Post - iGEM2010

Lei, Bing and I got back to Uppsala last Wednesday (10/10) and we clean the tubes, agarplates and other stuff that had been over from the iGEM-project the following Thrusday.

Regarding the bronze medal recognition by the iGEM headquaters, its means that team manage to produce and send biobricks to headquarters together with valid documention of them in the teams official iGEM homepage as well as a good project despriction of the project. In addition, the jury safety questions have been answered on a satisfying way and poster- and verbal presentation had to be performed as well.

So, now one week later, I together with friend Lidaw are starting up the Uppsala iGEM-team for 2011 through the Uppsala Science Association. http://www.uppsalanf.se/projekt-0. Actually, we did that before the Jamboree and we already hold two meeting and got a group of 6-7 persons for the next iGEM.

I got broader picture about what is required to be among the best teams, how to distribute the different task of the wetlab as well as drylab(modeling) and human practices and the resources that Uppsala University posess to successfully accomplish these different challenges.

The format of the iGEM competition have been changed for the next year. Instead of all the teams directly arrive to MIT to present their project, there is going to be a regional classification round (Europe, North America, Asia) where the best project pass to the World Final at MIT.
Considering that this year five of six finalist were European, it´s going to be big challenge, at the same time Uppsala is going be more prepared than ever this time.

A quick draw of the Uppsala iGEM logo during the poster session

Good night / Antonio

Monday - The Award Ceremony

So here is the last photos from iGEM2010. There were special awards such as best wiki, best software, etc. and I think Imperial College London in total got most awarded. I liked their presentation and project which already seen because they presented after us on Saturday. They are really cool och chill people as well, I hang out with them on Saturday.

It was amazing to meet so many innovative and creative people with interest in synthetic biology. Our team was awarded a bronze medal for fulfilling these requirements =).

 

Some equations on the wall inside the Stata building =P. There were 4-5 more walls like this one.

Tom Knight actually accidently revealed the 1st runner up when setting up his slides before announcing the award winners.

                                                                                   

Sunday

So iGEM is over for this time. It passed really fast and its feel that it just had begin.
But before I there is some photos from yesterday, Sunday.

The mexican UNAM-team answering questions from the judges.

Cool architecture in the MIT - campus

The Stockholm - team doing their presentation about they attempt to engineer a bacteria to use as treatment against vitiligo.

The Stata Centre

During Sunday I took some time to talk to the Freiburg team, Slovenia team, Dresden team and our neighbors ,SDU-Denmark. You could really recognize yourself with the struggles and the obstacles the have had during this time of work and you got more insight how the teams had organized, gather a team and so on.
I got really impressed by the Slovenian team´s project using DNA from a new perspective and not only for coding sequence.

/Antonio

Grand opening and presentation

It´s 8 o´clock in the night and the whole team just arrived from the poster presentation session.
It has been a day full of activities and experiences, I´m really exhausted and at the same time a little empty due the active part of iGEM2010, for Uppsala-Sweden, is over.
From now on, we can enjoy and focusing to talk to other during the last two remaining days of the Jamboree, due we have already presented our project and showed our poster.

Here below, I´ve attached some photos from the day. Enjoy :)

On the way to the opening ceremony and breakfast.

Kresge auditorium

Randy Rettberg, one of the founder of iGEM.

Setting the poster before the poster session.

Last rehearsal before the presentation.

Focusing

Setting up the power point slides

Discussing and explaining our project with other iGEM participants

Team photo

Last hours in Sweden

Its pretty late right and I´m exhausted and at the same time exciting before leaving Sweden at 10 am tomorrow. We printed our poster today and also rehearsed on our presentation for the Jamboree.

Helping us to keep our poster safe

We borrowed a "poster carrier", like one of those architects used to carry around their folded maps when not in use, to transport our poster (called telescopic drawing carrying tube). Anyways, when I was at grocery to buy some dinner, people actually asked and wonder what it was. That was kind of funny because people usually are too shy to ask something just randomly.

Hasta luego

/Antonio

Photos

We took some really nice team photos last week in Photomol´s ( Department of Photochemistry and Molecular . Science) esplendid conference room where our team and the deparments staff hold group meetings.

                               

Thanks to Pia´s (a PhD in Fotomol)  creativity, we got this really awesome picture from birth perspective taken by her.

Preparation

Lei and I, Antonio, are sitting in the Law Faculty struggling preparing the presentation and poster for the iGEM Jamboree. Bing, Nagarjun and  Imtyaz are doing this as well but it concerns us all that none of them three, yet has received their USA- visa. We are hoping so much they will receive them these upcoming days.

Cheers

Antonio