Amused

Distinguishing mosquito transgenic lines using PCR.

Protocol:

1. Homogenize mosquito in 50 ul extraction buffer.

i.e., take live mosquito (my group's was larva, but some other people had an adult mosquito), drown it in extraction buffer, grab a pestle, and pound away.

....very bad week.

So. I was drinking coffee. And the handle of my mug abruptly broke. Needless to say, I had a coffee flavoured room to clean up.

*shakes fist*

Sadly enough, the one thing that made this miserable excuse for a week bearable was a lecture on Plasmodium, the apicomplexan parasite that causes malaria.

The lecturer was a scientist from the Sanger Institute at Cambridge, and he talked mostly about Plasmodium life cycle strategies. I think he made me remember the reason why I want to do research. There are so many unknowns, even for a parasite that we've known and studied for so damn long. There are "?"s written on half the sentences I scribbled down-- not because I didn't understand, but because nobody understands. Yet.

After the lecture, I chatted with the lecturer a little bit about why male gametocytes are in such a hurry to produce gametes. Ten minutes inside the mosquito gut, and the thing has already multiplied its genome thrice and squeezed out 8 flagellated gametes. It's in such a hurry that it uses physical force to pull the chromosomes and bits of nuclear envelope apart, which leads to the production of many gametes with the wrong number of chromosomes. He showed the class a video of the process-- in his own words, it's like "a cat and a dog in a sack"-- the thing whirls and jiggles and bulges and generally looks like it's going to explode. He said he thinks it's sperm competition, rather than any factors in the mosquito gut or the blood meal. Fascinating.


Have some Nat Geo.

Schmetterling VS Sink Drain

Round 1: Sink Drain 1, Schmetterling 0

Round 2: Sink Drain 0, Schmetterling 1

Round 3: Sink Drain 0, Schmetterling 1


AHAHAHAH I WON.


I hate clogged sink drains. I had to chuck a whole can of baking soda and a whole bottle of vinegar into it before it would clear. Eurgh.

I meant to write something about necrotising fasciitis, but we'll save that for some other time.

....now I can't remember what I wanted to say.

...oh yes. The mounted police go past the apartment complex every day on their patrol rounds. And the horses ALWAYS poo right in front of the front door. -_-

In other news, I forgot to bring my student card today.

FREEZING.

IT IS OCTOBER. IT IS HAILING. I AM FREEZING. GOODBYE, WORLD.

In other news, I attempted to make daosa bao. They were yellow. But at least I had daosa.

GRE

Verbal: 800/800

Quantitative: 770/800

Me: Satisfied :)

I feel a migraine coming on

The Week So Far

Monday

Grew cells on coverslips for immnofluorescence microscopy. I had four plates of cells on a tray ready for transfection with DNA. I went to incubate my plasmids and when I came back, all ready to add the DNA to the cells, THERE WERE ONLY THREE PLATES.

Nevermind, I transfect three plates instead.

Tuesday

THERE WERE FOUR PLATES ON MY TRAY. ;ALDSKFJA;DKJF;LAKJDSF ??!


... I didn't think the mysteriously disappearing and reappearing one was usable, so I discarded it.

I incubate a portion of bacterial cells overnight so I could make competent cells for transformation.


Wednesday

SOMEONE TOOK MY CELLS OUT OF THE INCUBATOR/SHAKER.

I didn't know how long they'd been out of there, so I just stick them back in for an hour or two. Fine, just carry on as usual.

THEN THE TABLETOP CENTRIFUGE KEEPS TELLING ME MY TUBES ARE UNBALANCED. When they are the same weight. Exactly. I weighed them. Sooo it only starts to work after lunch -__-

Ew,

Too many ingrown hairs are uuuuugh. NEED SCRUBBING BRUSH.

Or something. It's really very, very disgusting.

SUCCESS

ALL 16 OF THE TRANSFORMED COLONIES I PICKED HAVE THE CORRECT DNA INSERT.

