Nate Update

Been away from the blogosphere for the past week since it's been a busy one. I just returned from a scientific conference in the small town of Dordonne which is about an hour and a half outside of Paris. It was for all the different clinical and basic researchers at Hopital Necker, and several people from my lab (not to mention my wife) were also in attendance. The vast majority of the talks were in French, so I was not able to fully comprehend the full importance of all the presentations. However, I was at least able to come away with a few additional connections and a substantial addition to my French medical vocabulary. Just a few examples:

le moelle osseuse = bone marrow
le mucoviscidose = cystic fibrosis
la rate = the spleen
le souche sauvage = wild-type control strain
le cervelet = the cerebellum
la substance blanche = white matter
l'epissage = splicing

In other news, France's most famous point guard, Tony Parker, is here in Paris along with the rest of his San Antonio Spurs, for a pre-season exhibition match this weekend. Unfortunately, I didn't get tickets and don't get cable, so I won't be in attendance.