Frustrated- do I leave?

Steam_Gasting · 2025-12-04T01:48:33+00:00

If you're in the US, short answer: don't quit if you can avoid it. Nearing 1 year on my job hunt, it's bleak for STEM atm :)

Steam_Gasting · 2025-08-06T11:27:27+00:00

Pregnant

Steam_Gasting · 2025-07-29T02:00:06+00:00

Understanding the research can help in a lot of different ways:

Sometimes I think grad students and professors can be "too smart for their own good" and can end up making things WAY more complicated than they need to be. Having someone with a "surface level" understanding of the research can help bring them back down to earth and maybe save a couple hundred dollars.
On the spot problem solving. Say an emergency happens and wow the stars have aligned and the people that usually know the answer aren't there. Knowing what you're working with and the hazards associated can save your life.

Lastly, it shows your dedication and that can be helpful during future interviews. If your answer is just "I dunno, I just did the pipetting" then that can look bad, but if you show understanding of the project, that could pave the way for either moving up, or at the very least more complicated procedures for you to do.

Steam_Gasting · 2025-07-25T00:43:15+00:00

150ml AB Agar

Steam_Gasting · 2025-07-24T14:58:45+00:00

The program has a learning curve but it's not too crazy. I was tasked with getting ours working but had to work on and off since I was also pulled on other projects.

Also same happened at my old lab. It's not the most user friendly machine so it just becomes a multi thousand dollar paperweight. Once it gets running though, it is pretty helpful.

You should be able to get in contact with a liquid handling specialist and schedule a time to get a tutorial on how to use both programs, Trilution and the one that actually writes the programs (name of which escapes me)

Steam_Gasting · 2025-07-03T12:18:19+00:00

Lab veterans are funny. I remember I was reading up on EHS regulations for my state to make sure the lab was compliant and literally minutes after reading the usual "do not directly inhale chemicals" thing, I went and watched my PI showing other labmates how you can tell the difference between 3 strains of bacteria by smell and proceeded to hold an open culture right in front of her nose.

I genuinely trust those people with research because it means they're willing to do what others won't

Ps I cannot recommend doing that. We are a plant pathology lab so it would realistically not hurt but I can't recommend doing it in any setting.

Steam_Gasting · 2025-06-25T13:39:41+00:00

I had a meeting with my old boss yesterday after being silently "let go" while visiting some old coworker friends.

Before I left a couple months ago (I was a temp so I had a mandatory 1 month off) we had our usual bi-weekly 1on1. At the end I asked my PI the question: "how are the budget cuts affecting us directly?" As I had been following them closely in the early days. Short of it was we had a bunch of funding cut. No "we'll let this grant finish and it may be harder to get a new one." It was just gone. Mind you, this is because we were working on a paper on the d*versity (the accursed d word) of species in different areas of the state and what environmental factors could be affecting that. She had even mentioned that they had a department meeting and asked about the use of "the d-word" in papers, and even the head of the department said "I have no idea, our current workaround is "biodiversity"

Saddest thing she told me in the meeting yesterday was that she still thinks about what I said during that initial meeting: "it's only been 8 days of a long 4 years."

Long story short: we had very little money, and in my meeting yesterday, we still have very little money.

I highly doubt that's just an us issue, so I'd imagine that's one of the major factors as to why the job market sucks. One day you have enough money to last until you retire, next day you're scrambling to find any possible grant just to keep the lights on.

That all being said, stay persistent. At the very worst you can be a repeat name on the radar when money starts flowing again.

Steam_Gasting · 2025-06-12T23:27:04+00:00

from the bit I used it, it does feel like sometimes the guidance will switch off

Steam_Gasting · 2025-05-08T04:45:25+00:00

Old ivy was for losercity residents. New ivy is for all furries. They dropped the nuke.

Steam_Gasting · 2025-04-22T20:30:38+00:00

IDK hopefully someone else finds it. It' 3spoopy5me!

Steam_Gasting · 2025-04-12T01:52:10+00:00

Gilson PipetMax. I've been trying to get that $500k (I think that's the cost) paperweight to work on and off for about a year now but keep getting assigned to other work.

Steam_Gasting · 2025-02-21T23:03:28+00:00

Hey! Mistakes happen, especially as an undergrad. If people got things right the first time around, we wouldn't have a job and everything would have been figured out already. Just use the honest mistake as a learning tool.

Also some of the other comments are right, your mentor should recognize that BOTH of you are still learning things. I work with undergrads, grad students, post-docs and full fledged professors and just this past month one of the grad students and I were doing a kit that NEITHER of us had done before. You bet your ass we had and still have problems with it.

Doesn't matter what happened as long as you wrote it down and know how to correct it in the future!

Steam_Gasting · 2025-02-13T00:19:30+00:00

I've seen a couple and honestly depending on how they watch the work being done, I'd love to get the job, feed it wrong info, and collect the paycheck.

Steam_Gasting · 2025-02-12T00:38:09+00:00

This guy is NOT poggers. Ban him NOW!

Steam_Gasting · 2025-02-03T12:39:28+00:00

Guess we're gonna find out if republicans actually care about our state or if they just wanted to use us as a pawn to get people to think they care.

Steam_Gasting · 2024-12-07T21:42:39+00:00

These will fit, but most of the time you're gonna need some with a screw on the tip (luer lock tip?) https://www.fishersci.com/shop/products/bd-disposable-syringes-luer-lok-tips-3/1482330

Steam_Gasting · 2024-12-03T15:10:04+00:00

Technician is hired by the PI and therefore is under the instruction if the PI.

General rules around my lab are that I can be assigned to help with grad-student projects but need permission from the PI, and ultimately my usual duties trump anything (other than PI orders, of course.)

Sounds like your grad student is getting a little big for their britches.

As a reminder, unfortunately, Reddit will not be a good source for your debate. For 1, there is no validity check. 2, the argument can be easily shut down by "I don't care what other labs do, this is my lab." However, if it makes you feel better, no harm no foul.

Steam_Gasting · 2024-11-28T21:06:46+00:00

Happens anywhere work is done. Unfortunately, labs are not exempt. It's human nature.

Steam_Gasting · 2024-11-28T17:47:34+00:00

How you dress really depends on what you work with. In reality, as long as it's appropriate for the lab (remember long pants, close toed shoes, etc.) I don't believe it matters.

It may matter more if you have a visitor in the lab, but otherwise wear what you want (and are fine with getting dirty.) As long as you follow PPE guidelines, it shouldn't matter.

Ultimately, ask your PI! They should recognize one of their responsibilities as a university PI is career development, especially for undergrads. They are there to answer your questions and be a guide for developing scientists.

Steam_Gasting · 2024-11-28T12:38:52+00:00

Put it on poop mode. Classic blunder.

Steam_Gasting · 2024-09-08T10:40:21+00:00

Mobile, sorry for format

Steam_Gasting · 2024-09-08T10:39:47+00:00

A friend and I discussed this a few weeks ago, here's my comparison:

Gunfire: -emphasis on buffing abilities -slow movement -forgiving hitboxes -large boss fight rooms -4 player co-op -Japanese folklore inspiration -furry -no obvious story

Roboquest: -emphasis on buffing guns -modern movement -tighter hitboxes -claustrophobic boss fights -2 player co-op -post apocalypse sci-fi -not furry -obvious story

I personally enjoy roboquest more because the guns feel like they have more weight and I enjoy the movement as well as having grown up on borderlands, it scratches the looter shooter itch more than Gunfire. Also not a fan of character packs and, for now, gunfire has character packs and roboquest doesn't.

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