ARE MY CLONING SKILLS AWESOME OR WHAT?

... Looks like the 45 sec heatshock (as opposed to the usual 60 sec one) seems to work better.

Oh Hi.

Life is busy.

I am lazy.

Therefore, no recent entries.

Adventures in Australia: Part I

So. I went to Australia.

First, I was in Melbourne with random HCCO guanyue people.

The cherry pie and lemon tart dizi duo.



The smug bastard Aleckx.


(Ignore his accomplice and the petty theft going on)

And the driver paediatrician-to-be with unique prescriptions for bawling babies.



Melbourne can be summed up pretty much in one word:

Coastline.










Of course, there was also Godly Lighting (tm)



And the obligatory black swan.



That is all for today.

Meme.

ow to Play

1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. Press forward for each question.
3. Use the song title as the answer to the question even if it doesn’t make sense. No cheating.
4. With the answers, give your own comments on how it relates to the questions.
5. Tag 5 people.


How are you feeling today? Tritch Tratch Polka (Johann Strauss Jr.)
Something like that. Busy and running all over the place, but still cheerful.

Will you get far in life? 阳明春早
? Spring gonna come early for me?

How do your friends see you? Close to You
Okay?

Will you get married? Song of the Black Swan.
Er... I'll take that as probably not :D

What is your best friend’s theme song? 梅花引
That's nice. A guqu. Though why is it a sheng piece?

What is the story of your life? Clementine (Pink Martini)
Er?

What was high school like? Andaluza (Granados)
Maybe yeah. Generally happy and bouncy? But with minor key parts.


What’s in store for this weekend? 夜来香
It would be nice cos the gutters are clogging up from all the rain and stinking.

How’s your life going? 打枣

《打棗》是一首以嗩吶為主，配合使用口弦、卡腔二種樂器演奏的獨奏曲，取材自河北的民間音樂，許多嗩吶演奏家都曾根據自己的演奏喜好，編寫該曲的不同板本，一般版本都有打擊樂器或笙作為伴奏。曲子內容在描寫北方果園收穫時節，大家採收紅棗的情景。

這是一首很具舞臺效果的樂曲，獨奏者除以嗩吶演奏主要弦律之外，用嗩吶、卡腔和含在喉中的口弦模仿各種人的叫聲、笑聲及說話聲音，演奏者必須熟練於三種樂器之間的快速轉換，以達到不描寫不同人物彼此對話的效果。是一首在演奏會經常使用的嗩吶曲。

Ok lah drama maybe.

How can you get ahead in life? Lohengrin (Wagner).
No, please, no.

What’s the best thing about your friends? Prelude Op. 28/15 in D flat major 'Raindrop'
They patter around nonstop? :|

What song will they play at your funeral? Fantasía para un gentilhombre: Villano y Ricercare
Why so happy and peaceful? :|

How does the world see you? Magical Lasso (Phantom of the Opera)
Am I that scary?

Will you have a happy life? Le basque
It sounds cheerful.

Do people secretly lust after you? Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G major BWV 1048, Adagio
No. (only 0.11s) :D

How can you make yourself happy? Cante e Dance (Pink Martini)
Sing and dance! :|

What should you do with your life? Symphony No. 6 in F major Op. 68
"As the composer said, the Sixth Symphony is "a matter more of feeling than of painting in sounds" "

Will you ever have children? Scene in the Country (Hector Berloiz)
I'll have...sheep instead?

What song would you strip to? Mozart's "Jupiter" Symphony Finale. Molto Allegro
-_-"

What does your mum think of you? I Got Rhythm
I suppose maybe the bo chap, I can deal with anything attitude.

What is your deep, dark secret? Clair de Lune (Debussy)
Ya. I suck at playing this.

What is your mortal enemy’s theme song? Mozart Symphony N)40 in G minor KV 550
Strangely appropriate? Though I like it.

What’s your personality like? Agnus Dei (Cherubini)
Yes. I'm the Lamb of God. Ger can laugh.

