Posts

May 21, 2013

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8:14 AM | medicinenotes: Microneedle vaccine This scanning electron...

medicinenotes: Microneedle vaccine This scanning electron micrograph (SEM) shows an array of ‘microneedles’ made from a biodegradable polymer. Researchers have shown these materials can be used to deliver vaccines and therapeutics to the outer layers of the skin in a safe and painless way. Because the microneedles avoid contact with blood vessels and nerve endings in the deeper skin layers, microneedle application prevents pain and the transmission of blood-borne pathogens. In addition, […]

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7:59 AM | Daphne Zbaeren-Colbourn Bern, Switzerland Subject Matter: Strand...

Daphne Zbaeren-Colbourn Bern, Switzerland Subject Matter: Strand of grass (Spinifex littoreus) (400x)Technique: Brightfield

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7:56 AM | The Doppler effect is observed whenever the source of waves is...

The Doppler effect is observed whenever the source of waves is moving with respect to an observer. The Doppler effect can be described as the effect produced by a moving source of waves in which there is an apparent upward shift in frequency for observers towards whom the source is approaching and an apparent downward shift in frequency for observers from whom the source is receding. It is important to note that the effect does not result because of an actual change in the frequency of the […]

May 20, 2013

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11:04 PM | Making replacement nipples

Kittens like to nurse on things. It is best to nurse on mom, but orphaned kittens will nurse on other things. A favorite option for many orphans is the belly and genitals of their siblings. This can be physically traumatic for the recipient. One solution to the problem is to separate the kittens, but a lonely kitten is a stressed and pathetic creature (and stress leaves them more susceptible to disease). Another solution is to offer something better to nurse on!Today I got mad when a newly […]

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9:20 PM | :/

No summary available for this post.

May 19, 2013

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9:36 AM | Science mojo: Gradually diminished, instantly replenished

Almost everyone with science research experience has, at some point, asked thems...

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1:20 AM | Keeping score of kittens

Last week I worked in a kitten nursery — a small building off of a larger shelter, full of underage kittens (mostly orphans, some with moms). Although this shelter has literally hundreds of kittens out in foster care, kitten season in the South is so intense that they have this separate building just as a nursery, with its own staff and volunteers (and for these two weeks, its own vet! With consultations from the main shelter vet, of course).Cats seem to take the approach to reproduction that […]

May 17, 2013

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5:02 PM | Badass Biology: Toxoplasma gondii

Look, we humans are awesome. We own this planet. If we really wanted to, we could spill every barrel of oil we have into the ocean, light it all into one gigantic fiery blaze, get on fire-proof boats in robot … Continue reading →

May 16, 2013

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7:33 PM | Gifted Education

This summer I will be teaching a math course at the Summer Camp for Academically Talented Middle School Students (http://www.wku.edu/gifted/scats.php). I plan to discuss the concept of infinity (using debates between the students to help understand the idea properly), magic … Continue reading →

May 15, 2013

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9:46 PM | medicinenotes: Chicken embryo vascular system This...

medicinenotes: Chicken embryo vascular system This fluorescence micrograph shows the vascular system of a developing chicken embryo (Gallus gallus), two days after fertilisation. Injecting fluorescent dextran revealed the entire vasculature used by the embryo to feed itself from the rich underlying yolk inside the egg. The image shows the central chicken embryo surrounded by veins and arteries. The head of the embryo, including the embryonic eye and brain, can be seen on the upper part of […]

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3:16 PM | PhD Career Guide PODCAST Episode 3

The third episode of the PhD Career Guide PODCAST is now up and available for download from iTunes, Stitcher, and many other podcast directories. You may also listen to the episode directly on the [...]

May 14, 2013

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7:15 PM | medicinenotes: Chicken embryo vascular system This...

medicinenotes: Chicken embryo vascular system This fluorescence micrograph shows the vascular system of a developing chicken embryo (Gallus gallus), two days after fertilisation. Injecting fluorescent dextran revealed the entire vasculature used by the embryo to feed itself from the rich underlying yolk inside the egg. The image shows the central chicken embryo surrounded by veins and arteries. The head of the embryo, including the embryonic eye and brain, can be seen on the upper part of […]

May 12, 2013

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4:22 PM | doctorswithoutborders: MSF Mother’s Day E-Cards Still looking...

doctorswithoutborders: MSF Mother’s Day E-Cards Still looking for something special for Mother’s Day? Honor a mother in your life with a gift that saves lives. Your tribute will help deliver urgently needed medical care to people—including pregnant women and new moms—trapped in crises around the world. And you’ll have the opportunity to send a beautiful eCard to your mother, letting her know about your meaningful gift (well in time for Mother’s Day).

