So, you want to do science, uh? (Rants to Young Scientists Part I: Citations)

Sometimes, I wish someone had made that statement and followed with some advice, real world advice. I mean, Medawar's "Advice to a young scientist" was great in convincing me science was about inquiry, patience and common sense —the well-known adage of  1% inspiration and 99% perspiration— but, after a few years into the academia, I wished someone had told me about the dark side of research: citation engineering, steering and hiding just to mention some examples. I mean, all these lay inside the gray area between ethical and unethical behavior and a simple search brings up discussion forums on the topic in all the scientific communities from social to natural sciences.

I guess, right now, it is my frustration talking: I have seen a couple of recently published articles related to our late work that doesn't even bother to cite us even when we have introduced some basic concepts or techniques on the topic, our manuscript was published at a major journal and, also, a simple scholar search brings out our papers on the top of the list.

I'm curious about the motivation behind these practices. Discarding those cases when there's truly no knowledge about the previous work and results have been re-derived from the start — t happens, believe me—, I can imagine that some guys are so worried about fame and recognition, that they try to bring their work and only their work into the playground to increase the visibility of their papers above similar results from other groups. Some other guys may wish to engineer their metrics by increasing the citations to this or that paper, even in cases unrelated to the matter at hand, in order to fulfill requierements of evaluation agencies. Or maybe I'm completely wrong and don't understand the motivations behind us, human beings. 

So, you want to do science, right? Well, it's the best job you will have if you are into it. It's not as logical, ethical and "pure" as you would expect. Shit happens even in the ivory tower of academia but the good things is that the nice ethical guys are more than those in the gray side of the ethical/moral spectrum. The best part is: it depends on you to keep it that way. Cite, cite truthful, cite well. Sometimes your superior will have the last word —been there— just don't go down without raising the point, that will get you an explanation about how it is not unethical or amoral engineering or steering citations —it's up to you to buy it or not, I didn't—.

Sorry, we're open!

Hello world,

I have decided to come back online to seek catharsis. You see, I have been recently appointed Investigador Titular A at the Instituto Nacional de Astrofísica, Óptica y Electrónica (INAOE). I am a newbie to the rat race of tenure track positions so I did the most stupid thing I could have thought about: Start developing old ideas, trying to collaborate with well established researchers, get a couple of students and, basically, try to publish or perish... Bad idea.

Why, would you ask. Well, it happens that I am also getting married next May.

In short, I have put myself in the most crazy situation I have ever put myself into in my life. Now, I am co-responsible for two doctoral students, teaching a graduate class, trying to publish some papers, searching for a good idea to write a grant due to the end of February, taking care of a friend's house, traveling to and fro for wedding matters, and screwing up things now and then.

For example, I just realized I got an awful typo in the last equations of our latest prepint! I completely forgot to type the interaction terms! 

Sooooo...

It's time to keep doing what I have done all this time, Prepare lectures a week ahead, try to finish projects well ahead of deadlines, and add some rules like fixing a precise hour for meetings with the doctoral students and working at most with two research projects at a time. Also, I need to let go and that's why I'm back.

Sorry, we're open!

Ponte en los zapatos del otro...

It seems that Mexico is going back to the one that my parents knew, a country where "desaparecidos" are a common occurrence. The difference is that back in my parent's time the kidnapper was the government only, now the role is taken by both government and criminals.

It is a good thing that at least now there's freedom of speech and press and people ready to go to the streets and media to talk about it:

"Ponte en los zapatos del otro" (Get in each other's shoes) is a campaign by "Movimiento por la Paz" (Movement for Peace) to bring into our minds the fact that forced disappearances—a commonplace occurrence during the strong days of the party dictatorship—are coming back to our times—it seems they never stopped—but they are now committed by both government and criminal organizations.

I do not commune with the slight feeling that the open war on drug cartels should stop that the video seems to give due to the last phrase of Sicila's part but I believe that peace, due process and reign of law should be guaranteed in Mexico. 

Last minute pontification: I used to hear a lot: "tenemos el pais que merecemos" (we have the country that we deserve) but we should aim to  "construir el pais que queremos" (build the country we want). Sometimes, I am ashamed I left, then, I remember why I left. Corruption should be battled at all levels, starting at the self. It is amazingly embarrassing that such things as a state official carrying 25 millions MXP in cash pass by almost no pres coverage, no legal consequences to the state government  and no civil reaction to such things (note from Spain's El Pais, here). 

Vacations... what do to with them?

