The humanity of it all

Every now and then, I like to take a step back from my workload and put everything I'm doing into perspective. I think that it's incredibly easy for us to lose sight of our purpose when all you feel like all you're doing is running from one task to the next (which is pretty overwhelming, I might add). This practice of asking myself, "Why are you doing this? Why does this matter?" helps me see the value in the things that I do on a daily basis. Earlier today, I was working on some stem cells from a patient who had Wolman disease, which is a fatal genetic disorder where your cells lose the ability to degrade certain fats. Out of curiosity, I did some research on where the cells exactly came from. I scrolled down the screen, looking at information related to specific mutations. Eventually, I came to some lines that really struck me:

GENDER: Female AGE: 4 months (At sampling)

Wolman disease is fatal in infants - they usually die within 6-12 months of being born, which means that this patient probably died just a few months later. These cells aren't just cells - they were somebody's baby girl. Someone's daughter that was taken far too soon. Somewhere in the world are two parents who spent time calling relatives, excited over the prospect of a new life. Two parents who went shopping for baby shoes, baby clothes, and baby bottles. Two parents who had to hear the devastating news from their doctor, that their little girl wouldn't make it to her first birthday. And as painful as this story is, it is not unique. It happens every day, in every country around the world. And it's unacceptable.

Thinking about this really made me realize how important it is to realize the humanity of science. For the past few months, working with these cells was just a routine. Come in, feed, experiment upon. Now when I put them under the microscope, I think about the family that had to suffer from this loss and how important it is that we continue to work to make these diseases things of the past. It's my team's responsibility to make sure that her cells are a gift to the world, and that they contribute to finding a cure for dozens of other little infants around the globe.

The humanity of it all is really humbling, and it's why I'm so in love with what I do.

I'M SORRY

Alright, so I've been totally dropping the ball lately regarding the content on this blog...I PROMISE I'll write things up over the weekend and have all new things ready for you by next week! I recently got put on a project at work that is intended to find feasible therapies for Wolman disease, a disorder in which your cells can't metabolize cholesterol properly. I'm hoping to eventually write this up for a publication, so I'll be somewhat sparing of the details of the project...when I can divulge more, I will!

In other Francis-you're-kind-of-a-scientist-now news, I started my first induced pluripotent stem cell cultures yesterday, which I'll be further differentiating into other forms of stem cells such as neural and mesenchymal stem cells. This is my first experience with handling stem cells, so I'm pretty stoked to get the ball rolling on this project. Unfortunately, it means I'll have to be at work to take care of them every day (including weekends) indefinitely, but at least I'll be working on a pretty sweet project. Cool stuff! Here's a picture of the little guys: aren't they adorable?

Figure 1: Those large clumps of cells are stem cells! The smaller bits floating around are debris/dead cells

Have a fantastic, science filled weekend!

P.S. Did you hear the Philae lander that landed on that comet determined that the water present was different from that found on earth? Full disclosure: the water (also known as heavy water) found on the comet was only different in that it had an extra neutron - the structure was the same. Heavy water is found here on earth  (contrary to many news headlines that I've seen lately), but it's much rarer than regular water!

"Talk science to me"

Okay, maybe those aren't the exact words that Poison sang 27 years ago, but it was the easiest segue I could think of into the topic of this blog. This post is going to be a little different from past ones, where I've highlighted interesting stories or developments in the world of science. Rather, I'll be focusing on the very reason why I started Kitchen Table Science in the first place: communication.

Figure 1: This is me (somewhat aggressively) promoting neuroscience!

Yesterday, I read a very interesting article from the Huffington Post that compiled quotes from various politicians who have shied away from talking about scientific topics. Their general excuse?

"I'm not a scientist!"

This is essentially the equivalent of covering your ears and saying "la la la la la I don't hear your facts". But who is at fault here? I, and many others in the scientific community place a lot of the blame on ourselves. Science is a wondrous thing, built on the backs of giants and heavily invested in by your tax dollars. We work hard to better our collective understanding of the world around us and it's only fair that we bring everyone along on that journey with us. Can I get an amen?!

If you're reading this blog, you've probably already spent some time browsing the internet, be it Facebook or Twitter. My challenge to you, dear reader, is to find a news article in the sciences, read it, and discuss it with a friend. Do you have a friend with diabetes or cancer? Are you curious as to why the leaves seem to be changing slower or faster this year? As detectives Mulder and Scully would say, "The truth is out there!".

My dream is that everyone, including our elected officials, will one day be able to critically discuss and analyze findings emerging from laboratories around the world without having any advanced training. I want to see these discussions being started at your water cooler at work, or over a lovely meal at your kitchen table. You shouldn't need to be a scientist to talk about stem cells or climate change. After all, can we not debate literature without being novelists? Or discuss world affairs without being a diplomat? If your answer to the above two questions was "of course we can", then let's chat!

Increasing public engagement within the scientific community has been a struggle for a long time, but the advent of the internet and social media is making it easier and easier to disseminate knowledge to everyone. While we'll always work to improve our skills, I am making it my personal mission to be the best communicator of science that I can be.

On a side note, let's also stop trying to put spin on science for personal gain when spin isn't necessary. I'll never understand perverting science to bend to one's own agenda; but then again, I'm not a politician!

Figure 2: Not a politician...yet? Photo courtesy of Sean Hickey Photography