The Prospectives

This weekend is the neuro program’s first interview weekend for the prospective students. It’s going to be really busy but I’m looking forward to it. And what’s cool is that I will get to see the admissions process from the stress-free box seats. I’m not actually sure what I’m allowed to talk about here… Ah, I know. I can tell you about the fun activities we have lined up for them.

There’s the Chinese New Year festival. That should be a lot of fun and excitement. And then there’s Beer Fest, which I’m not totally sure of, but also looks like it might be a blast. And then a trip to Sausalito, which I took Nelsa to go see when she visited in the winter. And the fourth activity is still nebulous to me, but includes Golden Gate park somehow. We’ll see.

Ahh, how boring… I’ll probably have more to say after the interview weekend is over.

In more relevant news! I bought this pillow from Ikea for $2 when I first moved out to SF. It has literally been the worst pillow I have ever had (worse than NO pillow at all). But I stayed strong and loyal to this impostor of a pillow. About a month ago I stopped resting my head on it, instead choosing to use it as a seat cushion. Needless to say, it has completely failed at its new post. And a week ago, I finally washed the pillow (I didn’t know you were allowed to do that), and it is completely ruined. The case has holes in it and it’s practically tattered. Oliver Twist would return it and ask for another. What’s worse is that the filling, which, to my dismay, turns out to be some sort of synthetic fiber glass material, has been falling out in small lumps. So I am at a complete loss as to what I should do with this stressed out and balding retiree of the comfort world. Toss it you might suggest? NEVER!

But come to think of it, what the hell have I been sleeping on, and breathing in, for all of these months? There is probably a thin layer of Ikeasbestos lining the insides of my lungs.*Cough!* And now breathing makes me sleepy! Could it be because of the poisonous, artificially created chemicals now circulating through my bloodstream? Or could it be that I have reached a level of supreme, zen-like comfort that was initiated by the months of training (read: sleeping) on a noxious head-bedding?

I’m gonna take a wild guess and say: it’s definitely the poison.

And for Bobby, another Brees/C.A. cover.

Captain America #45

Make sure to tune back in to see C.A. 3-5.

New Logo

I have started creating a new logo for Carry The One Radio. And now I feel inept.

But before I tell you about that, I should give you some background information. In science, you get picked on a lot. It comes with the metaphorical lab coat (read: I don’t have a lab coat…). I realized this early on. Once when I was 16 or so, I gave a powerpoint presentation on my research to a group of top professionals in the field. To put it bluntly, they tore me a new one. I don’t think I was prepared for the questions and comments section at all. I presented my work with a feigned calmness, I put my hands in my pocket to simulate being in control and collected, and I tried not to umm (is that really a verb?). But the first piece of advice I got was not to put my hands in my pocket. They saw right through me! And then I got grilled. Thankfully, someone in the audience noticed the smell of roast sama floating through the room and felt some pity for me. They raised their hand and instead of asking a question, they congratulated me on my work and told me I did an excellent job. I don’t think that person knows how important that was for me. Yet alas, a mark was left.

Now when it comes to scientific criticism, I have a hard shell. Well, that’s not really true. It’s not that at all actually. Because I was raised so well in the lab, I quickly came to realize that the criticism is all part of the process. It’s always going to be there. You get peer reviewed constantly. And it’s to ensure that your end product, the scientific truth you are releasing into the world, is strong and honest.

And if you can’t take that, then you will really have a hard time in academia. Because there is a dark side. Scientists have egos and rivalries are ubiquitous. This lab hates that lab and thinks their research is bunk and that lab is trying to steal that lab’s work and, even at a personal level, lab heads just hate each other. It’s the strangest thing and a complete waste of time, energy and other valuable resources. I just want my data to be unequivocal. my writing to be clear, and my discoveries to be useful. No ego, just science.

We’ll see if that ends up being true. God I hope it does.

