Synchrotron Saturday

So we're here at SERCAT and we've started to collect data. So far the results are less than impressive. First, Neil mounted a loop with no crystal. Then I mounted what looked like a nice crystal but it turned out to be rather iced-up. Despite attempts at annealing (read putting my ID card in front of the cryo-stream for a second) we decided to ditch it and add another crystal to the rapidly growing "wall of shame."

So, we're off to a flying start and there's just 26 hours to go!

Update 12:15pm: Neil decided to throw his second crystal on the ground. Oh this is going to be a long (dare I say hard?) day and night (and then day).

Update 2:37pm: The current data set score is: Me - 0, Neil - 0, Ailsa - 0.5. We're about to get the second beamline up and running and thus double our chances of not getting any decent data. Super!

Update 4:01pm: Still no good data for me. Neil got lucky on the the other beamline. We're going for a little ride around on the tricylces now.

Update 7:27pm: Things took a turn for the better as I finally had a crystal that diffracted reasonably well. Collected a nicely redundant data set - redundancy being a good thing in this instance.

Whilst waiting for the data collection to run we started drinking coffee. A lot of coffee. Then we found the fingerless gloves. The gloves (and the cafeine buzz) inspired the manufacture of a trucker hat from spare paper and tape. Crys-to-the-izzle-ography bi-atches!

Lord only knows what awaits us in the sleep-deprived/stimulant-loaded hours to come.

Update 9:54pm: Things were getting bad around 8:30ish, so we had a little break and went to pick-up pizza. It was most yummers. Now we're re-fueled and ready for the night's work - no sleep 'til Brooklyn, or some such nonsense.


Update 12:34am: A little while ago we had a visit from our chum Swanny. He used to work in our lab, now he's a post-doc at Mount Sinai in NYC. Coincidentally he (and most of his lab) was here at the APS this weekend too. They were working at the beamline in Sector 17 - IMCA CAT - run by a load of big Pharma companies. Anyway, he popped by and we had a little breaky and a chat - which was nice. His lab has finished for the evening and he was on his way back to the guesthouse and a comfy bed - lucky bastard. We, on the other hand, are only half way through - I don't mind telling you, it's getting pretty old now...

Time for a slice of cold pizza, I fancy.

- Mr. Ed