Today was our honours chemistry defence day, arguably one of my most favourite days of the year. Our honours students have spent a year honing their skills, exploring new science, and developing into fantastically capable chemists. I am always in awe of their accomplishments. Taylor did a bang up job on her honours thesis defence today, she really did. I was so proud of her, as I always am of my students. They make my heart sing. It's the academic mama in me I suppose. Taylor

April is a busy time for academics. Classes are wrapping up and that long-awaited summer of research opens up before you like a vast ocean, full of opportunity. Some students are finishing up and moving on with their studies or careers, others are joining your research team for the first time. As a professor, you wrap up a year spent in the classroom, imparting knowledge of your discipline to others, in the hopes that at least some useful nuggets stick! It is certainly a time