Edmund Yong has rebooted the “Who are you?” meme. I’ll quote him:
So let’s do it again. In the comments below, tell me who you are, what your background is and what you do. What’s your interest in science and your involvement with it? How did you come to this blog, how long have you been reading, what do you think about it, and how could it be improved?
I will try and be a little less…abrasive…on this thread in relation to comments, so feel free to let your hair down and “de-lurk” 
That being said, I do take surveys of my readership periodically, so here are some of the demographic breakdowns which I have from a survey I took last winter….
-20% of the readership responded that they’d been reading GNXP for more than 4 years
-50% have at least a master’s degree (22% have doctorates, 11% professional advanced degrees)
-Nearly 50% of university degree holders who read GNXP have a background in science & engineering (science = natural science + mathematics)
-78% are atheists & agnostics
-60% have no religious identity
-70% live in the United States of America
-80% are of European ancestry
-86% are male
-35% are on the political Left, 30% on the Right, and 25% Libertarian
-60% have no children
-12% are virgins
-82% have taken calculus
The above includes both GNXP weblogs. The sample size is north of 600 (the omission rates varied by question).
Razib Khan’s degrees are in biochemistry and biology. He has blogged about genetics since 2002, previously worked in software development, is an Unz Foundation Junior Fellow and lives in the western US. He loves habaneros.
July 5th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
Being a relatively new reader I find those statistics to be absolutely fascinating =D
I’m a 20 year-old university student from Australia doing a dual-degree In Science (Physics/Computer/Math) and Secondary Education. I’m currently a student teacher at a school with a large proportion of ESL students where I teach basic math and reading. I came across one of the Discover blogs a few weeks ago through Google Blog Search and subscribed to all of them with google reader immediately. They are both Interesting and Informative and in my opinion some of the best science blogs on the internet. I also have a blog myself where I talk about all sorts of things but mostly relating to Science, Education and Religion (I’m an Atheist).
July 5th, 2010 at 6:08 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Al Poe. Al Poe said: Who are you…. | Gene Expression: Edmund Yong has rebooted the “Who are you?” meme. I’ll quote him: So let’s do it … http://bit.ly/9Mp3cy [...]
July 5th, 2010 at 6:11 pm
I am not a scientist at all but have always been interested in natural history, and an interest in evolution naturally rises from this. I share Razib’s historical interests, especially in the use of genetic markers to untangle what happened at the borders of history (for example, the successive arrivals of the Celts, the Romans, the Anglo-Saxons, and Vikings in Britain). Razib and I do not agree on politics much, but we are able to discuss things productively.
July 5th, 2010 at 6:13 pm
Hmmm….looking at your demographics:
1) This would be about my second year for reading this blog.
Female.
2) I have no degree; I majored in biology, but did not finish. ($$$$)
3) Obviously doesn’t apply.
4) Atheist.
5) See 4.
6) USAnian.
7) European descent, with some Native American in the mix.
9) Slightly left of center.
10) 1 child (now grown).
11) No laboratory input or host-mother having been involved, clearly, not a virgin.
12) Have taken calculus. Have even PASSED calculus, to my surprise.
July 5th, 2010 at 6:23 pm
I’m a 21 year old University student from Sussex University, Brighton studying Computer Science. I too am also am subscribed with google reader to all main science blogs. I have a massive passion for science and knowledge. Being open minded and skeptical on the world is in my opinion essential. However if you met me on the street your stereotype of me would not be someone with an interest in astronomy and science.
Those statistics match me as-well, despite not moving on too a masters degree.
http://www.google.com/profiles/smwilson31
July 5th, 2010 at 7:03 pm
I am a 53yo novelist.
I completed some college; while theoretically majoring in German, I as actually majoring in Vodka (Sober 25 years now)
Does not apply, but no background in science whatsoever, merely a huge and indiscriminate curiosity
Strong believer
Pagan
U.S. citizen; born here
European descent
Female
Not a virgin
2 children: 20yo daughter, NT; 16yo son, autisitic/bipolar/epileptic
Have never taken calculus
Left of left of center
Not a virgin
Never took calculus
July 5th, 2010 at 7:26 pm
As a woman who doesn’t even a bachelor’s, I am your statistical outlier.
