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Welcome to Cellf Taught Bio! Created for students by students.
Labs are magical places...filled with sharp tools, sensitive egos, and caffeine-fueled professionals trying to convince finicky cells, stubborn proteins, and expensive machines to cooperate. If you want to survive (and be invited back), follow these Golden Rules of Lab Etiquette.
POV: Lab managers when they see a neat bench:
Clean Up After Yourself:
Your science may be cutting-edge, but no one wants to see your crusty gel tray from last Tuesday. Wipe down your bench, wash your glassware, and leave shared spaces better than you found them. A tidy lab is a happy lab — and the lab manager is watching.
Label Everything:
Your “clear liquid in a tube” may look innocent now, but in three days, it becomes a mystery and a hazard. Label with your name, date, and contents. If you don’t, someone will throw it out — or worse, mistake it for water and autoclave it.
Don’t Hog Equipment:
The centrifuge doesn’t belong to you. Neither does the PCR machine, the spectrophotometer, or the lone working gel box. Use what you need, but share the sandbox. Communicate, coordinate, and be considerate of others’ timelines. Science is already stressful enough.
Respect Shared Space: This includes refrigerators, incubators, water baths, and anything with a power cord. Your lunch belongs in the breakroom fridge, not warming next to cell cultures. Yes, people have done this. No, it’s not funny.
Use Your Indoor Voice: We know it’s thrilling when your Western blot finally shows bands. We’ve been there. But not everyone needs to hear about it in real-time at 90 decibels. Celebrate — respectfully. Others are concentrating, pipetting, or mentally writing their thesis.
No Food or Drink: This is non-negotiable. You can have coffee, or you can have cell cultures. Pick one. A spilled latte and a contaminated experiment both cause tears.
Phone Down, Gloves Off: Cross-contamination isn’t just for bacteria. Touching your phone with gloved hands spreads whatever you’ve been handling onto your electronics… and vice versa. When in doubt: gloves off, scroll away. Gloves on? Focus on the science.
Me looking at my colleague that decided to put their Dr. Pepper in the lab's -20 C (true story):
One Last Thing:
One Last Thing:
Your bench is your kingdom. Keep it clean, organized, and free of mystery goo. Your future self (and your labmates) will thank you. A well-run lab is a harmonious lab, and good habits are just as important as good science.
When in doubt, ask yourself:
“Would I want to work next to me?”
If the answer is yes — congratulations, you’re already fitting in.
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