> IN THE LAB: DATA AND PERCEPTIONS OF TRUTH
>
> By Alex Justinger
>
> Int. DR. TALLADEGA\'S OFFICE - day
>
> We open in a mess of an office. Books, paperwork, and other scattered
> research material cover the floors and shelves of the office. Sitting
> at his DESK is DR. TALLADEGA, an older man. Sitting in a CHAIR talking
> with Dr. Talladega is SUSAN MARTINSVILLE A WOMAN in her early 30s.
>
> A knocking on the door suddenly interrupts their conversation.
>
> Dr. Talladega
>
> Come in.
>
> Enter JANE BRISTOL a girl in her mid-20\'s. She carries a BACKPACK.
>
> JANE
>
> Dr. Talladega, you wanted to speak to me before class?
>
> Dr. Talladega looks up and realizes who it is.
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> Oh yes, Jane! Come in, I\'m glad you came by. I wanted to talk to you
> about a great opportunity.
>
> JANE
>
> I\'m not in trouble, am I?
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> Of course, not, far from it. Jane, I\'d like for you to meet Mrs.
> Susan Martinsville.
>
> The two exchange nods.
>
> Susan
>
> It\'s nice to meet you Jane. Dr. Talladega has really praised your
> eagerness to learn.
>
> Dr. Talladega
>
> Yes, but don\'t grow an ego.
>
> JANE
>
> I\'ll try my best.
>
> Dr. Talladega looks down at his WATCH and glances back up.
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> Well, I\'ll just cut to the point since we don\'t have much time.
> Jane, Susan is a post-doc here. She is heading a paper that we will
> soon be submitting for publication. The research focuses on toxic
> effects of compounds used extensively in the workplace on cells.
>
> JANE
>
> I remember you brought that up in lab two weeks ago.
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> What did I tell you Susan? She\'s sharp. I love people who listen!
>
> SUSAN
>
> I\'ve asked Dr. Talladega to help me find someone to take part of this
> project and take on the task of clearing up some results for us. Your
> name was the first to come out of his mouth.
>
> JANE
>
> You want me to examine the results? Honestly, I\'m flattered by being
> asked to take part, but this seems like quite a task for someone at my
> level.
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> Nonsense. You\'ve got a knack for this. Much of the staff agrees.
> Besides, the payoff is well worth it. Your results will help work
> toward the greater good of people\'s health. Medical research such as
> this is very rewarding in its own right, and you know what the best
> news is? Susan, you want to tell her?
>
> SUSAN
>
> By taking on this job, you\'ll get a co-authorship credit in the
> publication.
>
> Jane
>
> (excited)
>
> Already?
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> Opportunity is knocking Jane. It\'s not everyday a new graduate
> student, such as yourself, gets this advantage.
>
> SUSAN
>
> This is a great chance to get ahead of the game. Mind you, your
> results are VERY important to the progress of this study. Are you
> going to be up to this?
>
> JANE
>
> Of course, there\'s no doubt about it. I mean, what do I need to do?
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> (excited)
>
> I think I hear a yes.
>
> SUSAN
>
> Is that so?
>
> JANE
>
> How could I pass this up?
>
> SUSAN
>
> Welcome aboard! Now there is a lot to go over, and the sooner we can
> get together on this, the better. Can you meet me in my office
> tomorrow, say around three?
>
> JANE
>
> Sounds good to me.
>
> DR. TALLADEGA
>
> Great! Jane, Susan will be your guide on this. However, I\'ll be here
> for questions, but for the most part, I\'m hands off. Enjoy it though,
> you\'ll be playing with the big toys in due time.
>
> Dr. Talladega glances at his watch again.
>
> DR. TALLADEGA (CONT\'D)
>
> Speaking of\...I\'ve got to run. Jane, congratulations, we\'ll talk to
> you soon enough. Susan, I\'ll be seeing you around as well.
>
> Dr. Talladega gathers his things and runs off.
>
> Susan extends her hand to Jane.
>
> SUSAN
>
> Jane, again, welcome aboard. I shall see you tomorrow. My office is
> right down the hall, 334.
>
> JANE
>
> I look forward to it.
>
> The two shake hands.
>
> Fade to:
>
> Int. SUSAN\'S OFFICE - DAY
>
> SUSAN sits behind her DESK. As JANE sits in a CHAIR taking NOTES.
>
> Susan
>
> \...so what we are doing, is studying the toxic effects on human cells
> of a class of organic solvents used extensively in the workplace. And
> this is where you come in Jane. You see, one of the techniques you
> will be using is called immunofluorescence. The goal is to bind an
> antibody labeled with a specific florescent tag to a protein called
> CHO that we think the solvent is causing to be over expressed in the
> cell. We are wanting to know where the CHO goes to, and whether it
> binds to other proteins, like GTO. This finding will help determine
> how to find replacement solvents that won\'t cause the same health
> problems in the workplace. Now, in order for you to do this, you\'ll
> have to use the University\'s confocal microscope.
