Science Saturday

Okay, first off, yes, I know it is Sunday. But you know, life is busy blah blah blah. Anyway, a super cool paper came out this week and I was really excited to share it with you guys! Sadly, due to time constraints (see above, blah blah blah) I don't exactly have the time to put in the effort this study deserves, but I at least wanted to talk a bit about it and point you to some further reading, if you're interested.

In a nutshell, a group from the University of Minnesota "made" a multicellular organism in their lab. Essentially, they took a flask of plain ol' yeast and shook it to disperse the yeast cells, and then let any clumps of yeast settle to the bottom. Then they removed the top layer of yeast, leaving only the larger clumps left on the bottom. In this way they selected for yeast that were more likely to clump together. After repeating this about 60 times, they were left with clumps of snowflake-like balls of yeast.

Ratcliff WC, et al. PNAS 

Amazingly, these "snowflake yeast" acted like a multicellular organism. Most strikingly, some of the cells in the cluster purposely killed themselves so that the cluster as a whole had a better chance to survive, a kind of behavior that is typical for multicellular organisms. The snowflake yeast also reproduced and had juvenile and adult stages. The video below shows one of the snowflakes yeast clusters reproducing:

This study really blows my mind. It's incredible to think that something as simple as shaking a flask of yeast could be enough selective pressure to encourage yeast to become something more. As Jeff Goldblum said in Jurassic Park, "Life will find a way."

If you have the time, I fully recommend reading a bit more on the subject from any of the following science blogs (all excellent):

Yeast suggests speedy start for multicellular lifeby Ed Yong from Nature News
How I became we, which became I again by Ed Yong from Not Exactly Rocket Science
Multicellular Life Evolves in Laboratory by Brandon Kiem from Wired Science

A pharmer's clothes: January 27, 2012

This week has been crazy sauce. Tutoring every night, staying late at lab, living off free food provided by the department... And then this morning I totally spaced on an appointment. For the second time in one week, which is so not like me. I'm way too busy. But what was my meeting about today? More tutoring stuff, of course. Yep, I'm insane. Actually, I'm really excited about it - sounds like I'll be able to design my own class! Teaching experience FTW! I know it means putting more on my already overflowing plate, but I have no regrets. Things like teaching get me excited and motivate me to get through the tougher aspects of my job. Plus, once I'm done with my seminar things will settle down in lab.

Despite my hectic schedule, I still made it to the CapFABB meet-up on Tuesday, which is where these pictures are from. It was at Madewell in Georgetown (clothes = adorable, price = ouch!) I met up with Mackenzie before hand so we could brave the social awkwardness en masse. Thank goodness! I don't know how I would have done it alone, not that we talked to a whole lot of people anyway... Regardless, I'm proud of myself for going. Hannah from four years ago would have rather died than go to something like this. During my senior year of college I distinctly remember trying to break out of my shyness shell. I had decided to join math club because math = awesome and math geeks = probably less intimidating. I went to the meeting and stood outside the room for a good five minutes trying to pump myself up to go inside. Finally I decided I couldn't do it and left. Yep, past Hannah was scared off by a group of math nerds. You may now commence with the mocking.

(( dress: Modcloth / shoes: Target / bracelets: Forever21 / purse: Marc Jacobs / glasses: Warby Parker ))

Super mega thanks to Mackenzie for taking these photos!!!! Once again, I find myself lusting for a DSLR...

A pharmer's clothes: January 24, 2012

It was ridiculously windy when I took these photos. The kind of wind that literally veers you off course. Wind + bangs = ridiculous. Trying to keep them in line is what made this happen:

Wooo laughing like a crazy person!! Actually, I really like that picture. I know my mouth is hanging open like a fool, but I'm a firm believer that laughing hysterically is always a good look (tell me I'm not alone on this...)

Today I got up early to go to Petsmart before work (the poor kitties were totally out of food. They woke us up this morning by knocking over the empty food bag and then trying to dig inside of it. So sad. I'm sorry kitties). Right next door to Petsmart is Target, so of course I had to stop by since this is pretty much my motto. I ended up buying a neon yellow purse that I am pumped about. Score! On the way I stopped in at a local coffee shop I've always wanted to try. I am in love. I am such a sucker for coffee shops, and this one is perfect: amazing coffee, great food (the breakfast sandwich I had was like OMG mouthgasm!), lots of big tables to stretch out and get some work done, free wifi...the list goes on and on. Knowing that such a gem is just down the street is making me very excited to start working on my seminar, mostly so I can hang out and drink espresso all day! Is it weird that the idea of working at a coffee shop is approximately 1 million times more appealing than working at work/at home? Cause it totally is.

