Commemoration
I just started running the first organic reaction of my graduate student career:
6-bromoindole + oxalyl chloride + methanol ------(ether)-----> 6-Bromotryptophol
And so begins my research at Stanford.
I realize it's pretty late, but when I came back from dinner, I started talking to one of the other grad students in lab. She happens to be a Berkeley BS holder herself, and she's been nothing but helpful this whole week. I don't think she has any idea how grateful I am. She's discussed different pathways with me, along with two other members in the group who I share a room with. Anyway, even though my PI isn't back yet, she suggested that I just go ahead and run a reaction. I had been getting pretty ancy just sitting around brainstorming this week with nothing else to do. We couldn't find one of the *actual* starting materials after searching for a while, but we found an intermediate lying around lab. My synthesis follows a previous grad student's to a point so there's some overlap.
In other news, I've been looking into buying a laptop. I've had my Dell desktop for four years now. Incidentally, the MacBook pro just came out... I think I'm going to "make the switch" to mac since that's what the boss uses, and it'll make my life much easier over the next five years to be compatible with him. I can get a pretty good discount at the student store, and I can make monthly payments. What else am I going to use the money for? However, I will first discuss it with my MIT comp sci grad roommate.
Oh, it's almost time to add the methanol. Then I can go home (and come back) while it reacts for the next 24 hours.
6-bromoindole + oxalyl chloride + methanol ------(ether)-----> 6-Bromotryptophol
And so begins my research at Stanford.
I realize it's pretty late, but when I came back from dinner, I started talking to one of the other grad students in lab. She happens to be a Berkeley BS holder herself, and she's been nothing but helpful this whole week. I don't think she has any idea how grateful I am. She's discussed different pathways with me, along with two other members in the group who I share a room with. Anyway, even though my PI isn't back yet, she suggested that I just go ahead and run a reaction. I had been getting pretty ancy just sitting around brainstorming this week with nothing else to do. We couldn't find one of the *actual* starting materials after searching for a while, but we found an intermediate lying around lab. My synthesis follows a previous grad student's to a point so there's some overlap.
In other news, I've been looking into buying a laptop. I've had my Dell desktop for four years now. Incidentally, the MacBook pro just came out... I think I'm going to "make the switch" to mac since that's what the boss uses, and it'll make my life much easier over the next five years to be compatible with him. I can get a pretty good discount at the student store, and I can make monthly payments. What else am I going to use the money for? However, I will first discuss it with my MIT comp sci grad roommate.
Oh, it's almost time to add the methanol. Then I can go home (and come back) while it reacts for the next 24 hours.