notes to new graduate students ============================== some of you may be new to graduate level research and so the microbiology

Notes to New Graduate Students
==============================
Some of you may be new to graduate level research and so the
Microbiology & Immunology Graduate Advisory Committee has put together
a short document that discusses basic elements of lab research and lab
“life”, covering issues that are likely to be common for all the labs
in our Department. Even so, each lab does things differently, so this
shouldn’t be the last word on the subject. Nor should this be viewed
as a “legal document’. Nevertheless, we hope this will help answer
some early questions you may have about how to function in a research
environment.
Lab Safety:
1. Safety Courses. As soon as possible, you should take the LSC
on-line safety orientation (if working in the LSC), the UBC Biosafety
course, the UBC chemical safety course, and the UBC radiation safety
course (if you will be using such materials). If you will be working
with animals, sign up for the on-line CCAC animal care course. You
cannot perform experiments using biohazards, hazardous chemicals,
radioisotopes, or animals until you have taken the appropriate
courses. You will receive certificates upon passing these courses. The
lab director or technician will set up a Personal Safety Record for
you that will be a record of when you completed each course. You
should also retain printed copies of all your certificates. If safety
inspectors audit your lab, you may be required to produce these
certificates.
2. Safety Orientation. Upon joining a lab, you should expect a safety
orientation. You should make sure that you are familiar with the
following:
a.
The location and use of the emergency eyewash, emergency shower,
and fire extinguishers.
b.
The fire and emergency evacuation route and what to do in the
event of an earthquake. When the fire alarm sounds, do not stop to
finish your experiment. Take your belongings and leave the lab
immediately. Do not lock the lab door upon leaving.
c.
The lists of emergency phone numbers and list of qualified first
aiders in the building.
d.
The location of Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) that indicate
the potential hazards associated with various chemicals. Many of
these are now on the suppliers' websites. Pay heed to any warning
symbols on chemical bottles. For hazardous chemicals, be sure to
wear gloves, lab coat, eye protection, and if necessary, handle
them in the chemical fume hood. Do not use any chemical if you are
uncertain about how to handle it or its potential hazards. If you
have questions, ask other members of the lab before handling the
chemical.
3. If you notice any potential hazard, please bring it to the
attention of lab members.
4. Lab Attire. Whenever you are working with biohazards,
radioactivity, or hazardous chemicals, you are required to wear a lab
coat, gloves, and glasses or goggles. Open-toed shoes are against
safety regulations at all times. If biohazardous agents are used in an
LSC lab, then the entire lab, including the desk areas, is considered
to be a biohazard use area.
5. No food or drink is allowed in the lab.
a) It is a UBC rule that no food or drink is to be consumed or stored
in the lab. Store your lunch in the refrigerator in a lunchroom and
consume all food and drink outside of the lab.
b) Food wrappers and coffee cups should be disposed of outside the
lab. If inspectors find empty food wrappers or coffee cups in the
trashcans in the lab, they may assume that these things are being
consumed in the lab. This could cause a lab to lose its biosafety
certification.
Laboratory Computers:
1. In nearly all the laboratories there will be one or more computers
available for general use.
2. Scientific activities take priority over web surfing and personal
e-mail.
3. Do not do anything that is illegal or against UBC policy on
computer use. If you do, there is the possibility of losing internet
access for the entire lab.
Work Habits:
1.
Normal expectations are that you should work at least 8 hours per
day (not counting lunch and coffee breaks) on experiments and
related tasks, at least 5 days per week. There will be situations
when it will be expected that you put in extra hours, for example
when it is important to get a paper submitted quickly or when
experiments need to be done to meet a grant application deadline.
2.
Make time in the lab count. Multi-tasking is essential. Use down
time when gels are running, etc. to write protocols, make
reagents, or start new experiments.
3.
The interactions among lab members (discussing ideas, helping each
other with technical problems) work best when people are in the
lab at the same time. Therefore, it is generally important that
your working hours overlap significantly with others in the
laboratory. It is also important from a safety standpoint to
perform potentially hazardous procedures only when other people
are around. Everyone is expected to contribute their knowledge and
expertise to help other lab members. The fact that you do this can
later be reflected in letters of recommendation and is a very
positive statement.
4.
If you need to be away from the lab for a day or more, let the lab
director know. We all need time for personal things such as
doctor's appointments, etc.
5.
Vacations are important for you to unwind, but should be limited
to 3 weeks per year in addition to the statutory holidays. Let the
lab director know when you will be away well in advance. The
following UBC policies apply to graduate student vacation:
•Graduate students are entitled to three weeks of vacation (15 working
days) from their academic obligations per academic year.
