Extreme Pipetting Expedition

The ARTEL Extreme Pipetting Expedition recently released results of a mission to Death Valley to test pipetting accuracy under conditions of extreme low humidity and high temperatures.

Results:

At Death Valley for Mission #3 of the Extreme Pipetting Expedition, ARTEL found that pipettes under-deliver by up to 35 percent in dry and hot environments. While volume delivery errors were partially reduced by pre-wetting pipette tips, under-delivery still persisted, and the pipettes were found to operate out of specification in most instances.

Previous missions tested effects of barometric pressure at Mt. Washington in New Hampshire, where “pipettes under-delivered 1.3%-30.2% based on CV,” and effects of warm and cold fluids at Yellowstone National Park, where “pipettes over-delivered cold fluids and under-delivered warm fluids.” A fourth mission is planned to test effects of temperature changes.

OSHA publications

Available from OSHA:

Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and Response Guidance for Healthcare Workers and Healthcare Employers, a 104-page pdf issued in May 2007.

A complete list of OSHA publications, many of which are online in html or pdf formats, is available here.

Mexico (Mo.) Ledger: “Laboratory technician program created to respond to need for trained medical employees”

Coverage from the Mexico (Mo.) Ledger on a new medical laboratory technician program at the Moberly Area Community College cites the expected shortage of laboratory technicians as a reason for starting the program.

Lab procedure videos online

The University of Alberta Department of Biological Sciences has videos on lab procedures, including pipetting techniques, using a gradient mixer, spectrometers, agarose gel electrophoresis, polycrylamide gel electrophoresis, and gel filtration chromatography. On the microbiology page, there are some animations on topics such as pathogenic E. coli.

From the University of Virginia Health System, Department of Pathology, there are  instructional videos for the hematology laboratory, including standard venipuncture procedure, butterfly procedure, preparing a blood smear, and automated CBC.