And back to my point about the radio show logo. It’s difficult! I don’t have a high level of design skills and I can only do what I can with the tools that I have. I sent off my logo to some people and asked for comments. To put it bluntly, they tore me a new one. not really. But I don’t think I was prepared to have everyone miss the point I was trying to make with the new logo. So today, I took all of their advice and tried to implement them but that was also difficult (because of my lack in skills). And the “final” product looked so snotty that I couldn’t stare at it any more. And then I had another idea for a completely different logo that I just sent them. Let’s hope they like this one haha.

And because Bobby wanted to see Captain America. We shall give him Captain America!

Captain America: Theater of War

PRX

Sometimes before soaring away into snooze land, I listen to some audio. This time, it happened to be one of the short stories from The Moth Podcast. If you don’t know about the Moth, then you need to learn. Every once in a while, The Moth puts out a short story, told live in front of a live audience and without notes. These stories are beautifully told. Some are funny, some are serious, and almost all of them are full of that feeling you get when you breathe in deeply and then, exhaaaaaale. I love these stories. And with all things I want to keep loving, I try to space them out so I don’t get tired of them. (Does not apply to Nelsa!)

Side note: I used to love cinnamon toast crunch. And in high school, that’s all I ate for breakfast. Now I can’t stand the look of the box. Everything about it bothers me. The same happens with songs I listen to over and over and over again. Like Poison. Or Sweat the Technique.

But back to where I was.

So, I was listening to this episode, and during the outro, I hear “podcast hosting by PRX, public radio exchange, helping make public radio more public at prx.org”. And it sticks.

The first thing I did that morning was look into PRX. Turns out, it’s a place for people like me to connect with actual radio stations. All you have to do is upload your audio, and radio stations in the PRX network will have access to it. This was perfect. Right away, I wanted to switch my podcast hosting site to PRX.

But not knowing how to do that, I emailed the PRX help desk. And for a good reason too because apparently PRX does not host podcasts. This actually made things easier. I can continue to upload and disseminate my podcast normally. But in addition, I can now upload a “radio friendly” version to PRX. And today, that’s exactly what I did; I uploaded my most recent interview (with Sam Pleasure) to the PRX site. Hopefully, this will lead to my show being syndicated in dozens of radio stations.

But I can’t do this without the help of listeners like you. Please rate the the show on iTunes and add your friends to the facebook page.

Batman: Shadow of the Bat #31

A Popped Toe, Sis

There a lot of amazing seminars on campus. UCSF faculty do a great job bringing in top notch researchers. Two weeks ago we had Eric Kandel present data from two different projects: (1) his proposed molecular mechanism for long lasting memories and (2) the priming effect of nicotine on cocaine addiction. And today Bob Horvitz from MIT gave a talk on programmed cell death (PCD). Both are Nobel laureates, but they are only a few of the amazing talkers that appear on campus. This, along with Nelsa’s laissez faire manipulation of my life, has inspired me to attend as many of these seminars as possible.

So today, in addition to Horvitz’s talk on PCD, I went to a BMS (another grad program here at UCSF) pizza talk, on the suggestion of my friend Liz, a BMS student. The talks were by two BMS faculty members that presented some information on current projects in their lab. The first was on a growth factor that’s involved in cancer and other processes. And the second was on apoptosis, otherwise known as PCD.

Apoptosis is a natural and necessary process that occurs during development, like trimming your hedges. In fact, without apoptosis you get problems like cancer coming up. And with too much apoptosis you get issues like AIDs. It has to be a finely regulated process, like walking over a bridge. And just by going to these talks today, I got some ideas for possible theses projects to look into. I haven’t thought them through fully yet so I don’t feel comfortable talking about them here. Maybe some other time.

But to stay on the super nerdy train, I hope you enjoy this video.

Ravi – I hope you don’t feel short changed with this one!

Spider-Woman #5

Move over Bat-Woman!

What a stressful year!

Whoa! Things are moving WAY too fast… Exams, homework assignments, lectures, seminars, papers to read, and research!

To slow things down a bit, I did two things today.

(1) I went to a meditation session:

So around 12:50pm I check my email and see that UCSF’s Wellness program has sent me another email (they send about 4 a week to the entire student body). This one said, “1:10pm free guided meditation session. Free food for students.” And the best part was that it was 2 minutes away, in the building across the street from where I work. I check my clock and think. Man, I have too much work. I don’t even have time to eat lunch. I better not go to this thing. Instead I should pull out some papers and start reading. Or at least work more on my hard as hell homework assignment. But a big part of me is yelling loudly in my inner ear. You have 5 minutes to decide! Why are you living such a stressed out life! Chill man! Just go.

