Sarine McKenzie- 7/20/15

So today was really cool. I got to work in the glove box for the first time, and it was a little nerve wracking simply because you have to be really careful so that you don't spill or break anything in there. So while I was in the glove box, I combined my solution (starting material and ACN) with another solution and as of right now, it's still in the box. Right now my mentor is teaching, so I'll begin my interview with a grad student from my lab, so that I can type and revise the biography tomorrow. So that's pretty much it for today, see you tomorrow!

Sarine McKenzie- 7/17/15

So I totally forgot to write my blog on Friday, so I'm doing it today. On Friday, we had a group meeting, and I presented a short powerpoint on what I have done so far this summer. Then the grad students from my lab presented, and after that, I didn't really do anything.

Sarine McKenzie- 7/16

Today, we recrystallized my starting material. Then, we took an IR and a NMR of our product, and the IR was near perfect, but the NMR still shows that we have impurities or isome in our compound. So between today and tomorrow, we're going to figure out what we can do to remove that from the starting material. Tomorrow, we have group meeting, and I have to present what I've done so far this summer. That's pretty much it, see you tomorrow!

Sarine McKenzie- 7/14

So today we had a group meeting with all the SEED students, and Jordan and I presented. I think we both did very well, but I certainly have things to work on within my presentation. Afterwards, I observed my mentor as she worked in the glove box and began the combination of the molybdenum, ethanol, and dithione solution. Then we took an NMR of our solution, and we had to rewash our crystals a few more times. After that, Jeramiah and I organized and labeled DR. Basu's old lab notebooks, and I gave Kasey my abstract. So basically I've had a pretty busy day, and tomorrow I have to submit my abstract. That's all for now, see you tomorrow!

Sarine McKenzie- 7/13

   So today was a very busy day. For the most part of my morning, I practiced my presentation for tomorrow, then we got our lunch early and took it to Fisher Hall for the Poster-making seminar. After lunch, Secretary Rivera from the Board of Education sat in on Stephen, Angel, and Jeramiah's presentations, then some of the SEED students showed him around the labs. After that, I continued practicing my presentation for Tuesday, which I'm really excited for. So that's pretty much everything, tomorrow I'll present, and I'll finish and probably submit my abstract. 

Sarine McKenzie- 7/10

Hey everybody. So today, we had a group meeting, and I presented my powerpoint to the students in my lab, and my mentor took notes on the things I needed to change or improve within my presentation. After group meeting, I changed up my powerpoint, and ran through it a couple more times. I also began my introduction for my research paper. Later on in the day, my mentor wants me to present my powerpoint to her again so she can make sure that everything is accurate and sounds good. That's pretty much it for today, see you on Monday!

Sarine McKenzie- 7/9/15

So today was a lot like yesterday, I worked on my powerpoint presentation for next week, and I'm almost completely finished. I also went to the NMR room and the glove box room with my mentor so she could test her sample. Tomorrow is group meeting, and my mentor suggested that I present what I have done so far, so that I can see if I need to make any revisions, or add on more to my presentation. That's all for today, see you later!

Sarine McKenzie- 7/8/15

Hey everybody. So today I got started on my powerpoint presentation for next week. I pretty much did that all day, and I will most likely be working on that tomorrow as well. Sorry for such a short blog, see you tomorrow!

Sarine Mckenzie- 7/7/15

Hey everyone! So today after group presentations, I vacuum-filtered the crystals from my ditione solution, and set them out to dry. Then, I took the leftover solution, poured it into two Erlenmeyer flasks, and set them on a hot plate to boil. Boiling the solution will evaporate most of the ethanol (solvent), and leave a concentrated solution that I can pull more crystals from. After lunch, I weighed the crystals that I gathered today. Tomorrow, I will work on my abstract and presentation, and probably filter out more crystals. That's all for today, see you tomorrow! 

Sarine McKenzie- 6/30

Hey, guys! Today we had a group meeting, where two students presented their project. In lab, I filtered my purified my dithione to get the crystals, then set them to dry. Then, I dissolved my other dithione in ethanol on a hot plate. After all the dithione was dissolved, I placed the solution in the fridge. Later on today, we'll most likely calculate the yield of the crystals that I collected. I'll be out for the rest of the week, and possibly Monday, so I won't be on for a while. Well, that's all for today, good luck to everyone in the blog challenge!

Sarine McKenzie- Blog Challenge #1

Here is Cheyeanne Perez using the maxiprep kit. We couldn't choose between these two..