For the Record

I do solemnly swear that I DID FINALLY see chromosomes today. The GVs made it into the slide wells and under the scope could be seen four honest-to-goodness chromosomes. (Ideally there ought to be many more, but we'll ignore that for now.) To where they vanished during centrifugation and staining, I have no earthly idea. But they were there, hang it all.

By way of explanation, I've been trying since the end of October, following on the heels of the previous rotation student and the PI before that, and this is the farthest I've gotten.

The small victory, it can feel so intoxicating...

Book Bleg

Whilst I sit here reading about nonsense mediated decay (NMD), my thoughts stray to the literary prospects afforded by Christmas break--which will be ushered in by exams all to quickly. Therefore, friends, I am seeking recommendations as to a few books to read during that time, either fiction or nonfiction; I guess the reading will be apportioned along with the eating, walking on the beach, family/puppy time, and--I hope--visiting friends. Anyhoo, I'm hoping to start with The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (oh, and I see there are multiple Popper works listed...should probably read those too...), but I'd love to hear to hear opinions on other works!

A Moon Battery?

Every so often, one feels a bit of neighborly concern...especially when one's neighbors come up with things like this*:

A former Canadian Minister of Defence and Deputy Prime Minister under Pierre Trudeau has joined forces with three Non-governmental organizations to ask the Parliament of Canada to hold public hearings on Exopolitics -- relations with “ETs.”

By “ETs,” Mr. Hellyer and these organizations mean ethical, advanced extraterrestrial civilizations that may now be visiting Earth.

Personally, I'd be a smidge more worried about the *unethical* ones, not to mention how on earth we'd classify them under the Geneva Conventions and such, but whatever hovers your craft.

[...] Mr. Hellyer went on to say, "I'm so concerned about what the consequences might be of starting an intergalactic war, that I just think I had to say something."

Whoa, dude, dude, breathe...there are more than enough nasty sorts here on our own wee planet...and we know they exist, which is an awfully helpful attribute. Plus, we just assumed these other guys are "ethical" and "advanced," no?

Hellyer revealed, "The secrecy involved in all matters pertaining to the Roswell incident was unparalled. The classification was, from the outset, above top secret, so the vast majority of U.S. officials and politicians, let alone a mere allied minister of defence, were never in-the-loop."

Hellyer warned, "The United States military are preparing weapons which could be used against the aliens, and they could get us into an intergalactic war without us ever having any warning. He stated, "The Bush administration has finally agreed to let the military build a forward base on the moon, which will put them in a better position to keep track of the goings and comings of the visitors from space, and to shoot at them, if they so decide."

Now, my friend, I don't like to be a purveyor of monkey wrenches, but 1) I can't help but think that a military base on the moon would be kind of a tricky secret to keep; and 2) even if we assume, arguendo, the administration has made such plans, I'm having a bit of a difficult time imagining the odds of our purportedly ethical extraterrestrial visitors seeing the business end of a supercool weapon are higher than their getting an invitation to Crawford for some BBQ and maybe even getting to hold Dubya's hand.

Hellyer’s speech ended with a standing ovation. He said, "The time has come to lift the veil of secrecy, and let the truth emerge, so there can be a real and informed debate, about one of the most important problems facing our planet today."

And all this time I'd been pondering how to increase individual prosperity and opportunity around the globe; preserve the principles of free speech and limited government for posterity; improve the dismal state of American education; end human trafficking; and stop regimes who oppress those who live within their borders while their leaders amass large sums from international aid monies. I'm a silly girl, what can I say?

On October 20, 2005, the Institute for Cooperation in Space requested Canadian Senator Colin Kenny, Senator, Chair of The Senate Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence, “schedule public hearings on the Canadian Exopolitics Initiative, so that witnesses such as the Hon. Paul Hellyer, and Canadian-connected high level military-intelligence, NORAD-connected, scientific, and governmental witnesses facilitated by the Disclosure Project and by the Toronto Exopolitics Symposium can present compelling evidence, testimony, and Public Policy recommendations.”

[...] The Disclosure Project, a U.S.– based organization that has assembled high level military-intelligence witnesses of a possible ET presence, is also one of the organizations seeking Canadian Parliament hearings.

