Where The Wild Things Are

How cool is this? 

Science Friday - Scandalous Edition

Science is scandalous. While your initial impression of a typical scientist might be a nerdy person transferring small volumes of clear liquid from one test tube to another (which isn't that far off base), there is definitely a controversial and seedy side to science as well. Take for instance, the backstory on how the structure of DNA was discovered.

James Watson, Francis Crick, and Maurice Wilkins received the Nobel Prize for discovering the structure of DNA. But, did they steal data from a female colleague, Rosalind Franklin,  and claim credit for themselves? Basically, Franklin worked in the same lab as Wilkins which was down the hall from Watson and Crick's lab. Although Franklin and Wilkins held equal positions in the lab, Wilkins regarded Franklin as merely a technician (not a real scientist) due to the fact that she was female. This obviously created tension between them. Down the hall, Watson and Crick were trying to figure out the structure of DNA. Franklin was also working on this problem. She was an expert at taking pictures of crystals and had some beautiful pictures of DNA.

 

One day, Wilkins took her pictures and showed them to Watson and Crick without her permission or knowledge (a big no-no in the science community). After looking at the pictures, it became clear to Watson and Crick that DNA was a double-helical structure. They immediately published their findings and basically became famous overnight. Although their discovery relied heavily on Franklin's data, she was never equally credited. Franklin died of ovarian cancer in 1958 and although the men received the Nobel Prize in 1962, Franklin was not included because Nobel Prizes are not given posthumously. A raw deal in my opinion. On a side note, James Watson continues to be a real gem of a human. Here is an article from 2007 that highlights his true colors. 

A Rose By Any Other Name...

I think I call Harper by her nickname(s) way more than I use her actual name. I like coming up with nicknames for her. In fact, I come up with nicknames for her nicknames. For instance, here is the evolution of her current nickname. First I called her Kiddo. Then Keedo. Then Keedo-Deedo. Then Deedo. Then Deedle. Then Deedles. Then Deets. Then Diesel. Remember - her name is Harper - which has absolutely nothing to do with Diesel. This is just one example. I have gone down several other nickname paths with her. The good news is that she answers to all of them. The bad news is that when someone asks her what her name is and she replies Harper Kiddo Keedo Keedo-Deedo Deedo Deedle Deedles Deets Diesel, it just means more of her time and money that will be spent in therapy. 

On a side note, Harper is feeling much better. The heavy duty antibiotics that she is on seem to be doing the trick. On another side note, I am feeding her lots of yogurt because it's just a good idea for anyone to eat lots of yogurt while they are on antibiotics. She's been eating it up so quickly that I had to run to the store to get some more. However, after I got home, I realized that I accidently got the organic soy yogurt that was sitting right next to the Yobaby yogurt that I intended to buy. It's not good for babies to eat soy (in my opinion), so I have been eating the soy stuff and I went back to the store and got her the Yobaby stuff. The reason I am telling you all of this, is to warn you that organic soy yogurt is horrible. I like yogurt a lot - many different kinds. But, I seriously have to choke this stuff down. Oh the sacrifices I make for my child...

I had something else in mind for today, but I just got some bad news and what I planned to write about just seems silly now. My friend, Barbara, had to put one of her sweet dogs to sleep this morning. Barbara loves her dogs and I am sure that she would appreciate our prayers today. 

Barbara, I am really sorry for your loss. It takes a very special person to take care of dogs that other people found too difficult to take care of. I'm glad that we got to meet Gertie. Her gentle personality is a reflection of the love and kindness that you showed her. 

Homesick

Lately, I've been a little homesick for Cincinnati - which is a really weird feeling for me. Although I spent about 10 years in the greater Cincinnati area, I never really considered it home and I never really liked the city all that much when I was there. But, in the last couple weeks I have been reminiscing about all of the things that I miss about Cincinnati. 

For one thing, I miss my friends. I have some great friends in Cincinnati. Actually, they are way more like family than friends. We do an ok job of keeping in touch - reading each other's blogs, facebook, the occasional game of phone tag. But, it's certainly not like it used to be.  

I also miss my old church. I feel like we left Cincinnati just as some really cool things were happening at VWS and we kind of missed out on the payoff. I still listen to their podcasts every once in a while, but it's just not the same. 

I also miss my old lab. I didn't realize how good I had it. I like my new job, but at my old job, things just clicked. My old co-workers were great - again, more like family than just co-workers. My old boss was awesome too - well practiced at tough love, but she knew exactly how to motivate me to get the best out of me. 

I also miss little things about Cincinnati like my favorite restaurants. I went to the best Indian restaurant in Nashville the other day and it was good, but it paled in comparison to my favorite one in Cincinnati. 

Ok, I'm done whining now. I have a good life here in Nashville. I have great friends that really care about me and my family. I am thankful for my new church and my new job. I am enjoying a beautiful spring in a beautiful city. I'm not sure why I didn't appreciate Cincinnati as much as I should have when I lived there. I know this is a recurring pattern with me - overly critical at the time only to look back wistfully later. The bottom line is that I need to live more in the present and be mindfully thankful for my current situation. Also, I think I may need to make a trip up to Cincinnati in the coming weeks. Anyone want house guests?

Sick of Being Sick

My baby has ANOTHER ear infection. Well, maybe it's not another one. It's possible that the first one never cleared up and has flared up again. In any case, it's just not right that a baby should be sick this long. 

Lord, please heal Harper. I know that you hate the fact that she is sick even more than I do. I just ask that you will make her comfortable and that you will supernaturally strengthen her little immune system so that she stops getting sick all the time. Thank you for blessing my life with hers.  

Science Friday - Sheep Edition

Ok, so I am definitely using the Science Friday title loosely this week (but you have to understand, I get hate mail if it's Friday and I don't do a Science Friday post). I love this video for many reasons: 1. It's ridiculously creative 2. It's real 3. It's Welsh 4. It involves sheep... the list goes on and on. Happy Friday. Enjoy.