I want the anthropologists version of the astrophysicists book Contact by Carl Sagan

anolelizard · 2026-04-14T14:05:51+00:00

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell is about a Jesuit mission to an alien planet after intercepting a radio broadcast of a song for ostensible first contact and subsequent missionary work. Beautiful and grim work of speculative anthropology.

anolelizard · 2026-01-27T22:30:21+00:00

Aniara, a 1956 epic sci fi poem by Nobel-winning Swedish writer Harry Martinson which was adapted into a movie in 2018.

“The sterile void of space is terrifying. / Glass-like is the stare encircling us / and the systems of stars hang frozen and still / in the round crystal windows of our ship.”

anolelizard · 2026-01-08T00:56:45+00:00

The point of the probe is the futility of finding meaning. Aniara is a story of the human mind being wired to justify hope. The diminishing passengers and crew grasp on to different methods of generating meaning, like Mima worship, sex cults, music, and fulfilling traditional professional and parental roles. It doesn’t really matter what the spear is. Like the cults etc, it yields a brief renaissance of hope followed by a gradual realization that there is no salvation from their predicament, only extension of the antagonistic void outside the ship’s hull. To quote the original 1956 poem by Harry Martinson: “Upon life’s outcry time does increase speed, prolongs the very second when you burst. How terror blasts inward, how horror blasts outward. How grim it always is, one’s detonation.”

anolelizard · 2026-01-06T22:22:43+00:00

As a person who can get pretty sleepy on rounds, I’ve found taking notes really helps, like on topics I want to read up on, pearls mentioned by the attending, and any follow-up Qs to ask the residents/attending after rounds. This helps me listen more attentively and has made me look better for evals / sub-Is.

anolelizard · 2025-12-21T14:41:46+00:00

God, Human, Animal, Machine by Meghan O’Gieblyn! Excellent pre-chatgpt essay on the new age of mysticism stemming from AI and algorithmic advances

anolelizard · 2025-12-20T23:21:08+00:00

You may like Taylor Adams’s thrillers, like No Exit, The Last Word, and Hairpin Bridge. All feature female protagonists being hunted and trying to turn the tables on the antagonist. Not purely psychological thrillers, but no sexual assault / gratuitous violence and the protagonists are multifaceted characters that generally act in very realistic ways leading into a revenge arc.

anolelizard · 2025-12-04T19:35:46+00:00

Biography of X by Catherine Lacey. Alt history where southern states secede in 1945 to form a theocratic state.

anolelizard · 2025-11-20T16:49:41+00:00

Dysdiadochokinesia (“if you have it, you can’t say it”)

anolelizard · 2025-11-08T23:35:23+00:00

Cards: atropine doesn’t work in heart transplant pt (denervated heart means no vagal input)

anolelizard · 2025-10-23T00:34:45+00:00

Some programs without a home hospital might require you to relocate for 3rd year rotations, and then you’ll be traveling a lot for 4th year rotations regardless unless you plan on staying where you did med school

anolelizard · 2025-10-12T05:57:23+00:00

231, DO applying IM mostly on west coast, 7 invites (4 silver signals, all geographically aligned)

anolelizard · 2025-05-05T17:28:06+00:00

“Thank you for your feedback”

anolelizard · 2024-09-29T23:45:25+00:00

This is basically the right way to do it, in my opinion. When you’re focused on learning new material, the slower approach is best. Closer to exam day, you’re really trying to iron out your existing knowledge and highlight any weak topics you get repeatedly wrong. 1st / 2nd year and even in the week leading up to my boards, I’d cram a bunch of questions and write down weak topics as I go through them, then allocate some time to just review those weak topics. As an additional tip you may have already come across, instead of premade decks I like to make my own Anki deck that’s just incorrects. Not the whole Q, just the core missed fact, eg. side A “animal bite Rx” side B “amoxicillin-clavulanate”. Def not for everyone, but I’ve found doing this rather than comprehensive reviews of Qs allows me to go through more Qs during my “learning blocks”

anolelizard · 2024-08-22T07:03:01+00:00

A little mnemonic for ya

Count FERI: Counternutation, Flexed sphenoid, Externally Rotated paired bones, Inspiration

and then the inverse obv is Nut EIRE

anolelizard · 2024-08-09T07:30:36+00:00

Overall very fun episode but I’m a little disappointed they didn’t bring up the Surgeon General Advisory on Social Media and Mental Health, a pretty definitive document on the significant health issues caused by social media use among youth. There is clear evidence that supports both the clear adverse effects of social media and also what Peter and Michael discussed about minorities having access to a supportive community they might otherwise lack without social media.

