She's talking about complicated tests involving DNA molecules and in this case, fetal liver cells. One gel test can take six hours to complete. One mistake can ruin an entire day' s work. That made for some frustrating days last summer during Chong's UTRA project with Ken Zaret, professor in the department of molecular biology, cell biology and biochemistry. Zaret understands the emotional side of scientific research.
Science is a very frustrating business.
If you're trying to push the bounds of scientific research - you're going to be frustrated most of the time. What I try to teach my students is to get emotional satisfaction from the work even if they don't experience success. That's very important. Chong's test involves constructing a sandwich of gel pressed between two glass plates. The sandwich is then turned vertically and set on a trough.