July 5th, 2010 at 7:30 pm
As a woman who doesn’t even a bachelor’s, I am your statistical outlier.
maybe there’ll be a selection bias to outliers on the thread. definitely a more interesting comment than “that’s me!” though to be sure i didn’t state that the info had to take the form of the statistics at all.
July 5th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
I’m a retired Stanford professor of Geophysics. Came here via Razib’s gnxp. My specialty is image estimation — you give me data; I make an image. The 50 PhD’s I guided in my life work mostly in geophysical survey analysis, some at oil companies, some at survey contracting companies. I wrote five textbooks, all free at my web site. Enjoy!
July 5th, 2010 at 7:57 pm
Commented already at The Loom, but I’ll join in here too.
I currently serve as the Community Liaison for Mendeley, a social sharing service for scientific literature. Most recently, I did assay development for Genalyte, a molecular diagnostics startup. My work involved developing protein, DNA, and small molecule assays on their novel high-throughput assay platform. I received my PhD from the Tulane University, where I studied under Dr. Darwin Prockop at the Tulane Center for Gene Therapy. My dissertation is entitled “Investigating the Role of Human Multipotent Mesenchymal Stromal Cells in the Repair of Bone”, in which I developed a model of multiple myeloma in mice and used it to test small molecule inhibitors of the interaction between multiple myeloma and bone precursor cells, promoting bone regeneration and repair of osteolytic lesions.
I’ve always been interested in science. The first time I remember thinking about what I’d like to be when I grow up, I was reading an old Wired magazine issue about polymer science used to make prosthetics and I thought that was the coolest thing ever.
I don’t remember how I came to the blog initially, but I think it was pre-scienceblogs, when you were still at gnxp.com. I’m pretty sure it was via a trackback or blogroll link, which is the way we discovered fellow blogs back in those days. We used to blog a lot of similar topics and I was once even invited to guest blog at the old site, but flaked out on it. I’m reading Steve Hsu at Infoproc now as well.
Your statistical portrait describes me pretty well, with the exception of the length of readership (longer than 4 years) and having children. I suspect some co-association of those two traits, probably strongly affected by age
July 5th, 2010 at 8:09 pm
william, i gave you privs in march of 2003. you may even date back to the blogspot era! (i moved in dec of 2002) how time passes by…i don’t think you’d replicated then.
re: childlessness, sure, but, in the GSS 15% of people age 45-65 have 0 children when i constrained the sample to 1998 and later. 30% of my readers in that age group are at zero. 21% of those with college degrees or higher are childless in that age group in the GSS. 21% of atheists. 20% of those with WORDSUM 9-10. all in that age group. there’s a reason i asked about sexual experience this time around
July 5th, 2010 at 8:24 pm
I’ve posted in Ed’s and Sheril & Chris’s thread, so I’ll just do nuts and bolts here, respectfully. I’m in sales & operations for an Audio/Video installation firm in Michigan. I’m a fledgling science enthusiast. I really enjoy science blogs that can discuss current topics/studies/research for the layman such as myself. I read your blog a lot on scienceblogs, but lately, I’ve been finding some of your meatier posts are a bit tough for me to grasp. I think you’re very witty and your enthusiasm for science is infectious. And so, I value your contribution here on Discover blogs very much.
July 5th, 2010 at 8:33 pm
but lately, I’ve been finding some of your meatier posts are a bit tough for me to grasp
cw, i go through phases i think. but it’s always good to be reminded that there are vegetarians in the audience.
July 5th, 2010 at 8:39 pm
white, athiest/no religion, bachelor’s, U.S., male, married, can’t remember if i took calc, progressive, no kids (never will), and i smoke weed every DAY. i don’t give a….:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B91wki_jQf0
July 5th, 2010 at 9:25 pm
In order of your post…
I am a long time reader of your blog
with a PhD
in Psychology
who is a Catholic
in the United States
of European ancestry,
male,
of libertarian-conservative tendencies,
with no children
but married
and have taken calculus.
