The Engineering of...the impossible

Last weekend, I went on a little adventure of my own to Mont St. Michel in northern France. Talk about an engineering feat! It has been rebuilt 14 times atop a boulder in the middle of quicksand and water that cuts it off from the mainland when the tide comes in. It used to house about 60 monks, but now 5 live there along with the numerous pilgrims who visit each morning.



The monastery was absolutely magical. As we approached it by bus, driving through the countryside, the pointed steeple of the Mont crept above the horizon line-- a domineering shadow against the cloudy sky. We stopped for lunch at a place with a great view of the island and munched on the famous Mont St. Michel omelet-- an odd, light, frothy dish.





Finally, we made our way to the base of the rocky site and wound our way up and into the monastery. Despite the dark appearance from the outside and the cold gray stone walls, the rooms are actually filled with light. The windows are angled in such a way that from either end of a room, you cannot actually see the panes of glass, but they still let in the sunshine. The monastery was a place of learning for the monks who knew everything from agriculture to physics and acted as doctors to the nearby villagers.



The main chapel of the monastery exemplifies the mixture of architectural styles that was necessary during its multiple renovations. The entryway is in the Roman style with straight, striated columns, but the altar area is framed by high, thin Gothic windows. Very Harry Potter-esque, overall.

I explored the town for a bit, sampling the also-famous Mont St. Michel apple shortbread cookies and squeezing through their "main road," which is as wide as an average person's shoulders!



On Sunday, we fought our way to the Champs Elysees where the Tour de France ended. After waiting for nearly six hours, the bikers finally arrived! They did five quick loops up and down the road. And by quick, I mean BLAZING FAST! We could barely see them as they zoomed by-- I was looking for Lance, but decided my search was in vain and took a video to analyze later, instead. Europe definitely has different interests in sports than the U.S.-- rugby, biking, soccer... So, the Spanish dude won in the end (the country is doing well this year, no?) and Lance said goodbye to the Tour for the last time.

And, shockingly, I only have three more weeks until I say goodbye to Paris! We have packed a lot in so far and I am planning on getting the most of my remaining time here...

The Engineering of...mouthwatering

I feel I must dedicate this next entry to Parisian food. Last Friday, I had the greatest moment of gustatory glee ever! That being said, the information found here is strictly confidential and no restaurant names will be revealed for fear of leaking our favorite little secret to the general public...

The restaurant lies in a more industrial area surrounded by small residential buildings. The long wooden tables encourage sharing of food and talk and contribute to a very cozy, French vibe.

We chose the Chef's menu: a five-course dinner of pure, nonstop sensory delight! First were the entrees (=appetizers). We had a zucchini/eggplant/pepper hummus with rustic dark bread that had a little bite to it. There were plates of thinly sliced ham topped with avocado puree, juicy whole shrimp, and beets with octopus! My favorite, though, was a palette-cleansing melon soup in a gorgeous shade of chilled-honeydew orange. This really could have been plenty of food for the entire meal, but it did not stop there...

Next, was a slice of white fish, slightly crisp on the outside with a wonderful, warm, chunky pepper and tomato sauce. This was followed by a bowl of lentils and pork (which we later found out was tongue...glad I did not know that in advance!). Next, a planche (board) of dry cheese and sweet, dark red cherry jam from the Pyrenees. Finally, a light, just-right slice of fruit tart.

It was tasty from start to finish and shared with fun friends-- a good night, to be sure!

The Engineering of...reunions!

I had a lovely visit from two of my friends from high school who are interning in London for the summer. We crammed into my little Parisian apartment for the night, but spent most of the day out seeing the sights!



During a late-night picnic on one of the wooden bridges that spans the Seine, we caught a glimpse of the twinkling Eiffel Tower and waved to the river boats. The next morning, we made our way to an area I had not yet explored-- Montmarte. Very artsy, very trendy, and very hilly! The Sacre Coeur (Sacred Heart) Basilica sits atop Montmarte. It is a huge white stone church in an architectural style very different from the rest of the city. The view is fantastic from the top!



