Q&A in a Mahyco Lab

Throughout my stay, I have encountered several interesting questions, most of them catching me off guard. I thought I would share some of these moments with everyone!


Q: Are you getting?
A: Ummm...yeah. Yeah, I get it...
*This dialogue happens no less than ten times each day as I try and grasp new concepts in the lab, but by now everyone can tell whenever I am just trying to be polite or if I actually understand what they are telling me.


Q: Why is Plasmid DNA round?
A: Because...well...in a cell, umm well...( and then everyone proceeded to search high and low for the answer to his question, until...) "Wrong! Plasmid DNA is round because you separate it in a centrifuge and as it goes round and round and round, it becomes round!" (This answer was followed by angry sighs by the scientists working to solve the mystery)


Q: Can you put that sample in the freezer so it will unfreeze?
A: Sure...wait...What?
*So before we can do any work with the sample trays, we have to take them out of a -20 C freezer, and place them in a refrigerator so they will thaw, but this wasn't completely clear at first.


Q: Do you want a mango?
A: YES YES YES!!


Q: Would you rather the milk be hot or warm?
A: Well...I guess if it's got to be either of those, I want it hot...
*This happened this morning at breakfast as I took my first sip of milk and nearly gagged: it was warm. In order to explain my facial expression, I let my host know that I wasn't used to warm milk. He responded by asking if I prefer it hot.


Q: What college to you go to?
A: Contrary to what everyone seems to think, I don't go to college yet...


Q: What are you majoring in?
A: Well I am not ready to pick that yet! In America we still have several more years to choose.
*In India, you must pick your specialization at the age of 16.


Q: What is "I don't want to work" in French?
A: Je ne veux pas travailler.
*Then the person I was teaching proceeded to turn around and tell her boss.


Q: Who is your favorite cricket player?
A: I have honestly never seen a game of cricket...it's like baseball, right?
*Shocked gasps from everyone in the room...


Q: Do you want some fennel seeds
A: NOOOOO....thank you.
*If you had ever had these, they are pungent and bitter. I had no idea what they tasted like the first time I was offered them, so naturally I took a table spoon of them and put them in my mouth...I couldn't breathe for several minutes the flavor was so strong.


Q: Do you want to learn Nautilus?
A: Umm...not really.
*Nautilus is the software that archives the data collected in the lab, and all the scientists are required to go to one hour of training every other day. Much to my surprise, I was invited to join, but knowing my own technological weaknesses (computers hate me), I respectfully declined.


Q: What time should we actually arrive to the office?
A: Around 9:15 in the morning, and around 2:00 after lunch.
*Work starts at 9:00 and lunch in over at 1:30.

Work sincerely, not seriously!

I love working in the lab here at Mahyco. The workers there are so sweet and inviting, and they are willing to answer all of my questions. I have learned so much in just one week that I’m having to write it all down each day so I don’t lose the information. Sheetal, my supervisor/teacher likes the motto “work sincerely, not seriously.” This perfectly frames the atmosphere here as everyone takes time to tell jokes and make others a “bukra”. The ultimate goal is the same for everyone: by using genetic markers and laboratory tools, Mahyco wants to make creating ideal varieties faster for breeders and growers, but their vision is to feed the world.

Yesterday we took a trip to Aurangabad...separate trips that is. I experienced what it’s like to a) be in a car on Indian roads-- let’s just say law and order would not describe it and b) to be driven by a hired driver somewhere. Because, according to him, I knew “tora tora” Hindi, our drive was quiet except for his cell phone calls and some Hindi hits playing on the radio. The highlight of the journey was realizing the corny musical numbers advertising radio stations are the same here as in America--complete with back-up singers and bee-bopping music.

Once in the city, I met my first group of American students, also living on the Mahyco campus, but working with the eye hospital elsewhere. It was loads of fun having a large dinner party and touring their guest houses afterwards. To top off the night, we carries umbrellas and enjoyed the gorgeous weather.

Tomorrow, I am moving across the street into another house for a month or so, because there are two girls around my age that are going to be home. I have loved my time with the Char family, and I look forward to spending another couple weeks with them near the end of my trip.

As for the creepy-crawlies, there seems to be a bandicoot living in the pipes in one of the houses down the street. That’s why all the drains are covered in rocks-- it keeps anything from setting up shop in the pipes. Also, some of the students want to see some cobras, which live on the jogging trail, so maybe we will go on an expedition soon!

