Day 2 - The three lab mice enter the lab

Hello everybody! we are the three lab mice from Nanyang Junior College! we are embarking on this 2-week work attachment at NTU and these are some of the things that we learned today.

1. Safety in Lab

Safety is the utmost importance in labs especially when we are dealing with expensive equipment and hazardous chemicals. We have to wear protective gears such as lab coat and hair cap.

2. Meeting our Mentors

We are attached to Rini and Hui Yee to learn from their PhD project which is the study on Transport of Sustained Release Carriers for Delivery of Therapeutic Agents to the Posterior Segment of the Eye. 

3. Hands on Experiment

The three lab mice were put to a test after watching Rini's demonstration on how to dilute a 10.0 microlitre solution using a pipette. It was interesting how we have to be more cautious of what we are doing compared to that of the experiments we do in school. It is very intriguing as we are handling nanomaterials which are 'nanoscopic'. We also witness the real life application of Brownian Motion with of Zetasizer which is a machine which uses dynamic light scattering to track the speed of the movement which is proportionate to the size of the particle. It was a very interesting experiment because we had to take note of every minor detail such as ensuring no air bubbles on the inner surface of the cuvette or scratches on the cuvette as they will interfere with the scattering of light which hence results in inaccuracy in the data. 

4. Tour around the Lab

Rini brought us around the lab, introducing us to most of the instruments in the lab, such as the Rotary Evaporator and the Sonificator. There are also fridges that keep things under -80 degree Celsius to slow down decomposition of cells or tissues.

5. Personal Experience with Rini

It was great talking to Rini and learning about her life as a researcher and found that her keys to success are time management, internal motivation and self discipline. Also, she stays efficient by maximising her productivity.

Overall it was a fun day! YAY!! End of Day 2 :)