Welcome to Bits & Base Pairs! If you’re new here, you can subscribe by clicking the button below!

BIT

Long-form improv

What is long-form improv? It is longer than short-form improv, duh. Okay, smart alec, what is short-form improv? It’s shorter than long-form improv. Wow, you got me again. Either way, improv is completely made up on the spot and beautifully ephemeral. Great improv takes repeated practice by its performers but requires no preparation other than showing up and receiving a random suggestion from the audience. Long-form improv is more on the order of a play or a movie, and short-form improv is like a sketch. Two masters of long-form improv are Thomas Middleditch (Silicon Valley) and Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation). I highly recommend checking out each of their 1-hour specials on Netflix. If you’re anything like me, you will be disappointed there are only 3 in total and search Reddit for any whispers of a season 2.

BASE PAIR

Allergy Omics Research

Allergic and immunologic diseases are complex with many interacting molecular pathways. Disparate omics data is rapidly growing. Quick name 5 omics types fast: epigenome, transcriptome, microbiome, lipidome, metabolome, proteome. That was 6 you over-achiever. If what you seek is an article by experts on how to integrate disparate omics data through a systems biology approach, I give you, “Analytical challenges in omics research on asthma and allergy: A National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases workshop” by Bunyavanich et al.

ACADEMIC MUSING

Rejection

Do you have a friend who recently had a grant triaged? Not discussed? Another academic euphemism for rejected? Is that “friend” you? Definitely not, but just in case, you…I mean your friend…needs to add three other words that begin with “R” to their lexicon. Your inner critic might suggest: Retire, Retreat, and Recoil. However, I recommend that you listen to the wiser words of Dr Julie Bastarache: Reflect, Reframe, and Resubmit. Treat yourself to a full cup of persistence and read the full article published on Edge for Scholars, “Reframing Rejection: Changing ‘No’ to ‘Not Yet.’”

Thank you for reading and have a fulfilling weekend!

If you have any suggestions for future features as a Bit, Base Pair, or Academic Musing, please respond to this email with your recommendations!

Views my own.