Today was the first day of the dreaded Ochem lab.
Last night (and early this morning, might I add) were spent writing up the pre-lab, which includes amongst other things drawing a chart of all the chemicals we would be using, their physical properties, any hazards they may cause, and the treatments necessary. Needless to say, it took quite a while.
The lab itself was like something out of a Potions class in Harry Potter: A surly professor barking orders, miles of strangely contorted glass tubing, clinking bottles and vials, and three samples to be collected in bottles and turned in to the professor.
With my customary luck, I picked the bench with no clamps and a frayed water-hose, but eventually, with much toil and trouble (though I don't know what impression I made on the teaching assistant), I set up my apparatus and joyfully distilled away for the next three hours.
Some poor girl on the bench next to me didn't secure her water-hose tightly enough, and it sprayed all over for a few minutes while we scrambled to turn off the water. Ironically, she was wearing rain boots, so no harm was done (and now the floor is clean!)
The results didn't seem too bad, the data followed a nice curve (although of course by being over-cautious I under-heated my mixture and consequently had a huge dip in the middle of the graph), and the gas chromatography analysis yielded a pretty curve.
Maybe this is not so terrifying after all...
***
On the minus side, my friends have been playing hot potato with some virus or other for the past week, and now I think it's my turn. But I've got peppermint tea, so everything's all right.
Last night (and early this morning, might I add) were spent writing up the pre-lab, which includes amongst other things drawing a chart of all the chemicals we would be using, their physical properties, any hazards they may cause, and the treatments necessary. Needless to say, it took quite a while.
The lab itself was like something out of a Potions class in Harry Potter: A surly professor barking orders, miles of strangely contorted glass tubing, clinking bottles and vials, and three samples to be collected in bottles and turned in to the professor.
With my customary luck, I picked the bench with no clamps and a frayed water-hose, but eventually, with much toil and trouble (though I don't know what impression I made on the teaching assistant), I set up my apparatus and joyfully distilled away for the next three hours.
Some poor girl on the bench next to me didn't secure her water-hose tightly enough, and it sprayed all over for a few minutes while we scrambled to turn off the water. Ironically, she was wearing rain boots, so no harm was done (and now the floor is clean!)
The results didn't seem too bad, the data followed a nice curve (although of course by being over-cautious I under-heated my mixture and consequently had a huge dip in the middle of the graph), and the gas chromatography analysis yielded a pretty curve.
Maybe this is not so terrifying after all...
***
On the minus side, my friends have been playing hot potato with some virus or other for the past week, and now I think it's my turn. But I've got peppermint tea, so everything's all right.
1 comment:
Well I reading this with green tea and lemon in my paw.
I suspect that what the teaching assistant might have thought of you was long forgotten after the girl next door's incident.
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