Montmarte is actually the most expensive place in Paris, yet as you work your way down the hill, you approach the base where it is the least expensive place in Paris! And we saw why. Although, I must say, the shopping deals are good there, the "red light" is a little distracting...catch my drift? But, we really wanted to see the outside of the Moulin Rouge (where I was tempted to cover the eyes of the touring children!). We also grabbed a bite at the cafe where part of Amelie was filmed-- in art deco style with a pink bar and geometric sconces.

Next we hit the Musee d'Orsay-- I was happy to go back again because it is one of my favorites and I saw new things in the paintings that I had missed before!

After a little evening gelato and a post-gossiping sleep, we went to the Notre Dame the next day. It is the second time I have been there, but, much like the Eiffel Tower, it always amazes me! Mass was also going on and it felt like we were traveling back in time.



Our final stop of the grand tour was the Musee de l'Orangerie. Was not sure what to expect here, but was pleasantly surprised! Situated at the corner of the Tuileries Gardens, the Musee is flooded with light. The main galleries are all round with a large occulus in the middle of the ceiling. Monet's water lily paintings wrap around the rooms. The big rule at the museum is "silence!" In the quiet and the sun, you feel like you are in the gardens with Mr. Monet! Although the subject matter is the same, each piece looks different from the next.

The Engineering of...the "big bang"

After many "congratulations" received on the 4th of July, it is my turn to say "right back at you, France." Bastille Day, celebrated on the 14th of July, was a wet and wild day!



Went to the famous Bastille Day Parade on the Champs Elysees, which ends at the Arc de Triomphe with a speech from Sarkozy himself. It is a military parade and troops from African and Arab units marched along with the French units. Each group sang a different marching song, carried their flag, and sported dashing uniforms. The finale was a barrage of military tanks and vehicles zooming down the road under formations of jets, helicopters, and planes shooting out red, white, and blue smoke in the shape of the French flag.



Unfortunately, Mother Nature must not have been a fan because it poured upon the nearly one million visitors and we got super-soaked! But, in the end it was worth seeing.



After drying off and picking up some picnic supplies, we trekked to the Eiffel Tower and parked ourselves in between the Tower and the Trocadero by the Seine. It was a fantastic show! Every moment was like a finale! I saw fireworks I had never seen before. Like, how do you make one look like a heart, or gold?! The lights and smoke turned the dark night into day again! And it looked even better after a little baguette and cheese...

The Engineering of...engineering!

Here is a little entry on what I am working on in the lab:

Certain cells, like those found in fireflies and some jellyfish, have the ability to produce light via a chemical reaction. When their substrate is present, the enzyme released by the cells undergoes an oxidative reaction that releases photons. This is called bioluminescence!

Here is a picture that I obtained of some of these cells:



And here they are producing light:



The cool thing is that no excitation light is required to make them do this, which means there is less risk of phototoxicity.

Imagine you have a bacterial infection. The bacteria have markers on their surface that can activate the light-producing reaction when they bind to a matching enzyme. When the right equipment is used (which I am also developing), we can detect this light to pinpoint exactly where and how severe the infection is.

The biggest problem is that your body is filled with blood, water, and tissues that like to absorb or scatter light of certain wavelengths. So, I am looking at the feasibility of using light from bioluminescence to excite other nearby particles. These "fluorophores" will collect light of many different wavelengths from the cells and emit light of a very narrow range of wavelengths that are more easily passed through the body and into our external detector/camera.

The Engineering of...war

One of the most moving trips I have taken was to the Normandy D-Day Beaches last weekend. After arriving in Bayeux by train (I learned a lot about the tribulations of rail transportation that day...), I hopped onto a little shuttle with our guide and some other families.



The first stop was Pointe du Hoc. It remains in nearly the same condition as it appeared during WWII-- huge craters from bombs make the ground ungulate for miles. I climbed around old barbed wire into a German bunker and looked over the cliff which the Germans would have seen the Americans scaling.



Next was Omaha Beach. It is actually quite gorgeous, but was a tough attack point for the Americans. The current swept the soldiers away from their desired region, landing them in unfamiliar territory against the Germans who were in a much better defensive position in the hills.



