Nature Communications Checklist: Fill & Download for Free

The typical food, water, batteries and a fire starter and a few essential tools. We have a grab and go document kit and for the basic kit we repeat and put it in the car. We also invested our time to prepare an evacuation plan that includes a communication checklist that includes a family member in another state. Twice a year we replace the water.

Certainly.Knowing how Nature actually works (as opposed to how we would like it to work) is a huge step towards making things like stone axes, steam engines, computer chips or spacecraft actually, you know, work.It may very well turn out that space travel is harder than we naively thought in the times of, say, Jules Verne or H. G. Wells, but what we naively thought is irrelevant; without actual, tested knowledge, we wouldn’t get very far. So to actually get somewhere, we need to know how space and time actually work. Special relativity is a huge step in that direction.As an example, without knowing special relativity, communication with the Apollo spacecraft would have been difficult, and the spacecraft would have been almost certainly navigated incorrectly, crashing into the Moon or missing the Moon altogether. This is even more true for deep space robotic craft. So yes, special relativity in this case is one of the mandatory items on our checklist that can distinguish success from failure.

“Work hard, play hard.”This is code for, “You’ll bust your ass even on Hawaiian shirt day.”Expect to work perpetually short-handed with strong social pressure to attend weekend company picnics.Work hard, play hard = no time for yourself.OTHER RED FLAGS TO LOOK FORDust on Diamonds. Gimmicks like bicycles, Xboxes, ping-pong tables, weird collaboration areas…and they’re all covered in dust.The Gestapo. They preach it. They teach it. They put the cult in culture. Beware the hive mind where people might look different but they all think the same. Expect to be force-fed the Kool-Aid, do what you’re told, don’t ask questions and don’t let feelings get in the way of pretending to love your job.Dinner Calls. Weird hours. Getting email replies on a Tuesday night or sunny Sunday afternoons. If they’re communicating with you when the rest of the world is living their life, chances are you’re about to give up yours. Yes, the world is connected. Yes, sometimes after-hour emails make sense. But you be the judge…and pay attention.Robots. Heavy use of office jargon and sanitized language means the company has been hijacked by ladder climbers and corporate drones. Look out for fancy cryptic wording to describe easy things. I once overheard someone describe hiring a new employee: “We’re looking to onboard a new asset this quarter.” Really? Who talks like that? Nobody interesting, that’s who.The Overlord. Young, hip workers managed by an older heavy-breathing overlord. Expect to last only as long as your youth…which means 27 or younger. At first you might think you’re part of a secret. But as you get older, and more expensive, you get that feeling any day could be your last…and it’s true. They WILL be taking notes about every screw up, no matter how insignificant. And the day before your grandmother’s funeral, you’ll get the notice.The Quitter. The person you’re replacing “just quit”. People don’t just quit money unless things are really messed up. Quitting means not qualifying for unemployment compensation. And, they were willing to take the risk of burning through their savings. Unless your interviewer has a solid reason, and you should ask, think twice before making the leap.NASA Interviews. “Tell me about a time when…” If your interview feels more like a checklist for a shuttle launch then it’s probably a micro-managed environment. Look out for over-prepared, time critical interviews with a tight structure and prepared lists of questions. Job interviews done right should take a natural conversational course.I’m New! He’s new! Everyone is new! Unless they’re growing - and you can tell by recent office moves and new furniture and equipment - they probably have high turnover. You’ll be new until you’re newly unemployed.P.S. Like most red flags, these are not hard and fast rules. These are simply things to look out for.Like a lot of advice, go with your gut - it’s usually right.