(( top (dress worn as shirt): Forever21 / jeans: Target / glasses: Warby Parker ))

Tonight I'm heading to January's CapFABB meetup. I've only been to one and it was really fun! I don't know too many people who are going, but I'm super excited. Plus it's at Madewell, which just sounds awesome. I think there is a discount during the event, but you have to spend $150 or something to get it. Must. Resist. Temptation....

Over the weekend

This weekend one of my best friends and her boyfriend came to visit us. It was so fun! Up until now, we've only had groups of friends or family come visit, never another couple. In fact, Jason and I don't hang out with other couples hardly at all. It was really nice. They got in on Friday and we headed to Capital Hill for happy hour. I wanted to take them to the Hawk & Dove but it was closed! (Hopefully not for good!) Instead we ended up stopping in another divey bar next door and having a beer or two. Then we headed to Dupont Circle and randomly walked into a great sushi/Thai place. We ordered shrimp kaprow, which I had never had before, and it was AMAZING. New favorite Thai dish. Yum yum yummmm. Then we headed to Adams Morgan to hit up some dive bars: Dan's Cafe (where you can get a ketchup bottle full of Soco and Lime for $20...it was a good 16 shots!) and Pharmacy Bar (which was introduced to me by Mackenzie. The walls have names of drugs on them. Since both me and my friend's bf are in pharma we had to go there!) And it snowed on Friday night too. YES!

On Saturday we headed to the national mall to go to the Newseum. It was great! The museum was huge, and even though the ticket was a bit pricey ($20), you didn't have to pay for any of the extra things like the "4D" movie. The exhibits were fabulous and you could even tape your own news segment against a green screen. If you've never been I highly recommend it!

After the Newseum we walked around the mall and saw the monuments at sunset, which was gorgeous, and very cold! One of my favorite sights in DC is the World War II memorial at night - the fountains are lit up and it is breathtaking. We walked over to see it, but the fountains were off! Which we probably should have anticipated since it was about 30F outside.

On Sunday we just took it easy, watched some football and ate some Ray's Hell Burger. Tough luck for the Ravens, I was really hoping they would beat the stupid Patriots. Sad times.

Now I'm back at work and buckling down for an intense week. I am giving my first 1 hour seminar in three weeks from tomorrow and I have more work than could possibly be done in that time. Plus all the tutoring I'm doing. Too much! Why oh why do I always take on so much?? Oh well. It's better to be too busy than not busy enough, that's for sure.

How was your weekend? If you're in the DMV area, did you enjoy this glorious winter weather as much as I did???

(I know, I know...I'm crazy.)

A pharmer's clothes: January 17, 2012

I've been in a wear-all-black mood recently, also know as "fashion lazy." Does the fact that I'm wearing a detachable collar make this outfit less goth/funeral-esque? I hope so. I made this a few weeks ago during a crafternoon with Mackenzie and Gina. I love how it came out, but it won't stay on straight! The same thing happens with a detachable collar I bought from modcloth. I usually safety pin it down when I wear it, but I was feeling lazy this day (see above) so I just let it go. Definitely looks wonky. Note to self: don't do that again.

(( dress: UO / collar: DIY / boots: Target ))

I'd write more, but I'm watching New Girl right now. I kind of love this show. I have such a girl crush on Zooey Deschanel. Dear bangs, please be more like Zooey's bangs. So...yep.

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Science Saturday: Thoughts on grad school, part 1

There is no shortage of depressing factoids about PhDs. Just a few weeks ago I heard that there are 5,000 janitors in the US with PhDs. Anyone in grad school is no stranger to infographics like this one, showing that getting your PhD not only takes the better part of a decade, but then must be followed by a post-doc or two, all for a pathetically slim chance at getting the holy grail: a tenure-track faculty position. Pile on the fact the research often is full of failed experiments, hard to track down advisors, long hours, working weekends, low pay... it's not wonder that so many graduate students get a bit depressed about the subject, and I'm definitely one of them. Getting my PhD has not only led to bouts of depression, but at times it has made me cynical and completely reassess  who I am as a person. This isn't college, that's for sure.

PhD Comics

So I've decided to write a few blog posts on the subject. Partially to get some of these thoughts out of my mind to keep them from festering and driving me insane, but also because when I was going through the hardest of times I always wished I could find some words of encouragement. I found plenty of books and blogs about how to write your thesis, or how to talk to your advisor, or jobs outside of acadmeics, but I found very little about how just to survive graduate school day to day. Because honestly, this is hard. This is by far the hardest thing I've ever done. And not because it's hard work or demanding. I double majored in two challenging fields in college - I'm used to studying and long hours. What I wasn't prepared for is how challenging research is emotionally. Nothing messes with your mind like daily failure.

