Records of a Mad Scientist: Ten Good things in my life this week

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Ten Good things in my life this week

I found a fellowship for which I'm eligible. Not any more money than teaching, but at least fewer hours of teaching. Probably more research pressure. Its cool information, and work applying for.
Glee's version of "Me Against the Music" and "Only the Good Die Young". Yes... I'm a Gleek. Its a slight problem.
Athenos Cucumber Dill Hummus. Not as garlic-y as the regular stuff, but stiff really good. I've only bought two tubs this week. /Shifty eyes/
Going in to pick up lab reports yesterday, and my box only containing about six. At first, I was a little bit mad at my Monday students, and concerned for their ability to pass the class. I was also categorically refusing to grade 23 lab reports between 8am and 4 pm on Monday. Then I remembered... we didn't have lab on Monday. I only have to grade about 50 reports between now and Wednesday. Br thought it was funny.
Also... my students are actually learning how to use equation editor. One sent me an email, subject "Aughh!". It read: JW -- I have found a new hobby: Equation Editor. Thank you.". I love converting Geeks.
Speaking of Wednesday, AD arrives this Wednesday.I'm skipping Cell Biology and my departmental seminar to pick him up. I'm also cleaning my house today. That's a scary thought.
I finally opened my ballot request by mail. I'll probably miss the general election because I'll be late getting it back, but this canidate interview keeps me in stitches. Maybe I shouldn't laugh at the political process, but I don't really care where you stand on the issues, about 2/3 of what he says is crazy.
It hasn't rained in two weeks. This means that we haven't really had to worry about the big microscope in two weeks. It also hasn't snowed. I'm a little scared for what will happen when it does start snowing, and we have a freeze-thaw cycle, and the roof leakes, but its okay for now.
There is no Chem 516 this tuesday. I really dislike Chem 516. Its a class about teaching held at 7 pm on Tuesday nights. Tuesdays then become another 12 hour day sandwitched between 11-hour Monday and 12 hour Wednesday.
As always, I am perpetually amused by XKCD, ThinkGeek and Piperlime. The fact that I got a giant plush white blood cell in the mail on Thursday, and it has now taken up residence on my recently lowered shelf in the office is rather nice. I am also enjoying this new webcomic, PhD comics. It sums up my life as of now quite well.
Dead Like Me. I've watched most of the second season this week. Its pretty good... not as good as the first. But, I have to give props to a show that kills its main character off by hitting her in the head with a toilet seat from a space station within the first 10 minutes of the pilot, and then references it through out the entire show. Also, it has Inigo Montoya (You killed my father, prepare to die) as a hard-ass but loving father sort of figure.

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Cast of Characters

AC -- AD's roommate. Famous for his frustration with his own epic procrastination and ability to curse the latin word on the tip of his tongue.
AD -- my boyfriend. Its new... and exciting... and hard from this distance. An aerospace engineer. Still goes to the famous former football giant across the road from the castle where I went to undergrad.
BD -- one of my best friends from undergrad. Another ex-boyfriend and part of my incestious little circle of friends. Has rigid boundaries that serve him well. Math major and genius.
Dr.jR -- head of the chemistry and biochemistry department. Researches NOM (not eating, sadly, but natural organic material). Nice, but unpredicatble.
DrA -- my research boss. Somewhere in his thirties and totally chill. The first PI I've ever met who bakes cookies during lab meetings.
DrR -- my teaching boss. Crotchety old man who doesn't take shit. Slightly sexist. Smokes like a chimney. A teddy bear.
JL -- our post doc in lab. Chineese. Tells me not to work so hard.
JP -- an ex-boyfriend of mine and sort-of friend. Suitmate of AD. Sort of an asshole. VERY crude. We tend to play off eachother. Once dropped his pants in the middle of a crowded room. Also, halo teabagged someone in real life. More than once. Signature phrase is "Dicking Fuck." Exemplifies why Physics and Math double majors scare me.
Kara -- basically the person who told me to write this.
Michael Cera -- guy in my program. Actually younger than I am (I was suprised). Very nice. Lutheran boy scout. Might decide to teach chemistry. Analytical chemist.
MK -- The youngest member of the Quad (AC, AD, JP and MK). Computer science major. Bearded. Sometimes more mature than his fellow seniors who can drink. More or less uncorrupted. It was adorable when he had his first girlfriend.
N -- my fabulous Indian roommate. Seriously, she is great. And, she feeds me.
St. Pat -- One of the guys in my program. Older than the rest of us by a few years. A good analytical chemist. Smart. Familiar with the works of Joss Whedon.
T -- my former roommate. Gave me a cold for my brithday. LIke, a stuffed one.

A few definations...

Cell Biology -- a field of biology that is basically their answer to the fact that life is based in chemistry. As a graduate level course, it has involved a 2 day lecture on atomic bonding and the Krebs cycle. These were things covered in my freshman chemistry and biology courses.
Cubby's -- My prefered non smoking bar in graduate school
Macrophage -- Somestimes called Macs; a type of immune cell, and the target of my research. I've been told they're ugly, but I think they're pretty cute when I get to dye them pretty colors with florescent dye or proteins and look at them under the microscope. I get geeky abou them.
Microscope -- Dr.A's big, expensive microscope that looks at cells. It can see brightfield (normal cells) and florescent ones. We can also see if protiens are clumping together with it.
Students -- I teach freshman science majors, except for the ones who want to be chemists. I have a lot of engineers, a handful of premeds and biologists, and quite a few pre-pharmacy. Sometimes agravating, often exhausting, and a huge time suck. I want them to suceed, which, according to my defination, is learn something.

WARNING: Scientific Content

I realize that not all of my readers are scientists (I think maybe 1/3?), and even fewer are chemists. So, I propose a science warning system.

* Basic science. Things you should have learned in school if you had been paying attention. Or... if you don't know this, you need to talk to T because our science education system sucks.

** High School/Freshman college science and math. Stuff I would expect you to know after a calculus class and at least one class in physical and life science.

*** Some scientific knowledge. Let's assume you've had 1+ upper level science course in either biology or chemistry.

****Upper level science. You probably need 3 - 4 years of college chemistry/biology to get this part. Maybe not, though. I'll try to avoid this as much as possible. Sometimes, though, I can't help myself and I geek.