School of Physics & Astronomy

As part of our Kelvin Connections wellbeing week, we found out how some of our staff members relax and keep on top of their busy workloads.  Read their top tips below, and visit our Connections Point Wellbeing Stall on level 2 of the Kelvin Building to add your own tips to our display boards.

Name: Dave Ireland

Position: Head of School / Professor of Physics

What do you do to relax? I am quite good at doing nothing, it is just that there is not very much time for it! I say “nothing”, but “unproductive” would probably be a better word for it - getting in touch with my inner loafer. It is really important to not feel guilty about switching off, and taking time out for yourself. There is plenty of evidence to suggest that taking breaks from work actually results in getting more done. In order to assist me in being unproductive there are plenty of good TV shows / movies / Youtube videos, and I am quite passionate about listening to music. Getting back to seeing live music after the pandemic is something I am really looking forward to. I am not going to name-check any favourites, as I am well past the age of caring what anyone thinks of my musical taste!

What tips/strategies would you give for achieving balance when things get busy?  It is not always very easy, but there are elements of Stoic philosophy that can be helpful, such as being able to decide what is up to you and what is not up to you. The idea is to put your effort into things where you can make a difference, and not worry about external things you cannot control.

Also, the phrase “don’t sweat the small stuff” is quite a good guide – you can’t do everything, so pick the things that matter. Possibly most importantly, ask others for help.

Why is it important that we connect with others? They can help us when we’ve decided that a problem really is one that matters and that it is up to us, but we may not manage it on our own. Connecting with others can generate the full range of emotions which, vitally, lets us know we are alive and participating in the shared human experience.

What is your favourite fact about Lord Kelvin?  He got the age of the Earth wrong (and got into an argument with Charles Darwin about it)! His calculations assumed that the Earth was a body cooling down after formation and radiating heat – he did not know that natural radioactivity provides a mechanism to generate heat in rocks. It is the perfect example of how even the most able of us are fallible. Granted, he did not have all the facts to hand, but we should always leave open the possibility that we don’t know everything!

Any other comments:  Lord Kelvin applied his talents to societal problems of the time: how to make engines work efficiently, how to communicate across the Atlantic. I suggest that this spirit is an inspiration to us to tackle the challenges of our age: how to live sustainably and not wreck the planet.

Name: Sheila Rowan

Position: Director of the Institute for Gravitational Research and current President of the Institute of Physics

What do you do to relax? I cook (recipes from my every expanding collection of cookery books – second hand cookery books are the loveliest things). The action of planning a recipe, weighing ingredients, chopping veg, all require a focus that I find relaxing (and then you get to eat the results – what could be better).

I read – I’m a big fan of thrillers – alternating Nordic Noir or Tartan Noir – currently working my way through the latest two Denzil Meyrick ‘Inspector Daley’ books. 

I spend time near the sea – we are so lucky in Scotland to have miles and miles of wonderful coast.

What tips/strategies would you give for achieving balance when things get busy?  Remember that you really can’t do everything (and what you can do, you will do better if you come to it calm and destressed.)

Why is it important that we connect with others? There are many reasons – but connecting with other people helps with fresh perspectives on the world – seeing things in a new light.

What is your favourite fact about Lord Kelvin? He had a house in Largs and took his holidays on Arran.

Name: Stephen McVitie

Position: Professor of Physics

What do you do to relax?  Walking, hiking ideally though that has been a bit limited recently. Will quite often listen to podcasts or music. (Pink Floyd 90% of the time! Though slowly developing a taste for classical music).

Bit of cooking, I like to believe I make some mean and hot curries – jalfrezi, biryani, korma…….  Happy to also relax with armchair sports like football, golf and cycling at the end of the day.

Mental relaxation/stimulation with crosswords and chess puzzles.  I would advise to aim to have a few hours a day with no physics!

What tips/strategies would you give for achieving balance when things get busy?

Taking timeouts is essential. Even just to get outside and walk around, taking in all sights, sounds, senses as a helpful distractions. Detaching yourself even if briefly also means you can try and come back with a fresh perspective to your work or study.  There is nothing wrong with having a break or night out, definitely good for regenerating enthusiasm. Remember a good day’s rest beats a bad days work, occasionally!

Why is it important that we connect with others?

I think the pandemic has shown that contact with people should be valued as incredibly important. It goes without saying this really does help your mental health. Making connections with people in person can’t be replaced by email/Teams. Also new people often surprise you – in a good way. Meeting people can be uplifting and perhaps maybe even lead to some unexpected or useful conversations. Although sometimes it helps just to blow off some steam.

What is your favourite fact about Lord Kelvin?

I am part of a CDT (centre for doctoral training) between Glasgow and Queens Belfast. Lord Kelvin was born in Belfast but worked for the majority of his life in Glasgow. Of course both institutes claim “ownership” and have big statues in or close to the Universities. He also did a BA degree at Cambridge but we don’t talk about that!

Any other comments:

It is pretty much accepted that Physics and Astronomy are seen as “hard” subjects. But they do really help you understand the world. All the staff at Glasgow know how difficult it is to get your/their degree. So asking questions is totally expected and welcomed. As I often say the only stupid questions are the ones you convince yourself NOT to ask!

