Anyone who has worked in a laboratory knows what I mean by "pipetting up and down". It is a pretty obvious thing to do, just hit the plunger a couple of times to make sure your liquids mix, except for such a vague term it actually has a quite specific meaning.
When one reads enough protocol that says to mix by pipetting up and down, or to avoid doing so, one begins to wonder, why the heck do they keep calling it such a terribly vague term? Like I said, everyone understands it, but in the scientific environment, it seems silly to go without giving it a verb, as it's a commonly used phrase.
Thus, I suggest: pipettomixenoscillation. Perhaps not shorter, but way cooler. And all the better to confuse lab newcomers.
"How do I prepare this reaction?"
"Oh just add the buffer to your reagents and pipettomixenoscillate"
"What?"
"Pipettomixenoscillate. Don't they teach you anything in school? You're fired, stupid."
Oh and by the way, when this makes it into Webster's, I want credit for coining the term. And money. Lots of money.
When one reads enough protocol that says to mix by pipetting up and down, or to avoid doing so, one begins to wonder, why the heck do they keep calling it such a terribly vague term? Like I said, everyone understands it, but in the scientific environment, it seems silly to go without giving it a verb, as it's a commonly used phrase.
Thus, I suggest: pipettomixenoscillation. Perhaps not shorter, but way cooler. And all the better to confuse lab newcomers.
"How do I prepare this reaction?"
"Oh just add the buffer to your reagents and pipettomixenoscillate"
"What?"
"Pipettomixenoscillate. Don't they teach you anything in school? You're fired, stupid."
Oh and by the way, when this makes it into Webster's, I want credit for coining the term. And money. Lots of money.
2 comments:
I am so going to start calling it that. If I can remember all the syllables.
Sweet, I'm gonna start a movement
Sorry to keep slightly editing people's posts, just trying to keep an eye out for myself when you keep hearing about identities on the internet. Likely most if not everyone reading this know who I am but I don't need need to become the next case study in internet etiquette. Am I paranoid? Probably.
Post a Comment