The practice of forbidding smoking, eating, and drinking in laboratories is one of the basic good hygiene practices. Unfortunately, it is often one of the most frequently disregarded. Too many people seem to have a "good reason" for continuing these bad habits. None of these reasons are good enough.

Problem: In almost any laboratory or scientific research facility today, there are numerous devices, instruments or processes that require cryogenic fluids or gases supplied from cryogenic sources. The past quarter-century has seen cryogenic liquid cylinders expand from a rarity in laboratories with relatively few applications, to become the dominant mode of supplying high-purity gas and cryogenic fluids.

Problem: For a lab manager, these scenarios are all too familiar:

• A medical research lab has a -20°C freezer where the door is frequently left ajar and there is no door alarm. 
• In an academic biology lab, a -20°C freezer is accessed on average 20 times an hour and also has a -80°C freezer that warms to -55°C routinely due to new lab students and sustained door openings, thinking “hmmm, what did I come here for again?”
• As a lab manager, you receive a phone call at 3 a.m. saying a freezer has alarmed which forces you to go into the lab in the middle of the night.

Centrifuges work on the principle of sedimentation facilitated by an apparent angular force that draws components of a rotating sample away from the center of rotation. Although centrifugation theory is straightforward, its engineering literature is voluminous due to the number of industries and research operations that depend on the operation.

Keeping your vacuum pump happy all comes down to regular maintenance.

Every year it seems the subject of continuing education can creep up on us all. We know we may need it—or want it—but why does it seem we’re always doing the last-minute hustle for something that would truly benefit our careers?

David Patterson, PhD, professor of computer science at the University of California at Berkeley, talks to contributing editor Tanuja Koppal, PhD, about big data—what it is, where it applies, and what lab managers can expect to gain by investing in it. He also provides guidance on where people can get more
information about (and help with) big data and the possible concerns they need to be aware of.

Does teamwork matter in a laboratory setting? Absolutely! Teamwork contributes to synergy, creativity, enhanced decision-making, customer/client responsiveness, and an engaged, motivated working environment.

New research from North­eastern Uni­ver­sity sug­gests another, darker origin behind the kindly act of fairness.

Problem: Vacuum pumps are laboratory workhorses, providing the conditions needed to run many lab applications. Unfortunately, pumps are also exposed to acid or organic chemical vapors that can cause some real maintenance issues. Particularly with oil-sealed, rotary vane pumps, the exposure of the oil to the chemical vapors can cause the oil to become corrosive, or to break down and no longer serve its vital lubricating function. Regular oil changes are needed to protect the pump.

TAU researcher finds that "pay secrecy" discourages employees from improving their job performance.

Study finds less cooperation among women than among men where hierarchy is involved