Every year, the evolutionary genetics class does a little experiment to test whether humans can choose genetically compatible mates by smell. In real life, there are many other things that influence mate choosing, but historically we haven't always had online dating services and personal hygiene products.
Since the evolutionary genetics class is overrun with men, they needed some female volunteers (me). We spit in a cup, and the TA sequenced our DNA. Next we all must wear the same t-shirt to bed for 5 nights in a row, wash only with plain soap, and wear no deodorant or perfume. Our "natural smell" will be all over that t-shirt.
Then we smell each other's shirts and declare which smells the most appealing. Finally, they compare our DNA to see if each person's smell-choice is genetically compatible. Yay!
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Home
After a whirlwind trip to Minnesota (which included 6 Christmas celebrations), we returned briefly to South Bend, after which I drove to New York for a short course in ecosystem ecology. Both trips were wonderful - I saw many relatives and learned a lot of ecology.
And now, more than one month and 3,000 miles later, I am home to stay and it feels great. I slept in my own bed, ate my usual breakfast, sat at my desk, surrounded with my books and files and notes, played with my cats, cooked and ate supper with my husband in my kitchen, and ran one of my usual routes. Never before have I been so excited to return to my routine. Yay for coming home!
And now, more than one month and 3,000 miles later, I am home to stay and it feels great. I slept in my own bed, ate my usual breakfast, sat at my desk, surrounded with my books and files and notes, played with my cats, cooked and ate supper with my husband in my kitchen, and ran one of my usual routes. Never before have I been so excited to return to my routine. Yay for coming home!
Friday, January 2, 2009
Less wired, more whiny
My laptop just lost its ability to communicate wirelessly which shouldn't be a big deal because it's under warranty and I can connect with cords and wires and such. But the place that will fix my computer is closed for the holiday (stupid generous university), and I will be in New York for two weeks starting Sunday and will have to rely on (cue dramatic music) a generic laboratory computer for email correspondence.
What a bunch of whining from a girl who once thought laptops and wireless cards were an unnecessary luxury. So I won't blame anyone who stops listening to my spoiled complaints and returns to New Year's revelry.
What a bunch of whining from a girl who once thought laptops and wireless cards were an unnecessary luxury. So I won't blame anyone who stops listening to my spoiled complaints and returns to New Year's revelry.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Turnips are the new sweet potato
When I was a kid, I put turnips in the same category as gruel and cornmeal mush: ancient foods once served to children in Dickensian orphanages. It was sort of like they didn't really exist, because I'd never heard of an actual person eating a turnip. I imagined despondent pioneers freezing in their dugouts, surviving the winter on withered turnips and moldy flour.
So last week, when I saw turnips at the Farmers' Market, naturally I bought some. They were only 4 for $1, which seemed like a bargain to me. According to my favorite cookbook, turnips were popular at the turn of the century (I assume the 20th), when they were one of few vegetables available in the winter. Poor turnips, usurped by hothouse tomatoes and California spinach, and relegated to desperation food.
Turnips need a comeback, I thought. We are going to eat these tonight. I chose a recipe with brown sugar, reasoning that if they were awful, I could just add more sugar. Besides, unlike the other recipes, it did not require the turnips to be julienned, a technique that seemed beyond my culinary skills (or at least beyond my food processor).
What to eat with turnips? Well, the cookbook indicated only that they were a Side Dish, and my imagination determined that they were historically eaten when there was no other food left. So we decreed turnips to be a picnic food (never mind the winter vegetable designation) and cooked up a couple bratwurst.
They were okay - they tasted like a cross between kohlrabi and jicama, with maybe a small hint of horseradish. Mostly I tasted sugar and butter, which confirmed my picnic designation. So turnips are much more than I thought - they are not a food to be eaten in desperation and misery, but a guilt-free vehicle to sugar consumption. Hmm.. maybe I could sell that slogan to the Turnip Council of America.