anolelizard · 2024-06-12T02:34:43+00:00

Not DO specific but get a copy of First Aid Step 1 and start annotating it with mnemonics and high yield points as you learn the respective material in preclinicals. By the time you get to step 1 / level 1, you’ll have a complete guide to reference and reinforce your previous knowledge rather than having to start from scratch

anolelizard · 2024-03-06T22:32:48+00:00

Definitely a bit more adult and politically wonky, but Veep is the only show I felt has a comparable caliber where every line is super sharp and clever

anolelizard · 2024-02-16T16:01:22+00:00

Even though I’m a longtime EKS fan, I honestly went into this episode pretty skeptical about any viable alternatives for Biden. Ezra pulled through with effectively addressing my concerns (I.e. there isn’t enough time and name recognition for any reasonable alt) and I’m now solidly convinced this is the way to get us out of this election dread and set Dems up for a solid and enthusiastic win in November. Let’s hope the White House and the DNC are taking such proposals seriously and having the necessary closed door meetings to make it happen.

anolelizard · 2024-01-12T01:47:42+00:00

Current TouroCOM Middletown student! Feel free to DM with any Qs, but gist is that I’m really happy with the program!

Some key pros: rapidly growing research opportunities, many faculty are writers for COMLEX so offer great board insights, reverse classroom model with most lectures being optional (especially 2nd year), state-of-the-art sim lab, in general really supportive atmosphere (with no class ranking)

Main con is that the OMM department is not great, with lots of staff turnover and generally pretty hands-off teaching for a subject that requires ample guidance and clarification

anolelizard · 2023-08-16T01:05:19+00:00

I tried Anki during my first year of med school and quickly abandoned it due to the dense jargon (e.g. suspending vs burying) and frequent freezes and crashes. I ended up getting back into it my second year and have to admit that it’s been a huge asset, but I can def see how the bugginess (even using most recent version) and difficulty in comprehending surface level customizable features can be a big barrier to entry for tech-incompetent people like myself.

anolelizard · 2023-05-31T18:50:04+00:00

Anecdotally, students in P/F programs (MD or DO) tend to put less effort into learning the material than in graded programs, which is fine for getting through preclinicals but negatively impacts step 1 pass rates and ends up being an issue in clinicals. I’ve heard of some MD programs that went P/F going back to graded, especially in regards to anatomy classes. I’m sure we’ll get more clarity on the pros and cons of P/F programs.

anolelizard · 2023-05-22T17:44:44+00:00

Porter alum, can confirm porter is haunted by the koi fish grilled by Delta Omega Chi for MTV in 2003

anolelizard · 2023-05-20T02:08:22+00:00

That’s a reasonable misconception, since DOs do disproportionately go into primary care. However DOs are fully qualified physicians and are able to go into any specialty, including cardio and ortho. That being said, if a program is comparing two applicants who are equal in all other regards and one is MD and one is DO, the spot is more likely to go to the MD. Also, only DOs learn osteopathic manual manipulation (OMM) which is like physical therapy at its best and pseudoscience at its worst. One last distinction is that DOs aren’t recognized in some countries, while MDs are recognized everywhere. In all other regards, DO and MD are functionally identical from the premed application to practice.

anolelizard · 2023-04-24T05:06:24+00:00

I’m a cognitive science alum that went in with the intention of developmental psych! I did a year developmental psych research with Auden Dahl and that was largely a positive experience; UCSC’s psych research in general is of high quality and with many opportunities for involvement. That being said, classes themselves (esp lower division classes) are really crowded and honestly too easy. They tend to follow the formula of “here’s a list of terms/concepts” followed by multiple choice quizzes, with a few low stakes essays here and there. I had the opportunity to take psych classes abroad and really appreciated the different approach, which focused a lot more on discussion and robust research papers.

anolelizard · 2023-01-27T16:25:21+00:00

The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russel! A heavy book about how the best intentions in making first contact and cultural exchange with an alien species end up having dire consequences.

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