::: Action Potential in Action :::

Post-ASB conference thoughts

2011-08-14T17:10:00.000-07:00

I spent most of last week in Long Beach, CA, attending the American Society of Biomechanics' annual meeting. Even though I did not submit an abstract or gave a talk, I was able to present a poster. The conference helped me refine my research questions and plan a couple of interesting projects that will round up my dissertation. Big picture, small picture, long term, short term...it's all coming together nicely.

I got a spot in the medical school's gross anatomy class. The plan is to take the course along the med students, to later be able to teach it to medical students. Professionally, having the skills to teach anatomy with cadavers is a priced commodity that hopefully will make an sought-after employee once I am done with graduate school.

I am aiming to submit abstracts in 3 or 4 different conferences in the next calendar year. It's time to get cranking on the data processing, analysis, pilot studies, methods papers, etc...the abstracts and grants are not going to write themselves.

Running

2011-08-10T09:16:00.000-07:00

I often use the word 'running' too loosely, but it wasn't until 8 months ago that I actually started running.
It has been very rewarding, physically and mentally, to make an effort and get on the treadmill 4-5 times a week.
Work/school has been very manageable but stressful at times, and being a dad/husband is a non-stop rollercoaster full of emotions and twists, yet the happiness when I see my family as I walk through the door cannot be matched even by the funniest movies available on netflix.

Running has been the way to make time for me. Running hits the reset button after a long day at work. Running is a safety net that catches me when all goes bad during the day. Running has helped me lose weight (with the help of Sandy's fabulous cooking) and give me a much needed boost of energy.

The next couple of weeks are going to get a little crazy at USC - new teaching/class schedule, research, grading, writing - but I can always count on the support of my family and hitting the treadmill every other night to get through pretty much anything.

I'm running late for the American Society of Biomechanics' annual meeting. More later.

M

Undergrad stuff

2010-11-23T23:19:00.000-08:00

The ultimate machine

High viscosity, laminar flow (video)

Image and video obtained from BioE 104: Biological transport @ UC Berkeley. Instructor T.D. Johnson

NSF proposal on....strawberry cake

2010-11-21T20:17:00.000-08:00

Update

My daughter has given her first steps! Granted, it's only two or three at most, but she brings a huge smile to our faces everything we see her try.

Going into grad school, I felt like I was lacking the ability of asking important scientific, research questions, maybe because I was not sure what my research focus would be. After an extensive literature review on PubMed, I came across an interesting technique to quantify ATP in the muscle in vivo. Eureka! The research questions, methods, projects, collaborators....everything has aligned in front of me. The project is ambitious (and expensive), but it will take more than that alone to discourage me from pursuing it.

For one of my courses, I have to develop an NSF-like proposal. Although writing (in general) has never been one of strong points, I've enjoyed every single key stroke of work I've put into this proposal; I'm incorporating my (potential) research into this proposal and it will serve as a platform.

Life, love, parenthood, school, research are in check...luck, don't you run out on me now. Sandy made a strawberry cake, dinner time!

M

Life in L.A.

2010-08-23T22:05:00.000-07:00

The family and I have finally relocated to Los Angeles! Today was my first day (officially) at USC.

Even though I don't have a clear idea on what I want to do my dissertation on, I definitively have the right people around me to guide me through the process. JMG is an awesome professor to work with, always looking out for the best interest of her students. Two PhD students on their way out complement the rest of the lab (and a bunch of undergrads who work for free, of course).

The Kinesiology dept. doesn't joke around. They are putting to work right away; I'll be teaching labs in human anatomy and biomechanics - my bread and butter. I cannot wait to get started later this week.

Having a generous stipend from the kinesiology and IEB departments help me concentrate on work, and not on having enough money at the end of the month to feed the family. I am very grateful for the opportunity and I plan to obtain as many degrees and certifications as possible while I'm at 'SC.

Samantha is growing so fast, so soon. She can sit on her own, stand up with some help and she can babble papa'. Sandy has done an awesome job with the apartment. She an excellent mother and (soon to be) wife.

More soon...

Going a thousand miles per minute

2010-03-09T07:26:00.000-08:00

Neurons, your break has ended.
Yes, I'm taking a much needed break from school right now, but things haven't slowed down a bit. I found a kick-ass, full time job at a booming biotech company in San Diego and while taking care of our daughter is a 24/7 job, we've been fortunate to have an awesome support system around us to help us. Sandy already is an awesome mom. I hope I can keep up on the 'dad' side of things.

