The last major objective our mentors set for Ruth and me this summer was conducting a bioassay. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday we carried out the assay and analyzed the results. From past research in this lab and our work this summer, we had three pure compounds with known molecular weights and structures. With this information, we carried out serial dilutions to make seven different molar concentrations of the compound in buffer.

This week is the final week of lab for research in Spain. With the approaching deadline, things are beginning to get hectic and more and more projects are pushed in the already long days. This week, my lab is conducting bioassays on two previously purified molecules -- xiloidone and lapachol. Since we know the exact structures from these molecules (from extensive study of carbon and hydrogen NMR) we were able to make concentrations of various molar concentrations of the molecule. After 24 hours, the bioassay is complete and results can be measured (thats what we are doing tomorrow).

On another note, the eight of us as well as Joanne and Micheal went on our last trip with the University of Cadiz. We got picked up by a minibus early on Sunday morning and spent the day in Ronda. The city was beautiful and we got to wander around and explore on our own.

It's officially half way through the program and I am making significant progress on my project. I feel like every couple days I'm taught a new technique or tool to add to those that I'm already using. I've been very busy the past couple of days and it's great because it makes the day go by a lot quicker. Being busy also helps me make it to lunch, which doesn't come until about 2:30 or 3 in Spain. My stomach is used to it now, but I can't wait to eat lunch at noon again. Anyhow, in lab I now run TLC plates, use the HPLC, and today I used the NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) for the first time.

This weekend, we took a three-hour bus ride down to the Strait of Gibraltar. The earliest bus out of Cadiz was at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday and our bus left La Linea De La Concepcion (the Spanish-owned land just outside the Strait at 3 p.m. Sunday. This didn't give us long in Gibraltar, but we did a ton of things and it was one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited. Our hotel was in La Linea, meaning the currency is euros and everything is in Spanish. We made the 20-minute walk from our hotel to customs, and found everyone speaking English and all prices in pounds. For the short time we were in Gibraltar I felt literate again- reading signs and understanding bits of conversations from people around me. Here is a view of the rock of Gibraltar from La Linea

Now in my third week of lab, I am beginning to get a feel for the work I will be doing for the remainder of my time and Spain and the long-term goals of this project. Like I said last week, I am working with just one fraction from previous extractions (mine in particular is the acetone extraction) of a Brazilian plant root. The plant, Guarea, produces secondary metabolites during various times in its lifecycle. These metabolites are of interest to scientists and my goal is to begin to isolate one compound present in the extract. This process takes many years and the project seems huge. I am working on a fraction of a fraction of a fraction (and so on) of the large project.

This is a picture of the building my lab is in

Today in my lab, I began to run a silica gel column to separate compounds based on polarity. I finally knew what my mentors were talking about in lab, even though I couldn't understand all the words. Last summer, I did research in Dr. Casteel's organic chemistry lab at Bucknell. It was great preparation for the work I am doing this summer. My mentors, Rosa and Anita, try really hard to communicate with me -- in Spanish, English, Spanglish, and sign language. I think we are communicating pretty well now. I'm a fan of the thumbs-up sign and pointing. I am not sure my friends and family are going to understand me when I come home... I feel like my official language will be broken Spanglish after seven more weeks.

My second day of lab went a lot smoother than the first. I arrived around 10:30, after Spanish class, and we left at 2:45. This weekend is La Feria in Puerto Real, a huge carnival for the town with rides and tons of food and dancing. We were let out of lab early to go to the feria and we have no work on Monday to continue the celebration! I am sure of one thing -- this weekend will be loud. We live in apartments that are mainly rented as off-campus housing by students of the university. The main method of communication here is screaming from one apartment to the other in order to talk to your friends. The eight of us NSF students have started to embrace this habit -- today I planned a trip into Cadiz while sitting at my desk and yelling to my friends (they live in another apartment building but we heard each other perfectly). This morning I was awakened at 5 a.m. by lots of yelling. I thought my alarm clock hadn't gone off, and it was the middle of the afternoon. In reality, I was hearing my neighbors returning from la feria. It seems with each passing day, la feria gets bigger and bigger. I can't imagine what Monday will be like, especially since it is important enough to give us a day off work.

Tuesday was the first day we went to the University of Cadiz (UCA) in Puero Real. It is about a 20-minute walk from our residence, across a couple bridges and through the town. For the next two weeks, we will need to be at the university by 8:30 for our Spanish class. The class is from 8:30-10:30 and is taught entirely in Spanish. The best thing about it is that the director of the program, Joanne, and her husband, Michael, are taking the class with us. Joanne has been coming to Cadiz for 10 years now and knows a ton of Spanish ... Micheal not so much. We are all struggling together.

Our journey to Puerto de Real began at about 5 p.m. on Friday and we fell into bed exhausted around 6 p.m. (eastern time, 12 a.m. in Spain) on Sunday night. The eight of us in the NSF REU program are living in an apartment complex, each in a different building but within shouting distance from one another. We dropped our bags in the rooms and ventured out into the town of Puerto Real to explore and find food on Sunday night. The town is very small, with a couple streets with shops and cafeterias. From our apartments, the beach is about a 15- to 20-minute walk. We found a place to have dinner and after much difficulty (hardly anyone could understand the menu) we ordered tapas and had our first dinner in Spain.

After arriving at Bucknell on Wednesday night, and attending orientation classes for most of the day on Thursday and Friday, I think it's safe to say the eight of us in the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Undergraduate Experience (REU) are anxious to leave for Spain. It has been a fun couple days at Bucknell, getting to know the seven other students going on the trip, meeting our advisors and learning more about the research we will work on in Spain.