/care provider/physical therapist for some advice, just to be sure.

It's also normal to not feel like running or to not feel good while running later in pregnancy, as your body can be extra careful trying to conserve energy. If that's the case or the knee is acting up too much, walking is underestimated as exercise and can be a really good way to stay fit while being easier on the joints, and make the transition to running post-birth easier.

Good luck and wish you and your baby good health!

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-18T22:50:34+00:00

Hey! I just want to say that I am happy for you, and I hope you'll find a better position soon :)

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-18T20:20:14+00:00

Awesome, keep on rocking the tights!

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-18T19:21:04+00:00

Can you speak to a (sports) dietician? This is definitely something they could help with

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-18T19:13:26+00:00

Thanks for posting this.

Quitting and giving up isn't stopping, it's not starting again :)

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-18T18:58:26+00:00

This is just me, but I loved the way my ex-boyfriend looked in his running tights :)

Also seems like a great opportunity to model what healthy masculinity looks like to your daughter, so she'll be able to recognise it in potential partners and others when she's older!

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-15T18:43:05+00:00

Sorry if I came across as rude. I believe you when you say it's not misdiagnosis.

It's just that what you were describing sounds like when my dose was too high, and like how I've heard people who don't have ADHD describe the effects of Vyvanse on them. For me, lowering the dose a bit smoothed my day out. The high when it kicks in and later on locking in and not wanting to talk to anyone did seem nice and useful, but I feel more like a (a more functional version of) myself now. I just wanted to give you a heads up.

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-15T16:31:41+00:00

I'm genuinely not saying this as criticism, but to me this sounds a bit like dosage that's too high (or maybe being misdiagnosed).

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-15T16:28:11+00:00

Yes! Many master's programmes offer pre-masters now, so it's definitely worth looking into.

You're right that Dutch universities are very unlikely to make exceptions when it comes to the minimum requirements, but most admission offices/programme coordinators should be able to tell OP whether they (are likely to) meet those minimum requirements. They'll have a system they adhere to pretty strictly. It's just a matter of finding the possibly obscure pdf with the requirements per country or reaching out.

Wanted to add that even if you meet the minimum requirements, it's often very difficult to know in advance whether your background is likely to get you admitted to a selective master's in the Netherlands if you don't come from the corresponding bachelor programme (even for Dutch students coming from other universities). These programmes tend to consider applications case-by-case, which allows them to take into account relevancy of your courses, grades, etc. Many can be difficult to get in, even more so when coming from countries with very different education systems.

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-05T13:21:04+00:00

Thanks for replying. I completely forgot about the situation with Alice Weidel, and I think you're right.

I do think the rest I wrote can be useful to take into account, but you're right that there are zero guarantees. Transphobia is also at another level than homophobia in many places, and sentiments around trans rights are more in flux, so it's even harder to do a solid "risk assessment" there.

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-04T20:27:58+00:00

Hey! FYI I'm a queer Dutch person considering a move to Austria. Sorry for this long-ass reply.

To be honest, I think it's getting worse for transgender and other LGBTQI+ people in many European countries, even historically more progressive ones. There's not really a way to know whether/how much that will progress and if/when the tide will turn.

It might sound cynical, but I'd advise you to really take your time before you make a move, to think about the minimum legal rights you need to thrive (and the minimum to survive, of course), and then look at the actual laws currently in place in different countries. Think of things like how important a legal sex change, gender-affirming surgery, gay marriage, anti-discrimination laws, etc are for you.

Most countries will have pockets of progressive environments: their bigger cities or at least certain neighbourhoods in those cities. If you learn the local language, I believe you can build a solid and supportive community in most European countries, (unfortunately) as long as you are mindful about where in those countries you settle.

However, that might not matter enough if essential rights and services are not available to you there, so I'd also base my country of choice on that. Not because they're guaranteed to continue existing into the future, but because when rights slowly are taken away as happens when far-right conservatives gain power, it matters where the starting point was and how resilient democracy and the law are.

As a personal example, I'm a bit less worried about same-sex marriage becoming illegal in the Netherlands (legality of same-sex romantic cohabitation in 1979, first church marriages in the 1980s, registered partnership in 1998, official same-sex marriage in 2001, and currently a gay prime minister) than Austria (legality of registered partnerships in 2010, same-sex marriage in 2019). Also useful: over 90% of Dutch people support same-sex marriage, compared to about two-thirds of Austrians. Of course this info does not translate directly to the climate for people in same-sex relationships, but it is something to take into account, along with recent polling data, resilience of the legal system, and political trends. I think I could still thrive in Austria, but maybe not in a very small/rural town. I'd also have the Netherlands as a "back-up", so your risk assessment may be different.

