Day 59: Biotechnology and the Airplane

I mentioned there were some busy days coming… here’s one. Today I’m heading to Southern California for some serious work on a few fun projects.

Dad is away in Washington D.C. in meetings with BARDA about data analysis, so Mom picks me up at the Burbank airport. She says “You can borrow dad’s car, but first I’ve got a job for you.”

Mom runs a few biotechnology labs in Pasadena. Startup companies use the labs as an incubator in their early stages, and students use them as a place to learn valuable skills and get practical experience working with the startup companies. It’s a lot of work, but a great mix of fun and interesting people.

Mom and Diane in the lab, telling stories again.

Here’s the job she’s got for me: There’s a computer in the lab which needs repair. That’s how I earn my keep when I visit my folks. (In this case, it looks like the computer is done for, but we’ll get the data off safely, thanks to an idea of Dad’s.)

After lunch with Mom at Lucky Baldwin’s, I head to my brother’s place.

You might remember last time I was here, we worked on the electronics for his airplane. He’s working today and tomorrow, so I’m on my own.

…so I’m going to build something to make the avionics work easier.

Metal parts adapted from… what?

They go together easily enough, but some mods from my original plan are still necessary.

It’s sort of a heavy-duty frame for working with the plane’s electronic systems. The height and tilt are adjustable, and the whole back is open for easy access to everything. There’s even an attachment point for the GPS antenna.

…and hooray, the cheasel is born. (It needed a name, right? His nickname for me is “Doch” so doch-easel = cheasel.) When he gets home it’s going to look like elves have been busy in his workshop.

Tomorrow: Crazy fun with a 44,000-pound optical instrument.

Random assertion: To keep your lunch safe in the bio-lab fridge, just write “ex/38463-36” on it. No one will dare eat it.

Steganographic data: 1848/1.4