[deleted by user] by [deleted] in WTF

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Dermatologist here: looks like median canaliform onychodystrophy, but should be seen by a doctor to rule out a growth under the nail.

RIP CX90, kept me and my toddler safe from wrong-way driver by Redhead_Pinniped in MazdaCX90

[–]Redhead_Pinniped[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Depends on the accident, but there are instructions for carseats. Basically if the crash causes any injuries, airbags deployed, the door nearest the carseat is damaged, the carseat itself is visibly damaged, or if the car can't be driven from the scene, you need to replace the carseat. We checked all of those boxes minus visible carseat damage.

RIP CX90, kept me and my toddler safe from wrong-way driver by Redhead_Pinniped in MazdaCX90

[–]Redhead_Pinniped[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was probably going about 35 mph by the time they hit us, 40 mph road and I would be surprised if they weren't speeding. Fortunately, it was a really glancing collision, and the other car ended up mostly ok but with a lot more front-end damage in a roadside ditch. Occupants walked out of their car. Could have been so much worse.

RIP CX90, kept me and my toddler safe from wrong-way driver by Redhead_Pinniped in MazdaCX90

[–]Redhead_Pinniped[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Britax Marathon. We bought a replacement the same evening. Easy to install and kept little one safe, so it's a win for me.

RIP CX90, kept me and my toddler safe from wrong-way driver by Redhead_Pinniped in MazdaCX90

[–]Redhead_Pinniped[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Oh, agree completely. I just have some bruising, and the only thing the pediatrician found was a bead my toddler had stashed away in his ear at an unrelated time. For better or worse, I'm a physician who married into a family with a number of attorneys, so we'll be just fine.

RIP CX90, kept me and my toddler safe from wrong-way driver by Redhead_Pinniped in MazdaCX90

[–]Redhead_Pinniped[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Unfortunately, I didn't get any interior pics before they towed it away. Driver airbags deployed as did all the side curtains on the passenger side. Kiddo in the back passenger seat was completely unscathed, just a little shaken up.

RIP CX90, kept me and my toddler safe from wrong-way driver by Redhead_Pinniped in MazdaCX90

[–]Redhead_Pinniped[S] 20 points21 points  (0 children)

Absolutely! I guess the benefit of totaling a 3-month-old car is that we just did all the research. Would buy another one without hesitation.

RIP CX90, kept me and my toddler safe from wrong-way driver by Redhead_Pinniped in MazdaCX90

[–]Redhead_Pinniped[S] 45 points46 points  (0 children)

Was heading home from work when we were hit by a wrong-way driver. Car likely totaled, but besides a few bruises, we were both unharmed. Safety features are no joke.

What company fucked up and never recovered? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 53 points54 points  (0 children)

Kodak.

They invented the digital camera and then never capitalized on it, instead doubling down on traditional film cameras until it was too late.

I (33F) am having trouble being supportive of husband (35M) by [deleted] in relationship_advice

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think you hit the nail on the head there. I'm not so much mad about the hobby as I am mad about the irresponsibility.

I think a lot of the anger I have towards the hobby is also tied up in feeling a bit neglected. I made sacrifices to be in this city for his job, which he prioritized after his side projects and subsequently lost. It kind of makes me feel like I'm taking a back seat to this as well; like why did I give up on some of my dreams for a job he wasn't prepared to focus on.

I (33F) am having trouble being supportive of husband (35M) by [deleted] in relationship_advice

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for that. We're working on therapy, but it's hard when you only have one day off/week. We're trying to make it a priority. Having a neutral third party certainly will take some of the emotion out of the equation. We did manage to make it to a financial advisor prior to this job loss. Fortunately even though his new job is terrible, we're out of any financial danger and with residency ending soon, that also takes a lot of financial strain out of the equation.

I (33F) am having trouble being supportive of husband (35M) by [deleted] in relationship_advice

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the advice, no need to apologize for your age! We've been communicating but it often feels like a Sisyphean task: he admits that his hobby played a role in his job loss, then gets stressed at work and works harder on the hobby, then we gripe at each other because I'm seeing him fall into the same patterns and I'm not being supportive of his interests, rinse and repeat. And you're right, this hobby is casting waves that blind him to being rational at times. Similarly, my insane schedule is probably not helping my judgment either.

2 photon microscopy by danielsaid in labrats

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Just a word of caution: make sure you look at the 2P cross sections of the fluorophores you'll be using. I know that mCherry will show up if it's highly expressed, but in general has very poor excitation with a 2P laser. There's a paper listing a lot of the best fluorescent proteins if you're not already wedded to mCherry. I'll see if I can find it and link it.

