Joy Franco, PhD

A favorite Buddhist expression is if a single tree is sick, take care of it but don’t forget about all of the other healthy trees. Thus, in spite of bike sadness, I’m celebrating the completion of my very 1st single cell mito seq prep 🥹! So grateful to DFCI’s Claudia Barr program for their support!

Thank you! I’m grateful that at least HUPD has been very helpful so far and are working on getting camera footage

Truly thank you for supporting this. One of the hardest feelings right now is receiving the judgement from some that I shouldn’t have been commuting on her. That bike absolutely made it easier to dodge Boston traffic, potholes, and snow/ice piles.

Sorry I should have been more clear. A**Savers are mostly for hard to fender bikes. I was using it because I didn’t want to add fenders to mine 😂 (I was very close to it but spent the money on studded tires instead)

It’s called an a**Saver. It’s a mini fender for bikes that can’t really take them. It helps a little with street spray ass-savers.com

🙏💓💓💓

Part of why I was commuting on Furiosa was because I had retired her from racing but still loved the way she rode. She’s one of the funnest bikes I’ve ever owned and as weird as it sounds, I felt happy every single time I started my commute b/c of her. Would 100% take her back no questions asked.

Thank you for the optimism! Honestly I would 100% take it back from the person who stole it, no questions asked. I just want her back. 😞

The lock 😩 it was an Abus folding lock

Boston - pls be on the lookout for my bike that was stolen from this exact rack on Longwood Ave today. 2021 Specialized Diverge Expert Carbon, size 52 cm, raspberry and blk with studded tires.
Yes I know it’s too nice for commuting but ya know, we ride what we got and I spend a lot of time commuting

Any recommendations for a hematologist in the oncology department at Stanford who excels in bed side manner? Need a very sensitive MD or at least someone who won’t express surprise or disbelief when their patient is crying.

I don’t regret doing a postdoc in Boston but a little foresight into the weather when experiment planning MAY have saved me some trouble 🥶

Celebrating a successful day in lab thanks to my amazing labmates @cynthiamoncadareid.bsky.social @yichiahuang.bsky.social 🫶

#SequencingScienceSisters

🤣 love it. Now if I could have all of Tom’s wisdom 😍

If you could have any science super power what it would it be?

I’ll start: knowing exactly how long something will ACTUALLY take to achieve.

Sending tremendous thanks to everyone working hard to clear the snow tonight 💓💓💓

…I share this knowing that some might look down on a perceived overshare, but I share because I know I’m not alone. I know there are are others struggling with the same issues or who have been down this road. Sharing is my way of opening up to connecting with others on the same path 🫶.

On the idea of leaving academic research: one of the hardest ideas for me to grapple with is stepping away from the science that I love. I’ve spent years focusing on a carefully chosen topic. The (potentially false) idea is that I can’t find a TT job, I have to give up that study & that hurts…

*end grumpy old postdoc rant*

Ok it’s not for the lab notebooks but while we’re on reagents: when you receive a new item write the “received on” date on the label. For items that don’t have exact expiration dates provided this is critical info for whether or not you should use that old bottle in the fridge.

Back to catalogue numbers: just writing the name of the reagent isn’t enough. Different manufacturers sometimes have different formulations. Document the supplier, manufacturer, and catalogue number.

What about calcium and magnesium? Whether these are present in your buffers can often be very important. If you just write PBS I can guess it didn’t have Ca2+ or Mg2+, but what if it did?

Many reagents have lot to lot variability, which is why you need to record lot numbers in your notes, not just the catalogue number.

Concentrations for enzymatic solutions in terms of units per mL. Just because the vial always contains 100 mg doesn’t mean the concentration will be the same if you always reconstitute with the same volume because…

Your written protocols and lab notebooks are a love letter to your future self (whether it’s you or a future lab member). Please be kind. Here are some critical things I have frequently noticed missing: (feel free to add yours in thread 🧵)

Has anyone started putting together statistics on this year’s TT job search? I learned an expression about a certain event having the same probability of occurring as a turtle sticking its head in a yoke that’s floating in the sea and it’s giving strong TT job search vibes.

The point of waking up early isn’t do that you can start work early.

It’s so that you can have a nice morning before going to work.

They do an ok job but it’s inconsistent. Actually the bike lanes in Brookline are where I see its needed most. A ton of snow gets piled up there because they’re focused on the main road and it takes up about 50% of the lane

That’s a really good idea. Maybe we could get Landry’s to sponsor a bike plow or two 😂

I really wish the cities had setups we could rent. This is such a good community service! 👏