so i dutifully went into lab sunday morning to change my cell’s media. sadly, i was greeted with the news that of the lab’s cells were infected with some nasty contaminant. apparently, a bunch of us had been sharing purified virus from a single tube (it was a scrambled virus used as a control) and it turned out to be not so pure anymore. under the microscope, the cells looked like they were underneath a fuzzy white blanket. i had to throw them all out.
such is life.
i don’t mind having to repeat the experiments; shit (and fungus) happens, you know? i just hope that people aren’t thinking that i, the newest member of the lab, have been reckless or careless, sneezing into various vials and drooling inside the hood. i promise, i haven’t. in fact, i’m quite careful while i’m doing cell culture, because i’m still new at it. i work slowly compared to other people and i disinfect with a lot of alcohol. i’m not saying i couldn’t have contaminated the tube of virus, but i personally think that there’s just as much chance that it was someone else. anyway.
i can’t believe i only have 2 weeks left of my rotation! there are some experiments i really want to finish up before i leave, because it would be nice to have some actual data and a sense of completeness in return for my 2 months here. i feel like i’ve learned a lot, but i have a long, long way to go.
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