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10:21 AM | medicinenotes: Repair of ventricular sepal defect This...

medicinenotes: Repair of ventricular sepal defect This photograph shows the surgical repair of a traumatic ventricular septal defect (VSD). A VSD is a hole between the right and left ventricles of the heart and is usually seen as a congenital condition, known as a ‘hole in the heart’. A traumatic VSD, as seen in this case, is a rare complication of chest injury. It might manifest immediately after trauma, leading to heart failure and an inability to stabilise a patient, or it might be […]

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10:21 AM | scienceisbeauty: Curiosity as is seen by Einstein (above, via...

scienceisbeauty: Curiosity as is seen by Einstein (above, via Physicist Tv) and by XKCD (below, via XKCD).

May 11, 2013

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5:45 PM | Party At Ramsey’s

“Why mathematics? “ is a question that greets me on occasion from friends and acquaintances wanting to delve into a casual conversation about the subject. Many times I will start out by offering a recreational math example, such as … Continue reading →

May 08, 2013

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1:22 AM | No rain = successful fossil fieldwork

The lack of posts on this blog lately has been due to personal commitments (attending an interstate wedding and funeral), as well as PhD commitments - heading back out to Isisford for a second attempt at fieldwork. When we headed out in 2012, we weren't able to get any work done due to the [...]

May 06, 2013

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8:45 PM | From classrooms to hospitals: when medicine doesn’t have all the answers

I’ll start with this: it’s great to be back. I’ve been on hiatus from blogging for the past few months because of the exam I took last week: the medical boards, or Step 1, an eight hour test that covers all of the first two years of medical school to prepare us for the hospital [...]

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2:13 PM | Making the Leap from Academia to Industry: How to Set Yourself Apart from Other Candidates

By Dora Farkas, PhDI have been working in industry for a few years now, and students ask me the same question that I was struggling with during my job search: “How can I get a job in industry if I don’t have industry experience?” Like many other students, I had my heart set on an academic career path when I was in college. I spent my undergraduate [...]

May 04, 2013

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2:52 PM | Would you consider getting your Ph.D. in 3 years or less?

Gödel had his doctorate at 23, completing all his university studies in about 5 years. In the U.S., for example, if one goes through the usual path of four years of undergraduate studies (after being admitted to a university at … Continue reading →

May 02, 2013

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8:56 PM | Image of Distinction2005 Photomicrography Competition Rodrigo...

Image of Distinction2005 Photomicrography Competition Rodrigo Mexas Filho, Brazil Subject Matter: Megabalanus azoricus (40x)Technique: Differential Interference Contras

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3:25 PM | 28 April 2013 Recoating Damaged Nerves Nerve cells in our brains...

28 April 2013 Recoating Damaged Nerves Nerve cells in our brains and bodies have long thin protrusions called axons, which transmit electrical signals both to other nerve cells and to body tissues. Wrapped around these axons are multiple thin layers of a substance called myelin, which not only protects the axons but also speeds up their signal transmission. Myelin is itself a type of cell called a Schwann cell and, if myelin becomes damaged by physical injury or disease – such as multiple […]

May 01, 2013

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11:30 PM | Flying High - 54th Annual Drosophila Research Conference (#dros2013)

Eric Sawyer from over on the Bio 2.0 blog was kind enough to write this fantas...

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3:28 AM | Whenever I visit the Co-Op Bookshop...

Image courtesy of [...]

April 30, 2013

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7:54 PM | Ellipsoid Embryos By Alistair Boettiger, Harvard...

Ellipsoid Embryos By Alistair Boettiger, Harvard University From starfish and frogs to mice and humans, many embryos have a common spherical geometry. ButDrosophila embryos kick it ellipsoidal style. Why? For flies, the size of the embryo when the egg is laid is the same size of the larvae when it hatches, since it must fully develop inside the egg shell. This ellipsoidal shape is important because it allows a relatively large egg that can still fit through ovipositor of fly. Image: Collage of […]

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7:51 PM | James E. Hayden, FBCA, RBP University of PennsylvaniaSchool of...

James E. Hayden, FBCA, RBP University of PennsylvaniaSchool of Veterinary Medicine, Department of PathologyPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Subject Matter: Canine compound hair follicle - dermis (39x)Technique: Rheinberg Illumination

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6:48 PM | PhD Career Guide Podcast Episode 2

The second episode of the PhD Career Guide PODCAST is now up and available for download from iTunes, Stitcher, and many other podcast directories. You may also listen to the episode directly on the& [...]

April 29, 2013

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9:29 PM | forscherin on Instagram

forscherin on Instagram

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8:15 PM | Balls and Sticks Biology is applied chemistry, chemistry is...

Balls and Sticks Biology is applied chemistry, chemistry is applied physics, and physics is applied maths. But nature cares little for the traditional lines separating the disciplines. And cutting-edge laboratories reflect this increasingly by encouraging researchers to work in interdisciplinary teams. For example, biophysicists discovered that by mutating four genes associated with an enzyme found in all our cells (CGI of the protein, in red and blue, pictured), they disturbed the finely-tuned […]

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8:12 PM | Dr. Daniela Malide National Institutes of Health, NHLBI - Light...

Dr. Daniela Malide National Institutes of Health, NHLBI - Light Microscopy Bethesda, MD, USA Specimen: Rat Kidney Technique: Confocal