Beta-male grad students
Two of my female friends are grad students in big labs where all the experiments are done in groups. Whenever the head professor is in the lab, the graduate students act professional and courteous and go out of their way to be helpful. Then, the moment he steps out, all hell breaks loose. The guys start jockeying for power– picking on the weakest grad student, insulting one another, and posting pornographic photos on the screensavers. Meanwhile, the most senior grad student yells at people when he’s in a bad mood.
Meanwhile, the professor has no idea that any of this is going on (after all, when he’s around, everyone is well behaved) until the environment gets so toxic that someone threatens to quit.
