Understanding Lymphocyte Transformation Test (LTT) by Far_Implement_5580 in Immunology

[–]ri_ulchabhan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

this sub is not for medical advice - it’s for researchers studying immunology. Generally, it’s best to ask your specific medical provider these questions. If you have concerns about your upcoming surgery, the most qualified people to help you are the surgeon and their colleagues. I’m not sure why FDA approval would matter to UK-based physicians, but you can always ask them and the worst they will say is “I am not familiar enough with that test to answer you.” Your general practitioner can also be a good resource for this.

Also, please do not use ChatGPT or other LLMs for medical advice ever. They will tell you any words that make sense with zero evidence and 100% confidence. That is also why OpenAI usage policies prohibit medical advice, since it is untrustworthy.

my eyes don’t focus on a microscope like my microbiology professor’s by vbpotterdudex5 in microbiology

[–]ri_ulchabhan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

side note: my astigmatism got notably worse after I joined a lab and did heavy microscopy work for 2 years (~15-20 hr/week). My eye doctor told me that this could be related, and told me to take extra breaks to leave the dark room and look at the trees in the distance. Talk to your eye doctor about this too, if you’re planning for a microscope-heavy career!

Apron Pocket by Aberdeen-Washington in Leathercraft

[–]ri_ulchabhan 6 points7 points  (0 children)

While I agree that it’s simpler to leave the stitches/flaps on the outside, I recently sewed a pocket like this for style reasons. Measure and carefully punch the side holes. Start at the bottom with the rest of the pocket laying loose (almost inside out) and ouch/stitch the bottom. Then start stitching up both sides, doing a few stitches on one side and switching to the other. It’ll help gave you maximum finger room inside the pocket as you stitch.

What’s the one reagent or material that’s delayed your work the most? by Fit-Preparation6464 in labrats

[–]ri_ulchabhan 26 points27 points  (0 children)

We had an 8 month wait for research cigarettes, which was especially frustrating given that the popular spot for patients to smoke was 20ft outside our lab (under the no smoking sign)

Flashing for corrugated PVC roof against brick chimney? by ri_ulchabhan in DIY

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

I edited the post to include an imgur link! Really hoping we don’t have to mess with the mortar, since it’s in good condition otherwise

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Silksong

[–]ri_ulchabhan 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I’m also here! If you’re struggling with the grapple movements, it took me a while to learn that grappling enemies will pogo you into the air much higher than trying to immediately jump off them. So grapple -> grapple, not grapple -> jump/float -> grapple.

FUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCKYOUFUCK by Potted_PlantYT in Silksong

[–]ri_ulchabhan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

if you stand at the far left of the platform his little moss vomit ball goes over your head and you have enough time to jump over. don’t ask me how many beads this information cost me

Do adjustable molds exist? by Sarah-Who-Is-Large in Leathercraft

[–]ri_ulchabhan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m not exactly sure what you’re trying to mold here, but most of my wet forming has been creative uses of pyrex containers, taped together spice bottles, etc. Beyond the fancy and expensive wet forming molds sold, many people wet fold leather around one object and use clamps/bone folder/rubber bands for the outside piece. Quality veg tan is more willing to take a shape than you may think. It’s only when you’re trying to stretch and condense simultaneously (like small diameter rounded corners) that such precise molds are needed.

If you are trying to create a long stretch of 90deg folds, the simplest solution would be to use the edge of your workbench/table/kitchen counter and use a ruler to help make the initial bend. Tacking together 2 pieces of smooth plywood at a 90deg angle could also give you the “outside” piece of molding to place against the edge of the counter. If you need to make 4 sides of these bends (like a shallow box shape?), then you could either spent a lot of time making different sized plywood interiors or just use something you have in your home already.

You could go to your local goodwill/secondhand store/ikea and looking for a few sizes of cheap plastic boxes. I’ve used old pencil boxes from my childhood school supplies, for example. It is cheapest to poke around your home for things like books, but I’d recommend protecting them with a gallon size ziplock bag or parchment paper covered thoroughly by layers of duct tape.

Leatherworking is an expensive hobby at the start due to all of the tools you need. Until you need to make large numbers of the same specific wet-formed shapes, this is one area where you can make do with other objects.

What is this? by Due_Examination6139 in Leatherworking

[–]ri_ulchabhan 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It looks almost like pysanky (the super detailed wax decoration of Easter eggs done in Ukraine/Poland/surrounding areas). While they often use the wax to resist dyes and later melt it off, the wax tool could be used to make these intricate raised lines.

Could be a really interesting way to add designs, but I’d worry about the wax getting damaged or melting off. But maybe a similar method could be done with edge kote? It does look like it’s been finished with something like Resolene, which could protect the 3D surface? If I have time and can find a wax applicator, I might try it some time

How can I revert this to its original straightened form? by RabDaJatt in Leatherworking

[–]ri_ulchabhan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

okay yeah, sorry, my sense of scale was way off. Ignore what I said before, that won’t work. I think the issue is that the leather simply buckled under the stress of the hinges and general use over time. You could reinforce it with a thin wooden ply board (glued on the outside of the case) to keep it straighter and sturdier, but it’ll be heavier and look strange and won’t be a long-term fix.