My mum, a nurse, often said you can’t put a price on your health. Back in the day that pretty much meant physical health. Nowadays everyone realises this equally applies to mental health. We should not ignore this aspect of our wellbeing. There is plenty of advice and support for this now.

Final point: remember that social media is a version of life people want you to see, most definitely not the real thing.

Name: Ik Siong Heng

Position: Professor

What do you do to relax?  I’m not the best person to ask this! I think I tend to fidget or think about food when I’m not working. To minimise weight gain, I try to take walks out of the house (which is currently also the office) and just take in my surroundings. I look at the trees, houses, people, etc that I walk past to have my mind think about a range of thoughts not relating to work. I make a point of not having headphones to listen to music/podcasts when I walk because engaging the sound environment during the walk is also part of the experience. Apart from walks, I do like to listen to music to relax and I enjoy cooking too.

What tips/strategies would you give for achieving balance when things get busy?  I find that things get stressful when I have to keep track of many different things at once. When that occurs, I make a list of all the things I have to do (for work, family, self,…) and their deadlines. If there are no obvious deadlines for the task(s), then I try to prioritise them. After this step, it is just a matter of going through the list in order which makes life a lot more straightforward and less stressful. Just writing things down, without prioritising, helps since it prevents thoughts from swirling around my mind which can make tasks/ideas seem more daunting than they actually are.

Why is it important that we connect with others?  In research, it is especially important to connect with others because it is the natural way of sharing and combining ideas which is a crucial step for creating new projects. Socially, I think it is important to connect with others for many reasons. At the very minimum, I think it is important to remind oneself that the people around play a significant supporting role in life (as friends, family, etc). After sitting alone in a room for too long, it is important to remember that everyone has a support network out there.

What is your favourite fact about Lord Kelvin?  I liked the fact that he was involved in the first transatlantic cables. On a more trivial note, I find it amusing that not many people know that Lord Kelvin’s name is William Thomson and I sometimes muse that the unit of temperature named after him should be the “Thomson” instead of “Kelvin”.

Name: Sarah Croke

Position: Senior Lecturer

What do you do to relax?  Read. Immersed in a good book is the only time I can completely forget about everything else. I’m usually reading more than one book at a time, beside me at the moment as I write this are “The Dutch House” by Ann Patchett, “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood, “Symmetry” by Hermann Weyl (yes ok, that’s a physics one, but it’s lovely), and Ruth Bader Ginzburg’s “Her Own Words”.

What tips/strategies would you give for achieving balance when things get busy?

If the last 18 months have taught me anything, it’s to enjoy the little things. The sun is shining outside my window as I write this, the autumn colours are beautiful. Keep perspective. Don’t let the world pass you by.

Develop self-awareness: you need to know what’s important to you to be able to prioritize it. What does balance mean to you? You also need a good understanding of your own self-destructive habits, and we all have them!

At a more pragmatic level, at the busiest times, I find it useful to roughly plan what I can get done each day from the list of things needing my attention (avoiding the temptation to be too optimistic about how long tasks will take - in fact if you can be a bit pessimistic about this, then anything extra you get done is a bonus and a psychological boost). At the end of the day/week, it is then more natural to focus on what I have achieved rather than what is still to be done, and feel more empowered to tackle the rest.

Why is it important that we connect with others?

We are a social species and life is more fun when it’s shared!  It’s great to connect with people from your course: strong social networks are linked with a stronger sense of belonging and identifying with your subject of study, which in turn leads to better resilience and persistence. And it’s more fun. There’s no downside really! 

It’s maybe particularly important to connect with others when you feel you’re struggling, even if you don’t feel like seeking out company. It is often the case that others are struggling with similar issues, and just knowing this can shift your perspective from “I can’t handle this, what’s wrong with me?” to “I can’t handle this because it’s hard, and many people find it hard”. Recognising that struggling is not a sign of personal deficiency makes it easier to seek out strategies to cope: things are difficult now, but I can learn ways to cope better.

What is your favourite fact about Lord Kelvin?

I find it interesting that he was active also in politics, a leader of the Liberal Unionist party and a vehement opponent of Irish Home Rule. It is argued that this was an important factor in him being granted a peerage in 1892. I like to think of famous scientists as complete human beings and not just scientists, and it’s interesting to consider what else was happening in the world at the time they were active.

Name: Nic Labrosse

Position: Senior Lecturer

What do you do to relax?  The most efficient way to relax for me is to walk outside in the countryside, but a park or quiet streets will do. Fresh air and connection with nature are excellent for me! If that’s not possible, listening to music I particularly enjoy helps a lot.

What tips/strategies would you give for achieving balance when things get busy?  A good sleeping pattern is essential. Prioritising the most important tasks helps get a greater sense of satisfaction when completed, so managing tasks with a to-do list is really useful. And firmly call it a day when it’s time to stop working.

Why is it important that we connect with others?  It makes it more real that we are not alone. A smile, a call, a kudo on Strava, a chat – there are so many ways to give and receive little nuggets of encouragement. Also, hearing about others’ experiences brings a different perspective to life.

What is your favourite fact about Lord Kelvin?  The orange traffic cone hat suits him well!

Any other comments: Make sure you keep time to do the things you enjoy the most.

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First published: 16 November 2021