I never know what to do with my vacations. I usually never take them and I usually get bored after a few days or even hours whenever I have to take them without having something in mind

Waking up late... check

Cleaning the house... check

Watching a movie while having breakfast... check

Chat with Lyx... check

Get bored and checking the arXiv, physics and optics journals for new papers... check

So, you see. I can even bet that before the day is gone I will be doing a little bit of algebra here and there now that I found something that caught my eye in today's listings at the arXiv.

Days off, those I can handle. It is easier to think of 18 waking hours to do whatever you want: sit at home to read a book, go downtown to take some photos, go to the cinema, all of the above. Vacations, well, vacations for me used to mean getting a one-month train pass and hop from city to city coach surfing at my friends' places for three or four days at a time; getting into the car alone or with family/friends and drive for a whole full month to hidden places; or grabbing the backpack, meet my friends at some interesting and wide area with hitchhiking and backpacking potential and spend a full month moving around the place trying to get to know it. Now, that requires a little bit of planning but not really that much, in the end you just have to figure the general area that you want to visit and that's all.

Today is the first day of my 28 day vacation. I'm supposed to be off the office until February 29th. and I have no clue what to do with it. I'm just taking the days because I cannot cash them in before my contract ends the 3rd of March. I have just one vague idea of what I want to do: Angkor Wat but that's it. I wish Lyx, Andre or Martin where here to just go over a place and start moving around until there's no Wat  left un-sighted or pagoda un-visited from Vietnam to Singapore—uhm, maybe that's way too much—.

Anyway, I'm too lackadaisical to get the visas to Vietnam and Cambodia. Most probably I will start doing my typical working day routine to overcome this ennui.

If you are looking for information about what countries require a visa for Mexicans, I found in the intertubes was this page that is photographically organized and this page that is alphabetically organized.

If you know about some beautiful place (not a beach!) in South Pacific Asia that doesn't require Mexicans a visa to travel there, please post it in the comments, I will be thankful.

Is there a solution to violence in Mexico?

I came home today and found an old good friend online. It had been a long time without seeing him on the chat hence I decided to drop him a line; after exchanging salutations he shared this link with me: "Homicidios en NL a nivel histórico; 33 muertos en un día."

This news piece talks about 33 homicides—two of them personnel from the governor's security retinue, all of them related to the drug war—committed in just one day, yesterday, in Monterrey, the major city where I attended University.

A few days ago, some U.S. Senators issued a report stating that about 70% of the close to 30,000 weapons seized so far in Mexico by the Army and Security forces  in 2009-2010 originated in the U.S.

If I remember well, the latest number of deaths related to the ongoing drug war in Mexico is about 30,000 homicides in the last 4 years.

Now, I wonder when the Mexican Political Class—yes, there's such a thing in Mexico and I'm ashamed of that—will decide to take the reins of the country and pass legislation that addresses the problem of corruption in the political system, laundering of drug-related money, and all the political, economical and social issues involved in the actual mess. Oh, I forgot, that would mean that Governors, Deputies, Senators, Mayors, Judges and all public officials should be held accountable for their actions; I guess such a thing beats the idea of being the Mexican Political Class, the Lords and Ladies of our Banana Republic.

Professionals of Violence are needed, the Mexican Army and the Federal Police shouldn't be retired from the line of fire. But the efforts of all these valiant and honorable men and women—I'm hoping the majority of these valiant public servants is honorable and loyal to the idea of a state of law in Mexico—should be complemented with economical measures and foreign policy agreements; as well as social programs as an educated population could increase Mexico's role in the global economy once the state of law is recovered.

We all Mexicans have a role to play voting honest, hard working men and women to office, demanding affirmative actions from our already elected representatives, educating in our sphere of influence, and, in general, striving to reach maturity as citizens. Without such things Mexico will become a failed state.

I am really confused by those "intellectuals" that consider as an option to reach a pact with the drug warlords. It sounds to me like a come back to the times of the institutional dictatorship where mafia syndicates, drug warlords, governors, etc. were all the same thing. I would love to read a full argument because I really don't see how this could help our country. That, for me, is not a Federal Republic, but a grotesque aftermath of a warring warlords period; a failed state solution.


I concede that, compared to the average gross national product per capita of the country is $6,000.00 MXP per month,  the $8,000.00 - $12,000.00 MXP per month, the 16 to 21 year old Sicarii captured by the Federal forces say they get as a reward for risking their lives as footmen for the drug warlords, seems like a lot of money. It even seems like a hell lot of money when  one adds the fact that nowadays a freshly graduated from university gets around $6,000.00 MXP per month if he/she is lucky to find a job.