The American Cemetery was my favorite stop. It was pristine and gorgeous, overlooking the ocean. Families from Normandy adopt a soldier's gravesite and generation after generation will continue to visit that spot, bringing flowers to honor him/her. A cool tradition for visiting relatives of a passed soldier is to rub sand from the beaches of Normandy into the engraved headstone to make it seem like gold. The cemetery also has a great new museum with cool films.



Finally, Longues-sur-mer Battery with its four guns still preserved and pointing towards the beach.

Is war more frightening with the greater knowledge we have today, leading to dangerous new mechanical and chemical weapons? Or was it scarier then, when without a GPS you didn't even know where you were landing and ran blindly into the enemy? Of course, war is always horrible-- I heard a fitting quote in Normandy: "We must conquer war, or war will conquer us..."

The Engineering of...food, fame, and fun

Much to update…



Last weekend ended in Bruges, Belgium—land of the old Flemish painters and canals, used for washing lace and textiles. It was a beautiful town with little buildings and boats, a big market square, and a gorgeous, dark, old cathedral. We took a boat tour then stopped for oh-so-delicious waffles and whipped cream. To get our full servings of sweets and sugar, we went around the city sampling chocolates to find our favorite. Hopefully we walked it off. Bus ride was not too long and pretty convenient.



Earlier this week, went to the Pasteur Foundation breakfast with all of the American post-doc fellows and the other undergraduate students. Good to be a part of such a diverse, young scientific group. The director of the Institute was there, making it a good venue to discuss many practical issues.

I am finding some very wild clinical applications for my bioluminescence project that really keep things interesting—non-invasive angioplasty where your blood lights up all throughout your body? ! Cool. Working on the technical development side of things is really different for me, but neat to build something from the very bottom to the top. After compiling and organizing some of my data, it was sent off directly to a grant committee for a funding request to further our project. One of the grants (the largest) was accepted, making us very happy!

Attention: Royalty in the lab! On Monday, (newly engaged) Prince Albert of Monaco came into our lab to tour it before handing out some major cash to the Institute. I was locked away in my office for security reasons…but got a paparrazi video from the window! He was very nice, gave everyone a handshake/pat and chatted with them. Grace Kelly would be proud.

Have been sippin' on lots of "Cola Lite" (in glass bottles, so much better) and watching soccer games at night. It is exciting that the World Cup is happening this summer, but I will be a little glad when the madness is over! Then we get the Tour de France…



I spent this weekend in Paris—will probably be traveling for most of the rest. First stop was Victor Hugo's house. I was happy that admission was free because while the neighborhood was cool, nearly nothing in the house is original. Also, all the info signs were written entirely in French. I am still not quite sure why Louis Napoleon Bonaparte exiled him...thank you Wikipedia for filling me in.

I explored the neighborhood around the museum for a while because there were some funky clothes out now that the soldes (sales) have started. Then, old Victor followed me to my next stop…



…the Musee Rodin. Hugo modeled for Rodin a couple of times. The gardens at the Musee are gorgeous, despite the showers we had yesterday. Also, always nice to get reduced admission for being a youngin'! Rodin has never been one of my favorites, but it was really cool to see his sculptures outside with the Eiffel Tower and Hotel des Invalides in the background. The Thinker was a big hit, with everyone mimicking his pose for a photo-op.



Today was Free Museum Sunday! I dared to venture to the Louvre, and it was not so terribly crowded. Saw some more things that I missed when there last summer. Of course, had to see my pals Mona and Venus again and met the Code of Hammurabi for the first time. Pulled the foreign tourist card, holding the camera out at arm's length, to get shots of me with my favorite paintings…

Picnicked at Parc des Buttes-Chaumont today to celebrate the 4th of July! All of these French people kept telling me "Congratulations!" haha.



I booked a seat at a chamber music orchestral concert at the Opera House for this evening. It was one of the last shows before the Opera closes for the summer and I had to get a peek at that gorgeous building! I partially chose this event because it was at the older, not the modern, Opera Garnier.

Rock on, America! Ciao ciao.