So I listen to myself, for the first time in a long time.

I go the session. I eat a peasant pie (hot pocket?) and I meditate. It wasn’t more than sitting down in a chair, breathing, and being still for 20 minutes. That was it, just 20 minutes of eyes closed. No need to take your shoes off or anything else. Just sit. Breath. And relax. And that’s exactly what I did. I can’t claim that all my problems melted away after the session was over. But it really helped. I finally broke the busy rhythm, at least for the time being.

Overall? I’m going again next Thursday. And I’m still overwhelmed with work.

(2) I go to “Night Life” at the Academy of Natural Sciences with Colleen:

She invited our grad school class but everyone who wasn’t me decided to be lame and not reply (in fairness we all have a paper discussion to prepare for). It worked out well because she got both of us in for free. And it was really cool. There were all kinds of people, walking around, boozing, taking pictures, and just enjoying themselves. Not worrying about neurons and voltage clamps. The Academy is practically in my backyard, just a few blocks into Golden Gate Park. And this event happens every Thursday night. it’s really amazing. For $12 you get to enjoy live Dj music and the museum. Really worth it!

After a while I left Acetyl-Colleen at the museum and went home to read more papers and spend more time ripping my hair out over homework. it’s all worth it! I’m damn good at teaching myself but it just takes longer because I have to wait for that AHA! moment. Know what I mean? Nelsa says I love to keep myself busy so I should just stop complaining. The complaining makes it better though!

I’ve lost count of how many covers I’ve shown.

The Question: Zen and Violence

My favorite comic book hero of all time. Even more than batman!

Basketball League

My life has begun adjusting to a completely new rhythm. Last class quarter, I would wake up early, go to class, hop on the shuttle and head off to work, play basketball during my lunch break, stay late at lab, then get home too tired to take my shoes off. Now, after class, I head to lab, do some research, head home at around 4 or 5pm to eat dinner or shoot around in the gym, then I head back to lab for some late night research, followed by another shuttle back to my house, where I cook dinner (I actually cook now!), talk to Nelsa for 8 hours on the phone, and then fall asleep a happy man. I like it a lot better for two reasons.

(1) I’m actually cooking food now. I bought a rice cooker and I finally realized what butter is good for. Now I make delicious meals once every other day. It’s amazing!

(2) I do more work in a single day because I take advantage of the extra shuttle bus rides in the late afternoon. I either read papers or work on homework while I ride along.

This new fly research is where it’s at. I feel like I’m going to have a great time figuring out the role of this gene in sex behavior (at least for the fly). I’ll keep you guys updated if anything comes up.

Aside from that, I’m playing my first basketball game in the intramural winter league today. I don’t have a jersey so I’m gonna duct tape a number to my shirt later on. Steven and I joined the staff basketball team in the co-ed league. Should be a lot of fun and less stress than the first league I played in. You know, the one where we lost every single game except one. We’ll see if I got better at basketball. Updates later.

The Amazing Spider-Man #615

Punch your eye out

Let’s get outrageous. My partner in crime and love of my life (goes by the name of Nelsa for those who don’t know) has inspired me to get outrageous with this blog post. She texted me a phone-picture while she was doing laundry. There was a discretionary note on the upper dryer at her laundromat. It said: “Make sure to check for small children and pets before loading dryer”.

Unfortunately I can’t find this text… So instead I’m going to continue on this outrageous train to nowhere and put up the “most ridiculously awesome fight scene ever”. Bobby sent this out to me in September of 2k9. Just.. amazing. I mean, it’s so badly done that it’s actually pretty good. With just the right level of gore, eye popping mannequins, ravens, and lack of proper medical care. Not to mention the puns and gut wrenching hilarity that can only be envisioned by the bravest of Hong Kong kung fu directors.

hahahah I just saw more clips from this movie. It is outrageous!