So last week, when I saw turnips at the Farmers' Market, naturally I bought some. They were only 4 for $1, which seemed like a bargain to me. According to my favorite cookbook, turnips were popular at the turn of the century (I assume the 20th), when they were one of few vegetables available in the winter. Poor turnips, usurped by hothouse tomatoes and California spinach, and relegated to desperation food.
Turnips need a comeback, I thought. We are going to eat these tonight. I chose a recipe with brown sugar, reasoning that if they were awful, I could just add more sugar. Besides, unlike the other recipes, it did not require the turnips to be julienned, a technique that seemed beyond my culinary skills (or at least beyond my food processor).
What to eat with turnips? Well, the cookbook indicated only that they were a Side Dish, and my imagination determined that they were historically eaten when there was no other food left. So we decreed turnips to be a picnic food (never mind the winter vegetable designation) and cooked up a couple bratwurst.
They were okay - they tasted like a cross between kohlrabi and jicama, with maybe a small hint of horseradish. Mostly I tasted sugar and butter, which confirmed my picnic designation. So turnips are much more than I thought - they are not a food to be eaten in desperation and misery, but a guilt-free vehicle to sugar consumption. Hmm.. maybe I could sell that slogan to the Turnip Council of America.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
The Earth is so cool: snottite version
Somewhere in Mexico, there exists a cave filled with toxic hydrogen sulfide gas. It looks a lot like other caves, but in addition to the usual collection of stalactites and stalagmites, are some gooey, mucousy formations clinging to the ceiling in snot-like fashion. Hence their name: snottites.
Snottites are giant colonies of bacteria. They convert hydrogen sulfide gas to sulfuric acid, creating energy in the process. Even better, the snottites are colonized by tiny insects, which feed on the bacteria. In fact, there is an entire, complex ecosystem within these caves, including spiders and fish. Since there is no organic matter entering the cave, the entire system is driven by these sulfur-eating bacteria. That's so cool!!
Also: termites have nitrogen-fixing bacteria and cellulose-digesting bacteria in their guts, which allows them to live soley on wood. Woot!
Snottites are giant colonies of bacteria. They convert hydrogen sulfide gas to sulfuric acid, creating energy in the process. Even better, the snottites are colonized by tiny insects, which feed on the bacteria. In fact, there is an entire, complex ecosystem within these caves, including spiders and fish. Since there is no organic matter entering the cave, the entire system is driven by these sulfur-eating bacteria. That's so cool!!
Also: termites have nitrogen-fixing bacteria and cellulose-digesting bacteria in their guts, which allows them to live soley on wood. Woot!
Friday, November 7, 2008
Taking on The Man, who happens to be an insurance company
I had this incident this summer where I got stung by a yellowjacket while traveling and had to go to the emergency room in Milwaukee. They diagnosed me swiftly, but it turns out that taking vital signs and prescribing medication in an emergency room costs over $300 - it was the most expensive 5 minutes of my life. Which is fine, I guess - I do have insurance after all. And that is where the problem begins.
I got a call from the hospital a couple weeks after the incident for verification of insurance information. Then a couple weeks later, I got a bill. So I called the insurance company, who did not have a record of the claim. So I called the hospital and gave them my info again. Then I got another bill, this time with a generous "uninsured patient discount." Which is nice, but I am insured! So I called the insurance company, who again had no record of the claim, and they pacified me with a fax number. Then I called the hospital, who said they did not have my insurance info on file. I explained that I had given it to them. "Oh, sometimes it doesn't get entered in the system when you're at the clinic," she replied. Maybe, but what about all those phone calls? So I gave them my information yet again, including the mysterious new fax number. Now I wait - any bets on whether this gets resolved?
I'm not sure whose fault this is. Does the insurance company claim to not know me, just to get out of paying? Are the hospital billing staff too incompetent to send claims to the right address (3 times)? Are they both hoping I just give up and pay the bill so that they don't have to resolve anything?
All told, I've spent at least 4 hours on the phone, navigating menus, waiting on hold (the hospital plays Canon in D, interspersed with ads for their pharmacy and online services; the insurance company just plays a litany of info on their website, which is awful, by the way), and speaking with customer service reps, none of whom have given me the same answer. All for $300.
