The Horsman Lab Exploring microbial chemistry

Lab Culture & Expectations

The purpose of this document is to outline lab values and expectations that will help guide trainees towards a successful research experience. This includes guiding principles as well as more practical considerations such as approaches to communication and data management.

Core Values

We recognize the privilege of publically funded scientific research and commit to to asking and seeking answers to important questions. We aim to achieve this through the core values of curiosity, intentionality, rigor, and collaboration.

Curiosity

  • We are curious about the world around us and are open to using unfamiliar tools to seek answers.
  • We cultivate our curiosity by giving full attention to others in meetings and seminars. Like anything, genuine curiousity needs to be cultivated; develop a habit of asking thoughtful questions in meetings/seminars.
  • Be curious about the work of those around you (including in other labs). Every lab member should be able to summarize in a sentence or two the work of every other lab member. If you can’t do this, start by asking questions during lab meetings or arrange a one-on-one discussion over coffee.

Intentionality

In some ways this is a fancy way of saying “be organized”, but I think it captures more than that. We should be intentional in our choices, whether they be research questions or experimental approaches. At the highest levels, we should be able to clearly articulate why we are choosing to pursue a research question and outline broad (e.g. thesis) objectives. I recommend formulating shorter-term goals (e.g. 3-4 months) in a semester plan, and then outlining weekly and daily plans that serve longer-term goals. At every step, you should act intentionally to advance key objectives without getting sidetracked or overburdened with other activities.

Rigor

Plan experiments carefully by anticipating alternative interpretations and incorporating controls to narrow the scope of possible interpretations. Include technical replicates (e.g. multiple samples processed in parallel) as well as biological replicates where appropriate. Important experimental results must always be replicated. Always obtain all the data you need to publish a result before moving on; never think to yourself “I’ll come back and get the last few data points later”.

Collaboration

Despite our relatively narrow technical skills and research ‘comfort zones’, we approach problems as scientists rather than ‘biochemists’, ‘microbiologists’, ‘chemists’ etc. This dovetails with our curiousity core value; we should cultivate diverse interests and let the research lead us rather than algorithmically performing a series of experiments just because we can. The cutting edge almost by definition exists at the boundaries between disciplines. This doesn’t mean that we need to become an expert in everything - that’s not possible - but we should be open to new ideas and collaborations. This includes collaborations within the group and beyond. Of course, new collaborations should always be approved at the PI level.

Expectations

Research

  • I expect at least one first author publication from MSc students, but undergraduates should also aspire to this metric.
  • Students should develop clear research goals and place them in a short- vs long-term framework with anticipated completion times (see intentionality core value above)
  • I expect students to develop independence. I will not micromanage unless required temporarily in the early stages of your training. I expect you to take ownership of your project and anticipate what is needed for completion within your degree/placement timeframe.
  • Everyone should keep up with the primary research literature. This is one of the most important habits you can develop, and reading widely helps you write better.
  • Regular progress reports (see below) help you to schedule writing and get feedback from me. The process of writing helps you better understand your project and can lead to important insights.

    “I write to understand as much as to be understood”
    -Elie Wiesel

Meetings

Meetings are mandatory for all members and provide an opportunity to share ideas and identify and resolve problems.

  • Group meetings (weekly, ~1 hour) - Members will present research progress or literature according to the posted schedule. The research meetings should be thoughtful and pay attention to the big picture and new ideas. I am more interested in your deep thinking and creativity than showing off how much work you have done.
  • Individual meetings (bi-weekly) - These meetings are meant to provide an opportunity for one-on-one interaction between myself and each lab member. This time can be used however the lab member sees fit (e.g. review data, plan experiments, discuss career options), but it should be organized. In keeping with our core value of intentionality, the meeting should have a clear objective. In order for the meeting to proceed, 24 hours prior I should receive from you an agenda that outlines meeting goals/deliverables and any materials I should review prior to the meeting.
  • Committee meetings - Graduate students are responsible for meeting their program requirements and arranging supervisory committee meetings at least annually.

Record Keeping & Documenting Progress

  • Lab notebook - All lab members are required to keep an accurate and detailed lab notebook. This is the legal record of research that belongs to the laboratory. This notebook needs to contain sufficient details to enable experimental replication by another person. I will provide a notebook with carbon copy sheets that you may take with you when you leave the lab.
  • OSF repository - Increasingly we generate data that requires digital storage. Each lab member will be given access to a digitial repository at the Open Science Framework (osf.io) and/or a lab Dropbox folder. Each lab member is encouraged to maintain and update an OSF project page as a more flexible and remotely accessible record of your research project.
  • Lab inventory - New chemicals should be added to the inventory immediately upon receipt. Important lab strains should be archived as glycerol stocks in the -80 C freezer and documented in the inventory.
  • Progress Reports - A short progress report should be submitted at the end of each semester. You can use your semester plan (see intentionality above) to broadly structure the report around what you planned, what you accomplished, and where you fell short and why. If you have been maintaining a wiki on the OSF or a Google Doc this will be easier. Details on its format can be found here.

Lab Operations

  • Lab members will be assigned duties according to a schedule.
  • I expect everyone to be a good laboratory citizen by training new students, maintaining equipment, and ensuring sufficient stocks of common lab supplies.
  • Ordering - Order requests should be sent to me with the following information:
    (i) catalog number
    (ii) supplier (e.g. Fisher, VWR, etc.)
    (iii) quantity required
    Please verify these details (including availability) on the supplier website prior to contacting me.