Assessment.....

For the past year Tim and I have been volunteering a couple hours each week at the SPCA: Tim in the Dog House where the adult dogs live and I've been in Vet Care in the hospital wing. As I've said before we absolutely love working there; it's a serious morale boost each Monday afternoon. :)

A couple weeks ago I just happened to find out that another Vet Care volunteer was moving out of Wellington and so her shift would be available. She worked in a special area of Vet Care, Assessment, where all new animals come when they first arrive at the facility. This is where their details are entered into the computer, they are vet-checked and then taken to the appropriate area of the hospital wing (e.g. for an animal with a contagious disease they would be moved to "Isolation" until they recover).

This was very timley because, over the last two years, I've developed a keen interest in animal ethics/welfare. As you know I work in an animal lab at Victoria and I sit, as a student rep, on the Animal Ethics Committee that overseas all animal research conducted on campus. With that said I've wanted to increase my understanding of how facilities (like the SPCA) actually facilitate animal welfare for the critters in their care. After learning that an Assessment shift was opening up I ran around to find a manager and asked if she would consider letting me have the shift. I explained my interest and she said that, for learning about animal welfare, within the facility, Assessment would be the best place to volunteer. In the end I was awarded the shift!! Last week was my first time working it and, despite lacking experience, I jumped into the fray and had an absolute ball working with the nurses and vets. :)

When I arrived, one of the vets, also named Bridget, was processing a "surrendered" cat. Her owner was unable to care for her and now she is in the care of the SPCA until she is adopted. Reaching into the carry cage Bridget scooped up the biggest, fluffiest grey and white Himalayan cat I've ever seen. Bridget recommended that I give her a brush as the cat's fur was easily over two inches long. While it didn't look tangled upon closer inspection I saw that the tangles were at the base of the fur. So, having never brushed a cat in my life, I set to work. To my great relief this particular feline was used to being brushed and so didn't put up a fight. After twenty minutes I had brushed out some small sections of her fur when one of the nurses came in to say that they had a cage ready. Back into the carry cage she went and I walked her into "Quarantine" where newly admitted, healthy animals are kept short term to make sure they are completely well before moving them to the other areas of the center (e.g. Dog House, Puppy Run, Cat Run, Bunny Bach, etc.). I scooped her up from the carry box and placed her into her cage all the while she was peering back at my through ice blue eyes. I thought to myself, "She'll be adopted immediately". :)

After that one of the vet nurses-in-training came into Assessment where we were keeping a kid. A baby goat. Standing just 1.5 feet tall this little cutie was still young enough that it needed to be bottle fed. Five times a day. This particular trainee had been tasked with feeding the kid but they had soon learned that it was easier to have someone hold it while feeding. You guessed it, I was the one to hold. So that was another first; holding a baby goat. We did this routine twice during my 2-7pm shift with varying levels of success. The first feed went well but the second we were only able to get about half the bottle down. The rest of it ended up on me. :) This is why I wear old clothes because you never know what might get on you when working with all these animals.

Next we processed another "surrendered" cat. After the vet-check we examined it for the presence of ring worm. The way they do this is a test called Wood's Lamp. In a dark room you shine a black light on the animal to detect the fungal infection, ring worm. If the animal has ring worm you will see the area glow fluorescent green down the entire hair shaft. Since moving to the new facility the SCPA is short on rooms that can be completely dark because most of them have high windows. So where did we go to do the Wood's Lamp test? A closet in one of the Consult rooms. :) I had to laugh. Toting the cat in a carry box I followed the vet into the closet and squeezing in so we could close the door we turned the light off. Next she flipped on what looked like a black light wand and with the top of the carry box propped open she started to pass the wand over the cat. We didn't see any fluoescing green at this point. Then she asked if I could pick up the cat so she could scan its undercarriage. Now you should know that this particular cat was quite scared so I wondered if I was about to get scratched. I'm happy to say that I was able to pick up the cat without scratches and without any green fluorescing. No ring worm! We then extracted ourselves and the carry box from the closet and made our way back to Assessment to gather up this cat's paperwork and move her to a quiet cage in Quarantine.

Towards the end of my shift I had the rare opportunity to play with a puppy. The majority of the animals coming through Assessment are cats, kittens and rabbits. But that day there was a puppy in our room and like all puppies he needed some play time. I was actually "assigned" this task. So after all the animals were processed and moved from Assessment I opened the puppy's cage and let him have free run of the room. I got him to chase me round and round the examination table in the middle of the room. With a semi slick floor he spent most of his time slipping and sliding around the corners as he tried to catch me. Adorable!! Then I found that he liked to chase the tennis ball I found in his cage. He wasn't so good about bringing it back to me but he reliably would track it with his eyes before I threw it. Then he'd spring into action tearing after it. And because of the slippery floor on his little puppy paws he would over shoot the ball, sliding past it as he tried to stop and catch it. I was laughing my head off because it was so cute!! After 30 minutes of this I wrangled him back into his cage where he greedily slurped up water. I nodded my head hoping that I'd worn him out and that he would soon crash and have a good rest. After the big drink he plopped down on his purple stuffed bunny that was bigger than him. He turned those big puppy eyes on me saying, "Aren't I ADORABLE?!". It's tough being so cute. :)

All in all the Assessment shift was amazing and I'm very excited to be working so closely with the nurses and vets. It also gives me more hands on contacted the animals that come in I'm excited to gain that kind of experience and the confidence that goes with it. Now I'm looking forward to my next shift. Who knows what kind of things I'll learn then?! What can I say? I'm a sucker for new learning experiences. :) Nerd.