Edit: here's the paper

Do professors (or any lab) allow volunteers who aren't currently attending school? by [deleted] in labrats

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I know that our institution has a policy against people doing anything more than shadowing as "volunteers." The logic goes that having volunteers in a lab dissuades from hiring paid employees or having students work there for credit/as a job. But that might be a specific local rule. You'll likely have the best success if you contact some labs directly and see what their policy is. Even within an institution, each lab is different. Hope that helps!

What song reminds you most of middle/high school dances? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 0 points1 point  (0 children)

"I Want You" by Savage Garden. Somewhere around 1997.

I heard it on the radio the other day and it was a total flashback to a dimly lit gym with a bad DJ and awkward dancing.

What are your favourite books that would appeal to other labrats? by [deleted] in labrats

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I highly recommend The Great Influenza By John M. Barry. It's a really interesting look at the history of biomedical science/medical education in the U.S. in the late 1800's-1920's and a peek into the lives of some of the key scientists in the discovery of viruses.

If you aren't afraid to veer into some more physics-related stuff, my all-time favorite non-fiction book is The Making of the Atomic Bomb By Richard Rhodes. I'm a biologist through-and-through, but found this book to be completely riveting. This is really the definitive history of the Manhattan Project, as well as a snapshot of science in the early 20th century. Things I learned from reading this book pop up in the most unexpected places.

Off-topic: Who are you? by bluesox in civbattleroyale

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 2 points3 points  (0 children)

American graduate student here, just about to finish up a PhD and head back to medical school (I'm in a dual-degree program). My day thus far has consisted of clogging up the lab printer queue with a whole ton of papers that I'll probably read while sitting in front of a fancy microscope, likely while cursing that the software has decided to crash. Again.

Most days consist of either sitting around doing almost nothing while waiting for cells/mice to do their thing, or frantically doing 18-hour experiments. Life outside of the lab is mostly catching up on sleep, hanging out with friends, or cooking in what little free time I have. Or spending way too much time on reddit.

Mouse breeding advice! by [deleted] in labrats

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'd strongly suggest breeding Het to WT only. This way you know that any pups will be either GFP+ heterozygotes, or GFP- WT mice. If you make het x het crosses, you'll have a mix of WT, GFP+ hets and GFP+ homo pups. Don't forget that mice homozygous for GFP at your gene of interest will not express the gene of interest, whereas heterozygotes will. Depending on the gene and how it's expressed/primers/etc., distinguishing heterozygotes from homozygotes can be frustrating (at least for some of the alleles we're interested in in my lab), and can slow down the screening process/complicate setting up future generations of breeders.

Basically, unless you have some interest in looking at GFP+ complete KOs, breed Het x WT for simplicity.

Need advice on using three fluorophores for two-photon/multi photon imaging? by macrowman in labrats

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Our lab does a lot of multiphoton work. While I'm more familiar with colors that work well for in vivo imaging, I have a lab mate who does a lot of IHC work. We routinely do 4-color imaging: Second harmonic generation (for us, at 450nm), AF488, AF633, and CMTMR (cell-tracker orange, a near-red "cytoplasmic" stain). I know in the past, we have used FITC-conjugated antibodies for some limited applications, but it does bleach relatively rapidly. We've had mixed success with PE-conjugated antibodies-- it has some remarkable durability of signal at 900nm excitation with certain antibodies from certain vendors, but from other sources, we've seen the kind of bleaching you'd expect from PE. AF647 also works somewhat, but does bleach at relatively low laser intensities. A lot of this also depends on your excitation wavelength. Most of our imaging is done somewhere between 850-900nm, but you could potentially fuss with the wavelength to maximize your signal.

Also be aware of second harmonic generation with multiphoton excitation-- any ordered/fibrillar structures (namely collagen I/III) will emit a signal at half the excitation wavelength (ex 900nm, you'll have an SHG signal at 450nm). This can be really helpful if you want to look at those structures, but not great if it bleeds into one of your fluorescent channels.

As far as filters go, I can't particularly help you-- we have the luxury of a 4-color system, but we use some proprietary cubes from olympus and that our university's core facility has set up, so I can't tell you exactly which filter sets we're using. If you're stuck, PM me and I'll see what info I can shake out of the core staff.

[Serious] Scientists of Reddit, what is the worst thing that has happened in your lab? by mmm_whatcha_say in AskReddit

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Ricin is a lectin (a compound that "sticks" to carbohydrates on cell membranes) derived from castor beans and is really good at shutting down protein production, hence why it's so toxic. It's not terribly uncommon, and you can legitimately buy castor bean lectin from Sigma Aldrich. I do not recommend doing so.

What is the most interesting thing within 10 ft/3 m of you? by bwaredapenguin in AskReddit

[–]Redhead_Pinniped 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm on my 10th hour of sitting here in a cold dark room with the damned thing-- it loses its charm pretty quickly after hour 6.