First weeks in a new place

Keeping an early bird routine 

It has been already 5 weeks since I started working in Zamyatina research group based at BOKU Wien. First days were filled with lots of trainings, safety instructions, playing hide and seek with glassware, spatulas, condensers, needles.
Considering myself as an unpatient person, not everything went smoothly. I had to calculate additional 30 minutes instead of my usual 5-10 mins to prepare "stuff" for the coming day. Also my "early bird routine" as I use to come to work way early (before 7 AM) is not common in here, so starting dangerous reactions do not come in question.
Nevertheless, I found work stuff to do early in the morning like running flash columns, purifying compounds, measuring NMRs or just simply updating my lab journal. At the end of the day, I keep my early-bird attributes and end accomplishing same amount of work, if not even more some days.

Feeling support

My supervisor and collegues are great! Especially at the very beginning, they were kind and helpful. I am blessed to work with fellow chemists from Austria, Germany, Italy, Greece. My English is becoming more of my native language and I am definitelly picking German, that I used to speak daily couple years back. I am glad to be surrounded by highly motivated people. This stimulates my efforts and invites me to improve daily.
Surely, I miss my "old workplace", supervisor Pavla B., members of her group, that I continue to be friendy with ... but I am grateful to have guts to make this move.

Family matters to me. My amazing wife and cute little baby girl Anetka are encouraging me on my way to do science and obtain a PhD. degree. Long working hours are simply a fact, that I try to compensate by devouting my weekend time solely to my wify, daughter and family.

Lessons learnt

If there are lessons, I learnt from my first 5 weeks in a new reserach group, they would be: BE PATIENT WITH YOURSELF (also when you are extremely unpatient, like I), AND TRUST YOUR SKILLS.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Milovaný pondelok

Image
Pondelok je pre mnohých považovaný za deň - strašiak. Po sladkom oddychovom víkende má prísť horor navlečený do rúcha pondelku. Ja sa  ale na pondelok teším! A dôvod je prostý: Som syntetický organický chemik a milujem svoju prácu. Priznám sa, že už v nedeľu večer jedným okom imaginárne pokukávam po novej reakcii, ktorú mám v pláne vyskúšať. Všetko predom napočítané, úskalia syntézy identifikované, rozpúšťadlá, aparatúry vysušené. A ide sa do toho! Svoju prácu syntetického organického chemika mám rád aj preto, že častokrát pripravujem látky, ktoré ešte nik nevyrobil. Originály! Novel compounds! Predstava toho, že pracujem na projekte, ktorý si za cieľ kladie pripraviť práve takéto látky ma ženie vpred. Dáva mi to chuť do ranného vstávania a drží moje nasadenia od pondelka do piatku. Ako za odmenu vychádzajú po vydarených syntézach z chromatografických kolón čisté látky, štruktúrne potvrdené NMR analýzou. Pocit, že syntetizované látky  naozaj plnia svoj účel, v mojom prípa
Read more

Liečivý alkaloid? - môj augustový príspevok do Quarku

Image
Vedcom zo Stanfordovej univerzity sa podarilo izolovať a štruktúrne charakterizovať dosiaľ neznámy alkaloid obsiahnutý v jede mexického škorpióna Megacormus gertschi. Následne nový alkaloid synteticky pripravili a v súčasnosti sa jeho deriváty testujú na antimikrobiálnu aktivitu a zníženie krvného tlaku. Škorpióny sú fascinujúce článkonožce, ktoré vznikli asi pred 430 miliónmi rokov v období silúru. Vo svojich jedových bodcoch produkujú cenný kokteil látok na prípravu často zatiaľ nepreskúmaných bioaktívnych zlúčenín, a aj preto sú teraz v kurze. Skryté prekvapenie Jed škorpiónov je komplexná zmes peptidov, enzýmov, glykoproteínov, jednoduchých aminokyselín, nukleotidov, lipidov či anorganických solí. Vstreknutie tohto chemického kokteilu paralyzuje korisť, a tak poskytuje zadováženie potravy a, samozrejme, aj obranu. Predpokladá sa, že škorpióny sú schopné syntetizovať viac ako 100 000 rôznych polypeptidov, z ktorých sa doteraz podarilo izolovať a biologicky testovať menej
Read more

What would I do?

Image
I was born in Slovakia in 1990. My parents and their families have lived in previous regime. They disliked it very much. They were tremendously excited for freedom coming in democracy package thanks to Velvet revolution. It was not all easy especially during Mečiarizmus era, but we made it to EU and NATO. Thanks godness! I remember them being truly happy about joining European community.  When I was little, My father told me: You know, I used to dream about being born in Switzerland, but I could have also been born in some poor African country or harshly opressing land. That made me think a lot. I have this conversation vividly in my mind, as if it was just days back. How about being born and lived in Ukraine? I disagree with the oppression, that people of Ukraine experience. It is pointless war. Barbarian attack. Sad, very sad. People are dying. Families are torn apart. Fatherless children, hopeless mothers.  As a scientist, father and son, I ask myself - what would I do - in the thei
Read more