3.3 During the Experiment
3.3.1 Testing
If it’s the first time your are running an experiment it’s always a good idea to do a test run. For most cases there should be some extra sample materials that you can use in order to test your abilities. This is especially important if you are low on sample material for your real experiment! Ask someone in the lab if they know where to find extra samples or reagents.
3.3.2 Timing
Timing is always important. Whether you are doing an experiment for the first time or you are trying to optimize an experiment, it’s a wise idea to time yourself. Knowing the time will help you plan experiments in the future.
Cell culture and animal model experiments take days/weeks/months of time to execute so careful planning is needed in order to optimize the time of everyone involved. The same is needed for molecular experiments, but usually only on an hourly/daily/weekly time schedule.
3.3.3 Writing
It’s always important to take notes during a protocol. Some labs are very strict about lab notebooks, and how they are kept. This lab is not as strict, but we still find it very important to keep an informal lab notebook for each type of experiment. In some instances we have simply kept a record using a notepad.
3.3.4 Post-Cleaning
Tidying up or organizing your workspace before and after an experiment helps keep things in order, which in turn helps you focus on your assay vs. finding the right pipettor underneath your stack of protocols. Clearing your workspace also gives you the opportunity to use 70% ethanol to clean the workbench and the equipment. This step is important to remove any unwanted debris, whether it be tissue, DNA, RNA, skin cells (your own or someone else’s), chemicals, and bacteria. Cleaning in this manner also makes the lab bench a safe place for everyone’s experiments, lab notebooks, and personal safety.