A Nice Day!
13 December 2006 00:30![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
enismirdalToday was nice! I didn't think so first thing this morning though. Last night, brain was on overdrive, so I tossed and turned till 2:30am, then opened Wraeththu book and read until 3:45am. Meant to read less than that, but it was the scary bit in book 2 and I realised that if I tried to sleep with brain stuck in scary bit, I'd never sleep!
So got up feeling gritty. Went in, did some code. Code looked like it was about to work...and then it didn't. This code is proving exceptionally hard to debug as it sometimes throws up the same error message even after the error is no longer there. So you have to close javaw.exe, restart Apache Tomcat and reload the page.
Maths test went nicely again. It turns out they're first years being assessed on their basic mathematical aptitude (logarithms, fractions, percentages, gradients of lines, basic linear and quadratic algebra). If they fail the test, they're forced to take remedial classes. If they pass, they don't have to do anything. No QB! It's a bizarre feeling, thinking that even my dodgy QB course with Dr Taraskin's Sigmoidal Model and Monomolecular Model is way, way beyond any maths these kids will ever do. I suppose most of them will never actually need that sort of maths, though. For the most part, I haven't. It's that other little part that makes the course priceless - like when I had an equation stretching across a side of A4 and managed not to freak out. Or when the supervisor running the maths test handed me an equation he'd been unable to solve (he only did O-level maths and A-level physics) and I solved it - and according to the proof he later sent me from a Mathmo, I solved it correctly too.
In classic supervisor style, he grabbed me in the corridor in the 15 minutes between my lunch break ending and me going to the maths test. "Eni, [extremely good German bee scientist] is visiting from Germany at the moment and she's dropping in to see me this afternoon. And she's coming out to dinner with us. I don't think she'll be interested in our lab meeting so would you like to skip the meeting and keep her entertained for an hour?"
Well, the scientist in question...
So yes, it was somewhat short notice, but I had no complaints at all! Indeed, she is still just as adorable and nice, and we talked about all manner of exciting bee and wasp stuff, and she's sending me some papers. We went upstairs to talk to an electrophysiologist who plays with our bees as well (and who was, indeed, the supervisor of the aforementioned maths test). Altogether our chatting took less like one hour and more like one and a half, but that was fine! I definitely did my entertainment job OK! My supervisor was knocking on the door by the end to fetch us gossiping women so everyone else could get some beer and food now.
For dinner we went to a pub in Bethnal Green. Was rather nice - non-smoking, sold BROADSIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The menu was all pies, but the range of pies was impressive. There were several veggie pies, as opposed to just one token Vegetarian Pie, and the mushy peas had mint in so were actually yummy. The mashed potato was freshly mashed, so lovely flavour. Unfortunately, not hot. Oh well. The venison pie I ordered was lovely and meaty.
For some reason my conversation talent for the day was by then exhausted, so my input seemed to consist mostly of conversation stoppers. Perhaps not so good, but I suspect I'm just on a slightly different wavelength to rest of lab. At least I stopped drinking after a pint of beer!
Was pretty good value.
Rest of the lab went to the Tube station to go home. I split off from them, as I didn't have my Oyster card with me - it seemed immensely silly to walk for 5 minutes to nearest Tube station, spend 3 minutes heading out on the Central line, change to the District line and wait 5 minutes for one to arrive, then spend another 3 minutes travelling to my stop, when it's a mere 7 minute walk down the road to my flat, and also conveniently free. Road wasn't too funky - no one dodgy, well-lit, didn't feel threatened, despite the late hour.
So now I'm back home, and ought to be in bed, but want to finish tea and LJ first!
So got up feeling gritty. Went in, did some code. Code looked like it was about to work...and then it didn't. This code is proving exceptionally hard to debug as it sometimes throws up the same error message even after the error is no longer there. So you have to close javaw.exe, restart Apache Tomcat and reload the page.