I am not gonna complain about the salary as a lot of people do;  I  find that completely useless. Without education there's no fertile ground for global enterprises to flourish. Furthermore,  violence scares investment. Without investment, there's no companies, without companies, there's no jobs. An important point is that we, as a country, became sclerotic with respect to  labor legislation—bah! we become sclerotic as a country, and that's our fault as citizens, period.

Now, in order to beat the swords into plowshares, a state of law and consequent peace has to be attained. The only way for that is to change as a whole, as a country and root out corruption for good. Bring out of our cultural baggage phrases like "to live out of the Federal Budget is to live in error" or "that who doesn't cheat does not go forward" that have been ingrained in our society for too long.

What does it take...

... to work 10+ hours 7 day week with a smile in your face? Motivation, passion and love of what you are doing. Thinking that, somehow, it makes sense... A little bit of hope, a lot of stubbornness too. Thinking this is it, now it is just a few more months...

Of course, these spells cannot last forever, they are the last leg of some interesting project. That last run for the light at the end of the tunnel always puts me in that mood. It was like that a few weeks last November and December, and before that it was last June.

I know my Lyx also does this with a smile on her face. How she takes long hours in academic fairs bringing info to students, making the calls to share the good news of acceptance and scholarship. I can even see, in my mind's eye, her smile as she tells me about this or that event in some state run or posh high school. How she takes the overtime and the extra work now and then to collect free days and money for a plane ticket and two free weeks.

And what does it take to loose everything slowly, without even realizing it is happening... Maybe opening your eyes to a reality that you believed happened somewhere else... Or realizing that it is not gonna be just a few more months... Finding that physics makes no sense if you do not enjoy what you are doing...

Anyway, in January, I had this one thing that I was curious about. Then, I loose the curiosity and the drive on the way. And now, thanks to a pair of very smart friends and colleagues, it has become that and two more things that we want to explore. I can feel the curiosity there, growing slowly, asking what will happen if we do this or that...

Now, it is just about finding the time to do them, to really make it just a few more months to be both in the same place, to go back to enjoy what you are doing, to believe in what you are doing...

What does it take?

I have always worked in something that fills my heart with passion and joy. I cannot compare the joy of playing with Maxwell's or Schrödinger's equation and find a beautiful mode of electromagnetic radiation or some curious behavior in an atomic trajectory.

Of course, there have been those moments when every step leads to a dead end. But even in those dark times, the hope for the light at the end of the tunnel is there and turns my heart alight to take the next step and make the next turn.

I have made of research my life. Afar from family and friends, my colleagues have become friends and family. Endless source of joy, council, help...

Alas, Lyx is missing.

It only takes one person and the realization that time is elapsing and we have not managed to find a way to be both in the same place.

This is what it takes... the realization that time is elapsing...

Life should be Lyx, family and friends... not research.

Is Mexico a failed state?

This week, I was shocked by the story of Dn. Alejo Garza (RIP), a 77 year old man that died defending his ranch from a drug gang that decided to take over his property in Tamaulipas, my home-state.

When I first read the story, I was surprised it didn't happened in Monterrey during one of the drug-gang-blockades that are becoming part of the daily life in the "Sultan of the North." Somehow, I had the impending doom feeling that people in Monterrey would start carrying guns to protect themselves from the gangs stealing cars and trucks to block the city streets, in order to prevent the transit, in and out of town, of the military and federal police during anti-drug operatives.

I have to say that the smallest part of the shock came from the fact that Dn. Alejo (†) managed to kill four gang members and wounded another two; what really freaked me out were the implications of such actions---as the monopoly of violence is, in the early theories of the role and responsibilities of the state, mainly those proposed by Max Weber, the defining characteristic differentiating a sovereign state from a failed one, and Mexico does not sanction a self-defense stance by an armed population---; that is, added to the illegal acts of violence and terrorism committed by the drug lords and associated gangs, now there is an illegal act of violence committed by a civil in self-defense, which has been praised by some sectors of the civil population as an exemplar attitude and stance.

In our modern times, one could argue that the monopoly of violence is not the only important factor to define a sovereign state. There is the economics factor, the provision of services and law, etc. While there's a relative economical stability in Mexico, it is clear that the state has lost the monopoly of violence, alas, thousands of deaths related to the drug war of the last three years testify in favor of this thesis; even sadder, the drug war, allegedly started as an answer to the corruption and infiltration of the government by the organized crime, and the possibility of a civil population taking matters on their own hands instead of denouncing the crimes to the authorities, testifies to a generalized perception of a corrupt law enforcement and judicial system that does not protect nor serves the common citizen. With this in mind is not a surprise to find Mexico in the warning list of the Failed State Index by the Fund for Peace.