Time to hit the books again.
Not just yet. I've been offered (and accepted) a 5-year fellowship at USC - that's Southern California, not South Carolina- to get my PhD in Integrative and Evolutionary Biology. I'll be doing research on musculoskeletal biomechanics (actual project TBD). I'm thinking high-speed cameras, force transducers, EMGs, accelerometers, muscles and bones, working with the sports teams, computer modeling and simulations, and tons of coffee! School starts late August, but it is never too soon to look for good housing deals, furniture, routes to get to school, etc...

off to work...

Mantis Shrimp on Discovery Channel Canada

2010-01-21T12:34:00.001-08:00

Featuring the Patek Lab!

http://watch.discoverychannel.ca/daily-planet/january-2010/daily-planet---january-18-2010/#clip257056

The link will take you to Discovery Channel Canada's player

Neurons...take a break!

2010-01-06T13:34:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile since my last post, not because I forgot about it, but because every single neuron in my brain has been preoccupied with more than one thing at a time.

Where to start. I am officially an University of California, Berkeley Alumnus! After an intense 2.5 years of my life, I was finally able to reach to the top of the mountain that an institution like UCB symbolizes. In 6-8 weeks, I'll receive my B.S. in Bioengineering diploma through the mail in 6-8 weeks.

Our daughter Samantha was born on December 22th, at 8:04p. Through out Sandra's pregnancy, I wasn't been able to attend to any of the doctor's appointments because I was away for school. Finally I get the chance to go one, my first appointment, and the doctor gives us the news that the baby must come out later that night!!! In a state of complete shock and disbelief, Sandra and I walked across the street from the gynecologist's office to the hospital were she was admitted.
Sandra developed preeclampsia - hypertension during pregnancy with severe consequences if left untreated - and because she was very far into the pregnancy (37-38 weeks) the doctor opted for a Cesarean section. Sandra was calmed, relaxed during the C-section. She was numb from the chest down and fully awake during the operation. I sat next to her up by her head, we talked all through the procedure. About 20 minutes into the operation, Samantha was with us!

I finally submitted all of my applications for graduate school not so long ago. I'm applying to 3 top-research institutions in the field of muscle biomechanics and energetics. My GPA was not that great in Berkeley, but I believe my research experience was head and shoulders above everyone in my position; thus, I advertised myself as an excellent researcher. So far, I secured interviews with the faculty that I want to work with at all 3 institutions. My last interview is coming up in a couple of days. I will not know about whether or not I am accepted until mid-March, until then, I'll keep my fingers crossed. Leaving to Berkeley was an easy decision, but for graduate school, the decision will be made by Sandra and I, as a family, looking for what's best for the three of us.

There are many more ideas that I want to share, it's just a matter of getting them straight in my head before I'll post something again.

The month of November: Grad School!

2009-11-10T13:58:00.000-08:00

3 Letters of Recommendation
Transcripts from community college and university
Application
Personal Statement
GRE scores

Samantha Antoinette

2009-10-09T00:20:00.001-07:00

Recently, my girlfriend and I received a blessing from the sky...We are having a beautiful baby girl!

Like all expecting parents, an ultrasound is done to estimate height, weight, health, and gender of the baby. And this is how our baby looks like at 25 weeks of development:

She has already her mom's nose, and the mannerisms of her dad.

Summer recap

2009-08-30T07:48:00.000-07:00

In mid-May, I received a summer grant to fund my research over the summer. At the end, I had the opportunity to give a talk about my research in front of friends, other grant recipients, peers and faculty. I was really nervous on the day of the presentation, but once I got on stage, I put all of that aside and began my talk.
I started very smooth - I think - but unfortunately I had some issues with the projector and the computer within minutes of starting my talk [insert nervousness here]. I managed to talk my way out of it both times, but I did go over the time limit the organization committee wanted us stick too. After the talk, I felt this great sense of relief and accomplishment, this was a huge deal for me!
Research during the summer went really good too, given that all of us were on a tight schedule because the lab (and some of its members) were no longer going to be in Berkeley by the end of August. All of us had to coordinate with each other every single week in order for each one of us to accomplish our summer goals.
The lab has moved to another university, but I still have some appendages to dissect before completing the project. I'll hop around other labs to use their equipment and hope to have an excellent publication by the end of the year.

