2 paragraphs and a list

Mod1. 20.109. Let’s see…

New! Shiny! Science! Working with the CometChip was a fun experience. It was a good platform for exposure to basic cell culture, DNA damage, and electrophoresis concepts. These interesting but fairly standard topics were made more exciting by working with the new technology. I forget that all of the technologies that make science work – centrifuges, pipettes, fluorescent proteins - haven’t always existed. Thinking about the process of developing a new technology is fairly amazing and I also enjoyed hearing a few tidbits about how the CometChip is being commercialized. It’s another side to the oddly shaped field that is biological engineering.

So when you put together information and tools you hopefully get results. And when you have results… You have to communicate them. Oh my. Here I have included my nearly foolproof instructions for making a diagram, as well as some tips for spending a little less time making it.

How to make a diagram (ft the BER pathway and Mod1 Data Summary):

+ Handy dandy tips! (some of which I did and some of which I most definitely should’ve)

            Step 1) Realize you don’t understand the system nearly as well as you thought you did

            Step 2) Sort through the google images results for explanatory figures that are all much more                  
            complicated than they need to be.

            Tip 1: Search through that towering stack of powerpoint printouts. Google is, as            
            always, a great friend, but the class information has been simplified a bit

                        Tip 2: Don’t move on to Step 3

                        Tip 3: Don’t do it

                        Tip 4: Sketch out on paper  a diagram with pieces important to you

                        Tip 5: Write out point you’d like to make and see if paper diagram matches 

            Step 3) Make 302 white boxes and 40 black lines

                        Tip 6: Nope. Wrong. Go back. You are not ready for Step 3.

                        Tip 7: Show your beautiful paper sketch diagram to the teaching faculty

                        Tip 8: Now you may go to… Not step 3. Okay. Maybe step 3. Provided you’ve added 
            in revisions from talking to the instructors (and said nice things to the instructors. 
            You should do that too. They deserve it)

            Step 4) Now, spend the approximate life span of a blue and gold macaw (about 30-35 years in
            the wild) attempting to line up the black lines and white boxes

                        Tip 9: Line up the lines and boxes into building blocks. It’s like building with legos
            versus sculpting marble. If you can make your diagram in pieces, then when you need to
            change part of it (which you will) you don’t have to start completely over.

            Step 5) GROUP EVERYTHING

                         Tip 10: Caps means IMPORTANT. Group the things. Group. Save often. Screenshot
            the figure so the white boxes can never move again. Send the figure to a cryogenic company.
            Whatever it takes.

            Step 6) Decide to also use some red arrows. Line those up.

            Step 7) Learn that your figure is incorrect/doesn’t convey your point/looks like the Nazca
            lines/is possibly made by aliens

            Step 8) Line up more boxes
            Step 9) Repeat

May this help me next time I need to make a diagram. 

Looking forward to Mod2,

Sarah