Another great organization for networking with some powerful women in the biotech world and related: Women in Bio.
I went to one of their networking events last week and really enjoyed talking to so many successful, interesting women in the sciences. I tried to make some initial contacts and hope to see some of the same faces again. Especially for anyone on the East coast, this is a great org with some fun events. Check it out!
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Monday, October 24, 2011
'Contagion:' Wash Your Hands
"Blogging is not writing. It's graffiti with punctuation." -Dr. Ian Sussman (Contagion)
For a rare night out, C and I went to see 'Contagion' this weekend. The film is frightening because of the subject matter, and jarring in its realism. It's straight-forward almost to the point of dryness, but for most people, uncontrollable viral epidemics are anything but. I loved it. 'Contagion' presents a situation in which a global epidemic occurs due to a series of random and completely plausible events. An unknown virus spreads rapidly through simple contact: touching surfaces on the bus, or sharing a bowl of peanuts at the bar. It's amazing how many things we touch that are in turn touched by millions of people. And then, as Kate Winslet's character points out, we go on to touch our faces some 2,000 times a day(!). Kate's character, as an aside, is sexy because a) she's Kate Winslet and b) because she has an awesome job at the CDC.
What I liked most about the film was its frankness, the reality of it all. There was no ridiculous drama, only understandable reactions of hungry, scared people who were left to fend for themselves due to lack of resources and a shut-down society. Government agencies, like the CDC, are portrayed as practical and even heroic (for once!). The reality of over-worked scientists and the fallible nature of even the most imposing leaders (Fishburne) were highlights in this aspect.
The characters are varied and excellent as well. Jude Law, for instance, plays the conspiracy-theorist, armed with a blog and millions of followers. He is not paranoid. He's smart, but distrustful of science and the government (as many are). His arguments are understandable and shared by many. Unfortunately, with the power of the Internet, he is able to convince people of an effective, alternative treatment for the virus (that's eventually disproved by science), and likely dissuades thousands of people from getting the vaccine. This character exists in real life. They truly believe in what they are saying and doing, and they reach A LOT of people who trust them. Look at what happened with the one misconducted study linking Autism to vaccines (data was forged, sample size was incredibly small, etc.) became popularized. Thankfully, it appears that Jenny McCarthy has since removed her epithets condemning vaccines and the government for requiring them.
For fellow lab rats, 'Contagion' hits all the right spots in its portrayal of lab science. Science is not magic. A vaccine to an unknown entity takes time to be developed. When they first try to make a vaccine in the movie, the virus kills every type of cell they put it in. Trial and error doesn't even begin to describe it. But, the look on the scientist's face when she realizes she does it-- she created a vaccine-- is priceless. It was that remarkable moment when the base-pairs align and your body fills with triumph. She quickly realizes that she needs to test it in humans immediately and, even in emergency situations, some clinical trials would have to be done before approval for mass use. Putting science first (in true devotee fashion) she injects herself with the vaccine. I wanted to cheer for her.
From the origins of the virus to its capacity to spread, the moral of the story was a true testament to the Public Health field: please, remember to wash your hands.
For a rare night out, C and I went to see 'Contagion' this weekend. The film is frightening because of the subject matter, and jarring in its realism. It's straight-forward almost to the point of dryness, but for most people, uncontrollable viral epidemics are anything but. I loved it. 'Contagion' presents a situation in which a global epidemic occurs due to a series of random and completely plausible events. An unknown virus spreads rapidly through simple contact: touching surfaces on the bus, or sharing a bowl of peanuts at the bar. It's amazing how many things we touch that are in turn touched by millions of people. And then, as Kate Winslet's character points out, we go on to touch our faces some 2,000 times a day(!). Kate's character, as an aside, is sexy because a) she's Kate Winslet and b) because she has an awesome job at the CDC.