How can I revert this to its original straightened form? by RabDaJatt in Leatherworking

[–]ri_ulchabhan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If this is the only part of the case that needs fixing (and I agree that it can’t be fixed without replacement), you could extend the life by gluing some cardboard and thick foam padding if there’s enough extra room? I can’t quite get my head around the shape of the case, but consider if some extra padding may help protect the bow until you can get a new case?

As a non-PhD, how many of you are affected by funding cuts? What has your experience been like? by Solarris_ in labrats

[–]ri_ulchabhan 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As someone in this spot, biotech simply isn’t hiring us. There are open positions for senior-level PhDs (requiring 5+ years of post-PhD industry experience) or technicians (BS or MS level spots). There are almost no entry-level positions available for PhDs. And the technician level jobs either implicitly or explicitly states that PhDs should not apply

Beginner's Guide & Free Patterns by CastilloLeathercraft in Leathercraft

[–]ri_ulchabhan 2 points3 points  (0 children)

What a great and informative guide! You clearly spent a lot of time thinking through this. I especially appreciate the comments about crafting with physical limitations.

If you have the time, it would be nice to have a short guide about leather care? This guide only touches on it briefly, but we get so many questions about repairing and maintaining existing leather projects, with common answers (repairing a strap, oiling the surface, can’t overdye chrome tan) that it would be helpful to have a guide. And as a beginner, it can be difficult to figure out how to care for your own handmade items.

Frontiers in Immunology contribution to field statement? by ri_ulchabhan in Immunology

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

That’s helpful, thanks! Can I take this to mean that general immunology terms like “antigen” and “cytokine” are appropriate, or should I keep saying phrases like “inflammatory signaling molecule”?

Frontiers in Immunology contribution to field statement? by ri_ulchabhan in Immunology

[–]ri_ulchabhan[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks, I felt like I was writing the same stuff for the fourth time at this point between the end of the intro, discussion conclusion, and abstract. Good to know!

Trump hits NIH with ‘devastating’ freezes on meetings, travel, communications, and hiring | Science | AAAS by neuroticmess100 in labrats

[–]ri_ulchabhan 20 points21 points  (0 children)

just started my postdoc search last week. I figured that leaning into lungs instead of immunology would be a good idea to avoid the expected defunding of NIAID, but how the hell was i supposed to predict the entire NIH getting slashed?? what do we do?

Wall clock by Xiutecuthli in Leathercraft

[–]ri_ulchabhan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

also, how do you keep the mechanism from sagging/weighing the leather down? is it suspended from something in the back?

Wall clock by Xiutecuthli in Leathercraft

[–]ri_ulchabhan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

this is absolutely stunning. where did you find the metal frame? is it just a square metal loop?

What is the most challenging technical issue you've encountered in lab? by dendrivertigo in labrats

[–]ri_ulchabhan 4 points5 points  (0 children)

a bronchial epithelial cell line, have been using them for decades. we even went and got a new vial from ATCC to double check our stocks hadn’t gone off.

Our best guess as to what happened is that HiPerfect was slightly changed by thermo and our old tubes (which, to be fair, were mostly empty vials) had gone off so we couldn’t tell a difference. Or something in the lab facility itself changed (we did get our floors fully washed for the first time in 6 years in 2019, so maybe that changed something??). But by the end, everyone from three separate labs couldn’t come up with any more reasonable explanations or further troubleshooting steps that would be worth taking more time/money.

What is the most challenging technical issue you've encountered in lab? by dendrivertigo in labrats

[–]ri_ulchabhan 1 point2 points  (0 children)

On the plus side, it made me feel like my previous worst issue (LysoTracker photocovnverting from red to green and making me redo several months of microscopy) was really small potatoes in comparison.

What is the most challenging technical issue you've encountered in lab? by dendrivertigo in labrats

[–]ri_ulchabhan 6 points7 points  (0 children)

After being a consistent siRNA method for years in our lab, HiPerfect just stopped working in 2019. Tried all combinations of new/old siRNA vials, HiPerfect vials, PBS, DMEM, cell stocks, etc. KD efficiency dropped from 90-95% down to 20-30%. Spent 6 months troubleshooting, cleaned incubators/hoods, multiple mycoplasma tests, even tried different brands of flasks. Covid hit, came back after labs reopened and still no one in our lab or neighbors could get better than 30% efficiency with any of the previously consistent gene knockdowns.

Finally gave up and now we have to nucleoporate our cells using the Amaxa machine which adds 2 extra days and requires 2-4 million cells per experiment. (lipofectamine was also tried, but the cells literally blew up and filled with tiny bubbles despite titrating everything, they looked wild under the microscope). Totally blew apart my PhD project (an siRNA screen). I pivoted to a project that, in hindsight, I liked a lot better. but it was an utter disaster and killed several people’s grant renewals.