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Away We Go!

Travel Do's and Don'ts for Research Projects Travel expenses can be confusing. There are four main things to consider when deciding whether to engage in business travel. Scan this list for answers to pressing questions regarding expenses and travel audit red flags, which is brought to you by Beverly Rymer, University of Houston Director of Contracts and Grants. And, away … [Read more...] about Away We Go!

Incidentally … Reporting Lab Incidents

Exploding refrigerator? Chemical splash on the face? These are not just personally devastating lab incidents, they are also expensive. For instance, awhile back, the University of Hawaii faced a total $115,500 fine for 15 workplace safety violations after a laboratory explosion where a postdoctoral researcher lost one of her arms. Beryl Lieff Benderly wrote in Science … [Read more...] about Incidentally … Reporting Lab Incidents

Walk This Way: Shoes To Wear In the Lab

Special shoes are almost always required for working in a lab. Unlike Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that you would leave in the lab, the shoes you wear are a decision you make before you head to work. It’s something many employers even reimburse cost-wise for their research employees. Shoes as barriers “Closed-toe shoes are mandated by the CDC through the Biosafety … [Read more...] about Walk This Way: Shoes To Wear In the Lab

Hey, Don’t Eat That! Food in the Research Lab

Your university doesn’t just discourage eating in the research or computer lab – the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) actually prohibits food and beverages from being stored or consumed in the same environment where hazardous materials are found. You’re actually not allowed to put on cosmetics, take or apply medicines or handle contact lenses in labs, … [Read more...] about Hey, Don’t Eat That! Food in the Research Lab

Manage Your Data Better: Data Management Plans

A data management plan is invaluable to researchers and to their universities. “You should plan at the outset for managing output long-term,” said Reid Boehm, research data management librarian at University of Houston Libraries. At the University of Houston, research data generated while individuals are pursuing research studies as faculty, staff or students of the … [Read more...] about Manage Your Data Better: Data Management Plans

Too Close for Comfort: Human Subjects Research in the Age of COVID

As far as COVID-19 goes, Level 1 is the worst threat level. Harris County remains at Level 1, or “Severe Threat” for infection of the novel coronavirus. Yet, as they say in the theater, “The show must go on!” And for the most part, research is continuing in many ways. Surveys, interviews and other socially-distanced research has been easy to keep up during the COVID … [Read more...] about Too Close for Comfort: Human Subjects Research in the Age of COVID

How Are You Sleeping?

Avoiding errors When you ask anyone, including researchers, how they are sleeping these days, the typical answer is an invitation to hear about myriad sleep disturbances: vivid or lucid dreams, waking throughout the night, restless leg syndrome and just plain old insomnia. COVID-19, civil unrest and uncertainty about the future of our nation have brought about huge … [Read more...] about How Are You Sleeping?

Are You a Lab Rat? How to Achieve a Work/Life Balance as a Researcher

You just missed your niece’s birthday, misplaced your debit card and forgot to eat dinner last night after working late in the lab. These are relatively benign examples of collateral damage for a researcher who is overworked. But what about the female researcher who puts off having a family because she is working 80 hours a week? What about the scientist who is injured in an … [Read more...] about Are You a Lab Rat? How to Achieve a Work/Life Balance as a Researcher

Running Smoothly: How ACO Maintains its Facilities

On the southeast corner of the University of Houston campus resides one of the most highly lauded, well-run animal facilities in the country: Animal Care Operations (ACO). Particularly renowned for how efficiently it is managed and maintained, ACO recently received continued accreditation through the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care … [Read more...] about Running Smoothly: How ACO Maintains its Facilities

Light Safety, Heavy Consequences

Don't go into the light (without proper safety precautions!) We all remember the mom from the famous movie, Poltergeist, relentlessly instructing little Carol Anne to run towards the light in order to save herself from ghosts.  In that situation, the light saved Carol Anne’s life, but we all know Poltergeist is just a movie. In real life, different degrees of UV lights … [Read more...] about Light Safety, Heavy Consequences

The Human Touch: Camaraderie Promotes Safety in the Lab

For the most part, we all know how important it is to adhere to universal lab safety rules such as wearing closed-toe shoes or properly labeling all chemicals. Oftentimes, we forget about the human relations side of the safety equation. Cultivating positive working relationships with colleagues is as important (maybe even more so) as learning the “technical” safety rules of a … [Read more...] about The Human Touch: Camaraderie Promotes Safety in the Lab

Are You Down With PPE?

Fashion does exist in a science lab. Although the attire may not be the latest trendy jacket or shoes, all the cool science kids wear PPE (personal protective equipment) while making discoveries and solving the world’s biggest mysteries. Furthermore, consistently wearing PPE is extremely important and a critical part of the scientific process. “Appropriate personal … [Read more...] about Are You Down With PPE?

What’s Your Sign? Creating Effective Lab Signage

When safety in the lab depends on instructions, thoughtful (and colorful) signage makes a huge difference in creating standard, impactful communication. I recruited David Brammer, executive director of Animal Care Operations and Chief Veterinarian at UH, to help me better understand the components of effective science lab signage and communication.  Not only is Dr. … [Read more...] about What’s Your Sign? Creating Effective Lab Signage

Ditch One Size Fits All Safety Protocols

Safety protocols are only as good as the Principal Investigators who enforce them and the students who adopt them. Operating a lab is no easy feat. It takes patience, consistency and teamwork. In an attempt to learn more about how PIs create a culture of safety, I reached to a few across our university campus to get some tips and tricks for creating effective safety … [Read more...] about Ditch One Size Fits All Safety Protocols