WE MAKE it a point, whenever we can, to find out a little more about the stories we publish on the LabHomepage. One of the routine ways we do this is to decipher the acronyms and abbreviations that pepper the news releases which form the basis of many of our stories.
I’ve discussed the ‘alphabet soup’ that sometimes appears in my inbox before, and no doubt will do again. But a couple of things struck me about a story that went live this week, and which has won top slot in our top ten items of the week.
First is the acronym for the new analytical technique which, we are promised, will revolutionise the field of proteomics. This is a data acquisition method called ‘Swath’. Now, it seems to me that we can’t really begin to understand this until we know what Swath means – but there is no definition to be seen.
Scouring the AB Sciex website, and even turning to our good friend Google, reveals next to nothing. It’s clearly an acronym – a word made of the initials of a phrase – so just what do the letters stand for?
Direct enquiries with the company finally reveal the answer: ‘Sequential Window Acquisition of all Theoretical fragment-ion spectra’. It might not be the prettiest acronym ever, but I certainly feel better for having it decoded. Recently I made a similar enquiry of Coherent, asking for a decode of its OBIS laser range, and was a little disappointed to be told that it was just a name, and not an acronym. Ah well.
I mentioned that a Google search revealed next to nothing. What it did produce was a YouTube video discussing the technology, which I recommend more for its production than its content. All the standard elements of a short informational movie are there: the photogenic presenter, the slightly otherworldly technical expert, the lab technicians, and the surreal but ‘sciencey’ background.
But wait: that photogenic presenter – presumably a professional actor – is not wearing the obligatory lab coat. Good heavens, she’s wearing a dress. And she isn’t in the lab, or the board room, or even the parking lot outside the corporate offices. She’s in a ranch-style living room, looking like she’s doing a bit of video moonlighting while auditioning for a role in the successor to Desperate Housewives.
I’m already enjoying this unconventional approach when I begin to pay attention to what our glamorous host is saying – or rather, how she is saying it. We all get a little tongue-tied occasionally, and the technical jargon of the laboratory sector can be relied on to make most of us stumble. But not here. Our suburban superstar delivers a bravura performance of such dexterity that it makes the suburban setting seem all the more incongruous. But she gives the impression of understanding what she is talking about, which is pretty impressive.
I hope you find the LabHomepage website, and this weekly newsletter, useful. Comments and feedback are always welcome: thesecretlabproject@gmail.com. Please help us build our circulation base by forwarding this to any friends that might like it, and suggest they subscribe at http://eepurl.com/itOV2
best wishes
Russ Swan
editor, LabHomepage.com
1. New mass spec proteomics technique is ‘breakthrough’
A ‘GROUNDBREAKING’ new proteomics technique now available quantifies nearly all peptides and proteins in a single analysis, says AB Sciex. The mass spectrometry-based method…
http://labhomepage.com/1503/mass-spectrometry/new-mass-spec-proteomics-technique-is-breakthrough/
2. Purification systems integrate preparative LC with OpenLab CDS
AGILENT has expanded its portfolio of purification systems with the launch of the new 218 and SD1. These systems enable users to pure compounds in the range from micrograms to…
3. Ultraviolet laser is half size for smaller instruments
SUITABLE for life science applications, the newest Genesis lasers from Coherent is aimed at instruments where space is at a premium. Measuring just…
http://labhomepage.com/1547/laser/ultraviolet-laser-is-half-size-for-smaller-instruments/
4. Mononuclear cells are suitable for biomarker research
HIGH survival and recovery rates are said to be assured with Amsbio’s new ImmunoPure range of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), which are supplied in proprietary…
http://labhomepage.com/1539/research/mononuclear-cells-are-suitable-for-biomarker-research/
5. Benchtop 454 sequencer gets software upgrade
SOFTWARE upgrade for Roche’s 454 GS Junior benchtop next-generation genomic sequencing system promises better sequencing consistency. The 454 GS Junior is a benchtop…
http://labhomepage.com/1483/pcr/benchtop-454-sequencer-gets-software-upgrade/
6. Symposium expounds potential of digital pathology
DEFINIENS invites pathology and biomarker development professionals to its 3rd International Symposium, to be held at its Munich headquarters on 14-16 June 2012. It describes this…
http://labhomepage.com/1527/pathology/symposium-expounds-potential-of-digital-pathology/
7. Nanoparticle tracking for biomedical nanoconstructs
NANOPARTICLE Tracking Analysis (NTA) is being employed by the Vo-Dinh lab at Duke University’s department of biomedical engineering, to help characterise metal nanoparticle construct…
8. Plate reader helps researchers unwind the genetic clock
A MICROPLATE reader incorporating a luminescence module has played a key role in a study of circadian rhythms in insects. Researchers at the Institute of Entomology (ENTU)…
9. Automating stem cell handling in Parisian labs
TAP Biosystems reports that I-Stem, the Institute for Stem cell Therapy and Exploration of Monogenic diseases, has selected two of its lab automation systems for installation…
http://labhomepage.com/1496/stem-cell/automating-stem-cell-handling-in-parisian-labs/
10. Better temperature control for rheometry and viscometry
AVAILABLE for use with Brookfield viscometers and rheometers, the new TC series circulating water baths offer a number of improvements over earlier models. All four models…
http://labhomepage.com/1489/rheometry/better-temperature-control-for-rheometry-and-viscometry/