June 12- Nicknames at Tea Time

Laying in bed in my beautiful host home in Jalna, India, I awoke to the sounds of exotic birds singing, including peacocks that, to me, sounded like cats. I turned on the light and turned on the air conditioning-- it is above 90 degrees F, even in the morning! To my surprise there was a gecko, sitting on my wall next to a lanky old spider like they paid rent or something. As one of my friends suggested, I will have to ask the lizard for a discount on my car insurance as soon as he emerges from the folds of my curtains again.

I walked for the first time on my own to the office, arriving on time, which is five minutes early in Indian time. When someone finally did let me into the office, I found that I was matching one of my coworkers! This is rare event in America, but it is exponentially cooler that I was wearing a similar outfit to a coworker at a biology lab on the other side of the world.

I went home for lunch, but no one was in yet--it was just me and the housekeeper. I was waiting in the bedroom when she came running in, holding a bottle of eyedrops in her hand. She speaks zero English, and I can only guess that what she wanted was for me to speak to a man on the phone and tell him what kind of eyedrops they were. I told the men on the phone several times the brand name, the date, the ingredients even, but none of them could understand me, and I just hope that was actually what I was supposed to do in the first place! Either way, it was interesting to experience first hand what it’s like to have no language in common; the barrier was astonishing.

As I ate my lunch of “chital” and cluster beans, someone came to the door and rang the bell. Instead of the normal ding-dong, the bell was a mix of Bollywood theme songs. Apparently, all the buildings had been installed with them, but due to their annoyance and impracticality, everyone but this house had installed new ones.
Two of my coworkers have names that translate into words. My supervisor, Sheetal’s name means “cool.” So, every time I use the expression “that’s cool”, I turn and give her funny face. Another scientist at the lab’s name is “Mayur” (I spelled that phonetically). His name means “Peacock.” Everyone in my lab knows how much this nickname annoys him, so naturally they put me up to calling him that across the lab. Even he couldn’t help but smile as the whole group started to roar with laughter! I’m beginning to think these are really just high school kids like me, in adult bodies with Ph D’s. In fact, I sometimes catch my desk mates sneaking chocolates or using their internet time to shop for shoes or watches...despite the fact that almost no one wears heels or watch bands.

Today I dawned my very own lab outfit, complete with a Mayhco lab coat and bright purple gloves. I felt extremely intelligent as I flaunted these accessories while I pipetted PCR mixture-- I guess I’m just that cool!

Today our PCR amplification didn’t show conclusive results, so we will have to do it again tomorrow. But I’m fine with that as I can now actually help during the process instead of just taking up space and looking over Sheetal’s shoulder.

Regardless, I’m having a great time, and I can’t wait to see what happens next during my journey here in India!

First Day and First Impressions

The ride from the airport taught me two things: 1) never EVER drive in India unless you have  death wish and 2) this is not a ‘third tier city’-- this is a village. The roads were lined with either empty fields awaiting the monsoons or small shanty areas that were filled with people and street-side vendors. It is possible that I saw more goats than people, and the car had to pause and let shepherds cross with their cows and goats. There is clearly no municipal trash collecting, as there was trash everywhere! But, the towns are brightly panted and alive, which makes them beautiful in a different way. Every small town along the way was home to at least one Hindu temple. These were the most colorful buildings with steeples that towered over the huts. None of the farmers had sewn their crops as the monsoon rains had not yet broken. To me, it looked like India was always building something-- the landscape was dotted with rubble and scaffolding along with cleared and tilled soil. But, I am told, when the rains come an day now, the landscape will be transformed!

My home is located in a gated community that seems to be a mix of a vacation resort and a college campus. The front entryway is lines with exotic flowers and every square inch of ground has some kind of garden. There is a clubhouse with a gym, but the times for exercise are different for men and women. On one side of the offices, there are rows of three-story apartment buildings and after that, small one family houses. Security guards are posted at each side of the community with one walking the fence during all hours, even at night.