>
> JANE
>
> The big toys?
>
> SUSAN
>
> You\'ll have to pardon Dr. Talladega\'s over-excitement, but yes. I
> went ahead and made arrangements for training on the microscope. Lab
> policy requires six hours of training before you can do this
> unsupervised. Any other questions?
>
> JANE
>
> You said this was going to be a two-week turn-around?
>
> SUSAN
>
> Yes, we\'ll be expecting a presentation of the results. There you\'ll
> be able to meet some others who are part of this study.
>
> JANE
>
> (gathering her belongings)
>
> Susan, thank you. I\'ll keep in touch. And get to reading the
> paperwork.
>
> Jane exits.
>
> FADE TO:
>
> TITLE CARD: ONE WEEK LATER
>
> Fade IN:
>
> INT. LAB - DAY
>
> JANE sits at the CONFOCAL MICROSCOPE\'S COMPUTER MONITOR. Jane looks
> incredibly focused onto her work. The IMAGES from the microscope pop
> up on the monitor.
>
> Jane looks at the images second-guessing them. She then looks around
> the lab and spots the lab tech in the distance in the middle of
> something.
>
> JANE
>
> Excuse me! Excuse me sir!
>
> The LAB TECH, a man in his early 30\'s, rolls his eyes, and walks to
> Jane.
>
> LAB TECH
>
> (frustrated)
>
> What?
>
> JANE
>
> Sorry to pull you over here, I just had some questions about the
> microscope. I\'m using these two pre-prepared optical filters-
>
> LAB TECH
>
> Look, I don\'t have time for questions. I got a million other things I
> have to do before the day is out. If you don\'t know what to do, you
> shouldn\'t be using that equipment.
>
> JANE
>
> I\'m sorry, I didn\'t mean to keep you, I just needed some help.
>
> LAB TECH
>
> Then refer to your training.
>
> The Lab Tech storms off.
>
> Jane, unsure of what to make of what just happened, blows her
> frustration off, and gets back on the computer.
>
> FADE OUT:
>
> INT. CONFERENCE ROOM - day
>
> JANE stands presenting a POWER POINT of data. SUSAN MARTINSVILLE and
> other LAB OFFICIALS. Jane has a projection of a GRAPH in the
> background.
>
> Jane BRISTOL
>
> In short, the negative control images appeared not to show any
> staining. In the two treatment groups there was a green staining in
> the cytoplasm due to CHO with more in the high dose sample than the
> low dosage sample. GTO alone would stain red, and my key finding was
> that, instead of red in the mitochondrial areas due to GTO, the
> mitochondrial areas were orangey-yellow, due to both GTO and CHO.
>
> MAN IN AUDIENCE (O.C.)
>
> So, the orangey-yellow is due to CHO binding to another protein, GTO?
>
> Jane
>
> It appears to be so. Anything else?
>
> A small murmur of interest is heard amongst the group. The murmur is
> interrupted by applause.
>
> SUSAN
>
> (gleefully)
>
> Well done Jane! This is a terrific observation! I\'d say meeting
> adjourned until next time.
>
> Everyone surrounding the table gathers their things and begins to walk
> out. Susan makes her way to Jane.
>
> SUSAN (CONT\'D)
>
> Very nice work!
>
> JANE
>
> Thank you! I\'m just so excited about this.
>
> SUSAN
>
> You should be. This study has been the talk of the facility! Now,
> before we go any further, I need you to send me all of your confocal
> data as soon as possible. We are just about to send this off for the
> publication.
>
> JANE
>
> Sure, that\'s no problem, I\'ll get right on it. However, there were a
> few things that I did want to talk to you about. While I was in the
> lab, I had some issues with-
>
> Susan looks off into the distance and sees someone waving at her.
>
> SUSAN
>
> I\'m sorry, you\'re going to have to excuse me. We\'ll talk later on.
> Again, great job!
>
> Susan runs off.
>
> FADE TO:
>
> EXT. SUSAN\'S OFFICE - DAY
>
> SUSAN approaches her office to find a LARGE FOLDER. Susan glances at
> it, and picks it up.
>
> We reveal the folder reading: JANE BRISTOL.
>
> FADE to:
>
> INT. SUSAN\'S OFFICE - DAY
>
> SUSAN sits alone in her office looking through the FOLDER. She reads
> through the NOTES located in the folder when she finds a THUMB DRIVE.
>
> Susan places the THUMB DRIVE in her COMPUTER and reads it. The
> computer reveals PHOTOS from Jane\'s experiment.
>
> We take a close look at the photos displayed on the computer\'s
> screen.
>
> Susan
>
> Hmm\...
>
> Susan tries to adjust her eyes to the screen. We focus on her computer
> screen as Susan plays with the image in PHOTOSHOP.