Babble.....

The excerpt below was written for the Victoria School of Psychology newsletter, Psychobabble.

At the end of May I attended a workshop put on by the Science Media Center group: Science Media SAVVY. Science Media Center, operated by the Royal Society of New Zealand, is a platform where the media can access accurate information about matters relating to science and technology. They also encourage scientists to develop media communication skills to effectively convey their science to a wide audience via the media. This particular Science Media SAVVY course hosted twelve scientists from various academic and professional institutions around New Zealand. A diverse range of disciplines were represented: neuroscience, cancer research, climate change, immunology, pain research, historical mathematics, economic modelling and ecology.

To be honest I approached this workshop feeling a mix of apprehension and excitement. While I enjoy public speaking and talking about my research these experiences are always a little nerve wracking especially when the audience is made up of your peers.  My anxiety rose when I realized, after introductions on the first day, that I was the least experienced person in the group. Everyone else was well into their respective academic/professional careers with experience to match. Considering this I had two options: I could flee the room and never look back or I could take a deep breath and dive in head first. 

With that in mind we soon began our first group activity. Wasting no time they put us in front of the camera to be interviewed on an unknown topic immediately. It was the last thing I wanted to do but when they asked for a volunteer I looked up to see my own hand in the air. The looks around the table told me that others were relieved that someone else had volunteered. I thought, “Well, here it goes…”. I expected the camera to be unnerving and it is. So I concentrated on not talking with my hands or speaking too quickly. Focussing on the person conducting the interview I decided to answer the questions (about how I became interested in pursuing laboratory science) genuinely as if I were explaining it to someone that wasn’t a stranger. Soon my few minutes were up and the audience gave supportive applause as I walked back to my seat. Then the unthinkable happened: as a group, we watched and critiqued my “interview”. People usually say that they hate the sound of their own voice; try watching yourself think of answers on the fly. To be fair, this first interview wasn’t too bad. My answers were well articulated in speech that wasn’t too fast to understand. Now realize that I didn’t expect to see a collected person giving reasonable answers to the interviewer. For this reason alone I think this type of training is absolutely essential. We all have ideas about how we speak, move and communicate but often we come across differently than we think. Seeing yourself on camera immediately shows you what is working and where you can improve/change. This is different than you might think. Surprisingly, I saw that talking with my hands, as is normal for me, actually added to what I was saying – I would’ve never expected that. I also learned that I tend to speak quietly and therefore have to be conscious to project my voice so the camera can pick up what I’m saying.

In addition to practice in front of the camera we also spent time preparing a “key message” to describe our research topic in a clear and succinct manner. Starting with a broad, umbrella-like, topic we then outlined why the issue matters, what conflicts may arise from it, what solutions are out there and how do people benefit in the end? I found this portion helpful in cutting through all the details surrounding my broader topic of “genetic susceptibility to drug addiction”. As scientists we don’t always have a succinct and clear way of explaining what we do. This type of exercise forces you to cut everything down to what is absolutely essential. They had us do it in three sentences. That’s right. Just three. But what do you know? It is possible. All twelve of us were able to do it successfully. Now a three-sentence limit was not arbitrary because, at the end of the second day, we each gave our key message as a pitch to a panel of journalists from around Wellington. Without fail the panellists were interested, wanting to know more; they understood our pitches and found them compelling. Three sentences is possible. A challenge, yes. Impossible, no. 

Overall, I found the experience invaluable. It gave me confidence in that, even though I was anxious going in, I was a collected and articulate interviewee. It also showed me where I need to practice and work on responses to questions, especially those regarding challenging and controversial topics. I would highly recommend this workshop if you would like to gain experience and confidence working with the media. As scientists I don’t think this type of training can be underestimated because science is so often misunderstood. To effectively convey science to others we need to be able to explain it, without jargon, without elaborate examples and without dumbing it down. Science Media SAVVY is a great place to practice and prepare. Science Media Center offers a couple of courses each year and they are happy to have students participate. So don’t be shy – put your hand up. It is well worth it. 