To the lab: You guys were family away from home. Thanks for the guidance, thanks for the advice, thanks for the friendship - I know I'll see you all again somewhere down the road.

In an alternative world...

2009-08-30T07:30:00.000-07:00

Where stomatopods rule!

Drawing by Marcus Wong

Camouflage in the Ocean

2009-07-14T07:26:00.000-07:00

Camouflage for many animals equals survival. The combination of colors, sometimes natural, and sediments allows an animal to blend with its environment and can is practically invisible to the eye of a predator.

However, this goes both ways; predators are capable of disguising themselves into nature and when a pray is at the right place at the right time (from a predator's point of view), well, that equals dinner.

Enjoy!

Long Jump

2009-07-02T15:25:00.001-07:00

From Wild Visuals:

Animal Fencing!

2009-07-02T15:21:00.001-07:00

Inspired by the ram, a native animal of my hometown Tijuana. From WildVisuals

The fastest animal on land

2009-07-02T15:13:00.000-07:00

Check out the incredible acceleration of the cheetah. From WildVisuals.

Archer Fish and Velvet Worm video

2009-06-18T07:59:00.000-07:00

What does a fish and a worm have in common? check out the video of the archer fish and the velvet worm to find out! From BBC 'Weird Nature'

Cavitation

2009-06-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

Over the past year or so, I've been fortunate to be invited on sailing trips with friends that sail religiously. Now, I cannot pass on an opportunity to go sailing, it's that much fun! Interestingly, boat propellers and my research animals have something in common (and it's not water): cavitation.

A fast-moving object in a relatively static liquid will leave a cavity, a bubble essentially, creating distinct regions of low pressure (bubble) and high pressure (surrounding liquid). The immediate surrounding liquid will evaporate into the bubble because of the low pressure, and the bubble will collapse rapidly due to the relative high pressure surrounding it; as the bubble collapses the temperature and pressure of the vapor enclosed begins to rise. As the bubble is compressed down to a small fraction of what it originally was, the vapor dissipates forcefully into the surrounding medium accompanied by a shock wave, light and heat: local pressure estimated to be over 100 atms while the temperature is believed to reached several thousand Kelvin.

See how a bullet going through water creates a cavitation bubble, and how the bubble collapses:

Engineered Cavitation:

Cavitation in boats occur at the propellers and turbines, where the fast-spinning machines gradually erode due to the collateral imperfection that engineers have not been able to solve without having to basically redesign the whole thing.

In the last two seconds of the video below you can see the cavitation bubbles forming at the end of the propeller.

Without prompt maintenance, the propeller might look something like this:

Cavitation in Nature:

'Smashing' mantis shrimp use their highly calcified appendage heel to deliver a powerful blow to their prey and break open hard-shelled animals like crabs and snails. It wasn't until a couple of years ago that cavitation was observed at the end of the strike (Patek lab at UC Berkeley). Using a high-speed camera, a cavitation bubble was observed at the end of the strike where the force of the shock wave of the cavitation bubble serves as an instant second hit to the prey (as if an 800N strike needed any help to begin with).

Check the high-speed video recorded by the Patek lab, pay attention to the 'flash' immediately after the strike → cavitation!

The appendage heel does take a considerable amount of damage, to point of washing the heel down to the flesh. Luckily these guys molt every 3 months or so, getting a brand new, hurts like getting hit with a steel baseball bat, highly calcified appendage, ready for some more smashing!

Unlike the pistol shrimp (scroll down to previous posts to see pistol shrimp video in action), the cavitation bubble produced by the mantis shrimp comes as a consequence of the fast-moving appendage that hits the prey. The pistol shrimp claw is designed to create the cavitation bubble and to stun their prey with the shock wave.

There are many other ways cavitation can occur in nature and in human engineered designs, all of which I am not very familiar with.

Check out a video of cavitation inside a droplet:

Comments, questions, critiques always welcomed. Comment below

Beached whales dilemma

2009-06-08T22:03:00.000-07:00

I saw on the BBC website a news article of rescuers trying to push about 55 whales back into the ocean after they beached themselves off the coast in S. Africa. Help groups resorted to bulldozers and other machinery to try to push the whales back, only to find many of them swim back to shore and beached themselves one more time.

"Those who could not be saved were being shot humanely in the head" - Is this really the only solution a group of people could come up with? Shoot over 20 whales in the head just so that everyone could leave saying to themselves that they tried everything possible?