Vancouver-based Institute for Cooperation in Space (ICIS), whose International Director headed a proposed 1977 Extraterrestrial Communication Study for the White House of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who himself has publicly reported a 1969 Close Encounter of the First Kind with a UFO, filed the original request for Canadian Parliament hearings.

Ahhh, Jimmy...

The proposed Decade of Contact is “a 10-year process of formal, funded public education, scientific research, educational curricula development and implementation, strategic planning, community activity, and public outreach concerning our terrestrial society’s full cultural, political, social, legal, and governmental communication and public interest diplomacy with advanced, ethical Off-Planet cultures now visiting Earth.”

You know, I'm awfully tempted to forward this to the senior scientist who harangued me the other day about lack of federal funding, &c.... (OK, it was a general harangue, but still, I think they forget what they're up against, sometimes.)

Those bits of neighborly good fun aside, I wish our friends in Ottowa well with their project in interplanetary diplomacy. Even if I do think the taxpayers' money could be better spent, I'm sure it's an admirable effort. And if the ethical extraterrestrials do exist, you will have beaten us all to the punch. Naturally, you may refer the unethical, belligerent ones to the then-President Rice. Cheers!

(h/t The Corner, of course)
*Er, Ben, is this just bitter-cold-induced Canadian humour that I don't get?

Thanksgiving Quizzie

You Are The Stuffing

You're complicated and complex, yet all your pieces fit together. People miss you if you're gone - but they're not sure why.

What Part of Thanksgiving Are You?

(Rather fitting, given that Mom's stuffing is definitely the most important part of my family's traditional Thanksgiving foods...followed not infrequently by the pumpkin cheesecake.)

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!!

Another Person Grade-Blogging

No, really, this is newsworthy. Or, more specifically, the fact that I may actually be doing OK in one of my classes is extremely newsworthy. The grades from our latest Mol* exam are up, and I've clocked in around what looks like a firm B on the exam. If I didn't have another exam tomorrow, I'd break out the ice cream and have a little celebration.

However, keeping the proverbial head above water is still a BIG task: the last weeks of the semester will be, starting tomorrow, a massive campaign to maintain the decent Mol standing, eke out something in Biochem, and beat the remaining Cell quizzes and final into bloody submission; all the while still showing up in lab and maybe actually accomplishing something. (Though the latter may be too much to ask for.) Thank Heaven for Thanksgiving...4 entire days all to myself to do nothing but study and offer up prayers that Minnesota will see the light and convert to the Princeton Final Exam Period Model!

Ah well, I still maintain I'm marginally better at this than at being a law student. Except that Paulsen is offering a seminar next semester on Lincoln & the Constitution, and I entered the law lottery solely because I do rather want to take it. Naturally there's a goodly bit of sadism involved: it's a senior writing seminar, which means 5 short papers (they only sound easy) and a final 25 page paper. Who wants to take that at the same time as Genetics and Development? Ooooh, pick me!!! Oh yes, and there's also an Innovation Law course being offered...quick, stop me now!

I guess the other item on the agenda is to generate and execute a million-dollar idea in order to buy The Chauffeur a faster car.


*Strangely, I don't actually know the full course name off the top of my head, although I suspect it might be "Regulation of Molecular Processes."

One of Those Days...

...definitely. Doctor's appointment that could not be rescheduled ended up taking the entire class period for Cell. I'd emailed the prof ahead of time explaining this conflict (which I was unable to resolve) and asking for an excused absence and hadn't heard anything back from him. Still haven't. Did put the signed note in his box, so hope he'll see it and not penalize me (yes, it's back to high school). Got Cell midterm grade back--I was right--it went rather poorly. F^#%. Now must do brilliantly on the remaining quizzes and even more freaking brilliantly on the final to still end up OK. (Must also find time to get through the day-to-day work and start studying for Biochem exam on Monday, on which must also somehow do brilliantly.) This was supposed to be a low-key week with time to study. So far, that hasn't happened.

Then, was doing great in lab until forgot a key reagent which set me back an entire hour and somehow during the very last step ended up with ridiculously low yields. Absolutely no idea how that happened, so I get to do it again tomorrow. As I was cleaning up, checked the voicemail and found a "please call us back" message from my bank, with no details. Now, I'm sure that's probably because of some regulation barring them from mentioning your private information over the phone or something like that, but it's also an outstanding way to give a girl a minor heart attack while she immediately starts imagining every dire scenario which could leave her with an empty vault at Gringotts. Fortunately, it turns out they were just calling to let me know I won a compilation CD. Phew!!