Maths test went nicely again. It turns out they're first years being assessed on their basic mathematical aptitude (logarithms, fractions, percentages, gradients of lines, basic linear and quadratic algebra). If they fail the test, they're forced to take remedial classes. If they pass, they don't have to do anything. No QB! It's a bizarre feeling, thinking that even my dodgy QB course with Dr Taraskin's Sigmoidal Model and Monomolecular Model is way, way beyond any maths these kids will ever do. I suppose most of them will never actually need that sort of maths, though. For the most part, I haven't. It's that other little part that makes the course priceless - like when I had an equation stretching across a side of A4 and managed not to freak out. Or when the supervisor running the maths test handed me an equation he'd been unable to solve (he only did O-level maths and A-level physics) and I solved it - and according to the proof he later sent me from a Mathmo, I solved it correctly too.
In classic supervisor style, he grabbed me in the corridor in the 15 minutes between my lunch break ending and me going to the maths test. "Eni, [extremely good German bee scientist] is visiting from Germany at the moment and she's dropping in to see me this afternoon. And she's coming out to dinner with us. I don't think she'll be interested in our lab meeting so would you like to skip the meeting and keep her entertained for an hour?"
Well, the scientist in question...
- is really nice (I met her at the Colour conference I went to last January, and we got the train together)
- worked on a lot of the same stuff as I am interested in researching
- is cool
So yes, it was somewhat short notice, but I had no complaints at all! Indeed, she is still just as adorable and nice, and we talked about all manner of exciting bee and wasp stuff, and she's sending me some papers. We went upstairs to talk to an electrophysiologist who plays with our bees as well (and who was, indeed, the supervisor of the aforementioned maths test). Altogether our chatting took less like one hour and more like one and a half, but that was fine! I definitely did my entertainment job OK! My supervisor was knocking on the door by the end to fetch us gossiping women so everyone else could get some beer and food now.
For dinner we went to a pub in Bethnal Green. Was rather nice - non-smoking, sold BROADSIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The menu was all pies, but the range of pies was impressive. There were several veggie pies, as opposed to just one token Vegetarian Pie, and the mushy peas had mint in so were actually yummy. The mashed potato was freshly mashed, so lovely flavour. Unfortunately, not hot. Oh well. The venison pie I ordered was lovely and meaty.
For some reason my conversation talent for the day was by then exhausted, so my input seemed to consist mostly of conversation stoppers. Perhaps not so good, but I suspect I'm just on a slightly different wavelength to rest of lab. At least I stopped drinking after a pint of beer!
Was pretty good value.
Rest of the lab went to the Tube station to go home. I split off from them, as I didn't have my Oyster card with me - it seemed immensely silly to walk for 5 minutes to nearest Tube station, spend 3 minutes heading out on the Central line, change to the District line and wait 5 minutes for one to arrive, then spend another 3 minutes travelling to my stop, when it's a mere 7 minute walk down the road to my flat, and also conveniently free. Road wasn't too funky - no one dodgy, well-lit, didn't feel threatened, despite the late hour.
So now I'm back home, and ought to be in bed, but want to finish tea and LJ first!
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no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 03:53 (UTC)One time I had a yellow jacket nest in my wall and when the bug guy came to spray, the little buggers chewed through the plaster and flew into my apartment. I grabbed the cat and ran! Bees...
A wasp flew down my uniform blouse when I was in the 4th grade and the nun didn't believe me. It stung me 6 times. *sniff*
Have you ever seen those giant Japanese Hornets? Woah. Watched a National Geographic special on them a few nights back and had nightmares. *sob*
But it sounds like a very interesting area. Really.
Ever written any bee fic?
*grins*
no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 08:53 (UTC)I think wasps and bees have a bit of a bad reputation, but they're not that bad, really (at least when they're not stuck in a blouse and panicking!)!
Never written a bee fic. Perhaps I should, lol!
no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 09:21 (UTC)*giggles*
no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 07:21 (UTC)Abner
no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 08:53 (UTC)no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 11:25 (UTC)no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 18:37 (UTC)So I'm not sure what to do really!
*huggles and nyyyyng* (sp?)
no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 20:59 (UTC)Last I checked I had 15 people coming, including Thea.
no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 23:58 (UTC)I promise if I'm actually awake at all that weekend, I'll be thinking of you! *hugs*
no subject
Date: 13 Dec 2006 12:46 (UTC)