What song will be played at your wedding? Ti Amero (Il Divo)
You something. *shrug*

The Many Faces of Geraldine Leow

1. Blank

2. Intent

3. Falsely Studious

4. Nasal Congestion

HC Night (Extremely belated post)

Spot Schmetterling! Also, Nicholas from HCCO pipa is there somewhere... and various other assorted people that I feel I should know but really cannot remember.

This was our table setting. They didn't seem to get the memo that this wasn't a V-day event.

Back to virology lab report.

The Very Intelligent Conversation I Had With Geraldine

You know, when you pick a friend, you've got to find one who's able to hold an intelligent conversation with you. Or at least be on the same wavelength. I guess that's why I'm such good friends with Ger.

We're both equally insane, you see.

It started with me being disgruntled about lab today.


Schmetterling blogged says:
oh

Schmetterling blogged says:
today me and my lab partner were the last ones to leave

Schmetterling blogged says:
the stupid lecturer made us do the control experiment as well as the main one

Schmetterling blogged says:
*dies*

Ger says:
tell him his protocol sucks

Ger says:
hhahaaha

Schmetterling blogged says:
and he talks like a football coach

Ger says:
lol!

Ger says:
tell him to coach the england team then

Schmetterling blogged says:
and dresses like one, when he's not in the lab coat

Schmetterling blogged says:
LOL

Ger says:
they probably need some help

Schmetterling blogged says:
they'll all die a tragic death

Schmetterling blogged says:
he'll make them run gels instead of laps

Ger says:
lol

Ger says:
that's.... sad

Ger says:
for the gels.

Ger says:
imagine rooney peering at a slab of agarose

Schmetterling blogged says:
with a big cartoon question mark

Ger says:
-pokes-

Ger says:
where's the band?

Schmetterling blogged says:
and then it disintegrates

Ger says:
and then he starts looking like a bulldog

Schmetterling blogged says:
...

Ger says:
in anger

Ger says:
ladidaaa

Schmetterling blogged says:
and then the coach makes him do 200 pipette push-ups as punishment

Ger says:
omg.

Ger says:
and then on the 157th one

Ger says:
he breaks his thumb

Schmetterling blogged says:
lol

Ger says:
we need a life

Schmetterling blogged says:
agreed.

Schmetterling blogged says:
i'm so posting this on my blog

Ger says:
...........................................

Ger says:
i shall stay awake to see it

Schmetterling blogged says:
The Very Intelligent Conversation I Had With Geraldine

Ger says:
............................................................

Ger says:
my excuse is that it's 1.15am in the morning

Ger says:
what's yours?
says:

Schmetterling blogged says:
I just drank coffee

Which is as good an excuse as any, eh?

A Day in the Life of S.

6.30 AM

My alarm goes off. I swat it. My roommate's alarm goes off. She swats it. This goes on for about an hour.

7.30 AM or thereabouts

We both proceed to the kitchen, where there is really not enough room for two people to prepare breakfast at the same time. The fridge door swings dangerously back and forth. There is worship of caffeinated beverages.

8-9.30AM

Slacking about in front of the computer/post-breakfast nap. Caffeinated naps are interesting.

10AM

First lecture of the day. I usually sit in the first three rows so I will be more motivated to take notes. I usually end up spacing out anyway.

11AM

Lunch break. Sometimes I go back to the flat, other times I stay in school and diligently read journal articles/surf Facebook/delete spam mails promising the permanent enlargement of an organ I do not possess.

1 PM

German.

Me: Have you studied for today's test?
Classmate (with finality): No.
Me (resigned): Me neither.

There is much death of brain cells.

2PM

Afternoon lectures. I sit in the front three rows to prevent myself from falling asleep. This never works unless I bring coffee with me. As a result, most of my lecture notes from the afternoon lectures are covered with pen skid marks from me nodding off. At least the lecturers don't seem to mind very much.

Sometimes there is lab in the afternoon. Counting 800 cells under a microscope is fun.