Now let’s cool it off with a random segue of me on the Muni – on a Saturday – on my way to work…

Find Waldosama

And I forgot to show off these new Adidas that I bought to play basketball in. $35 – that’s it.

I can dunk now

Peace out and good night folks. Check your biorhythms before going to sleep.

–Cover #28–

V For Vendetta

The original comic book – very little to do with the movie.

Think inside the box

Throughout college, those closest to me have come to discover one of my darkest secrets. An obsession I have held close to my heart because I cannot explain it. I fear, you may mock me. Or laugh at me. Or shun me, if you are so cruel. But tonight, I will unveil this secret to the world.

Dost thou thinketh ye be pr’par’d?

Here it goes: I love… boxes.

Boxes. No, not just boxes. Containers. I love things that you can put other things in. I don’t know why. Of course, all of us as little kids loved making forts. Me? I made castles. And as I grew older, my box palate became more sophisticated. I became less intrigued with cardboard and moved on to more intricate containers. It is an illness. I hope that my addiction to the things that things come in may not be unique… Is there a Box Lovers Anonymous. Let me share with you some of the more impressive uses I have come up with.

Here is something all of you may have done. A simple glass jar to put your coins in. But how many, would have realized the potential of an Ice Breakers Sours container to house quarters for laundry? How many, still, would have foreseen the possibility of this potential during a layover in Las Vegas and then hidden the container in my back pack for an entire two weeks?

My quarters smell delicious!

This too is obvious. I prepared a caper and garlic vinaigrette (remember my Roasted Pepper Sandwich Delights?) and then I tossed the flavorful goodness into a jam jar. The problem? I have two more of these jars just sitting there. Waiting. And I don’t throw these things away, because maybe. Just maybe…

I can put blueberries in these!

And finally, my favorite use of a box to date probably. This shoebox was converted into a two shelf bookcase with a hidden compartment. Tell me that isn’t genius?

Inspired by Kat's "Beer Box Bookcase"

Now this is where I need your help. I have plenty of containers left. Too many in fact. But I don’t know what to do with them… I just… keep them. They need to fulfill their role… Au secour y escargo!

Currently serving as a complicated drinking apparatus

–Cover #27–

Batman: Shadow of the Bat #1

Still contained within the original collector’s plastic.

The Roast of Red Peppers

Many have claimed that I, the Great Chef of Nile, cannot prepare a delicious meal. I let these photographs speak for themselves. WHOAAAA!

Preheat: 500 degrees

30 minutes hot. 30 minutes cool.

Peel and marinate in a caper and garlic vinaigrette

Fresh bread, basil, and goat cheese

How many can now claim my inability to compose? WHO?!

– Cover #26–

Cowboy Ninja Viking #2

JoN – Born 4 B.C.

This weekend was probably the most productive weekend I’ve had since coming to grad school. And I got to chill out too. Today, I went out to my friend’s Stephanie’s house. She invited some of us to decorate cookies, drink hot cider, and be merry. And that’s exactly what we did. We played Apples to Apples, which is a game that I utterly suck at. And I decorated cookies, which, initially, I also sucked at but then had a Medici era epiphany and began composing elegant and tasty works of art.

And I took pictures. On a side note: I learned how to use Camera Raw in Adobe Bridge today. Hurrah pour moi!

"Untitled" - S. Gee and O. Ahmed Collaborative Art Piece

Steven and I made beautiful and delicious frosted delights. And combined them together in our effort to prove ourselves to as humans worthy of living in a world dominated by corporate bailouts and the death of the imagination. Or something…

Zeus the cat

There were two more cats – but I like this one the most.

?

And I took this picture, most likely by accident. It appears to be very festive and I decided to include it for the hell of it. I think at the time I was messing with the manual settings of the camera. The light was bad enough that it needed flash but adding flash just made everyone looks like a ghost. I had to pull out my know-how of camera settings that I learned from Kat and Liz through random conversations in college. They probably don’t even remember talking to me about cameras

–Cover # 25–

25th book cover to appear on The Tectum. Might as well be presidential about it.

The Amazing Spider-Man #583