July 5th, 2010 at 9:56 pm
26-year old university Student from Northern Finland . I’ve been reading a couple of years. Don’t remember how I found this blog. Probably google reader suggested it to me but all so other blogs had links that i had followed here before that.
July 5th, 2010 at 10:18 pm
i read your blog often, and although I don’t have much scientific expertise (some stuff self taught) I try to understand everything as in-depth as I can (higher level IB Biology was my first science reference).
I’ve done a year and a half of university (Humanities mainly but also courses in Electronic Engineering and Radio-communication) in Lima, Peru, but now in September I’ll be a freshman at NYU. Probably majoring at Linguistics (half way between science and humanities) or Chemistry.
Atheist, single, female, no kids, 19 years old.
Have taken calculus.
Half Austrian ancestry, half Syrian.
I have radical left view tendencies.
So I think I’ll go with cca’s comment.
July 5th, 2010 at 10:40 pm
I am 28, white mostly british, male, atheist and grew up in the hippie sub culture,my profession is parkour coaching, a discipline I have been practicing for 5 years and which has taken me all across the US and europe.
I have been following the blog for about 2 years.
I originally intended to be an academic but found the post modernism of my chosen field(anthropology) disheartening and the drive to be physically active to strong to remain in academics, I quit just short of my bachelors. I have maintained my interest in science, evolution, history and human behavior and this has become my favorite source for indulging my curiosity. My standardized test scores indicate my IQ is in the 99+ percentile range by I am also dyslexic and add which made academics a very odd experience for me.
I am married looking to start a family. My politics are basically to the left but I am sympathetic to many arguments from both conservative and liberals sides but disturbed by reality of politics on both sides.
July 5th, 2010 at 10:49 pm
Male, West Australian (hence the handle), but have lived more than half my life in East Asia. Predominantly European ancestry with some small Aboriginal admixture. Calculus-literate civil engineer with one child (by choice) who is now studying biology, biochemistry and math at university. She’s definitely mine, so that answers the virginity question. Apolitical, or as near as possible. Not religious.
Currently back living in Australia, but planning to return to Asia.
Came via GNXP more than 4 years ago. I found GNXP digging around for stuff on genetics and human origins – specifically on Lewontin’s fallacy, which for personal reasons at the time I wanted to believe was not a fallacy. Now I know it is, but I don’t mind.
You have never been abrasive with me, despite my periodic foolish meanderings in the comments.
July 5th, 2010 at 10:52 pm
Well, I took the quant style survey last year, so I’ll do the qual style this year. 51. Read for about a year (I excuse it as being part of my job). PhD in Cog Sci/social psyc, so clearly a sciency background. I never believed in god, but have hung out in the Swedish Protestant church (in sweden) mainly singing or playing music – I recently started that again. So, culturally Lutheran. I live in Sweden, I was born in Sweden, but I am a US Citizen (Job search was international, and Lund University offered me a place ). I’m a girl – well, more old hag by now. I’m politically very centrists, whenever I’m interested in it. I have three kids (oldest is 9, I’m an old mum), all conceived the fun way. And, I took calculus.
July 5th, 2010 at 10:52 pm
rafe, what do you think about david belle? i know, prolly get that ? a lot. parkour is awesome!
July 5th, 2010 at 11:03 pm
I’m a girl – well, more old hag by now.
the use of the word ‘hag’ is a tell as to your first language learned me thinks!
July 6th, 2010 at 2:59 am
Got here from GNXP, been reading there long enough to have taken two of your reader surveys before you started here.
My education is in music and English, mostly forgotten now. If I’d taken calculus, I’m sure I’d have forgotten it also.
Trying to figure out what goes wrong in brains after an injury is what got me started reading science writing a long time ago. It’s addictive.
I’m agnostic and bored by the sort of atheist who wants to discuss religion as much as I am the religious with the same interest.
Born in U.S. of mostly English ancestry.
Politically libertarian/conservative with assorted liberal ideas tossed for flavor. Or confusion.
Female non-virgin – I’m married, with 3 children, 4 grandchildren.
July 6th, 2010 at 3:10 am
Wow, that’s a real male skew. I’m sort of surprised (especially for a genetics blog!)