What I liked most about the film was its frankness, the reality of it all. There was no ridiculous drama, only understandable reactions of hungry, scared people who were left to fend for themselves due to lack of resources and a shut-down society. Government agencies, like the CDC, are portrayed as practical and even heroic (for once!). The reality of over-worked scientists and the fallible nature of even the most imposing leaders (Fishburne) were highlights in this aspect.The characters are varied and excellent as well. Jude Law, for instance, plays the conspiracy-theorist, armed with a blog and millions of followers. He is not paranoid. He's smart, but distrustful of science and the government (as many are). His arguments are understandable and shared by many. Unfortunately, with the power of the Internet, he is able to convince people of an effective, alternative treatment for the virus (that's eventually disproved by science), and likely dissuades thousands of people from getting the vaccine. This character exists in real life. They truly believe in what they are saying and doing, and they reach A LOT of people who trust them. Look at what happened with the one misconducted study linking Autism to vaccines (data was forged, sample size was incredibly small, etc.) became popularized. Thankfully, it appears that Jenny McCarthy has since removed her epithets condemning vaccines and the government for requiring them.
For fellow lab rats, 'Contagion' hits all the right spots in its portrayal of lab science. Science is not magic. A vaccine to an unknown entity takes time to be developed. When they first try to make a vaccine in the movie, the virus kills every type of cell they put it in. Trial and error doesn't even begin to describe it. But, the look on the scientist's face when she realizes she does it-- she created a vaccine-- is priceless. It was that remarkable moment when the base-pairs align and your body fills with triumph. She quickly realizes that she needs to test it in humans immediately and, even in emergency situations, some clinical trials would have to be done before approval for mass use. Putting science first (in true devotee fashion) she injects herself with the vaccine. I wanted to cheer for her.From the origins of the virus to its capacity to spread, the moral of the story was a true testament to the Public Health field: please, remember to wash your hands.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Is race influencing funding opportunities? Look closer.
Cross-posted from Secretlivesofscientists's Weblog::
Interesting commentary on the disparity of blacks funded by NIH grants. Thanks for using your analytical skills outside the lab, Em.
Interesting commentary on the disparity of blacks funded by NIH grants. Thanks for using your analytical skills outside the lab, Em.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Communicating Science
Exciting news! I am going to be taking a course in the fall dedicating to 'Science Writing for Impact.' It is taught by a local freelance editor and journalist, and will focus on learning to express ideas and thoughts on science in a clear manner for the general public. Besides actual writing exercises and assignments, there are some guest speakers (local writers, etc) set to come throughout the quarter.
I'm really excited about this class; I've been looking for a formalized atmosphere to learn more about the world of science writing, which can be quite different than other types of writing. Living in the world of science research requires a knowledge of what is rightly seen as its own language. There are terms and words used in science that otherwise may not even exist or have very different meanings in other contexts. It is because of this-- the fact that much of scientific research is published in a highly academic and seemingly indecipherable manner-- that some important information often never reaches the people to whom it can be the most useful. In public health field, communicating the science that is being done and the results of such research is extremely important; the work we do is directly linked to the health of people, and understanding this information is necessary for people to protect themselves and their families.
At the very least, it will be a nice change of pace to break up the lab routine. It probably won't hurt for networking either. Otherwise, things are going ok. It's that time for the SOT abstract again, this year it's in San Francisco! Woot.
I'm really excited about this class; I've been looking for a formalized atmosphere to learn more about the world of science writing, which can be quite different than other types of writing. Living in the world of science research requires a knowledge of what is rightly seen as its own language. There are terms and words used in science that otherwise may not even exist or have very different meanings in other contexts. It is because of this-- the fact that much of scientific research is published in a highly academic and seemingly indecipherable manner-- that some important information often never reaches the people to whom it can be the most useful. In public health field, communicating the science that is being done and the results of such research is extremely important; the work we do is directly linked to the health of people, and understanding this information is necessary for people to protect themselves and their families.
At the very least, it will be a nice change of pace to break up the lab routine. It probably won't hurt for networking either. Otherwise, things are going ok. It's that time for the SOT abstract again, this year it's in San Francisco! Woot.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Yeast
It's good for this:
Not good for neurons and cell cultures, which end up looking like this:
Gah!
Not good for neurons and cell cultures, which end up looking like this:
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| Yeast contamination: Biotechniques.com |
Gah!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
DP01_Day 11-- Baby Data to Date
The long awaited arrival of Baby Girl has finally come (appx. 11 days ago)-- August 9th, 2011 = a little bundle of awesomeness.
