Throwback Thursday November 21st

When I mean Throwback Thursday, I mean I threw back to a time when I had chips and I could run them properly. Today I was able to run 2 chips (that's 24 samples) and get 6 data points (I had 5 at at the start of the day). All of my data made sense and seemed to be accurate based on Xiaolu's cursory glances. I felt really proud that I started to produce good data on my own. I can see why some people make research their lives' work. It was almost a sort of high when I saw that I had obtained good results. I can even imagine how ecstatic one must feel when they publish a noteworthy paper.

Speaking of which, I got to listen to Grand Rounds (a large weekly presentation accompanied with free pizza). The Dean of Medicine at UTMC, Dr. Hoover, talked about Renal Stenosis. He had found over the course of the last 15 years that the insertion of a stent into the closed renal artery (a costly and risky procedure) doesn't not have decreased risk of clinical incident (a major health problem like a heart attack or stroke) compared to treatment with new pharmaceuticals. He had even helped find a potential solution that would save kidneys and lives. He recently published his findings in a high level medical journal and praise was coming in. At the end, he cried and was greeted with a large round of applause, which he obviously deserved. But the thing that stuck out most for me was that he had spent 15 years of his life, many of those years away from his family, in order to obtain this conclusion. As amazing as he must of felt, I don't know if I would find it worth it to sacrifice 15 some years of family life in order for an amazing paper or two. Just something for everyone, especially myself, to think about.

I didn't run any tests in the afternoon because the National Institute of Health is coming in tomorrow to inspect Dr. Willey's Lab. Every one in our lab, including Dr. Willey, cleaned up in the lab area. Hopefully tomorrow goes well.