Mexico is not yet a failed state but it will take the efforts of the whole country to steer the future out of harms way. Education and transparency by the government, as well as an exemplar citizenship that denounces and follows the law, are key factors for a safe tomorrow that might or might not depend on legalizing drugs. If corruption and privileges without accountability and responsibilities are the goal in the mind of our everyday José, then, sadly but true, we are fucked up as Mexicans.

ERRATA: My good and old friend Salvador pointed out to me that, while it might be hard to argue self-defense in Mexican Courts, the Mexican Constitution sanctions the right to have non-restricted registered weapons at home and, in some special cases, to carry a weapon for self-defense in its Article 10.

More haste, less speed

Daniel, my fellow Mexican and newest addition to the book of friends and acquaintances, uses to joke about my "autistic ways of doing things." I really enjoy his jokes about this topic because they remind me that I am not careful and slow by nature but by experience.

As acting in careless hurries has given me so much trouble in the past, I try my best to follow the rules whenever there are rules; in my personal life, I try to establish and follow routines; in my work life, I try to set paths -you will always find a "To Do" list somewhere on my desk or wall-. Why do I do this? Because, by birth, I tend to do or speak faster than I think.

In Spanish there's a saying, Lyx just brought it to my mind, "No des puntada sin hilo" (Do not stitch with a thread-less needle), which I believe is somewhat equivalent to the "More haste, less speed." Whenever one embarks with haste on any given action, desired results will not be delivered and, most probably, your actions will be in vain.

Today, I find myself in a situation that I could have avoided by following the rules as they are written. Tomorrow, I will find out about the path to follow in order to correct my haste. Anyway, knowledge is the reward of action; I have learned: "More haste, less speed."

Remember Rome...

Trust me, this really happens, take and give a few words,

-- Thus, we numerically calculate the...
-- Wait, but the Hamiltonian has as constant of motion the excitation number.
-- No, it doesn't.
-- Uhm, really? But if we do this and this, you see the total excitation number and this commutes as far as I remember.

(one month later)

-- Hey, I can show you our calculation that proves it doesn't commute.
-- Oh, really? Please do so, I might be completely wrong about something fundamental(...) Ok, it is not possible to use this map in this way, so let us do it together(...) You see, three lines. I suggest you read Dicke's and Tavis and Cumming's 70s paper on the topic.
-- I don't read old papers. What's the main idea?
-- The main idea is that this and this commutes...

As our guy walked to the next wall to bang his head, he remembers the film "A serious man" from the Coen brothers...

The Korean student: I didn't know the mathematics were to be evaluated.
The Jewish professor: ...
The Korean student: I know about the cat, I understand the cat.

Another step towards the wall, he remembers Rome where something similar to this probably happened a few thousand years ago...

-- You see, the rock found in the side of the...
-- But why do I need to know where to find the rock? We always get our supply from the southern guy. I came here to learn to build arches, not about amalgams.

Thus the knowledge of concrete and underwater construction was lost for a good one and something millennia...

One more step towards the wall and he thinks about the Slovak joke,

Once there was a guy, he wanted to become a writer. He travels to Bratislava and enrolls into the University. So he comes into his first class and the professor assigns classical masterpieces for the students to read through the semester. Suddenly the guy stands up and starts to leave the class quite angry. The professor asks him what is wrong. The guy answers: I came here to become a writer, not a reader!

Well, such is life... Sometimes I wish I could see how's the world doing in 500 years, sometimes, most of the times, almost all the time I am really thankful I'm not able to do that.

Profit killed the world

Today, I was working on the phase transition of some Hamiltonian model; listening to random music from YouTube. Suddenly, an unknown version of an old favorite, "Big Yellow Taxi", filled my ears. I kept working on the damned Hamiltonian, then the thought came to my mind...

Profit killed the world

Why this idea came to my mind? I have not a clue. Taking into account that I have no statistical data for the development of Earth's Carrying Capacity and the impact factor of mere consumerism surely is a hard thing to pinpoint, this assertion is pretty unfounded; however, the fact that a human being is just a consumer in modern times, and how it seems that the wellness of The Economy, indeed with capitals, based on consumerism is a worldwide policy, somehow makes me have impending doom feelings and parse the thought as most probably true.

Here's the aforementioned video...

Now, back to the damned Hamiltonian.


Appendix 1: Curiously enough, I found a post in Luis Felipe's blog that gave me the chance to rant about consumerism and responsibility, two of my favorite topics.