Myself, I’m a 23-year-old Pakeha woman from New Zealand, having finished up bachelor’s degrees in history and microbiology last year and starting a PhD in microbiology in the States this September. I’m a left-wing atheist with no kids (but a husband and a cat, do they count?) and I took calculus at college but skilfully managed to avoid it at university.
I read this blog largely because, as you might guess from my history degree, analysis of the genetic history of populations really interests me as an additional data point for analysing the historical record. The population correlation bits are useful too – as I’ll be living in the US soon it’s interesting to learn about its demographic makeup and beliefs in detail. Plus, while I’m not a geneticist by choice or training, I’ve ended up working in the field in between undergraduate and postgraduate study, so reading about this sort of research is sort of relevant to my day job (or at least keeps me thinking about it.)
July 6th, 2010 at 4:11 am
I’m a 29-year-old second-year medical student, who worked in software and translation before this. My first degree was in CS, linguistics and French.
I’ve been reading GNXP on and off for as long as I’ve been reading blogs, at least since 2003.
My religious beliefs are atheist, but I’m culturally Catholic. I live in Ireland and was born there, and my 23andme SNPs don’t contradict the historical information that suggests a mix of Gael and various Germanic groups.
I’m male. I’m slightly right of centre in political terms in Ireland, which is not the same as being slightly right of centre in the US. I have no children, I am not a virgin, and I took calculus in secondary school, enjoyed it, and have long forgotten it.
July 6th, 2010 at 4:24 am
Also in the order of your post…
Just started reading this year.
No postgrad; just a BA in English Lit.
I am pagan.
Am of European ancestry for the most part.
No children; my fiance & I are childfree, but not virgins.
I have never taken calculus.
July 6th, 2010 at 4:44 am
BSc, MA, PhD but my formal education in biology stopped at The Bean. I have written about proteins; my co-authors knew about those. I did the maths and the hand-waving. State-of-the-art hand-waving, I’ll have you know.
July 6th, 2010 at 6:10 am
Aging postdoc in behavioral neuroscience, currently east coast of US. Married, but non-reproducing, which I subconsciously use to justify meat consumption and international flights. Atheist from a non-religious family, WASP ancestry filtered through New Orleans with an admixture of German Swiss chocolatiers. Amateur musician.
I like Razib’s blog because of the serious analysis whatever the topic, political diversity and high standards for discussion/argument. Pretty much a mainstream liberal.
July 6th, 2010 at 7:40 am
I’m a 23-year-old student, currently finishing a Masters in Genetics. Female, Atheist, non-virgin and childless, I’m of European descent and currently residing in Australia. I first started reading this blog less than a yer ago, I guess. I haven’t been asked to de-lurk before.
I scraped through my old calculus classes, and I think I’ve pushed so much of it out of my mind I might never be able to retrieve it again.
July 6th, 2010 at 8:46 am
Married, mother, grandmother, 63, northern European ancestry, American, retired elementary school teacher, BS. Calculus? Don’t know him. Left of center politics. The question of god is unknowable. But quantum physics is telling us a lot about what isn’t that we previously thought was.
I found this blog at least 3 or 4 years ago. I have an uneducated layman’s interest in genetics, human history, cosmology, linguistics, religion, art, and politics. I like Razib’s intelligence, intensity, wilingness to share that with others and his Katz.
July 6th, 2010 at 8:49 am
behavioral neuroscientist. I’m pretty sure I started reading soon after discovering science blogs and ScienceBlogs. The posts that keep me coming back, and indeed the ones that I most frequently point people to, include the ones on skin and eye color determination, genetic admixture, etc. In academic science, my locale and possibly the US more generally, increasing numbers of mixed families means more questions about why the kids look like that. I don’t know jack squat so I get to point any questions that come my way to your posts.
Plus, anyone who is on the shit list of both racists and anti-racists, often for the exact same post, is always worth a read in my book.
