Misfit Work

These are writings and grant proposals deemed unworthy by reviewers (please feel free to critically comment on them by writing me). I include them here only because they may contain information useful to others in spite of fatal shortcomings (for amusement, background is given for each of them):

Evaluating Sources of Trace Element Contamination in New York State Urban Vegetable Gardens by Analysing Paired Soil-Vegetable Samples (this piece was rightfully rejected by several journals, but the data tables at the end could still be useful for those interested in contamination in urban gardens; the statistical testing is, of course, quite overdone but for me, somehow, it was an addictive exercise)

Why the US and capitalism in general still can’t offer solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (a commissioned journalistic piece that was not exactly rejected; the editor never informed me of a decision, so instead of waiting, here is the piece for those interested)

Gender relations and organic farming: a comparative analysis of Hungary and Italy (this was a rejected grant proposal; the funding agency did not provide an explanation regarding the decision)

 

Family farm dynamics as ecological processes: gender relations and soil quality (this was an invited manuscript for a special issue, but the guest editor informed me that my take on feminist theories was off, without telling me why)

 

What is radical geography? Developing meanings and political projects for alternative geographies (in this case, the editor went along with the reviewers in claiming that this manuscript added nothing to the literature on the subject, which is probably true, but then repetitiveness does not always hurt and redundancy appears to be a reigning feature of academic publishing anyway)

 

State-socialism, development, and gender relations in rural Hungary (the outcome of this review process was rather comical, as the guest editors confirmed receiving the manuscript and then strangely forgot about it until I sought a final decision from them; by that time, the special issue had already been finalised, and I received no apology)

 

Social processes in the geography of soils: gender and soil quality in SW Hungary (the editor claimed that the manuscript was much too weak on theory and other such expedients, but, as a friend confided to me, the problem is more that I was going into two or three directions at once in a single manuscript)