But it's the principle of the thing - I paid that ridiculous premium for a reason. This isn't the first time it's happened, either - I need to call the insurance company nearly every time I go to the doctor, and explain that this procedure really is covered (see page X).
And if providers, insurance companies, and patients have to spend this much time on the phone just to resolve these rather straightforward claims, then it's no surprise health care costs are so high. I can only imagine what would happen if I ever had more complicated diagnoses.
I don't know how to solve the health care crisis in America. But surely this system where legitimate bills hang, unpaid, in insurance limbo, does not help. And it seems like an easy place to start - dammit, you billing and insurance people: do your jobs!
I got a call from the hospital a couple weeks after the incident for verification of insurance information. Then a couple weeks later, I got a bill. So I called the insurance company, who did not have a record of the claim. So I called the hospital and gave them my info again. Then I got another bill, this time with a generous "uninsured patient discount." Which is nice, but I am insured! So I called the insurance company, who again had no record of the claim, and they pacified me with a fax number. Then I called the hospital, who said they did not have my insurance info on file. I explained that I had given it to them. "Oh, sometimes it doesn't get entered in the system when you're at the clinic," she replied. Maybe, but what about all those phone calls? So I gave them my information yet again, including the mysterious new fax number. Now I wait - any bets on whether this gets resolved?
I'm not sure whose fault this is. Does the insurance company claim to not know me, just to get out of paying? Are the hospital billing staff too incompetent to send claims to the right address (3 times)? Are they both hoping I just give up and pay the bill so that they don't have to resolve anything?
All told, I've spent at least 4 hours on the phone, navigating menus, waiting on hold (the hospital plays Canon in D, interspersed with ads for their pharmacy and online services; the insurance company just plays a litany of info on their website, which is awful, by the way), and speaking with customer service reps, none of whom have given me the same answer. All for $300.
But it's the principle of the thing - I paid that ridiculous premium for a reason. This isn't the first time it's happened, either - I need to call the insurance company nearly every time I go to the doctor, and explain that this procedure really is covered (see page X).
And if providers, insurance companies, and patients have to spend this much time on the phone just to resolve these rather straightforward claims, then it's no surprise health care costs are so high. I can only imagine what would happen if I ever had more complicated diagnoses.
I don't know how to solve the health care crisis in America. But surely this system where legitimate bills hang, unpaid, in insurance limbo, does not help. And it seems like an easy place to start - dammit, you billing and insurance people: do your jobs!
Monday, November 3, 2008
Running, running, running
Now that daylight savings time is over, Greg and I decided to start running in the morning. I realize this doesn't sound ambitious to most runners, but I have been an afternoon exerciser for a good 15 years now, and getting up early and running does not sound natural to me.
This new running regime coincides with our registration in a new race: the Little Rock Half-Marathon. I've not spent much time in the land of Bill Clinton, Mike Huckabee, and the ivory-billed woodpecker, but a former lab member and runner lives there now, so a group of us will descend in March to visit and run.
So as of March 15th (assuming all goes as planned), I will have run races in Minnesota, North Dakota, Kansas, Missouri, Louisiana, and Utah. Given my current residence, Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois should be easy to add to the list. I'm probably not ambitious enough to run in all 50 states, but perhaps someday I'll reach 10 or 15. First things first, though: currently, I'm just trying to get out of bed before 7 am.
This new running regime coincides with our registration in a new race: the Little Rock Half-Marathon. I've not spent much time in the land of Bill Clinton, Mike Huckabee, and the ivory-billed woodpecker, but a former lab member and runner lives there now, so a group of us will descend in March to visit and run.
So as of March 15th (assuming all goes as planned), I will have run races in Minnesota, North Dakota, Kansas, Missouri, Louisiana, and Utah. Given my current residence, Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois should be easy to add to the list. I'm probably not ambitious enough to run in all 50 states, but perhaps someday I'll reach 10 or 15. First things first, though: currently, I'm just trying to get out of bed before 7 am.
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