Katie writes:

Hi TWIM,

I’m a huge fan of the podcast, but as a mycobiologist I often feel left out without a TWIF (This week in fungal biology?). I know my field is small, but fungal pathogens still have to represent!

Thanks,

Katie

Joseph writes:

Hello TWiM Hosts,

I am lab manager at Princeton University. I listen to TWiM as I do experiments or make plates/media for the lab. It helps keep me up to date with current research. I love the opportunity to get a book on lab management. Thanks for the hours of education you have provided me.

From a Loyal Listener,

Joseph

Sabrina writes:

Pick me! Currently a microbiologist in a clinical lab at a small community hospital. This text may prove useful for future endeavors:)

Sabrina

Stephanie writes:

Hello to the great TWIMsters,

Longtime listener, first time writing. I did get to meet Vincent at the ASV in Ft Collins a few years ago, which was great.  I’m usually a few weeks behind and don’t get a chance to write in. I love all the Twix and the new Immune casts! I will assign a paper covered on one of the casts and link the podcast in the classes I teach as an adjunct.

I got to work for a bit in a clinical lab. The book on clinical lab management would be a great resource. It has been a while since a clinical lab guest has been on. Maybe this year will have another. Now I am venturing into clinical trials. I love the coverage the Twix team gives on vaccines and new vaccine news.  

Keep up the excellent work!

John writes:

Hi Twimos,

My name is John and I am a devoted TWIM & TWIV listener. I am a 3rd year microbiology student who is currently procrastinating (guilt-free) by listening to your podcasts. I recently found out I got a summer job at the Clinical Microbiology lab at the University Hospital in Linköping, Sweden. Therefore, this week’s book give-away on Clinical Laboratory Management seems like a perfect fit!

When I am writing this email I might as well mention my fascination for the symbiotic relationship between the stingless bee and the fungi you covered in episode 171. My grandfather is a beekeeper and has over the years raised concern about bee hives being lost without explanation. It would therefore be very interesting to investigate first if there is a similar relationship in honey bees. If that’s the case, one could follow up with the effect of various chemicals used in farming on the growth of fungi, and consequently the bees.

I look forward to more interesting discussions to keep the motivation to studying in difficult times!

Cheers,

John

Meghan writes:

I would love to get my hands on this book! I currently work in a microbiology diagnostics lab and I love new sources of information.

Thanks,

Meghan

Nadia writes:

Dear TWIMers,

I am writing to win the book contest. When I heard you were giving away a book I was excited…and then I heard you were giving away a book about Clinical Laboratory Managment (my chosen career path) and I was ecstatic. Could you imagine the emotion I will feel if I win the book?

Even if i don’t win the book many thanks. Having TWIM in my life has already made me a winner.

Your longtime TWIX listener,

Nadia

P.S. Michele Swanson and I were at the National Postdoctoral Conference this weekend in Cleveland, OH. I first noticed she was there when I recognized her voice during one of the sessions. I wanted to say hi again (we have met before in Ann Arbor) but my chance did not come during the hustle and bustle of the meeting. Anyways, it is great that Michele was at the postdoc conference. Us postdocs need faculty advocates and I very much appreciate any faculty mentor that makes efforts to improve Postdoctoral training. A big thanks and keep up the great work!

Aoife writes:

Hello TWIM team,

I just wanted to say thanks for keeping me entertained while I’m working my weekend job

I’m currently in my second year of college studying Science in Ireland.

Having recently discovered this podcast, it makes time fly by while working and also very interesting. While some of the content goes over my head, it is great to know and hear about techniques I learn about being used in the real world.

Keep up the great work!

Aoife

Larry writes:

Hope I win 😀

Amanda writes:

Greetings Tw’all,

I’ve written a few times, but mainly to TWiV. But I’ve never been caught up enough to enter any of the book contests, until today! I’d love to throw my name in the ring for the Clinical Laboratory Management book. I’m currently finishing up a Clinical Microbiology Fellowship in Halifax, NS, after which I will resume duties at the Saskatchewan Provincial Lab as Director of Virology & Immunoserology. This book would be a welcome addition to my book shelf!

Love all the podcasts!

PS: +2 Celcius here, recovering from 20cm of snow over the weekend!

Amanda

Amanda Lang, PhD

Clinical Microbiology Fellow

Nova Scotia Health Authority

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Adam writes:

I hope I’m not too late on this.

I’m Adam from San Francisco. I am a clinical lab scientist working at a company doing microbiome sequencing.

I’m very interested in clinic lab management, and would love to have this book.

I really enjoy the podcast, and listening to you guys every week. It is always interesting to hear you methodically go through these brilliant papers, and really break down the beautiful intricacies of the microbial world.

Really looking forward to the next show!

Philip writes:

Hi everyone

I just recently started listening to podcasts in general and TWIM was one of the first hits when I looked for science podcasts.  While my search leading to your show wasn’t exactly extensive, I decided after 1 episode (TWIM 170) that I had hit the podcast jackpot and could stop playing the lottery.

I earned my BS in Microbiology from the University of Arizona many years ago and have since moved into clinical lab science, so I am far removed from current research and its has been really great to catch up by listening to TWIM.  You all do such a great job explaining the different papers, from the design of the study to the quality of the data, and present complex techniques in such a way that even I understand them. I also love that you always include potential applications of all the papers, many of which apply to my field of medical microbiology.  We are always looking for ways to identify organisms and antimicrobial resistance faster so I am always curious what techniques will jump out of the research lab and into hospitals. For example, after agar plates dominated clinical lab identification for decades, MALDI-TOF has completely changed hospital labs workflow and I expect further improvements to come at a rapid pace.

Since I would like to become a clinical lab manager someday, I would like to throw my hat in the ring for the book giveaway as it would definitely be useful for me.  

Thank you all for your time and effort, I haven’t been this excited about reading research papers in a long time (maybe ever) so this means your show is amazing.

Phillip Denton, MLS (ASCP)