strange research requests
How many of you get e-mails like this one? I never have, but perhaps this is just because I don't work in a field where people are expected to do post-docs. It seems really sad to me - it sounds like this person has learned a lot about some very specific things, and yet is at the same time woefully clueless about absolutely everything else. I know that this is the stereotype of scientists and academics in general, but it just isn't true to this extent normally. I can't imagine someone having a happy life doing this kind of research if they can't even tell whether or not someone they're talking to does this kind of research. (Also, they can't tell that you don't address a woman as "Sir".)