Nevertheless, I just want to finish tonight's work as quickly as possible and hope tomorrow will bring improvements.

At least the first snow of the season is coming down outside...

Scary Moment of the AM

In Biochem lecture on protein folding:

Prof: "And if we think back to P-Chem..."
Cot's inner monologue: *panic* Wait...I was supposed to take P-Chem?!? When did that memo go around? See, Dr. ___, I didn't take it because (a) the title involves "physics" and "chemistry," neither of which I do; therefore (b) I would have promptly failed out of school. And as we all know, I adored our little Gothic country club and didn't really want to depart in ignominy. I mean, physics is very sexy (I guess chemistry is too, kind of), except when I touch it: then it's just a disaster.

Sigh. That's OK, I'm not here to be a biochemist, I'm here to play with Genes 'n Cells & Co. and will make sure not to do any hardcore biochemistry without adult supervision. ...just have to make it through!

But still, scary!

{Evening edit because I had to write on a Mac this morning}

Could You Make That a Chocolate Martini?

You scored as James Bond, Agent 007. James Bond is MI6's best agent, a suave, sophisticated super spy with charm, cunning, and a license's to kill. He doesn't care about rules or regulations and somewhat amoral. He does care about saving humanity though, as well as the beautiful women who fill his world. Bond has expensive tastes, a wide knowledge of many subjects, and his usually armed with a clever gadget and an appropriate one-liner. James Bond, Agent 007 92% Batman, the Dark Knight 88% Neo, the "One" 71% Maximus 71% Lara Croft 71% Captain Jack Sparrow 71% Indiana Jones 67% The Amazing Spider-Man 58% William Wallace 54% El Zorro 50% The Terminator 46% Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0 created with QuizFarm.com

My payback for this post, I guess...
(h/t TigerHawk)

Your Honor...

It was daunting to be a mere student arguing last year in front of an experienced litigator who took seriously his duty to tear our arguments apart. It would be doubly so to argue before a federal appeals court judge (at least for Yours Truly, who cringes at the thought of the whole courtroom thing*). So one can't help but grin and feel for these Wake Forest students who will be facing...that's right, the new Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. One wonders if this will prove to be an effective method for reducing the probability the poor mock judges will be subjected to ridiculous arguments by nervous students shaking in their heels (or tie). H/T The Corner.


*Hence the Best Brief finalist and not Best Oralist!

Further Up and Further In

My current rotation PI is fantastic: he kindly agreed to let me have today off from lab to study! This is rather generous indeed. I didn't start studying quite as early as I'd intended today, but doing OK so far, I think--I hope! Covering RNA stuff right now (aka rekindling the old love affair)...devilishly complex. Strangely enough, I'm studying in the law library. *scary music* Or mayhap not so strange: I'm pretty sure I wrote more than one Con Law or Civ Lib paper down in dear old Fine.

Here's the really funny thing that keeps percolating among the gray cells: as I work in the lab, it feels like the right thing to be doing. All right, not 24/7, mind you, but right on the whole. A little explanation is in order: since my very first visit to campus, with a stop at LTL, I was always fairly certain I wanted to be MOL. (This was reinforced by the unfortunate realizations during high school that things like physics, engineer, and math genius didn't quite seem to be in the cards.) And apart from a momentary flirtation with the idea of Comp Lit, everything was pretty straightforward. But I was always absolutely certain the lab rat life wasn't the way to go. Fortunately my advisor coaxed me into giving it a try; the rest of the story is evident. Now, the more I see and the more I learn, I realize that the components of an organism might be tiny, but the functional "world" they organize is immense. It's not enough to know that these things exist: I want to be a part of the search for understanding.

So, what do you think, friends? How does "Dr. Cot" sound? Or is this just temporary insanity...


...In other completely unrelated happenings, I am now signed up for broomball! (Minneapolis rec league)

A Cautionary Tale

We're on notice, folks: should we ever be appointed to a high office, our theses may also see the light of day. I'm only twenty-odd pages in thus far, but it's actually pretty interesting--interesting if you have a passing interest in comparative constitutionalism and governmental structures and the like, anyway.