Friday favorites

Happy Friday!!! Notice anything different?? After playing around for many weeks I've finally decided on a new blog design that I really like. What do you think?

It's been a hot minute that I've done a Friday Favorites post, so I thought it'd be nice to do one this week. As always, if you care to snoop on all the little things that catch my eye check out my tumblr or pinterest (or facebook! Okay, that was just a blatant facebook plug, haha).

Tulle & Combat Boots

I love the bright colors G has going on in this outfit. Blue and red, yes please! And the setting is perfect DC and makes me lust for colder weather. 

Jen Loves Kev

Continuing my love for red coats, how cute does Jen from Jen Love Kev look in her coat and fur collar? Also, I'm pretty sure I need a pair of boots like that. Adorable!

Jason Wu for Target

Please tell me I'm not the only one looking forward to the Jason Wu for Target collection with anticipation that boarders on obsession. I may or may not have already concocted a plan to get to Target at opening on February 5th. I hope this isn't a repeat of the Missoni madness!

The Clothes Horse

Rebecca from The Clothes Horse always takes the most beautiful pictures. I especially love this set from a recent trip to Arlington Cemetery, which is just a few blocks from my apartment!

source via Fuck Yeah Tattoos

I'm actually disappointed in myself for not coming up with this tattoo. It says "I AM STAR STUFF" in amino acids. Not to mention the placement on her spine is perfect. Geeky and gorgeous?! Double win.

Dressed Up Alligators

I'm always looking for a way to dress up t-shirts, and Diana from Dressed Up Alligators shows how it should be done. I love the strong shoulders on the jacket, paired with the lady-like nude pumps. I'd wear this outfit in a heart beat.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend! It's a three day weekend here in the States, woo hoo! But sadly I have to go into lab tomorrow on account of having to call in sick yesterday (let's just say that I am giving up drinking. No really. When four drinks = sick to your stomach for 12 hours the next day it's probably time to throw in the towel). Regardless, I am super stoked for this weekend because of the Broncos game tomorrow!! Wooo go Broncos! And so I will leave you with two of the best Broncos videos I've seen this week...

Go Broncos!!!!

A pharmer's clothes: January 11, 2012

I snapped these photos in the little community garden near my apartment. In the summer it is so pretty and lush, but in the winter it is kind of sad and morose. There are all these kooky decorations around, but in the winter they look kind of spooky. It makes me think of how the world would look during the zombie apocalypse, haha. But for once it was nice to take pictures here without getting eaten alive by mosquitoes.....unless there were zombie mosquitoes and I didn't notice. Ahhhh!!

 (( top: UO / shirt: Target / shoes: Minnetonka / coat: super old..can't remember where I got it! ))

I completely forgot that I owned this coat, which is funny because I've been wanting one just like it. Shopping tips from Hannah: tip 1- look in your closet to make sure you don't already own the things you want. Oh goodness. I think I forgot about this because when I got it I really didn't like it much since it is so short. I still don't like it much with pants, but with skirts it is perfect. Yay for wearing more of the clothes I already have!

Holga photos, v. 3

Here I am, finally getting around to posting some pictures from the last few rolls of film I had developed way back in October. All these pictures are from my trip to Italy and seem especially funny since it is snowing outside right now (which I am ECSTATIC about, btw).

 This was the view from the hotel the conference was hosted in. Yeah, science is hard.

 The hotel had this huge, crazy garden full of prickly pears and pine trees (what an odd combination, right?)

 I loved the bright colors everywhere.

 Our hotel was about a 30 minute walk from the conference hotel. There were no sidewalks, which meant we had to walk in the very narrow and windy streets. Terrifying.

 A collection of antennas on top of one of the local houses. What do you think they use them all for??

The market in Taormina.

This is my absolute favorite Holga pic to date. It's a double exposure looking from a cave onto the beach. I didn't try to line it up that perfectly, it just worked out really well. Surprises like this are what make lomography such a fun hobby!

Jason and I had a few drinks this weekend with Mackenzie and Gina. I was so excited to try out the new flash I got for my Holga on subjects that wouldn't hate me for taking pictures of them. And then, of course, the battery on my flash died. Nooooooz! Oh well, there's always next time...