I don't know much about whales, but I do know that they swim together every where they go. What if they were sick and they were trying to do the right thing for the rest of the whales and alienated themselves from the rest of the group to die at the beach? Why not give them any credit on how smart they are. Why do we - as sentient beings who can write and read a blog - have the need to intervene and dictate how fellow Earth-mates should live? Yet we turn away and start walking faster when a person on the streets reaches out for a dollar.

People should let nature go about its own ways. Would I want someone to help me if I am in dire need for medical attention? Of course, do I want to get shot in the head? Please leave me alone.

I'm all for people who wants to really correct the mistakes that we, as a society, allow to happen. If an oil tanker spilled and made the whales beached I would be writing hard against those who allowed it and ask for as many hands available to help. Sometimes we just need to let Nature takes its course and accept a reality that it does not necessarily go with the ideal world that we pretend to live in. Whales die, just like we all will someday.

Let's take a step back and reassess our position on top of the food chain. Be smart, not condescending. Whales are smart beings who did it for a reason, let nature deal with it, it has proven to work for the past, I don't know, 4 billion years???

BBC News article at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8075250.stm

I want to read what you think...comment below

Rolling salamanders and caterpillars

2009-06-07T18:26:00.000-07:00

The title pretty much says it all. From BBC 'Weird nature'

The Pistol Shrimp

2009-06-07T18:14:00.000-07:00

The pistol shrimp and the stunning power that they carry in their claws. Cavitation is produce when the claws close in a hurry, water vaporizes because of the dramatic change in pressure - From BBC 'weird nature'

Trap-jaw ants video

2009-06-07T14:58:00.000-07:00

Check out the trap-jaw ants, they produce so much force when they close their jaws that they shoot themselves backwards. The jaws remain locked in place until hairs around the mouth area are stimulated, triggering the jaws to close. Arguably the fastest of it's kind

About me

2009-06-07T11:24:00.000-07:00

I was born in Tijuana, Mexico. Right about the time I was finishing high school, my family and I got our permanent residency and we decided that our best chance to improve our quality of life would be to make the most that we could in the US. Perhaps the hardest thing about the transition was moving farther away from my dad back in my hometown.

I enrolled at Southwestern College, a community college in south San Diego were I completed my lower division courses. Here was where I met my beautiful girlfriend Sandy, and almost 4 years into the relationship, I could not be a happier man. Te amo bella :)

Eventually I transferred to Cal, where I'll be getting my degree this December. It's been a tough road to get here: being away from my loved ones and not been able to help my family during these hard financial times felt like a slap to the face every morning. Fortunately, I've channelized all of these emotions as fuel and motivation for school and work, to give my all every day, to try harder even though it feels like I've given it all.

I started to work at the Patek Lab last summer. I am studying the muscles that power the strike of Stomatopods (mantis shrimp). These crustaceans have been recorded to strike about 1000N of force in a matter of 5-10ms, in other words, really really fast and really really hard. The mechanism of the strike is very complex and it has many components to it, one of them the muscles. Unlike for other animals where you can calculate the force generated by the muscle by measuring the force exerted on an object and then back-calculating, Stomatopods are capable of storing energy in their exoskeleton and amplify the force of the muscle with a latch mechanism (think catapult) amongst many other incredible features!!! (definitively back-calculating is not an option). We are in the process of finalizing our data set, hopefully in a month or so I'll start to pull everything together and get a solid scientific publication out of it. Excellent way to make myself more appealing to graduate programs.

This summer should be a challenging one for me. On top of summer school and work, I'll be preparing for my GRE and scouting for possible labs and universities around the country for my graduate studies. It's nerve-racking to go through the whole process, but I'm definitively more excited about the possibility of continuing my studies and getting closer to a professional self-actualization.

About the blog

2009-06-07T11:01:00.000-07:00

I wanted to write a blog to comment and critique movies (I've been told by my roommates Oki and James that I am a little bit critical on special effects mainly because I've been a little bit critical on special effects), but that's not entirely what I want to do. I'll use the blog to write about my likes and dislikes, and pretty much whatever else I want (this pretty much covers everything).

When I post, I'll try to break the post into sections - more later; I'll try to make it as fun as possible for anyone that takes the time to read it. Leave your feedback, I'm new at this so any critiques to improve the blog are welcomed.