The Pipettepen

One of the goals of the Pipettepen blog is to train science communicators to share science with nonscientists. However, as both scientists and nonscientists know, this communication is not always as seamless as it could be. In the spirit of … Continue reading →

2019, “new year, new me,” as they say. Many people have new goals; maybe they’ll read more, go to the gym more, or try to improve relationships. Whatever your New Year’s resolution, one goal everyone should have is to think … Continue reading →

Recently, I couldn’t find my keys. They weren’t where I usually keep them. Turns out, I was so distracted when I came home that I left them dangling in the lock. Other days, I’m looking for my phone. Where could … Continue reading →

The new year is a new horizon full of possibilities and potential. While the clean slate can seem daunting to some, to others it represents an opportunity to commit themselves to something new. Although these New Year’s resolutions are good, … Continue reading →

“Detoxing” is all the rage right now—whether it’s foregoing solid foods in favor of juices during a liquid cleanse, suffering through a colon cleanse in the form of a colonic irrigation, fasting or restricting diet, or a combination of these—many … Continue reading →

(Caution: do not read just before lunch!) We all know the feeling… queasiness, belly in knots, guts on fire and no end in sight. Now I want you to imagine the worst possible place to get the runs or yak … Continue reading →

You have probably never met anyone suffering from sleeping sickness, a potentially fatal condition. This is because the disease, also called African Trypanosomiasis, is only present in certain regions of sub-Saharan Africa. While the number of human cases has dropped … Continue reading →

Any scientist knows the importance of a good negative control. A negative control in an experiment is a group of samples or subjects in which no response is expected to an experimental treatment. The experimental group can then be compared … Continue reading →

As of Friday November 16, 2018, California was home to the three most polluted cities in the world. These three cities – San Francisco, Stockton, and Sacramento – topped the world’s chart of polluted cities as a result of the … Continue reading →

Imagine you are working on a project with a large group of people, all with different personalities and responsibilities. Your group was just informed that something important to the progress of the project went terribly wrong. Some people in the … Continue reading →