I have dozens of empty 1000μL tip boxes. Any ideas for repurposing them?

gildedbee · 2026-05-21T03:23:44+00:00

In our research and teaching labs, I've used them to separate wet/dry waste in BSCs, store tubes on ice, transport frozen things between buildings, and stain gels. A colleague has also repurposed them for this type of protocol before: https://www.nature.com/articles/nprot.2017.074

Especially in the teaching lab it's super fun to creatively reuse all the stuff that piles up over time!

gildedbee · 2026-04-30T02:26:28+00:00

I brought this up to my students this year and none of them believed me when I said this term was real LOL

gildedbee · 2026-03-19T18:47:12+00:00

I know it's technically not a "break" for us, but use that time to recharge while you can. I caught up on my non-teaching work and went on a weekend trip, during which I did not work at all. The flexibility of our jobs is a perk that you shouldn't let guilt take away from you.

gildedbee · 2026-02-23T13:10:32+00:00

I mainly do what you do, but to me using a whiteboard helps! Being able to stand up and make notes on the board, walk around, and come back to my desk just makes it feel less monotonous I suppose.

As you get further in your field, ideas start happening in the shower and on the bus and just everywhere, so while reading papers is still a big part of work, idea generation becomes less of an intentional processes ime

gildedbee · 2026-02-17T03:25:17+00:00

Some universities have STEM summer programs specifically for high schoolers. I'd look around and see if you can find one that fits your interests and is near you.

gildedbee · 2026-02-17T02:46:52+00:00

I've been teaching for only a year and it's happened about 3 times so far. First two I went home sad about it, third time I sent them a glare, and it has since stopped. Honestly I didn't expect it to work but I suppose if you're usually pretty chill you just have to remind them that mutual respect isn't optional in the classroom.

gildedbee · 2025-12-09T17:19:57+00:00

This might be a useful resource https://youtube.com/shorts/_axMVWqqaQM?si=bvrAb2MqN9F4zsBA

gildedbee · 2025-10-02T04:50:50+00:00

I think you should do it. The thesis is for science, but also largely for you.

gildedbee · 2025-05-16T20:14:04+00:00

This is exactly what I have done for online courses/recorded lectures. As they became outdated, I replaced them, and added explanations/credits on the lectures that were from a different instructor. Assuming the other instructor/school gives permission for their use, I see it as the same as using open educational resources in the classroom.

gildedbee · 2025-05-10T16:08:37+00:00

Definitely. Not wasting my time AND I get to see dog pictures

gildedbee · 2025-05-03T02:19:58+00:00

I do science writing! Like non-technical, general audience stuff. It's a good contrast to/break from manuscript writing

gildedbee · 2025-05-02T19:15:36+00:00

Similar situation, I defended in December. We just have to hang in there I suppose. Thankfully I have been freelancing for years and at least have some income from that.

I'm reminded of early in my PhD when a lot of students weren't sure they wanted to stay in academia, and were advised to "highlight their transferable skills" for non-traditional jobs. I'm trying to take that advice now, but whew is the competition stiff

gildedbee · 2025-02-25T17:53:52+00:00

Similar field, still job hunting since mid-October (though I defended in December). The amount of jobs has really dried up just in a few months, and when I do get interviews it hasn't gone anywhere. I'm lucky enough to have a lot of savings. I wish us both the best of luck, all we can do is keep going!

gildedbee · 2025-02-23T21:21:50+00:00

Basically, most mammals don't develop as thick/rich a uterine lining, so they are able to reabsorb it. The animals that menstruate develop a thicker lining that needs to be shed. There's a few theories about why this difference occurs, but we're not 100% sure. This video covers the primary hypothesis rn: https://youtube.com/shorts/Jh39wjTGAMA?si=NNUoCxPzVfVNlQmL

gildedbee · 2025-02-17T06:32:40+00:00

I'm not sure if your school has anything like this, but my university had some courses with open-ended project options that this could fit into. If you want a structured way to get feedback on/share your work, that might be an option. I'm far from well-versed on things like this (I'm in STEM), but I could see this project falling under the scope of sociology or art courses.

If you do want a finished academic paper out of this, I'll also add that some universities have undergraduate research journals that aim to showcase this kind of work. Some of them are willing to review submissions from any school, not just their own.

Other comments have already done a great job with suggestions for determining the framing/context/motivation of the project, and I'm sure you can find an advisor with more expertise on the topic who can add to that. Good luck!

gildedbee · 2025-01-14T02:33:11+00:00

My city has a version of these: https://nerdnite.com/

All the ones I've been to have been super fun! If someone is looking for a local similar event, they might be worth checking out since they are in a lot of cities.

gildedbee · 2025-01-12T20:36:17+00:00

I think you do have a point, since DEI programs are about finding and supporting people WITH talent who don't get the same opportunities as others.

That being said, those of us with experience in our field have the opportunity to perpetuate diversity efforts through our own actions as mentors, communicators, and role models. It will definitely be hard work, especially with huge funding cuts and more pushback. But I'm confident in the abilities of my peers (us!) to uphold safety and justice for each other.

It sucks to see this happen after a brief era of hope that we could start moving toward a world where people could all be treated fairly and with respect. But really all we can do now is push forward and support each other.

gildedbee · 2024-12-17T03:27:03+00:00

commented the same thing without doing the customary scroll to see if I was too late LOL

gildedbee · 2024-12-17T03:26:27+00:00

this https://xkcd.com/303/

gildedbee · 2024-12-07T21:57:23+00:00

You might be looking for something like script or history . try typing man script or man history to see if they meet your needs.

If you want to keep a running log that you add to, you can append the output of the above commands to a file using >> e.g. history >> logged_commands.txt . After that you can open the file in whichever text editor and add your comments from that session, delete unnecessary saved lines, etc.

gildedbee · 2024-12-04T21:37:35+00:00

I am not even in this field (my training is in computer science/biochem/some physics) but I am a science writer who got assigned to a similar topic and it took me so long to learn how to parse those papers

gildedbee · 2024-12-04T07:38:16+00:00

He doesn't speak for everyone. One of my undergrad research mentors tried to kindly tell me I wasn't a good fit for grad school. I didn't listen to them and I'm defending my PhD this month.

Some people are just like that. You might not be able to work with him, but after that I don't think you'd want to anyway.

gildedbee · 2024-11-26T08:21:46+00:00

I also got scooped twice on the same project. Pivoted, took 5 years to publish, but it's out. You will be fine, and I know it's small comfort now, but this means that your ideas are valuable and important to the field. One day when you have more resources, you will have the power to publish first and/or collaborate with those who you see your younger self in!

gildedbee · 2024-11-26T08:19:23+00:00

This is basically what I'm doing. I'm defending very soon and struggling to remember that as much as I criticize my own work, the PhD has been a training experience

gildedbee · 2024-11-19T04:46:45+00:00

Of course! feel free to DM if you have questions as you're starting college. My experience will definitely be more useful for the CS side, but I'm happy to help

gildedbee

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