My room is the perfect size; there are three windows and already I have a gecko on my wall! Apparently they will not leave a wall once they claim it, but they will fight any other gecko that tries to get on the wall with them. I’m hoping to see this in action! My favorite thing so far is the food, and I think it’s only going to get better! My first meal, interestingly, was danishes! They were cooked apple pastries like the ones found in American coffee shops. Next, though, we ate blackened okra and a sauce of garbonzo beans and other pepper-- with our hands. Each person serves themselves with their left hand a round of Indian unleavened bread, then with only the right hand, they tear off chunks and scoop up the meal. To finish, each person gets rice, then dumps the remaining food on top, mixes it and scoops in in their mouths-- with their fingers, of course. I am having way too much fun eating here!

Though my work hours are between 9 and 5:30, the day is peppered with breaks every hour and a half. At these breaks, the employees congregate in the hallway and outside where they can serve themselves hot tea, or a snack from the canteen. Since I live in the colony, lunch is served at home by the housekeeper.

As for my work, I am a little nervous. Not only did most people in the lab assume I was a graduate student, I am also lacking the biology eduction that I need for my work. I spent my whole first day studying because I was so unprepared! I am grateful though, because next year in biology class I will be leaps and bounds ahead. As for my project, I will be determining whether the 30-40 varieties of rice at Mayhco have the ‘xa’ gene- or the gene that makes rice resistant to a certain type of blight. To do this, I will first need to extract DNA, then target the marker that we want to isolate, use PCR and primers to amplify this piece, then analyze the final product for the existence of the gene. I am incredibly nervous about my lack of understanding. Why did the World Food Prize send me here without any of the knowledge that I needed? Regardless, I will learn loads of information, and I am still grateful for the challenge.

Critters

So I have come to realize that critters are pretty much everywhere here-- including my room. This morning I found two new buddies: a gecko and a spider. The funny thing is that I have no idea which one I should be more worried about. Since the lizard is apparently territorial, maybe it will get into a knock-down-drag-out with the spider. More on this as it happens...

Arriving in India

My summer experience began long before I reached the ground in Aurangabad-- even as I was waiting t board the flight in Atlanta, I was already meeting new and interesting people. As I was eagerly awaiting my endless journey, staring up at the pristine building that seemed built especially for me, I was introduced to Nameer, a professional tennis player from Pakistan. He too was on his way to Dubai, and then eventually to his home. Both of us made a deal that neither of us would fall asleep during the fourteen hour flight! Sadly, I drifted of once or twice, but for the better part of what seemed like eternity, I stared bleary-eyed at the screen in front of me, watching four movie and two tv episodes throughout the journey.

Dubai was a beautiful city to see at night; I only wish I could have seen it in the daytime as well. I glimpsed the Burj Kalifa off in the distance, standing leaps and bounds above anything else. I ran through airport to find my gate-- but only after I had gotten lost twice and been stuck in line for an hour. I panted as I handed the man at the desk my ticket, and he giggled, as I was not even late! This trip was only three hours, a meager hop compared to the trek of the last day. God is very good to me, as the gentleman sitting next to me helped me through the process of getting through customs. Without him, I might still be stuck in Mumbai! I was gloomy as I had to wave goodbye to the first friend I had made, but I have his card and an invitation to dinner with him and his wife!

Getting from customs in Mumbai to the tarmac in Aurangabad was another story entirely.  Once through customs, I had to check in for my transfer ticket. Like at almost every other security stop, the guards took time out of both of our busy lives to mess with my pillow pet! I guess at least that means I’m innocent in their eyes. I am in India during the rainy season, so the airport set up a bus system to take us to the other half of the airport for domestic flights. Still, it was quite an experience to outside on the tarmac around the cargo area in order to reach the front doors. 

After a few hours’ wait, I was called to board my next flight, only this time the busses picked us up and dropped us off next to our aircraft, right in the middle of the asphalt. I felt like a dignitary as I walked up the steps into the hull, only to find that my ticket was for a first-class seat with no extra charge! This final jump over the land was less than an hour, and the airport w arrived at was so small that there was no terminal...we just hopped off and we were at the exit door. After 36 hours straight of no sleep, I was somewhat inarticulate when I met my host family and gawked out the window during the 45 minute journey home. To my happy surprise, my family lives on the ‘colony’-- a community located right next to the office-- complete with a gym, a beautiful view, and security guards everywhere.

While Jalna is definitely not what I expected, the journey here was more than enough excitement for me!