When in doubt, look it up...

Amazon, may its days in the cyberhaze be long and prosperous, informs me that help is on the way. The relevant exam is next Monday, but this should come in handy later as well: since the final is inclusive, the spectre of kinetics shall haunt us until December. A far more pleasing event is also scheduled for next Monday--Chromatin and Chromosomes in Development. Now that is hot.

Uh oh...

You know you're in trouble when (as if you weren't already before)...the reaction kinetics schematic for the general model of "enzyme reactions with interaction between a substrate and a (metal) modifier" is three-dimensional.

Woe! Alack! *sob*

Classic Dame?

Carole Lombard You scored 14% grit, 14% wit, 47% flair, and 35% class!

You're a little bit of a fruitcake, but you always act out in style. You have a good sense of humor, are game for almost anything, but you like to have nice things about you and are attracted to the high life. You're stylish and modern, but you've got a few rough edges that keep you from attaining true sophistication. Your leading men include William Powell, Fredric March, and Clark Gable. Watch out for small planes. Complemented by The Classic Leading Man Test

(hat tip Expat Yank)

Applause

I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank my little brother the Econ major--who is therefore an Excel Grand Poobah-in-training--for helping me with a graph so I can finish my problem set and go to bed. We don't know where in the family this Econ interest came from, but it apparently comes in handy! I was most concerned that the problem set would be tricky, but it does not appear to be overly difficult. Of course, I could have it utterly and completely wrong, which is not unheard of. Nevertheless, if you might have or know of a job opening for an Econ major (in his senior year at a very well-regarded school)...let us know, eh?

I would also like to document his statement that when he has a Flat-coat of his own, he will consider naming it "Stata." :-D Personally, I thought it would be adorable to have a pair: say, "Adenine" and "Thymine"...

In Memoriam...

...for the innocents and the heroes this tragic day, only four years ago.

It is up to us, the living, to remember and to stand firm, so that they shall not have died in vain.

"If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, so that my children may have peace." --Thomas Paine.

On the Inside

Megan Cox Gurdon, one of my favorite columnists, has her customary Friday NRO column up--she focuses not on politics or blame and responsibility, but rather on the most fundamental question: searching for the truth of who we are as a people. This is no easy question...I urge everyone to read it. An excerpt:

I can remember, only four years ago, how wonderfully secure it was possible to feel as an American. We seemed to be loved and feared by foreigners in roughly desirable proportions. At home, we were a bean supper kind of populace; a covered-dish-delivering people who smiled at our neighbors. We were, it is true, no longer a nation that bowled together, and it’s not like children in most towns and cities could safely play on the street after school any more, and there were sharks in the ocean and Congressional interns going missing, but still —

Sitting on the sofa, blinking and sniffling, I realize that what I have been feeling, beneath the jolly toy-gathering, cheque-writing do-goodery, and the Dr. John-playing, and the tender preparations for a new baby, is cold fear.

September 11th ripped away any shreds of childlike belief that our government —
our Government — made us safe from foreign baddies. Worse, for me, is what this
last week has shown: That Americans really are not different from other peoples;
that we are not protected from the Hobbesian beast within; that in the worst
circumstances, we would, many of us, be spoon-stealers.

Of course, as with September 11th, Hurricane Katrina has produced countless acts of goodness and generosity, but I have been scarcely able to hear them. For me they have been crowded out by the horrible stories of child rape in the Superdome, of savage murders, slit throats, shots fired at helicopters, of looters shooting rescuers out of their boats. In wartime accounts, one reads of parents hiding their daughters, but surely not here — yet if barbarism can erupt in one American city, can it erupt in others?

Any manifestation of barbarism is serious. Nor will "desperation" suffice as an answer or an excuse: those are not acts of survival or defense or anything like. Mrs. Gurdon's "barbarism" is far more appropriate: those are deliberate acts of aggressors against civilization--cruel, vicious, destructive. Harsh words are for harsh acts. And yet--civil order did not fail everywhere, Biloxi being a notable example, and the nasty and brutish have not won, not just yet.

Adventures in Cooking

My family and some of my friends probably know that my attitude toward cooking has changed drastically in the past two years: despite my mother's attempts, I steadfastly refused to learn to cook during my early years (well, I could boil water). She wisely decided not to press the point and, knowing that I like food too much to starve, declared that "you'll learn when you have to." And so it was. But unfortunately, all good things must come to a close, and the day came when I not only could no longer frequent the beloved Tower Club, but also had to move halfway across the continent. Hence the summer of 2003 involved grudgingly learning a few basics and having to touch and slice raw meat. (All right, the latter I'll never enjoy.)