>
> SUSAN (CONT\'D)
>
> (to herself)
>
> All right Jane, what did you do here?
>
> We watch as we see Susan add a filter to the image.
>
> SUSAN (CONT\'D)
>
> Levels, levels\...hmm, curves maybe? Where are you at?
>
> Susan pulls up the CURVES WINDOW and manipulates the image\'s color.
>
> Susan pauses for a moment to focus as the changes she has made. Not
> quite happy with it yet, she moves the curser to the tool bar and
> clicks on the CLONE STAMP TOOL. Using the tool, she manipulates the
> background pattern covering up BLACK SPOTS on the right of the image.
>
> SUSAN (CONT\'D)
>
> (very casually)
>
> Perfect.
>
> We see the computer screen as Susan moves the mouse icon to the top of
> the screen. She clicks on FILE. It drops down a menu she moves it down
> to SAVE AS, hesitates, then moves it to SAVE and clicks the image.
>
> CUT TO:
>
> Int. SUSAN\'S OFFICE - DAY
>
> SUSAN sits in front of her COMPUTER adjusting the color of the images
> from Jane\'s experiment. It looks as if she has just finished up her
> reports.
>
> CUT TO:
>
> Susan places a LARGE STACK OF PAPERS along with a CD CASE inside of a
> SHIPPING BOX.
>
> Cut TO:
>
> EXT. CAMPUS - DAY
>
> SUSAN walks out to a UPS PICK UP BOX and drops the SHIPPING BOX.
>
> CUT TO:
>
> Title card: 2 days later
>
> FADE IN:
>
> Int. CONFOCAL MICROSCOPE FACILITY - DAY
>
> JANE stands at CONFOCAL MICROSCOPE looking at the COMPUTER. She is
> trying to adjust her eyes. She looks confused.
>
> Jane
>
> (To herself)
>
> What is going on?
>
> Jane adjusts the microscope some and, after giving it another look,
> grows frustrated and lets out a grunt of agitation.
>
> Jane looks around and sees someone off to the corner of the lab. She
> approaches ERIK, a man in his late 20\'s.
>
> JANE (CONT\'D)
>
> Excuse me, sorry to bother you. Are you one of the lab techs?
>
> ERIK
>
> No, I\'m Erik, one of the post-docs just taking care of some minor
> business. Anything I can help you with?
>
> JANE
>
> My name is Jane. I\'m attempting to do a follow up experiment for-
>
> ERIK
>
> Jane Bristol, right?
>
> JANE
>
> How did you know?
>
> ERIK
>
> I meant to get in touch with you about your findings. I was just
> reading up on your results for the recent study.
>
> Cut TO:
>
> Int. Lab - day
>
> Just moments later ERIK and JANE stand in front of the CONFOCAL
> MICROSCOPE\'S MONITOR.
>
> ERIK
>
> Well, you know, looking at these results, they almost seem too good.
>
> JANE
>
> What do you mean?
>
> ERIK
>
> Well, did you try acquiring the images through a sequential scan mode?
> If you do that, it gives a cleaner image with no chance of
> bleed-through from one channel into the other.
>
> We see Jane\'s distraught face.
>
> Cut TO:
>
> Int. SUSAN'S OFFICE - DAY
>
> JANE stands nervously explaining the situation to SUSAN, who sits
> confidently, holding pictures in her hands.
>
> JANE
>
> Do you recall something being said about how the tail of a shorter
> wavelength tag can often overlap with the spectrum of a longer
> wavelength one? That would explain why I see orangey-yellow in the
> mitochondria. It\'s due to excessive bleed through of CHO, into the
> red channel. Susan, if this is the case, then we might not be seeing
> these proteins bind in the region at all.
>
> SUSAN
>
> Jane, calm down. You have put forth a lot of hard work and effort into
> this project. You did all the controls your journals required. Not to
> mention, just looking at my final photos we can clearly see that GTO
> does not show up so badly in the cytosol as in yours.
>
> JANE
>
> I don\'t think we should let this publication print before doing
> another control. I can go back and do a single anti-body control-
>
> SUSAN
>
> Jane, you need the publication. We don\'t even know for certain that
> you did make a mistake. Besides, your results are just the backup and
> are non-essential. It\'s more-or-less just helping our results get
> more attention.
>
> JANE
>
> Where is Dr. Talladega? I would like to speak to him.
>
> SUSAN
>
> Dr. Talladega is out of town at a meeting.
>
> The PHONE rings breaking the silence. Susan picks it up.
>
> SUSAN (CONT\'D)
>
> (frustrated)
>
> Yes? Oh, its already that time? All right, just put them on hold for a
> minute.
>
> Susan hangs up.
>
> SUSAN (CONT\'D)
>
> Jane, look, don\'t worry about it, it\'s fine. Now, I need to get
> this.
>
> Jane, speechless, exits Susan\'s office. She looks confused and
> unsure.
>
> Fade out.