another week...

Month of February is now about half over... wowza. I'm still not following through on the "daily post", so need to work on that one... The monthly to do list is coming right along. Preparing lecture is turning out to be more time consuming than expected, but I think I'll get the hang of it soon. This week in addition to the italicized, I need to catch up on reading big time.

Also, Richie's birthday bash is this weekend, so I can't say I'll be super productive... oh well, mental health weekend :-)

1. email prospectus to entire committee (need to create spreadsheet of experiments to date first)
2. set up pre-prospectus meeting with committee
3. think about feedback and respond to mentor
4. first draft of outline for dissertation chapters
5. prep two lectures for class (finish one this week)
6. talk with adviser on new plan for experiments, including surgery updates
7. order extra batch of experimental animals, begin twice a week data collection
8. analyze any and all data collected
9. prepare presentation for CI class
10. prepare group led discussion for CI class
11. write response paper for business class
12. complete exam one for NEUS class

dreary tuesday

from freezing, ice and snow to 60 degrees, rainy and flooding streets... can't we get a break?! just kidding, i much prefer the latter.

still going on the neuroscience exam, hoping to finish it tonight. it's been really difficult to locate resources that are written at my level... seems to be nothing between super genius and fifth grader. oh well, almost one step closer to completing that minor! yay!

yesterday's experiment didn't go well. another one bites the dust. we'll try again friday.

the monthly list is now as follows (w/weekly goals italicized):

1. email prospectus to entire committee (need to create spreadsheet of experiments to date first)
2. set up pre-prospectus meeting with committee
3. make any edits required for prospectus
4. first draft of outline for dissertation chapters
5. prep two lectures for class (one this week)
6. talk with adviser on new plan for experiments, including surgery updates
7. order extra batch of experimental animals, begin twice a week data collection
8. analyze any and all data collected
9. prepare presentation for CI class
10. prepare group led discussion for CI class
11. write response paper for business class
12. complete exam one for NEUS class

caution: slippery when wet

we were supposed to get a really nasty winter storm last night complete with snow and ice. it's not nearly as bad as anyone expected, but for some reason people still can't figure out how to drive or walk in it. i've been entertained for the last hour watching people slide down the hill outside the design house (on foot, not in vehicles).

so the big project for the weekend is the first take home exam for my cellular and molecular neuroscience class. the first question asks me to examine the idea of how our genes and behaviors interact, in this case investigating the molecular cause and possible treatments for phenylketonuria. phenylketonuria (which is an autosomic recessive disease) is characterized by the bodies inability to metabolize the amino acid phenylalanine, leading to eventual mental retardation via a lot of complicated molecular interactions. phenylalanine is abundant in many foods, therefore the simplest treatment is a strict diet eliminating any food that contains phenylalanine (meats for example). the problem with the treatment is that it's extremely hard to limit one's diet for their entire life. i mean can you imagine? don't eat that steak, honey, it could lead to permanent brain damage... yikes.