Friday is here again and I have been busy enough that there hasn't been a Fragments for a few weeks. That doesn't mean that I don't have links. If anything this edition may be the largest yet!
Before we get into the fragments, Monday will begin the "new" Behind the Bench series featuring other young people in science. First up will be a few people in pharmacy and will expand from there. So Jeremy Daniel you're up for Monday.
-Artificial organs are nothing new but that field changes everyday it seems. Two new advances in artificial lungs are quite intriguing. First, scientists have create the first artificial lung that breathes regular air instead of pure oxygen. Now people on artificial lungs aren't chained to oxygen tanks. In related news, read this article about "made-to-order" lungs. Similarly, scientists are making artificial spinal discs out of biological materials, which would be a better alternative than fusing the discs or metal/plastic discs that degrade and are subject to attack by the host's immune system.
-A few weeks ago I caught a article about the Large Hardon Collider and how close it is to finding the elusive Higgs Boson particle. That would be a major step forward for physics and chemistry (for those of you unfamiliar with the Higgs Boson here's the wiki article to catch you up).
-Work with Microsoft Excel? Check out these cheat sheets. Ctrl Shortcuts, Function Shortcuts, and Misc. Shortcuts. Also, here is your 2011 Excel World Champion. Yep there is a competition for Excel, Word, and Powerpoint now!
-NC State scientists are experimenting with new memory devices that work like a memristor. They would have the consistency of jell-o and even be implanted into the body! Creepy.
-In medicine news...another new drug has proven it can prevent HIV infection to a certain extent. More exciting than that is the prospect of a new therapy that can be used against a broad spectrum of viruses. Much like antibiotics can kill multiple bacteria, this new therapy attacks a process all viruses have in common. This lack of specificity also may prevent a virus from mutating to avoid destruction. Lastly, if you ever wondered what I studied as an undergrad student in Industrial Pharmacy, this article describes what's in Viagra. Learning the what, how, and why of these ingredients is a lot of what I studied.
-The Web at 20...take a trip drop memory lane (I'm thinking of you America Online)!
-If you are like any other normal human being, you probably love girl scout cookies. Well, one box of girl scout cookies could be worth $15 million dollars in graphene. Don't believe me, check it out!
I think that's enough for now...enjoy your Friday and weekend!
Showing posts with label internet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label internet. Show all posts
Friday, August 12, 2011
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
The Beginning
With all great endeavors there must be a beginning. For those of you who know me, you know I am not much of a writer. I enjoy conversation, but as I enter into the world of graduate studies (which I'll get to in a minute), I found that I wanted to give blogging a try. The plan for this blog is for me to allow a window into my world as a young pharmaceutical scientist. I also envision this blog to be a spot where family and friends can keep up to date with my life along with anybody wanting to pass the time reading about anything from new FDA regulations to new cars to how good the Purdue basketball team will be next year. There are no given themes or topics to this blog. The content will solely depend on whatever is on my mind at the time and what events are occurring around the time of writing. Ultimately, I hope to release weekly (or even biweekly) posts but for now it will be on a "free time" basis. So let's bring everyone up to speed.
My name is Matt Jackson and I am currently finishing my Senior year at Purdue University. I am majoring in Pharmaceutical Sciences and have been accepting into the Ph.D. program at Purdue starting in the fall of 2010. I have lived in Indiana my entire life but I want to move outside of the Midwest at some point in my life. Currently, I am the Staff Resident (RA to the RAs) at McCutcheon Hall and until my employment is up at the end of the semester that is all I will say about that (other than I am very fortunate to have been a part of the McCutcheon Residential Life Staff team).
I think putting my goals into perspective will aid in the directionality of this blog and ultimately will decide if any of you readers actually care enough to follow me. I am fascinated by science and particularly pharmaceutical science. My dream is to one day own my own Pharmaceutical company which may or may not make it big because it would be run differently than any other drug company. In my experience, marketing people dictate what scientists can and cannot do, and that must change. It cannot always be about making money as it should be about helping people. But enough of me on a soapbox...
I am not trying to make people laugh or to upset anybody. I am simply in need of a way to further my writing skills while hopefully making a few people slow down and think now and then. Overall I am an optimistic person which wishes nothing but the best for everyone. However, I also believe you get what you deserve. I have no intentions of making it big like my high school classmate Mark did with Club Trillion. I just want to show people what I think and as I may get further away from friends and family, this seems to be the logical next step.
I'll end with a quick thought...it was reported today that the fastest internet speeds are found in college towns. I just wonder if Drew remembers the days of "56K modems" like I do?
My name is Matt Jackson and I am currently finishing my Senior year at Purdue University. I am majoring in Pharmaceutical Sciences and have been accepting into the Ph.D. program at Purdue starting in the fall of 2010. I have lived in Indiana my entire life but I want to move outside of the Midwest at some point in my life. Currently, I am the Staff Resident (RA to the RAs) at McCutcheon Hall and until my employment is up at the end of the semester that is all I will say about that (other than I am very fortunate to have been a part of the McCutcheon Residential Life Staff team).
I think putting my goals into perspective will aid in the directionality of this blog and ultimately will decide if any of you readers actually care enough to follow me. I am fascinated by science and particularly pharmaceutical science. My dream is to one day own my own Pharmaceutical company which may or may not make it big because it would be run differently than any other drug company. In my experience, marketing people dictate what scientists can and cannot do, and that must change. It cannot always be about making money as it should be about helping people. But enough of me on a soapbox...
I am not trying to make people laugh or to upset anybody. I am simply in need of a way to further my writing skills while hopefully making a few people slow down and think now and then. Overall I am an optimistic person which wishes nothing but the best for everyone. However, I also believe you get what you deserve. I have no intentions of making it big like my high school classmate Mark did with Club Trillion. I just want to show people what I think and as I may get further away from friends and family, this seems to be the logical next step.
I'll end with a quick thought...it was reported today that the fastest internet speeds are found in college towns. I just wonder if Drew remembers the days of "56K modems" like I do?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)