a work in progress

Summer study challenge (July 4)

𝑊ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑛𝑒𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑡𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑟?

I just want to spend my summer reading, drinking coffee and enjoying life.

I only finished my first research project out of many, but I already learned some game-changing things that I wish I knew earlier.

1. It’s okay to mess up. In fact, it should be encouraged (within reason). You learn so many more intimate details about your work from mistakes than from successes. PCRs fail even when you’re careful, and animal models don’t behave like they’re supposed to. Undergrad labs can make you feel stupid when your experiment doesn’t work, but in research, mistakes happen all the time. Document them and learn from them. 

2. There’s a lot of waiting around. Experiments can be slow. Progress in your project can be even slower. Manage your time between experiments so that it’s not wasted; read, write a chapter, scribble some ideas, or just close your eyes and think. All time is valuable. 

3. If you can figure out a new way to do something, do it. There might not be a formal protocol you have to follow. If you think of an efficient way to observe something, go for it. Practice thinking outside the box. 

4. There’s a lot less rules than you think there are. Of course, follow lab safety rules. But the lab is a resource- use it. You don’t have to walk on eggshells somewhere you belong. 

5. Stay true to your findings. This isn’t an undergrad laboratory course. You’re looking at novel stuff here. Don’t play up or fake your data to impress your supervisor. That helps no one- tell it like it is. Believe in your work. 

6. Your lab mates are not here to criticize you. They are your colleagues and mentors- ask them for help if you need it. Your work is important to their work too. You matter just as much as them. 

I can’t possibly list all the things I learned, because this research experience has changed how I think in such integral ways, but here are a few anyway. I’m sure this is only the beginning. 

Contrast

July 7th: What did you do during the summer when you were a young child?

Lots of time spent at the pool, with an au pair, my mom and my siblings, and then one week at the beach or camping in the mountains, usually. When I was a teen, I also started going to my uncle's house at the north of Spain, where we would go sailing for a week or so. And reading, so much reading.

July 8th: What’s your happiest summer memory from your childhood?

The Penguin Complete Tales And Poems Of Edgar Allan Poe

3.7.21

Theo Meier (1908-1982, Swiss) ~ Jettli with a Vase of Orchids, n/d

manifestations of cottagecore energy via a recent snack obsession of marie regal + apricot jam and my grandmother’s kitchen 🌻

Theo Meier (1908-1982, Swiss) ~ Jettli with a Vase of Orchids, n/d