•The exact duration and timing of any vacation, including extensions
of vacation, are subject to prior approval by the student’s supervisor
and by any faculty member providing the student with Graduate Research
Assistantship (GRA) funding.
•Vacations must be arranged so that there is minimal impact to the
student’s research and other obligations to the University.
•Attendance at academic conferences shall not be considered vacation
time.
•Student vacation requests within these guidelines will not be
unreasonably denied.
•Should a conflict arise between a student’s vacation request and a
supervisor’s expectations, the Graduate Program Advisor will make a
final determination.
Your Lab Notebook:
Your lab notebook is a permanent record of what you have done in the
lab and how you have done it. The purposes of the lab book are:
1. To accurately and completely document your experiments so that they
can be analyzed and compared to other experiments. You may do this
analysis at a later date (e.g. when you write your thesis) and others
in the lab may need to analyze your data in the future. Your lab book
is a permanent record that may need to be looked at years later.
2. To provide sufficiently detailed information so that other people
in the lab, including those with minimal experience with that type of
experiment, can reproduce it and obtain similar results. If your work
cannot be repeated by others, then its validity is questionable.
3. Even if you keep your data, lab protocols, and data analysis on
your computer, you must keep a physical lab notebook containing all of
this important information.
4. Back up all critical data and store the back-ups in separate
locations.
5. The lab notebook is the property of the lab and remains in the lab
when you leave.
Group Meetings:
It is critical to periodically take stock of what you have
accomplished, what is working and what isn't, and where you are
relative to your goals. Virtually every research group will have group
meetings held on a regular basis and attendance at these meetings is
typically mandatory.
When it is your turn to present at the group meeting, you should
briefly remind people of the major goal of your project and give them
whatever background is necessary to understand your project (you will
have to do more of this the first time you present). Then list your
experimental goals for the period since your last group meeting
presentation and describe your progress towards each goal. Describe
the key experiments that you have done, both ones that have worked and
ones that haven't. Describe any technical problems you may have had.
This is the opportunity for you to receive help and feedback from
other lab members. Conclude by describing your experimental goals for
the next few months and how you will approach them.
When other people are presenting their work at group meeting,
contribute any ideas or helpful comments you might have. If everyone
in the lab gets involved in thinking about the other people's
projects, it will benefit all. Everyone has a different perspective, a
different way of looking at problems, different expertise, and a
different knowledge base. In addition, in order for the lab to have
enough grant money to function properly, everyone's project has to
work. Thus, you have a stake in everyone else's work. Finally, another
good thing to have in a letter of recommendation is a statement
indicating that you contribute to other lab members' projects by
actively participating in lab meetings. This shows that you are a good
colleague and that your contribution to the lab extends beyond your
own project.
Lab Life:
1. Cooperation in the lab
All members of a lab are expected to freely share expertise and
reagents and to participate in the training of other lab members. This
is essential for labs to operate effectively. Being known as a good
team player is important, especially when you go to look for post-doc
positions or jobs. The expectation of a post-doc is that they will
play a key role in the training and guidance of grad students and
other lab members.
2. Training other lab members
a) Teaching and training others is a very important aspect of being a
scientist. It contributes to your development as a scientist since it
takes skill to clearly convey ideas and instructions to people who are
unfamiliar with them. In addition, we all learned how to do science
from other people around us and therefore we have a responsibility to
do the same for new people who enter the lab.
b) It is expected that you will help other people in the lab learn
techniques that you are familiar with.
3. Consideration of others
Don't use the last of something without seeing that it is refilled or
replaced. No one likes to find that the key reagent they need to use
for their experiment has been used up. If you use the last aliquot of
something or see that our supply of a certain reagent is getting low,
either ask the technician to order it, ask the technician to make it
(if it is an item that they regularly make) or make it yourself.
4. Problem resolution
•The lab should be a place where you feel comfortable and where
interpersonal problems do not interfere with your ability to work.
•If you have a problem of a general nature (i.e. people not cleaning
up after themselves or leaving junk on your bench), you can bring this
up at your group meeting.
•If you have a problem with another lab member or with any other
aspect of lab life try to discuss this with the person involved or
tell the lab director as soon as possible.
•If you have any other personal or health problems that are affecting
your ability to work, please let the lab director know so that they
don't think you are just slacking off.
•If there are problems that you feel uncomfortable discussing with the
lab director, you can also talk to the Graduate Program Coordinator
(Darlene Birkenhead), the Department Graduate Advisor (Michael
Murphy), or the Department Head (Mike Gold).
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