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Asked by jonbanfield to Louise, Michaela, Sian, Steve, Yvette on 17 Jun 2010 in Categories: Your Research.
Question: have any of your experiment ever just refused to work?
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Michaela Livingstone answered on 17 Jun 2010:
Oh yes, PLENTY!
One of the experiments I use that allows us to see how much a protein is involved in getting a gene’s message out a cell’s nucleus stopped working at the start of this year – we tried changing everything and it just wouldn’t work, and I needed data from it for a paper we were submitting…
It just started working again last week. I have no idea why because I’ve been using ALL the same things. It’s a mystery!
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Yvette Wilson answered on 17 Jun 2010:
no, I’ve normally got things working – after a lot of time troubleshooting and often help from someone more experienced than me. Normally in the lab if a commonly used method isn’t working there’s a simple reason and its just better to ask.
I have designed a few experiments badly though – so that they don’t answer anything at all. then I get really cross with with myself. -
Steven Kiddle answered on 17 Jun 2010:
I’m in the middle of one right now. First it refuses to work, then it works but doesn’t make sense. Most of science is spent trying to do experiments that don’t work, especially when you are learning how to do things. But gradually you get better and start to understand the problem.
But this makes things mean so much more when things work!
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Louise Johnson answered on 17 Jun 2010:
YES. I spent the first year of my PhD trying to sequence some genes from yeast using a technique that just. wouldn’t. work. Eventually I had to give up and do something slightly different instead.
I wish I hadn’t wasted so much time on it, but I suppose it was character-building or something. -
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