5PM

Slacking in front of the computer/ post-afternoon-lecture-nap nap.

7.30PM

Dinner. In a house of biologists and biochemists, there is invariably very interesting conversation at the dinner table. Also, a couple of them are obsessed with sex, and tend to speak of things that should not be spoken of when one's dining companions have food/liquid in their mouths.

The Obligatory CNY Post

Ok ok, happy CNY, everyone.

End of entry.


....


Just kidding.

S-Ensemble (Imperial's micro-mini-co) performed at the Victoria and Albert Museum today, as part of a Chinese New Year thingum put together by people from the big London universities.

Small children are scared of lion dance *snicker*.

And there was a rock band with a vocalist of shower-singing standards. Really. Even my friend said he couldn't figure out if she was actually singing or rapping or heaven-knows-what.

Also, I had this deja-vu moment:

古琴player from LSE: 你的笙从中国拿来的啊?

Me (after a brief "..." period): 其实呢, 我是新加坡人.


I should migrate to China and be done with it.

Just When I Thought I Had Left That Crazy World Behind...

The mad old days of CO are back.

Well, sort of. It's not the same without a big group and sweltering weather.

Just when I thought I'd left the main challenge to my sanity back in Singapore for at least a little while, a miniature CO gets set up in Imperial! Enter the S-Ensemble, a group of extremely thick-skinned mostly-Singaporeans who think that less than a month is enough to practice for a concert.

Yep, we just had our concert yesterday. Sample repertoire: <<拜年>>, <<花好月圆>>,<< 甜密密>> and other blandly entertaining small ensemble music (but we had fun anyway), things like <<战马奔腾>> played by our "大师" from HK (one of those guys that seems to be super-talented and just about anything...), and mildly disturbing transcriptions of pop songs (that I of course have never ever heard).

Next week being CNY, we're pretty in demand right now. Tomorrow we're off to Cambridge to make some more noise (and get free dinner), and next week we have stuff on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. I am happy--haven't performed in a while. On the other hand, my sheng is very unhappy and refuses to work properly in the middle of this dull London winter.

And of course, this being a sort of CO, everybody is at least slightly insane. But that's another blog post for another day. I have to sleep now-- don't really want to miss the train to C. tomorrow.

Hmm

New year's resolution #38: Prevent blog from stagnating.

* * *


The immunology lecturer is... cheem. When I listen to him, it's nearly like religon-- he's saying something just that little bit out of my grasp, and if I could just understand what he's going on about I will be transported to a higher plane of existence. Seriously, all that guy needs is dramatic lighting and a choir hiding behind the projector.

* * *

The following was written under a post-concert high and should be read with caution. Please ensure your insurance cover is adequate and up todate.

Am just home from watching the musical Chicago at a theatre in Covent Garden. The theatre was small and dingy, and I got a seat with a bad view, but I enjoyed myself nonetheless! *OMGDUNCANJAMESSQUEE*
*cough*
I think this is the first musical I've watched with the orchestra onstage. And in the centre of everything. And with the conductor interacting with the cast/audience every now and then. The musicians all had great (onstage) personalities, and the conductor was probably running on some potent mix of battery fluid and 1M caffeine solution.
The choreography was great, too! And lots of eye candy in the form of buff men in tight black trousers and sheer/cropped/nonexistent shirts. Oops. Had to mop up the drool there. Loved the dancing, which was sensual and vigorous and breathtaking (having done dancing once upon a time I can appreciate how hard some of the moves are). And most of all, I loved the music! I am such a fan of big band jazz :D. And I think you might have deduced this from my previous squee, but Duncan James sang the part of Billy Flynn (!^infinity).

I watched Chicago the movie before Chicago the musical, which gave me a better grasp of the plot and allowed me to enjoy the music and dancing a bit more, I guess. Though I ended up expecting that the two female leads would be prettier XD. But all in all, it was great entertainment, and an evening well spent.


I hope your brains are still intact.