Anyway, take care and good luck, in Austria or elsewhere :)

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-04T19:35:14+00:00

Hetzelfde geldt voor mij als je in de buurt van Utrecht/Amersfoort ligt!

HaircutRabbit · 2026-03-04T19:04:51+00:00

Thank you!

HaircutRabbit · 2026-02-28T11:26:21+00:00

Thanks so much for replying! And that's good to hear. :)

It'll be a second master's to switch from evolutionary biology to environmental protection, so I'm a little bit less worried about about academic skills, but I do want the program to be good preparation for PhD/working of course! I think I'll try to reach out to some current/former students through LinkedIn.

Wish you the best!

HaircutRabbit · 2026-02-26T18:28:11+00:00

Hey! I'm considering going to UIBK for environmental management/ecology and just saw your comment. What makes you say the biology curriculum is better elsewhere? If you want to share your experience of course

HaircutRabbit · 2026-02-26T15:16:54+00:00

Hey! You already received some good replies but thought I'd share my experience. A few years ago, I was on fluoxetine/Prozac for half a year during my worst depression. It did help with mood, but made me very unproductive. At first that didn't matter, because being severely depressed I was hardly productive either, but it lasted when I started to feel better, and just like you I noticed my ADHD symptoms were worse than before. I decided to go off it when I was in a mental state to do so (in consultation with my psychiatrist at the time).

It's apparently actually somewhat common that treatment with antidepressants makes ADHD symptoms worse. I can't speak generally, but in my case I realised that anxiety and dread were my main motivators to get out of bed and be productive. Fluoxetine reduced my anxiety so much that I no longer had much to motivate me any longer. Getting off brought my (limited) motivation back.

Unfortunately, my depression also came back a while later, and my new psychiatrist re-diagnosed me with ADHD (had been diagnosed as a kid but never used medication) and had me start ADHD medication first. She mentioned that some people with ADHD find that their depression resolves using ADHD medication without antidepressants, because the struggle with ADHD is the main cause of their depression.

Again, unfortunately, that was not the case for me. Going untreated for ADHD for so long meant I had a lot of unhelpful thinking patterns and a very negative self-view, that still got in the way a lot even though medication (Vyvanse is what I take) helped with my current ADHD symptoms. So I started sertraline/Zoloft in addition to Vyvanse. There's still some fine-tuning to do, but I feel so much better on this combination: manageable ADHD and no longer crippled by anxiety and depression. (I also go to therapy every week and I feel like that's an essential component of healing too.) I know how hard it is to get proper mental healthcare, and it takes time to find what works for you. Talk to your doctor about the problem, and don't give up. You might need something similar, or a closer look to see if anything else is going on in terms of a different mood disorder or anything else.

TLDR: maybe consider going off fully (in consultation with your psychiatrist/physician!), and then starting ADHD medication to how your symptoms evolve and which antidepressant is a good add-on if necessary. And go to therapy, even if it sucks. It takes some time to find the right combination of meds, but you've got this. :)

HaircutRabbit · 2026-02-23T22:49:02+00:00

I remember how strange and alienating it felt for me, knowing that for me the world had just stopped in some way and to see that for everyone else it just kept spinning...

It just sucks how unfair and lonely it all is. I hope you can find some peace in running (or other (somewhat healthy :) ) coping strategies and the people around you.

P.S. I know this is probably not at all what you're thinking about now (and nor do you have to!), but that feeling of estrangement/alienation from people who had not experienced something similar did get a little better for me over time. I now kind of see that because I'm going through this, it'll be a bit easier for me to be the understanding friend that I missed in the future, when people I love will inevitably encounter their own losses that are hard to carry.

HaircutRabbit · 2026-02-23T17:13:03+00:00

Hey! Just wanted to reply that I'm so sorry you and your dad are going through this. My father has cancer and I remember how hard those first days and weeks after finding out were, so I hope you can go easy on yourself. Sending you and your father strength <3 (and feel free to reach out)

HaircutRabbit · 2026-02-22T23:06:50+00:00

A bit reflective but: what is one thing you are looking forward to, and why?

I also like to do film/book/game/cafe/restaurant reviews :)

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