Poor little verbs

Have my ears become more sensitive of late or is a proportion of native English-speaker biologists incapable of using correct verb tenses? Sends shivers down the spine, this does. (Er, in a bad way, as opposed to the Belgian chocolate my new PI brought back which induces good shivers.) I confess my restraints broke and I reflexively corrected someone today. It simply could not be helped; there was no other way to alleviate the agony of the poor, innocent verb!

Because maltreatment of verbs by biologists in Minneapolis is clearly news...

Alito!

Ben, you must be writing away diligently whilst disconnected from the Internet, because you've nary a peep yet...

There's little or no substantive commentary I can offer--plenty of others already have and will continue to do so--, but FWIW, Alito's nomination is a welcome, nay, outstanding, rebound from the Miers Debacle: the President's temporary loss of sense seems to have come swiftly to an end and he has continued in the vein of his previous appointments. <Peanut Gallery: Alleluia! Now, how about spending issues?> While almost everyone will have had his favorite Fantasy Nominee, I hope we can all agree that today's nomination of a respected practitioner and jurist indicates the White House's recognition of 1) the depth of the candidate pool, and 2) the importance and seriousness of the position of Supreme Court Justice. Bravo. (h/t TigerHawk)

I almost* wish I were back in law school at the moment, just to watch the hissing and spitting and frothing at the mouth during one of the great American blood sports, judicial confirmation hearings. Nevertheless, I'm mercifully waking up to cells instead and the complex world of signalling waits for no woman.

*take that with a salty ice cube or two...

You Might Be Obsessed When...

All I wanted was a Gryffindor Quidditch bumper sticker...and then I started thinking: have I completely missed something or does Wizarding Britain have only one branch of government? (In which case it wouldn't be a branch, now would it.) Seriously. Unless there is more than has been mentioned, the only recognizable arm of government I can recall is the Ministry of Magic, which appears to be an Executive of sorts plus a bureaucracy with legislative, regulatory, and judicial functions. I'm not even sure of the legislative powers bit, as most of what we see are variious types of regulations and agency/departmental rule-making. Wouldn't this type of organization create an expansive, essentially regulatory "state"? (Certainly seems to, anyway.) I find it all the more surprising that this state of affairs should occur in Britain, home of the Magna Carta, Parliament, etc.: no matter how separate a population, I would have expected more aspects of representative government to be present. Hmmm. Most peculiar. Hmmm...this could definitely have contributed to the mishandling of the pre-war/Vold War II crisis.

Right-o, off to bed to dream about electron pushing.

But before I do...for all the violinists out there: MPR just featured Itzhak Perlman playing the Seitz #2 Concerto. Brings back the memories, doesn't it :) The disc is Concertos From My Childhood; I've played the Accolay, Seitz 2, and Viotti, but neither de Beriot or Reiding.

Excellent Adventures in Science, cont'd.

Your Very Own Cuddly Microbe

To the best of my knowledge, it's been years since I've asked for anything for Christmas, but this year I may have to make an exception. May I present to you...ta-daaa... Giant Microbes! Another incredibly cool link that was pointed out to me a few days ago is the KEGG Pathway Database, which was such an exciting find that I ventured to call it "hot" (c-hot, even). To which The Chauffeur replied that my view of "hot" is clearly not normal. Not much I can do about that, I'm afraid!

In the same vein, it's been so good to be back (despite the stress and not having enough time to actually do all the studying work that needs to be done), that I've started to knock around the idea of switching from the M.S. track to the Ph.D. track...nothing definite right now, though.

My Fantasy Pick

Yes, I'm procrastinating whilst supposed to be drafting a presentation for Thursday (draft due tomorrow) and puzzling over metabolic mechanisms, but...PowerLine informs us that Michael Stokes Paulsen and John Yoo have an op-ed in the LA Times on how GOP senators ought to handle the Miers confirmation hearings.

Professor Paulsen, incidentally, is probably the best law professor* I've had so far (in a tie with Professor Matheson) and one of my all-time favorite professors in general, up there with Robbie George (the incomparable, and the source of my now-compulsive use of parentheticals**), Hadley Arkes, Lynn Enquist, William Jordan, and Theodore Ziolkowski.