July 6th, 2010 at 10:05 am
-25 year old
-male
- Ashkenazi Jewish background
- from Canada
- I’m working towards a master’s degree in mathematics
-obviously have taken calc
- am an atheist
- am not a virgin but still have no children
- have only been reading regularly for less than a year
-political views are in flux a bit; still a lot of left-of-centre, but more libertarianish than before
I actually don’t know much genetics; I took a first year biology course way back when and have read a few popular books on the subject, but most of what I “know” I’ve pieced together from blogs and Wikipedia for the technical terms. I just find it interesting for the same reasons as most of the people above: an insight into human history, and natural history more generally. That’s why I particularly like this site, since a fair bit of focus goes into those issues. Also, you’re a very clear writer, and I like, as someone said above, the high standards you have for discussion. .
July 6th, 2010 at 12:01 pm
33 year old married Ashkenazi female
atheist but culturally Jewish
one child
American
never took calc
liberal Democrat
dropped out of grad school, was in the humanities, not science
been reading gnxp for over 4 years
there are a few subjects which I casually research, and I believe I found gnxp while looking into Neandertal genetics. I am interested in the genetic relationships between different groups and between their languages, cultures and religions. I also like katz…
July 6th, 2010 at 1:57 pm
4th year mathematics major at UI-Chicago doing graduate coursework, will be applying to PhD programs in Fall. My primary interest at the moment is algebraic number theory, but have lately been strongly considering a sharp turn into applied mathematics, possibly something intersecting biology. Incidentally i’m curious if you are aware of any resources wrt to mathematical biology. I’m trying to learn more about what sorts of math is being worked on, PhD programs, and longer-term prospects in the field. I am only somewhat aware of Ohio’s program at the moment and vaguely aware of the protein folding using topology.
I found this blog through either Ray Sawhill, Steve Sailer or Tyler Cowen, I can’t recall which except that it was a couple years ago shortly after finishing The Bell Curve.
This blog is a great resource. I will say, by the way, that I actually do admire the ruthless exactness that you strive for in posts and comments. Hierarchy is all to the good in scientific and other disciplines if the aim is efficient distillation of truth; people should have to prove their worth. However, though I didn’t want to mention it in the previous thread to stay on topic, with this opportunity I will now mention that I think it was inappropriate for you to publicly discuss my facebook request on your blog.
Anyway, you do good work and I appreciate it.
other personal stats:
- non-religious, but with appreciation for religion/mysticism personally and institutionally. raised Catholic, early on turned atheist, but later went through a short Catholic phase before taking a more Jamesian and Nietzschean take on religion.
- fairly right-wing, mixture of elitist and populist
- half Lithuanian, some Dutch, Portuguese, British, and possibly (but not likely I think), some traces of Indo-Brazilian blood
- USAian
- non-married, dating
July 6th, 2010 at 4:23 pm
with this opportunity I will now mention that I think it was inappropriate for you to publicly discuss my facebook request on your blog.
fair enough, but wait until someone re-tweets your FB status update! (it has happened to me!)
July 6th, 2010 at 5:19 pm
- visiting site for under a year
- 26, male, married
- Electrical Engineer (bachelors)
- Born again Christian
- social liberal, economic conservative (as far as government is concerned)
July 6th, 2010 at 9:47 pm
-I’ve been reading GNXP for more than 4 years
-BA in History and Anthropology
-36 year old married female
-atheist tendencies
-American of European descent
-middle of the road politically
-Never took calculus (hence the BA)
-Four kids
I mainly started reading GNXP to understand population genetics better; my husband is on your blogroll, and I like to keep up with his work, other posts that might interest him… and honestly what others say about him. Total groupie here. Oh, and I enjoy posts about twin genetics, as we have a set of identical twins.
July 6th, 2010 at 11:26 pm
I’m an Australian in his early 20s undertaking a PhD in anthropology, and I’ve been checking in on GNXP for about 5 years now. I’m delighted to see my fellow antipodeans come out of the woodwork, but equally disappointed to see Razib consistently reproduce Western Scientific hegemony. Just kidding.
Oh, and I have taken calculus!
July 6th, 2010 at 11:43 pm
rk, but equally disappointed to see Razib consistently reproduce Western Scientific hegemony.
i laughed out loud at that.
July 7th, 2010 at 2:26 am
I’ve been reading gnxp since about 2006 or so, I found out about it when doing a “where are they now” name googling for folks I knew years ago from the Usenet. You can blame Manzikert for that. Hah!