I've been out of the lab for 2 weeks enjoying and adjusting to parent life and the newslave driver's baby's schedule. It's been great and exhausting. She sleeps in about 2-3 hour intervals on a 24-hr schedule. It's like a continuous time-course experiment; I collect diapers instead of cells and treat with milk instead of pesticides. It's tough during the nighttime. I have some trepidation about starting work again next week because I feel it will be tough to actually get up to go to work when what I really will need/want is at least another 2 hrs of sleep. Unlike a true time-course, however, at least I'm not sleeping on the (disgusting) couch in Roo. [Ask me in a week if I have been napping there during the day.]
Overall, though, things are going well. She's just so damn cute that it's hard to hold anything against her, even at 3am. For awhile we were charting her every move (diaper changes, soiled diapers, feedings, you name it). This made me feel useful and productive, hitting all the right lab-notebook-esque spots for me to chart the experiment's..er.. baby's progress. As expected, she's doing wonderfully-- gaining weight, eating well, and being super cute. C is also feeling well, better and more mobile every day.
Future directions for this project:
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| Day 0 |
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| Day 5 |
I've been out of the lab for 2 weeks enjoying and adjusting to parent life and the new
Overall, though, things are going well. She's just so damn cute that it's hard to hold anything against her, even at 3am. For awhile we were charting her every move (diaper changes, soiled diapers, feedings, you name it). This made me feel useful and productive, hitting all the right lab-notebook-esque spots for me to chart the experiment's..er.. baby's progress. As expected, she's doing wonderfully-- gaining weight, eating well, and being super cute. C is also feeling well, better and more mobile every day.
Future directions for this project:
- Continue to feed and change baby at regular intervals
Watch baby grow- Squeeze baby for being cute and observe response
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Rants, Raves, and Babes
Firstly, I'm hating Seattle today. This weather is crap. Yeah yeah, I know most of the country is suffering from an unbearable heat wave, but really, 60 degrees and raining is NOT ok. Nor is it acceptable to be called "Summer." It's shit, and I'm frankly tired of wearing the same clothes from November of last year. Someone please tell the rest of the country to share their weather and we'll gladly give you some of our cooler winds.
Now that that's out of the way.. the baby is coming oh so soon! August 8th marks the long-awaited arrival of little Lady Peanut. I'm excited and nervous, but mostly just ready to try to tackle this parenting thing instead of simply anticipating it and driving myself a little batty in the process. I've always been much better at handling a situation rather than the anxiety that comes with thinking about it.
News from the lab is in the theme of 'mediocre on the verge of greatness.' Some experiments have been working out rather well these days, yielding results that I expected to see and in a lovely, clear fashion. Yay! +1 Other experiments, of the Western blot persuasion, not so much. It's kind of a mixed bag with Westerns. It's amazing how you can do the same exact thing, with the same exact antibodies, on two different days and come out with two different results. I'm not even talking different trends in your results (although, that is worthy of throwing things out of frustration). I'm talking about having absolutely nothing show up on your blot. Nothing? Why? Are the proteins shy that day? Do they not want to get out of bed? Where the f*ck did they go? Ah, the reliability of Science.
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| Thanks, Wordpress. |
Now that that's out of the way.. the baby is coming oh so soon! August 8th marks the long-awaited arrival of little Lady Peanut. I'm excited and nervous, but mostly just ready to try to tackle this parenting thing instead of simply anticipating it and driving myself a little batty in the process. I've always been much better at handling a situation rather than the anxiety that comes with thinking about it.
 |
| Onesie decorated at the Baby Shower. Awesomeness. |
News from the lab is in the theme of 'mediocre on the verge of greatness.' Some experiments have been working out rather well these days, yielding results that I expected to see and in a lovely, clear fashion. Yay! +1 Other experiments, of the Western blot persuasion, not so much. It's kind of a mixed bag with Westerns. It's amazing how you can do the same exact thing, with the same exact antibodies, on two different days and come out with two different results. I'm not even talking different trends in your results (although, that is worthy of throwing things out of frustration). I'm talking about having absolutely nothing show up on your blot. Nothing? Why? Are the proteins shy that day? Do they not want to get out of bed? Where the f*ck did they go? Ah, the reliability of Science.
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