12/12/12: An end-of-the-year update
Well, it’s 12 December 2012, aka 12/12/12 (or, as they say in Europe, 12/12/12), and that means the year is coming to a close. For me, it’s been an annus mirabilis. I’ve been busier than ever, picking up new clients at the Journal of the American Chemical Society and Fierce Biotech. I began blogging, first at the Huffington Post and later, at Double X Science. And I’ve been able to network with my fellow science writers at ScienceOnline 2012, and secured a spot at next years’ gathering too.
I’ve also been able to put together some really fun pieces in the past few months. A few highlights:
Over at BioTechniques, I spoke with the people behind the proteomics papers, the mass spectrometry experts who tailor their instruments to solve otherwise intractable problems (“Pimp my spec!“, PDF). People like Michael Westphall, an astrophysicist-turned-mass spectrometrist, who developed a gas chromatography-coupled Orbitrap mass spec after a short career detour in rocketry, and Phil Compton, a chemist who devised a more efficient instrument architecture for electron transfer dissociation.
Also in Biotechniques, I wrote about new methods for probing the structure of DNA (PDF), techniques like atomic force microscopy and FRET, magnetic tweezers and electron microscopy.
I wrote about the new technologies of epigenomics over at Science, and also at The Scientist, where I focused on data analysis. At Double X Science, I wrote about a potential antibody therapy for hemophilia A and new methods for downsizing x-ray crystallography. And in The Scientist, I penned a short item on the proliferation of new genomics-focused undergraduate courses.
It’s been a busy year, and I’m looking forward to an even busier 2013. In the meantime, head over to my Publications page for a complete listing of my work.
Biotechnically Speaking 