But somewhere amid the dreariness of 1L year (perhaps when I became convinced my professors were trying to wring out of me any creativity Princeton had tried to cultivate), there came an awakening: cooking was fun! It was creative! Most of all, cooking was liberating! Although I may not yet be earning the money to feed myself, I am in a small way providing for myself. (I'm not trying to be facetious or disrespectful, just pointing out that this is an area in which others had taken good care of me; now it's my turn to take over that area.) Plus, despite the fact that the vast majority of my cooking is highly experimental, it's pretty hard to fail entirely :) ...Baking from scratch is a different story, I suppose: there it is possible to fall flat...

The creation of which I continue to be most proud is last year's Chipotle and White Chocolate Liqueur Chocolate Sauce--equally good on white meat and brownies. Tonight's entry, though was inspired by a) procrastination (can't say I'm not honest) and b) a simple but tasty lemon pepper mango veggie 'n noodle dish. Briefly stir fry pieces of carrots and sugar snap peas, seasoning with a bit of olive oil, dash of lemon pepper seasoning, and mango dressing. Combine with whole wheat or other healthy-ish noodles & peas; reseason if necessary; and sprinkle a variety of cheese if you wish--tomato basil feta worked surprisingly well. Would also work well with chicken, if you remember to defrost it.

Things One Discovers When Channel Surfing While Cleaning One's Apartment

For instance, VH1 now* has a reality show called "Hogan Knows Best." I initially met it with great skepticism, suspecting it was just more bad "reality" TV. However, after watching for a few minutes, it might not actually be that bad: at first glance, the family doesn't seem overly disfunctional (one never knows, however). For instance, in this particular episode, his wife and two kids are concerned that he is bored with retirement and has nothing to do, so they dedicate themselves to occupying him by challenging him to golf, then tennis, then Pilates...the final scene is him taking an old wrestling buddy to Pilates :P So, there you go. Kind of sweet, really!


*Since this is the first I've seen of VH1 in months and months, it might not actually be new, I dunno. As you can see, pop culture and I aren't very well acquainted.

Goodbye, Mr. Chief Justice

Chief Justice Rhenquist passed away tonight.

Rest in peace.

Processing Hindsight/Aftermath

A pretty sensible WaPo editorial regarding planning for evacuating those for whom escapting an impending natural disaster is difficult, prohibitively expensive, or simply not possible to do on their own is up today. As the editorial points out, this includes a variety of people: "[those who] for reasons of poverty, infirmity, distrust of officialdom, lack of transportation or lack of information -- cannot be counted on to leave their homes after an evacuation order."

[Personally, I'm now glad that the Folks were able to reason me into a car. I realize that's on a purely personal and somewhat selfish note, but there you have it. If something did happen up here and I a) knew about it, b) took it seriously, and c) were able to get to the car, not only would I be helping out in general by getting the heck out but I could also take other people with me if they needed it.]
******

Zacht Ei reports that the Dutch have dispatched a ship without being asked and their water management expertise has been requested. I know we have our differences, but to our friends in the Netherlands--Thank You!

The Quizzie Habit Returns

What? You thought I'd given up and gone cold-turkey? No such luck.

You Are Likely a First Born

At your darkest moments, you feel guilty. At work and school, you do best when you're researching. When you love someone, you tend to agree with them often. In friendship, you are considerate and compromising. Your ideal careers are: business, research, counseling, promotion, and speaking. You will leave your mark on the world with discoveries, new information, and teaching people to dream.

The Birth Order Predictor

Hmm...every so often, a quizzie predicts correctly on the first try.

Tentative Steps...

...along a path both new and old. The Armchair Nomad is back to the Middle from her summer in DC (wonderful in so many ways) and end-of-summer travels home and to California for a beloved friend's incredibly fantastic wedding. Both the beautiful bride and dashing groom are fellow '03s!

Despite my concerns that everything would be filled, I have been able to find a lab in which to do the first rotation, and will be coordinating with at least one other lab for one of the later rotations. (PhD students do 3 rotations, MS students have the option of doing 2 or 3--since I'm working on dredging up the memories of all the biology that was theoretically crammed in my gray cells once upon a time and am relearning most lab things from the ground up, I think it's probably best to do 3 rotations.) Anyway, the first rotation will be through a fly lab that works on, among other things, Proteoglycans' roles in development and morphogen gradient formation.

Ideally at the end of all these rotations, I shall finally be able to do dilutions correctly...

Ready, Set...

Yeah, baby, the Minnesota State Fair is just around the corner! This year, I'm making every attempt to drag Mom along too. (Which makes it us and the entire rest of the state's population converging on the fairgrounds & creates traffic insanity.) Oh, and if you thought I was kidding last year about the food, Fairborne's Fabulous Fair Food Finder lists all the food that will be available at this year's Fair.

