Cell Lines

[methionine]

... The reason why I got into the lab was because I went in for an interview thing and they felt that I had a lot of enthusiasm and that I knew enough to work in the lab.. something along the lines of that. I feel like I will be disappointing them if I just start asking "stupid questions."
agh, I have to go, so I'll write more later.

[Louise]

... The reason why I got into the lab was because I went in for an interview thing and they felt that I had a lot of enthusiasm and that I knew enough to work in the lab.. something along the lines of that. I feel like I will be disappointing them if I just start asking "stupid questions."
agh, I have to go, so I'll write more later.

No one expects a high school student to have the book-knowledge as a Ph.D. student or a post-doc. They had 8-15 years more coursework. But honestly, you probably come to lab with similar experimental skills as a first year graduate student; it is likely that they don't have any experience with these techniques either. Don't under-estimate your skills or value to the lab.

Amber is absolutely correct with _everything_ she said in her last post. As long as you are asking questions after you have tried to figure things out on your own (and not using your prof. as the first source for every question), then you are fine. The phrasing that Amber suggests is good, "I read this and this, but I don't understand that." I also recommend asking for a reference and not an answer- "I don't understand this topic, and I've read this and that and they don't explain it clearly. Can you recommend an article or textbook that would help?"

Louise

[methionine]

I guess so. I just really want to do the best job in the lab I possibly can, because after my mentor trusts me enough around the lab, I might be able to actually start my own project. I was thinking of focusing in on one gene or something of the sort later (because mere verification of targets-- especially when it wasn't exactly my own idea-- might not be enough in terms of what I can enter at any science fair, and plus, I want to come up with my own question, etc.). I know it's important to focus on the task at hand and work on what I'm doing at the moment, but I also like thinking about where this might take me in the future and consider possibilities that might follow this.

[Craig_Bridge]

A large part of learning is figuring out what you don't know and what interests you and what others have learned and communicated (written about) and how to find it. Learning how to learn is really what all good BS degree programs are geared toward. It appears that you are well ahead of where most your age and you might be just getting a glimpse of things that will bring you to an appreciation that there are depths to knowledge that might take a lifetime to explore.

You maybe thinking about some questions that might not have known answers or even methodologies to investigate. They might require a whole different vocabulary and a comprehension of mechanisms to even attempt to communicate them.

Louise's suggestion of asking for guidance in what to read is right on target for where you are in your learning curve. Make good use of this!

Things take time, be patient with yourself and others. Nobody is perfect and trying too hard (I'm sensing you tend to be a profectionist) leads to being unhappy. Enjoy the journey, laugh, have fun along the way! There are plenty of life skills to learn in growing up in order to be happy and somebody that is appreciated as a person that people want on their team that have nothing to do with scientific skills. This is another aspect of college life and work environments that you are being exposed to early.

[methionine]

Yeah, I think you're all right. I just messed up one of my gels today (I don't know what I did wrong, even after re-checking everything I wrote down and looking over the primers I designed... but the bottom line is that they didn't work out correctly), and I guess that messing and being unsure is just part of being a beginner. It's alright. I talked to some other people in the lab and they were all like "yeah, it happens to everybody." They also encouraged me to ask questions, so now I'm feeling a little better.

[vtrip]

If you need to look up information about cell lines, one of the best places is the ATCC company website, which is essentially where every biology lab orders their cell lines. http://www.atcc.org/