Some thoughts about my internship when it's almost end

Today was the last day that I work with Gernot. In the next two weeks he's going on vacation, so that means I'll not see him until the 13th, when I'm going back to the States. I should say it's a happy ending. Although more has to be done, but we've got some initial positive results. Now we must think about how to reproduce the result in the most cost-effective manner. I think I will miss him quite a lot because we've had a lot of fun working together. I hope I can keep in touch with him. It's not easy, but I realize it's very important.

The concentration and stability of our product is still a huge concern. I wish I could have more time to figure out the solution. Right now we have many many routes we can take in the future, but to pick the best one is not very easy. One always need to consider the time involved, the money, and whether the method is the logical next step (based on really careful interpretation of the data). Somehow I think we should treat the data more carefully and analyze it more thoroughly, for there might be a lot of hidden information. Being able to go through these kind of things critically and independently is what I should really train myself and learn from a research experience.

My work has also inspired me to learn more about molecular biology. I'm really weak in this area, but the knowledge is so important that I cannot simply do research without having a solid foundation in molecular biology. Also, I need to learn how to confront my weaknesses, so maybe I'll take some courses in this area next year.

My Fulbright application has not been finished, and the time is running short. Nonetheless, I'm going to Koblenz tomorrow and forget about the application for two days. I heard it's beautiful and the region has a long tradition in making wines. I cannot wait to taste them!