What I Do All Day

I heard that a few of you are disappointed that I don't talk about myself a little more often, so I figure I'll write a little post about how I'm doing and what my schoolwork is like. The short answer is that I'm doing great. I love being in school. I love it. I feel like this is what I was made for. At first I was really worried about coming back after being out of the game for three years; not just out of school, but not having even thought about science for those years. So I was relieved (and more than a little surprised) when everything came right back to me, as though I'd never left.
They definitely keep me busy around here. I'm only taking one class, but believe me, it's enough. Luckily for me, though, it's a really interesting class. Not only that, but after each lecture I feel like I'm just a little bit closer to the cutting edge of my field. It's a weird feeling. You go to school for years and years, and it seems like there's always more to learn, and now I'm getting to the point where people ask questions and the answer is, "We don't know yet." It's exciting to think that I'll be helping to push the boundaries of human knowledge.
On top of my class, I've been teaching a general chemistry lab class. It's similar to the TA work I did at Eastern, so I'm not too out of my element, but it's definitely more labor intensive. Aside from doing all the grading, I have to actually keep a grade book, prepare short (really short) lectures, and even discipline the class if necessary (I've only had to do this once, thankfully). I'm like a real teacher now; some of them even call me Mr. Lowry, although I try and get them to call me Josh. There is still a bit of a difference, though; I doubt too many high school teachers have students asking for their phone numbers.
And of course there's my research, which is the really exciting part. In fact, I can't wait until I no longer have to take classes so I can spend my time doing my research. I've been working on a few different projects since I showed up this summer, and one of them has yielded some exciting results. What we do is something called RNAi, where we feed our worms this special food that targets one of their genes and shuts it off. Then, we look at one-celled embryos, watch them divide, and see if there's any difference between our mutant and a normal cell. Most of the time there's no difference; I mean, worms have ~30,000 genes, and we're shutting off one. But every once in a while, you get something exciting, and that's what happened to me. Here are some videos I made of this first cell division:



In this one, the DNA and the centrosomes (no, I don't expect you to know what they are) are labeled with a special protein that glows green when you shine a laser on it.


This one shows microtubles labeled in red. These both show the same mutant, just with different cell parts visible. I know they're not in color, but when I look at them under the microscope those are the colors I see. When we process them, they lose their color. Still, it's pretty cool to be able to watch all this happening right in front of you. The first cell division actually takes between 10-15mins, so this is time-lapse video you're watching, but still, this is an actual cell going through an actual division. I think it's cool every time I watch it.

So yeah, that's what I've been doing. It keeps me busy, but I'm loving every minute. And with that, it's back to work for me.

I Just About Pissed Myself...

...because I was laughing so damn hard at this!

Apparently, it's not enough to try and guilt kids into not having sex, to lie to them about the evils of birth control, and to tell them masturbation leads to blindness. Now, kids aren't even supposed to give each other proper hugs. That's right, the "front hug" is now officially sinful. What used to be a simple, innocent gesture of friendship and closeness is now sexually charged and awkward. But don't worry, there's an alternative way to show how much you care, the Christian Side Hug! That's the actual name; I did not add the word Christian to this. You want proof? Here's a little video spelling out the dangers of front hugs (and kissing, but we already knew that was wrong), presented in such a way as to mesh with pop-culture attitudes, so that kids will pay attention.

Speaking of paying attention, keep an ear out for the sounds of sirens, gunshots, and threats of violence in this song. Just like in the Bible, violence is okay, but sex is evil.




I have a feeling this is just the beginning. Pretty soon it'll be the Christian Handshake (not to be confused with the Freemason Handshake, or the Cool Black Guy Handshake), then the Christian Wave From Across the Room, and ending with the Christian Separate Bedroom (for married couples only!). It's an exciting time to be a Christian!

My iPod is Magic

I made a comment on Facebook today about how, up until a year ago, I didn't think anyone actually believed in their religion. This immediately riled some people up. So, I figure I should explain my position on this. Hopefully, it'll make more sense to all of you.

This is the best analogy I can come up with. Let's say I ask an electrical engineer how my iPod works. At first, things will be general and simplified, so I can keep up alright. But then he starts adding on layers of complexity, showing me how particular circuits are put together and why, how they relate to others, etc. Eventually, it will reach a point where I can no longer comprehend his explanation (or am simply too mistified to keep trying). At this point, if he simply said, "It's magic," I'd accept the answer. I wouldn't believe it, but I would accept it, because the details are just too intricate for me to follow(at least not without more education/training/etc). This is where I thought people were with their religious beliefs; they knew that they didn't understand, but needed some sort of answer, so religion fills in the gap. But I didn't think anyone actually believed in it!

I know my iPod doesn't run on magic, but if someone asked me, that's the only answer I could give. It's not true, but because I can't understand it, and I can't explain it to someone else, then it's all I'm left with. What I say is "It's magic," but what I mean is "I don't know." I guess I thought everyone knew that when you're told "God created the earth," what they really mean is "No one knows." I think this is where the big rift between religion and science comes from. Scientists aren't satisfied with being told it's magic, because that means you're giving up on the question, you're accepting that no one knows. Just because no one knows, doesn't mean you can't find out, if you try hard enough.

I think people should disbelieve their religion. There are tons of criticisms I could throw out here, but they're all irrelevant. The main point is this: why give up on the big questions in life? Wondering why our world exists, is there any purpose to our lives, what happens when we die...These questions have so many important ramifications for how we live that we need to have the correct answers. By giving up on these questions, and saying "It's magic," we're leaving behind any possible good that could come from truly understanding them, and possibly opening the door to real harm.

The Cookie Has Spoken!

I just opened up the fortune cookie I got with my lunch, and here's what it said:

"THE RAINBOW'S TREASURES WILL SOON BELONG TO YOU"

So apparently I'm going to turn gay. Sorry hun, nothing I can do about it. The cookie has spoken.