Thread by @GordPennycook

Warning: Sentimentality ahead

I'm not someone who publishes papers in Nature. I'm just not.

And it's not just this paper, of course. This is just the thing that caused me to reflect on my life and how absolutely bonkers this all still is for me.

So, I thought I would share.

https://twitter.com/DG_Rand/status/1372217700626411527

First, I need to give props to @DG_Rand. He is an absolute hero. You know how some PI's just slap their name on work that has been done by junior collaborators? Not Dave. If anything, he takes LESS credit than he deserves. He's also just the best person.

But, anyway, back to me

I grew up on a farm in northern Saskatchewan. It failed & forced my parents to work several jobs. As a kid, I (and my 4 siblings) helped my parents do janitorial work from Grade 1 to Grade 9. This was not at all abnormal to me: On a farm you do chores, so that became our chores.

My parents, working class of course, had no conception whatsoever of academia. Nor did anyone else that I knew. I believe I'm the only person from my town (ever) with a PhD. I'm certainly the only person in my extended family (which is large) that has one.

The upshot of this is that I was not encouraged *at all* academically. Education was, at best, a route to paying bills. I didn't go to uni after graduating b/c the gov't wouldn't give me a proper student loan & my parents couldn't pay. Dad said I should work in the oil pipelines

When I finally went to uni, I paid every last cent myself. Partially through loans but also by working summers at a honey (bee) farm. At this point, I still had no concept of academia but knew I wanted to do something different. (these pics are representative of me back then)

I went to the closest university to where I grew up (never considered anything else -didn't know that was a thing). No one in my family had graduated from uni. When I moved to the city, I was legitimately frightened of strangers, having lived only in a tiny town. We didn't travel

Val Thompson at @usask is the 1st person to ever see academic potential in me (she was also the 1st person to enter my life who knew anything at all about academia). Valerie let me into her lab and I ended up doing an honors thesis there. She changed my life immeasurably.

Just to clarify, I don't at all begrudge those in my past who didn't encourage me academically. There was no concept of this. My parents, for example, valued me getting an education and supported all of my choices. But, like, becoming a professor or scientist? Not a known concept

My honours thesis was in 2009. Not that long ago! I didn't get into grad school the first year and so worked as Val's lab admin for a year. I learned so much. God, I owe Val so much. And also Jamie Prowse & Erin Metcalfe, grad students in the lab who taught me a lot.

In the following year, I was rejected at several places (e.g., UofT, UBC) but Jon Fugelsang & Derek Koehler took a chance on me at @UWaterloo. They gave me the freedom & guidance to grow. Ended up winning the dissertation awards. Ranked 1st overall in Canada for a Banting Postdoc

I ended up at Yale to work with @DG_Rand, which honestly scared the absolute shit out of me. I had success in grad school, but was still just a kid from Carrot River. I assumed they would all be crazy people. They weren't. They welcomed me, made me feel like one of them 😭

And now here I am. Not that far removed from being a cloistered small-town kid. I still, in many ways, am still that kid. But I published a paper in Nature? I'm having a hard time grasping this. Man, I've gotten so lucky.

Not sure what the point of this thread is, but if you take anything away from it, let it be that you should give "non-prototypical" people a chance.

Academics have so much opportunity to improve people's lives. Please don't take this responsibility lightly

You're all so amazing