I’ve got a Master’s degree in Comparative Religion with a focus on Asian religions in general and Japanese religion in particular. Oddly enough studying religion killed whatever mystery it had for me, and the political culture, pettiness and focus on crap social “theories” killed whatever interest I had in getting my Ph.D. I also saw grad students running up tens of thousands of dollars in debt for what seemed to be a career path of being an adjunct lecturer, which is basically not what I wanted for myself.
I was raised Catholic, and went through both a practicing Zen Buddhist phase and a Golden Dawn phase, all of which have influenced me deeply even as I don’t really buy into them anymore. Personally I find Shinto appealing, but not being ethnically Japanese, nor even given to believing in such metaphysical things, it remains mostly a strong aesthetic appeal to me. I would classify myself as a rather soft atheist who hopes that he is able to find religion again. I’m an atheist because I could no longer deny my rational mind, however my general character is of someone who is highly given to spiritual feelings, which is somewhat genetically derived I presume (the family tree is rife with priests and nuns and assorted mystics… and oddly enough atheists as well, back in the day when atheists who weren’t also leftists were pretty rare. I figure I got the dose of both)
I live in Hawaii, though I have lived in Japan, and truthfully would like to live there again. Not that I’m under any delusions I would ever be Japanese. It’s more that I find living there more fitting to my style and tastes than America.
I currently work as a clerk for a for-profit archeological surveying firm. The pay is ample though the work is less than interesting (I do mostly error checking and filing)
I’m a Heinz 57 bottle ethnically, though 75% of me is Portuguese, Sangley Mestizo Filipino and Hawaiian.
Haven’t taken calculus, but one of my long term goals is to learn it myself at home.
Not a virgin, not married, but looking, and want more kids than most people of my education bracket do (4-5).
Oh, and a male.
July 7th, 2010 at 5:06 pm
I’m a 24 year old female in Brooklyn NY. I have a bachelor’s in individualized study from NYU’s Gallatin School. I’m now an animator, I work on cartoons, commercials, films, etc. Sometimes I regret not studying something straightforward and/or scientific in school, although what I do now is just as technical as it is creative. I have always been interested in science, I guess I’d call it a hobby?
I officially added this blog to my feed after the Time’s Top 25 list, although I have visited before via other blogs. (maybe BoingBoing or some such thing?)
July 7th, 2010 at 5:15 pm
top 25 list?
July 8th, 2010 at 10:33 am
American 36 year-old first year medical student at UC San Diego. White and part Native American (last part from DNA test, didn’t know before.) Undergrad degree in molecular biology, did clinical research consulting for biotech companies for 10 years before going back to school. Active atheist and raised atheist in the politically conservative engineering/Ayn Rand subspecies of atheism. Grew up outside Philly but now consider San Francisco home, even though I don’t live there for the moment. Razib’s blog is what my blog would be like if it didn’t take so much work. Avid trail runner but I don’t like running in the desert – Northern California is better.
July 8th, 2010 at 10:56 pm
Razib David Belle, great athlete, great innovator, poor leader unfortunately. Probably retired. There are allot of other athletes now many more impressive to watch, I am impressed with Daniel Ilabaca, Phil doyle, Kie Willis, Oleg Vorslav, and Levi Meuenberg to name a few.
Interestingly, I was just in Berkely for parkour and ended up at bar with one of the local traceur’s friends, I started talking a about human biodiversity with one of them, who claimed to be friend of yours, can’t remember his name unfortunately. One of the other people at the table was headed to MIT for PHD in computational biology and we ended up chatting about cliodynamics. I always find it interesting how parkour tends to be a very high IQ sport and leads me to meet very interesting people.
July 9th, 2010 at 1:33 am
A Danish student of economics, no degrees yet. Male, early mid-20es, white, atheist. Type 1 diabetic who recently ran a marathon. Play chess in a club. Aspie. Have taken calculus and some statistics. Probably came via a link from MarginalRevolution, but can’t remember now – been reading the blog for at least a couple of years. I mostly lurk, I have only commented a couple of times as far as I can remember.
This blog is in my top-three of the blogs I read so obviously I like it very much. Just keep doing what you’re doing.