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bshanks@114: ==== Personal availability ====
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bshanks@114: I have a small lab and meet frequently with all members of my lab. Once or twice a day, I walk around and chat with lab members who are not too busy. These chats last from twenty minutes to over an hour. I try to make sure that I check in with each lab member at least once a week, if not more. I have an open door policy and frequently have multi-hour discussions with lab members who walk in.
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bshanks@114: ==== Technical skills mentoring ====
bshanks@114: Postdocs in my lab work closely with me and receive a large amount of one-on-one training in theoretical skills such as how to:
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bshanks@114: * be on the lookout for unexplained regularities within experimental data
bshanks@114: * come up with interesting new theoretical hypotheses
bshanks@114: * search the literature for existing theoretical hypotheses that might explain a regularity in data
bshanks@114: * mathematically formalize hypotheses
bshanks@114: * apply advanced mathematical tools from physics, mathematics, and statistics to solve problems
bshanks@114: * produce formal mathematical proofs
bshanks@114: * rigorously make predictions based on a theoretical hypothesis
bshanks@114: * make predictions which can be tested by comparison with data already available in the literature
bshanks@114: * search the literature for this data
bshanks@114: * know when it is time to apply a theoretical approach, and when it is time to apply a computational approach 
bshanks@114: * use computational methods to analyze data
bshanks@114: * find or create appropriate controls for analyses of data
bshanks@114: * make predictions which can be plausibly tested by new experiments
bshanks@114: * interpret the results of available data and new experiments in a rigorous manner
bshanks@114: * explain the importance and relevance of particular research topics
bshanks@114: * explain hypotheses and results in a clear fashion
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bshanks@114: ==== Career planning and professional development ====
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bshanks@114: One alternative is to have a formalized bureaucratic system where postdocs and mentors produce written plans and evaluations of themselves and each other. This can be counterproductive in a small lab. Instead, I meet frequently with each member of my lab and we discuss career development on an ongoing basis. 
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bshanks@114: Postdoctoral scholars
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bshanks@114: one alternative formalized beurua counterprodu in a small lab
bshanks@114: ongoing basis
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