You can find previous “By The Numbers” posts here: 2022, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013. I didn’t do one in 2021. Wow, that’s a lot of numbers.

5988
The number of emails sent, professionally, this year. Second lowest since I started tracking! Hopefully it’ll stay below the 6k mark in 2024.

1043
This year’s citation count. I wouldn’t normally include something like that, but it’s notable in that it’s the first time it’s been lower than the year before (1152). I guess I’ve plateaued!

18
The number of new papers this year. A stellar effort made easy by amazing collaborators and colleagues. Everything from storm-petrels used as candles to machine learning and automated counting of plastics, with a healthy dose of collections-based research (Tristan Moorhen eggs, species status for the Hanuman Plover (Charadrius seebohmi), and a new early record of Slender-billed Curlew for present-day Israel.

4
Field trips this year – Lord Howe Island (twice), Caithness, and Nunatsiavut. All with wonderful hosts/colleagues, and lots of laughter, smiles, and conversations.

5
Museums visited this year. Cambridge, Oxford, Melbourne, La Rochelle, and Liverpool. Still a fair few on my hit list for the year ahead (Hoping to get to New York, Sydney, and Edinburgh, and maybe a few smaller near(ish) England collections). It’s always a joy

2
The number of postdocs in our team that have moved on to PERMANENT jobs this year! As a PI/manager/supervisor, that’s the ultimate win.

95
Distance (in km) running this year. Not brilliant, if I’m honest. But it’s better than nothing. Next year’s goal is to break 100 km.

4.1
My mood score, out of 5, averaged over the year. Ever since August 2020 when I started medication for depression, I’ve tracked my mood just before bed each night, and listed the 3 daily “highlights”. I’ve been off meds for about 18 months now, and this feel like a win. Apparently Fridays were my best days (go figure), and January 2023 was my best month (which was rather surprising!).

3
Professional social media platforms. This blog (who even blogs any more?!) came out of the strong Canadian science twitter/blogosphere in 2012/13 so it’s always had a strong twitter-based readership. With Mastodon and Blue Sky now on the scene (and twitter really becoming a place I find myself spending less time) it feels a bit like the wonderful online networks we built are being lost or fragmented. I’m sure if I was a postdoc now (vs a decade ago) my online experience would be much diminished.

Here’s to a healthy, happy, and harmonious 2024!