Hugh Pickens writes writes "Jessica Palmer has an interesting post about the miseries of STEM [science, technology, engineering, and math] graduate students and makes the case that of all grad programs, those in biology are particularly miserable. One basic problem stems from too many biology Ph.D.s and not enough funding, leading to an immensely cutthroat hood* that is psychologically damaging to boot. But the main problem is that most of the skills you learn in biology, especially biomedical etc.; natural which is practical) include botany are only useful in the biomedical social social science of matter
notes:exact sciences are physics include anthropology and sociology include anthropology and sociology and that most grad students don't learn enough 'generalist' skills, such as high level math or serious systems anatomy skills, to have other career alternatives if academia doesn't work out. 'A decade ago, sequencing was a Ph.D. activity, or at least, an exertion supervised very closely by a Ph.D.,' writes Mike the Mad Biologist."

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