Begin the Beguine

And so it goes...I await my September return to my One True Love, aka Mol Bio, with both exhilaration and trepidation. The program director informed me this afternoon that "[t]he usual first year of curriculum includes Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Cell Biology in the first semester, and then Genetics and Developmental Biology in the second semester." (In response to my query of what out of my old materials I should be reviewing starting next week.) No escape from Biochem, it would appear. Essentially, this will be like Junior year, except more intense: in addition to the core courses, the fall semester also includes a literature analysis course, a student research seminar (which I'm guessing involves presenting what you're doing in lab), a lab rotation, and a Joint Degree Proseminar; the spring includes another lab rotation and research seminar.

But, there will be pretty pictures in my textbooks and all kinds of Really Cool Stuff...!

The Impossible Dream?

Double entendre for this post I suppose: not only have I fallen far short in my exercise and weight loss quest, but now this article yesterday on MSN doubts whether I (and "my kind" as some people call us--you know who you are if you ever read this, my dear) can have real success in our quest for an integrated future that would not try to force us to choose between Career and Family (or at least ease the burdens).

First things first, though. I confess I promptly forgot that I was, in fact, supposed to be keeping an exercise log. This mental slippage was aided and abetted in part by an injury incurred during my brief trip back to Princeton: apparently walking along a curb with construction on one side and traffic on the other while carrying one's suitcase is actually a recipe for losing one's balance, tripping, and falling into the rubble. True brilliance, no? However, vast experience being the Paragon of grace and beauty inures one to such occurrences and provides one with the composure to take such things in stride, albeit a mildly interrupted stride. Incidentally, kindly passersby will offer napkins and bandaids to a young lady walking down Nassau St. with blood running down her leg. I suppose the bloody leg is a bit of an unusual contrast to the professional dress. (Favorite black work skirt is 2-0 for the summer in escaping near-certain disaster brought on by the ever-graceful wearer.) But I digress. The resulting scraped knee was very minor once cleaned up except for one small but fairly deep gash which I was pretty sure would not close unless more or less immobilized for the weekend. So, no gym :( But it was vastly improved by Monday and I have dutifully exercised since...with the highlight being scraping a full 20 seconds off my 1500m rowing time! Also now posting regular readings of spm's (I assume this is one's stroke rating?) of high 30s up to 40. Minimum goal for this evening is to keep those 20 seconds off...wish me luck.

Commentary about the women & work article coming later...I have work to do and a lunch appointment. Recess is beautiful...

By the Way

Before I forget, sometime in the not so far distant future (ie probably sometime between August and September), I'm going to be switching to a new AIM screen name. So, if you chat with me (regularly or occasionally or hardly ever), drop me a line or whatever and I'll give you the new one.

Accountability

Sitting in the Starbucks on Connecticut Ave., trying to make myself work on something due tomorrow. Yes, I realize, it's Sunday evening. Aside from being generally lazy today, I do have legitimate excuses: The majority of my workday Friday was spent not reading documents but making phone calls to figure out how to get a car loan and then attempting to relay that info to the Folks. (Who had finally talked me into agreeing to buying a car--that right there may be a first in recorded history, or at least a rare event.)

So, here I go...and don't get me started on how ridiculous the FDA (or any agency) can be...Suffice it to say that a few weeks on the Hill attempting to extract any kernel of information, no matter how small, from a regulatory agency ought to be more than sufficient to convince even the most reluctant soul that giving more power and scope to the federal government is not the best of ideas. In fact, I have even developed a sympathetic ear for consumer groups and the like who are also dealing with drug safety issues. I know, who woulda thunk? Given that I will be retaking StatInterp at some point, I eagerly anticipate making a heated exposition whenever someone raises the agency expertise argument as a justification for deference to regulatory agencies. Expertise? Good luck, odds are pretty good they don't even know what's on their own damn website!! Should we reach the point at which it becomes necessary to issue subpoenas, I want to walk down the street and hand deliver them, baby. With pictures.

Anyway, the real reason for this otherwise unprofound and pointless post is that Ben, ever helpful, has spurred me to accountability on the exercise front. I joined a gym this summer, but have had a less-than-perfect track record of attendance and success. Given that the goal is to lose 6 lbs by August 5th, for my own reasons, and 4 more by August 24th, it would appear a little accountability is in order. Ergo, the creation of a public record...Today: Rowed 1500m (8:30something); hip flexors and abductors, 30 & 40 lbs each; hamstrings 6 reps each; leg raises 12 reps each; biceps 8lbs; chest press 8lbs; triceps 5lbs; abs, can't remember; ball squats with weights until legs jellied; walk to gym and back, 2 mi. Anticipated workouts for this week...Monday, Tuesday, possibly Thursday if I can get into Dillon, Friday.

Crystal Ball

My wishes are granted! My grandfather turns 91 this month & I have long hoped to be as fortunate. Happily, this website predicts that I will live to see 91...barring any unforseen circumstances between now and then, of course.

Makes you wonder about what the future could hold, no?

However, the present holds papers that need to be read and testimony that needs to be written...

Book Ties That Bind

Book Ties That Bind