Sadly, I did not have him for Con Law, but was able to take "War, National Security, and the Constitution" with him last Fall. He was intending to write a book on the subject, although I have no idea whether that project is still underway. I would recommend perusing his articles, even if the mere idea of reading law articles lulls you to sleep. Paulsen is actually on my SCOTUS Fantasy Short List (although his also holding a Divinity degree likely disqualifies him--so much for no religious tests...). The benefits of such an appointment would include, but not be limited to:

- a sharp, sophisticated legal mind willing to consider somewhat unorthodox positions in "sacred" areas (not attributes all Justices always display)
- questions from the bench that could push both counsel down their slippery slopes (I realize this is merely being a good jurist, but I just don't get the vibe that Miers would really do that)
- an interesting balance of both conservative and libertarian instincts
- age: he would be on the Court forever
- a real understanding of the principle Robbie George tried to impart to us in his classes: "consitutionalism and policy are not the same thing." Actually, he said it much better than that, but he's the brilliant and well-spoken one
- thoughtful opinions handed down on Starbucks napkins (perhaps up to three or four napkins, but rarely more than that)


*I should note, in case any Powers That Be of Mondale Hall ever stumble across this humble public diary of unsolicited opinion, that this reflects more the disconnect between myself and law school than it does on the actual school. My IP professor was also good, and our Civ Pro prof, Adam Samaha who unfortunately left for the U of C, was outstanding. That said, I will never actually get excited about law school; a highly limited assortment of legal subjects, maybe possibly perhaps.

** The rough guide to reading George: 1) Read it twice, 2) Check between the parentheses, the key points might well be hiding there... :)

A "Skewed Sense of Priorities"?

I would hope that this news item (reprinted in full below) would be a significant nail in the coffin of UN worship. I am not, however, holding my breath. You see, the Telegraph reports that the UN has flown Robert Mugabe, yes, that Mugabe, to Rome to address a conference on...world hunger!

A "skewed sense of priorities"? Perhaps if one were actively seeking the "Understatement of the Year" award.

Mugabe to speak at hunger debate as he defies EU travel ban

President Robert Mugabe flew to Rome in defiance of a European Union travel ban after the United Nations caused outrage by inviting him to address a conference on world hunger today.
Zimbabwe, once the bread basket of southern Africa and a major exporter of food, now depends on western aid to avoid starvation.

Four million Zimbabweans, a third of the population, need supplies from the World Food Programme.

Critics of the Harare regime are appalled that the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), whose mission statement is "helping to build a world without hunger", invited Mr Mugabe to address a conference in Rome marking its 60th anniversary.

Tony Hall, the US ambassador to the UN food organisations in Rome, said: "My government is excited about the FAO event which is organised to remind people about hunger.

"However my feeling is we shouldn't be inviting someone who has absolutely turned his back on the poor in his own country. He has made a mockery about the hungry and everyone should be upset about this."

Mr Hall said that since 2002 the US had donated almost $300 million [£169 million] in food aid to Zimbabwe.

He visited the country when the regime was engaged in bulldozing large areas of the poorest black townships.

This campaign, personally ordered by Mr Mugabe, destroyed the homes or livelihoods of 700,000 people and harmed another 2.4 million, according to a UN report.

A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: "Going to Rome to celebrate World Food Day whilst millions of ordinary Zimbabweans face food shortages as a direct result of his flawed policies simply emphasise Mugabe's skewed sense of priorities."

Zimbabwe's transformation from self-sufficiency to dependency coincided with Mr Mugabe's seizure of white-owned farms.

He blames food shortages on drought. But critics say hunger is the direct and predictable result of his policies.

Tendai Biti, from the leadership of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change, also criticised the UN invitation.

"It's a tragedy," he said. "Inviting Mugabe sends exactly the wrong signal. He has completely destroyed the economic and agricultural fabric of this country.

"The UN shouldn't play ping-pong with the suffering of the Zimbabwean people." An FAO spokesman said that as a member "in good standing" with the agency Mr Mugabe was invited to attend.

"The UN does things sometimes," said Mr Hall. "They roll over backwards to try to be fair but someone like this really makes a mockery of what we are about."

