Skip to content

Melissa Walker

Discover more about Melissa on their professional profiles

Articles by Melissa Walker

Image of a homemade digital microscope - the end product if you follow our instructions to build your own microscope

Turn a Smartphone into a Digital Microscope for Only 3 Cents

By Melissa Walker | December 15, 2020

Want to build your own microscope for almost nothing? You probably already have most of the tools that you need right in your lab or at home! Here’s how.

How to Share Your Lab Protocols and Why It Benefits You

How to Share Your Lab Protocols and Why It Benefits You

By Melissa Walker | January 10, 2020

Reproducibility is a cornerstone of scientific research and your results need to be reproducible not only by yourself but also by others, both in and outside of your laboratory.  This reproducibility is key for validation of your results as well as to further expand on the knowledge gained during the experiment. In order to accurately…

7 Types of  Software Apps You NEED in Your (Science) Life

7 Types of  Software Apps You NEED in Your (Science) Life

By Melissa Walker | May 28, 2019

Here we take you through 7 of the best science software apps that can save you time and money!

Learning

7 Tips to Keeping Your Undergraduate Student Volunteers Interested in the Lab

By Melissa Walker | February 27, 2019

Although we do our best to keep undergraduate students involved in experiments, they are often just in it for a letter of recommendation. Here are some ways to help them enjoy their lab experience and keep them invested in the projects. 1.    Maintain Mutual Respect: The relationship between primary investigators (PI) and undergrads differs slightly…

how to get funded for your research

Early Career Stage Funding – Advice for Graduate Students and Post-Docs

By Melissa Walker | September 6, 2017

Are you stressing about applying for grant funding early on in your career? Are you worrying about lack of preliminary data or lack of experience in your current field? Here are some tips that can help. Why Apply at an Early Stage of Your Career? All of your experiences build upon each other to strengthen…

timesaving

Need a Few More Hours in the Day? Here Are Some Timesaving Tips

By Melissa Walker | May 24, 2017

Are you constantly looking for ways to squeeze more lab hours out of the day? Here are some timesaving tips that can help. Figure out Where Your Time Goes Not sure where you are losing those valuable hours? Use a website like Toggl to help you keep track of your time. This will make it…

advocacy

Advocacy for Scientists – Why and How

By Melissa Walker | February 13, 2017

Advocating for the research that scientists perform is important.  Your advocacy helps politicians and the general public understand why funding is needed. In fact, many funding agencies require a disease to be associated with the research, because citizens and politicians do not typically care to fund projects unless they foresee a cure or treatment. Scientific advocacy…

Image of a cold person to represent the very cold environment of cryosectioning

Can You Stand the Cold? Cryosectioning for Beginners

By Melissa Walker | January 18, 2017

Cryosectioning is difficult when your tissues melt, fold, curl, wrinkle, tear, or crack. Learn how to troubleshoot these pesky cryosectioning problems.

feeling isolated

How to Avoid Feeling Isolated During Graduate School

By Melissa Walker | November 16, 2016

Try to recall the last time you were not alone in the lab at 11pm on a Friday night running an experiment. If you found that to be difficult, then this article is definitely for you. Here are ways to avoid feeling isolated during your Ph.D. studies. Build a Network of Friends and Colleagues Building a…

Scroll To Top