My 2010 Summer

So, this was the first summer that I had spent away from home, and away from the farm (duh).  So almost a year ago, I started to look for something to do for the summer as a trial, which I thought would be interesting, and help to advance me towards that magical degree known as a Ph.D.  I found a few programs known as REU, or Research Experience for/as Undergraduates, basically an internship, but more research based in a lab.  I applied to two, and got in to the first one that I wanted to be in down in Lincoln Nebraska, about 470 miles from home.

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Once I got down there, we all (62 of us from all over the States, and Puerto Rico) met and got to know each other.

Out at the picnic to get to know each other

So after getting to know each other, we split off to each of our research areas.  Mine was in the Bioenergy program, so we went to the lab that we would be in for the rest of the summer while we were there.  Now since I was working with DNA of sorghum (a relative of corn that is more drought tolerant and can survive warmer temperatures), and I was looking for lines that showed cold tolerance, and the markers that could be used to identify them from a molecular biological basis.   

The press to squeeze the sap out of to test

Sorghum leaves drying after cleaning of the soil

Gel-boxes to run the DNA

Gel-cam to take a picture

At the end of the 10 wk program, we all made a poster to showcase the work that we did

My poster

So that was my summer of 2010, lets see what happens for this coming summer

Grad Schools

Merry Christmas to y'all

Another Saturday on the computer.  So after spending the better part of the afternoon with my family, (and eating lots of food, the deserts kept coming with no end in sight, and lots of empty wine bottles on the counter) at home, resting, and searching through a small list of grad schools that I've found, or talked to at a conference I was at at the end of October (ASA-CSSA-SSSA Meeting in Long Beach CA 2010).  Of the dozen or so schools that I talked to, only about 5 really stand out to me.


Like I said on Twitter just a little bit ago, I'm looking at them, and open to a few suggestions, let me know if there is any school that you recommend, especially if they are working with bioenergy projects, from seed to fuel (or production of corps to fuel in you car) 


Night y'all, work in the mornin' 

A Late Saturday Night

OK, it isn't that late yet (9:30 pm ish here) but considering that my alarm is set for 4:20 am, it is getting late for me.  Of all of the things that I could be doing on a Saturday night as a college student, looking up milk testing equipment isn't one that is high most peoples list, but there is a reason for it, I insist.  A few months ago, while I was thinking of grad schools, and what field to go into, I had a smart idea, go to grad school, get a Ph.d, and find my way back home and start a farm and be a partner on this new farm (even if it is an extension of the one that my family owns now).  Since I'm a sort of a scientist at heart, why not use that to better advance a farm, and do research that is more applicable to the specific farm.  Time will tell if that comes out like that or not.

Night ya'll