Mugabe, a Roman Catholic, last travelled to Rome for Pope John Paul II's funeral when he embarrassed the Prince of Wales, reaching across to shake the royal hand during the service.

Mr Mugabe accepted the FAO's invitation on Friday and will speak at the organisation's headquarters.

He seizes any opportunity to visit the western world and defy a travel ban imposed on him by the EU.

This measure, introduced in 2002, supposedly prevents Mr Mugabe and 94 other members of his regime from visiting any member state. A similar ban is in force in America.

Yet Mr Mugabe repeatedly exploits a significant loophole.
The travel ban does not apply to UN functions because these are held to be above the jurisdiction of any individual state. So Mr Mugabe has frequently visited New York to address UN summits.

He uses these occasions to denounce his western critics and blame them for Zimbabwe's food shortage.

In June, Zimbabwe's state press blamed Britain for Africa's dry weather and claimed that Tony Blair was using "chemical weapons" to cause droughts and famines across the continent.

Today he can be expected to seize the opportunity to make another attack on the Prime Minister and the "western imperialists" who are, apparently, obsessed with overthrowing his bankrupt regime.


And this is the organization that I'm supposed to want to take over the internet, the US, and the Constitution? Right, I'm sure Kim Jong Il & Co. will give simply smashing conferences on free speech and human rights.

Oh, James...

This if true, would be a bit of a blow to the Bond persona:

Not only is the new 007 to be kept away from the cigarettes, but one reader tells me, there’s this:

“From what I've seen of the early press releases he cannot hold a gun very well, Mr. Stuttaford (the cup and saucer 2-handed grip is taught to shooters with very small hands, and even males with short fingers refuse to employ it because of the "stigma" of shooting like a girl)…”

James Bond, effeminate? James Bond, small-handed?

SMERSH is laughing.

Ouch, baby, very ouch... Being a medium-sized female with not overly large paws, I do in fact shoot two-handed, whereas Dad & the Little Bro shoot with one. Dad's always encouraged me to try a single-handed grip, but no luck so far. I wasn't aware there was a "shooting like a girl" issue, as I've always thought this was due in large part to arm strength: my complete lack thereof allows the muzzle to wander and wobble all over the place without the stabilization of both arms. (I'd have to check, but I think competitive women may shoot with one also. Correct me if I'm wrong.) Maybe James just needs to put down the martinis for a bit, leave the ladies to their own devices, and hit the gym.


Based on the couple of Bond films I've seen and the one or two I've read, I still maintain they're a bit on the ridiculous side. The invisibility cloak car in the last one, though, was supremely cool. However, The Chauffeur really wants to see Casino Royale, so maybe I'll be a good sport and see it too.

"A remarkable man melds faith and reason"

The STrib says something nice...
From the rest of the article, "remarkable" would seem to be something of an understatement:

...Aris is a scientist of dazzling brilliance -- a chemical engineer whose mathematical models revolutionized his field -- and a deeply devout Christian. From 1958 to 1996, when he retired, he was one of the University of Minnesota's brightest stars, a primary reason that its chemical engineering graduate program is ranked No. 1 in the nation by the National Research Council.

"Aris thought in a dimension that none of us ordinary folks were capable of," says colleague Lanny Schmidt, himself an eminent scientist. A mathematical wizard, Aris went straight into industry at 16 after graduating from high school in his home country of England. He never formally attended college -- getting his degree in mathematics with highest honors by correspondence -- and wrote his Ph.D. thesis in six weeks. As a young man, his groundbreaking papers made waves internationally. [Dios mio! -Ed.]

Remarkably, Aris held a joint appointment at the university in the Department of Classics and Near Eastern Studies. An avid lover of medieval manuscripts, he scoured French and Italian monasteries for his work on Latin scripts. Aris is a prolific poet, author of 16 books and author or coauthor of 300 technical papers.


Right, then, going to go meekly back to hydrolysis now....

Ah, Vanity

I've been hesitant to put this up, nor have I announced it widely, but since the print version will be out in a day or two, I might as well. Moreover, a girl's first publication opportunity is bound to be exciting--and an affirmation that in some very small way (lots of PCR, lots of gels) I've been fortunate enough to have helped in making a contribution to science, to understanding how the world works.