Science Saturday

There was a lot of cool stuff happening this week in the science world (who are we kidding, there is cool stuff happening every week!) Instead of focusing on one issue, I present you guys with a little round up of my favorite articles from the week. Stay sciencey!

Octopuses Edit Proteins to Beat the Cold

Octopus, a photo by Erin G on Flickr.

Proteins in arctic species of octopuses have to be resistant to the cold. A recent study found that surprisingly, this cold-resistance isn't incorporated into the octopus's genes, but happens at the RNA level. This is the first example of proteins adapting in this way and is super cool and exciting because it changes how we think about the diversity of proteins.

Power of Mom’s Voice Silenced by Instant Messages

Image: Seltzer et al./Evolution and Human Behavior

Scientists prove that you really should call your mom. A recent study shows that the stress-reducing hormones that are released by a phone call or face-to-face convo with mom just aren't released by talking via text. But texting is so convenient! Damn.

Time Cloak Hides Very Brief Events

Wikipedia

Physicists have been working on making invisibility cloaks for a few years (cool!!) A recent study describes a "temporal cloak", a new type of cloak that hides an object in a point in time instead of a point in space. In essence, researchers bent light through a material which speeds in up, and then a few moments later through another material that slows it down. The result to an outside observer is the light seems undisturbed. It may be a bit early to say that Klingon technology is just around the corner, but a Trekkie can dream, no?

Brain electrodes fix depression long term

Another day at work, a photo by emaspounder on Flickr.

Depression is one of the most prevalent and difficult to treat disorders. Current antidepressants take many weeks to see any effects, and aren't effective at all for many with severe depression. Surprisingly, one treatment that has shown promise for severe depression is electric shock therapy, but the procedure isn't exactly easy or comfortable. By the same principle, a clinical study was performed where electrodes were placed in the brains of clinically depressed and bipolar patients. After two years, eleven out of the twelve patients had little to no depression symptoms, results that are unheard of in the depression field!! And while deep-brain stimulation is obviously a last resort (that involves serious brain surgery and extensive recovery time) it is nonetheless exciting to see such promising results for people with so few options.

A pharmer's clothes: January 5, 2012

(( dress & shoes & sunnies: UO / jacket: Common Era / tights: Target )) 

This lovely is another dress I got for Christmas. My step-brother kindly gave me a gift card to Urban Outfitters. I braved the mall on the day after x-mas and headed to Urban for 50% off sale items. So worth it! I picked up this dress, a shirt, and another dress for under $35!!! This dress was on the sale rack but had no tag and I couldn't find another one anywhere in the store. The people at UO were so nice and took a good 15 minutes trying to look up the price. Finally he told me "well, I found a similar dress on sale for $19.99, plus 50% off, so it's $10. Is that okay?" Ummm...yes!! This might be my new favorite.

It's funny to think how I got oodles of dresses this year. Three years ago I owned maybe one dress and never wore it. Now I want to wear them all the time! Oh my fashion sense, so fickle.

Yes, this is a picture of me jumping with a Starbucks in my hand. That's right, I live on the wild side. Scalded hands are the new sexy.

In other news, I reached 50 followers this week! Yee haw!!! It really means a lot to me to reach such a significant number, and thanks so much to all of you that read the blog!! It seriously makes my day. If any of you were also in the mood to like le blog on facebook it would totally make my week!

2012 is going to be a good year

Oh hai there, 2012. Did you have a good NYE? Jason and I rung in the New Year at home, which sounds kind of lame but I wouldn't have it any other way. I find that NYE tends to be one of those holidays that I get really excited for, but then someone (often me) ends up getting too drunk or in a fight or crying and it turns into a shit show. Or maybe that is just my crazy friends? Haha. Either way, since moving to DC Jason and I have started a low-key New Year's tradition. We make wassail (following the great Alton Brown's recipe), have something fabulous for dinner (this year we had an Indian feast including homemade saag partha), and watch the ball drop on TV.

I'm not making real New Year's resolutions this year, because they are always the same and I never follow them. Instead, inspired by Elizabeth from Delightfully Tacky, I'm posting my 25 before 26 list. I like the idea of the 25 before 26 because it gives you some small goals and larger ones, so even if you can't accomplish the whole list you don't give up because at least you can knock off a few items. It's a bit late to be posting this since my birthday is in June, but don't worry, I've already done a few things. 

In the background are a few photos I took on my Holga. I took a whole roll of 4th of July fireworks and then did double exposures with it. Sadly, most of the photos didn't come out very well. But I think this is the perfect way to salvage the few good ones.