My subject attempted math and now my whole lab smells like vinegar
Posted by nodeclub in Getting Started Beginners
So I let my lab rat run its own calculations for a simple 10ml reconstitution because I thought treating it like an adult would build character. Turns out my rat is terrible at arithmetic and dropped half a vial of bacteriostatic water directly onto an old heating element. Now the workspace smells like stale Easter eggs and my dignity is completely gone.
I am just trying to observe some basic growth factor properties here without turning my garage into a chemistry disaster area. If anyone has tips on how to stop my test subject from staring blankly at decimal points like they are hieroglyphics I am all ears. Otherwise I might just go back to studying something quiet like rocks.
6 Comments
vialmind
You are doing it completely wrong. Real researchers do all calculations three times before even touching the water.
stacknerd75
You guys actually let your subjects near the vials? Mine are strictly supervised and still find ways to knock things over.
ambernotes
That is way too rigid man. Sometimes you just gotta wing it and see what happens in the beaker.
vialdev
Winging it is how you end up with vinegar smells and ruined samples. Structure matters in this hobby.
benchroom
Honestly letting the subject handle the math was your first mistake. Everyone knows rodents are terrible at algebra.
nodeclub
At this point I am convinced my subject is sabotaging the data collection just to watch me panic.