Thinking Outside the Box or Just Plain Nuts?

Please take the title in the spirit it is intended: as a bit lighthearted. Seeing the object pictured and reading the accompanying blog post from one of Jonathan Eisen's graduate students.  It's an unusual solution to a common problem, and gave me a good chuckle.

Boston's Boris Bikes

When I discovered that my new gig would temporarily in Boston, I realized I had an opportunity to try out Boston's new bikeshare program. Started this summer, Hubway consists of racks of bikes in public places which can be used for short hops around town. I like my folding bike, but on some rush hour trains it is very hard to find space for it, especially with some train conductors who are more interested in giving dirty looks than serving their passengers. Plus, it's now quite dark on the last leg of my commute, and even if I had some really slick lights I don't like riding even short distances in the dark.

Transitions

I went to an Infinity going-away lunch last week. We head off to some favorite local restaurant and order a modest (but delicious) meal on the company dime. The departee makes an impromptu speech, there are goodbyes and handshakes and usually a number of pleas to stay, both fictitious and heartfelt. Those staying wonder what could lure someone away from the very safe and green pastures of the company. I've been to many such lunches with Millennium and Infinity; with Codon the lunches tended to be group affairs as people were laid off in batches.

Illumina Calls for a Flag on the Play

Continuing my sports analogies, but switching games, in my coverage of the benchtop sequencer war today.  Alas, I can't refer to instant replay, as the usual set of procrastination excuses has resulted in this being filed very late after I was made aware of it (first by a comment in the blog, then by a friendly chap from Illumina alerting me).  In any case, Illumina has responded to Ion Torrent's claims on long reads and overestimated MiSeq quality, and mostly done so by crying "Foul!".

Genetic Education:

   A study by the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG) is published today suggesting that few U.S. states have adequate standards in place for genetics education.  I forgot to ask for a link to the article that would go live post-embargo, but it should be on the website of the journal (CBE Life Sciences Education)