A week after the course I was sitting at my desk when an email landed in my inbox. It was from one of the journalists that sat on the panel that reviewed our pitches. That led to an interview for a piece that will be published in the Dominion Post about my PhD research. While I wasn’t expecting this kind of response it led to my first real interview experience – I’m happy to say that it went very well. Having the Science Media SAVVY experience gave me invaluable presence of mind as I prepared; I knew what to expect. In the end it led to a great interview.

Bridget Brox, PhD Candidate

Note: More to come regarding the article. I'm having a follow up interview next week to verify my quotes and have my picture taken. :)

 

Business....

With several upcoming workshops, conferences and networking possibilities Timmy and I will be prepared with these snazzy business cards. I never imagined I would have one before I actually worked for a business but there you have it. :)

Mistake....

After three months of being a vegetarian I make my first mistake.

Last night I attended a 'thank you' reception hosted by Volunteer New Zealand. As I volunteer with Postgrad Student's Association at Victoria and the Wellington SPCA I was invited by a university colleague to attend. I met a whole bunch of people who volunteer in various capacities all around Wellington; we chatted while sipping wine and taking in the beautiful harbor view. Inching my way over to the table spread with all varieties of nibbles I eyed each platter; this is what's challenging about being a vegetarian. When you're out and about it can be difficult to determine what contains meat or not. This is made more interesting because there's an expectation that, at events like this, you have something to eat. After some mental head scratching and asking other people what they thought I selected a little egg/veggie cake and popped it into my mouth. Later I found out that those were tiny crab cakes. Upon learning this I mentally smacked my forehead with my hand. Come on Bridget! Interestingly, as I took stock of my reaction I realized two things. First, I felt like an idiot because I've gone out of my way to make a decision to avoid meat. Second, I realized that, beyond feeling silly, I wasn't actually panicking. The world would not end because of this error; there was no feeling of failure. Instead, I had a good laugh at myself, saying, "Ok next time, just stick to the brie".

Book love.....

The Cuckoo's Calling. After resounding success with the Harry Potter book series J.K. Rowling went on to write The Casual Vacancy. It was touted her first books for adults. Then she decided to conduct an experiment; what would happen if she wrote a murder mystery using the pseudonym Robert Galbraith? Would it be met with almost immediate bestseller status like her other books? Turns out she wasn't riding her reputation because The Cuckoo's Calling was widely read before the truth leaked out that Galbraith was actually the beloved Rowling. After that happened, as you might expect, there was an additional surge in sales. To be perfectly honest it made my "books to buy" list because it was hers. And Galbraith has another book soon to be released; it's already on the list. :)

Book love....

How To Be A Woman. A laughingly bizarre rant about what it means to be female.

Working Weta....

When we were visiting Rome last fall I found that, upon hearing my accent, people would ask from here I hailed. Partially accurate, I would answer, "New Zealand" because, you know, that's where we live currently. During these interactions, without fail, the person's eyes would brighten and they would either say, "All Blacks!", our esteemed national rugby franchise, or "Ah! Lord of the Rings!" referring to the movie series. Yes, New Zealand is known for providing the jaw-droppingly beautiful scenic backdrops that frame J.R.R. Tolkein's stories-come-to-life.

Admittedly, I am not a fan of J.R.R. Tolkein as an author. Years ago I painstakingly made my way through The Hobbit only because I rechecked the book from the library multiple times. In the end I was able to find my way through the agonizingly flowery detail of every mountain vista all the while listening to whiny hobbits complain about not getting to have "tea". Sigh. And you're thinking, "But Bridget loves books!" and you're right. But for some reason despite the incredible following these stories had even long before the movies I have been unable to get into them. After my experience reading The Hobbit I openly refused to read the other books but eventually did see the trilogy of movies. But know that that was years ago.

Lately, I've been taking stock of our experience here in New Zealand thinking about the things that we'd still like to do. With that in mind, yesterday, we bussed out to Wellington suburb, Miramar, that is home to the Weta Workshop and connected to the Weta Cave. Weta is a company that provides a wide variety of creative input into projects we know as the following movies: The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Avatar, The Adventures of Tin Tin, King Kong, District 9, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and Prince Caspian, and to my great delight, a personal favorite, Hellboy.

Upon arriving at the Weta Cave we luckily snatched two the of the last tickets to the next Weta Workshop Tour. While we waited we wandered around the Weta Cave where various pieces of movie memorabilia where displayed on every surface including the ceiling. We saw suits of armor, all manner of statues of movie characters and souvenirs to take away with you. Soon our tour was off and our group stepped into an anteroom for a few intuitive instructions like, "Do not touch anything" that proved too challenging for people to handle throughout the remainder of the tour. Come on, people! Sadly due to the possibility that we might see something from an upcoming project photography was not permitted in the Workshop.

Our guide ushered us through the door and we were in the Workshop! My eyes were darting here and there as every surface was covered with movie props, costumes, weapons, design ideas in various stages of completion, as well as models of non-human characters the smallest of which were able to move around in their respective movies thanks to good old fashioned puppeteering skill.

The guide used a gun model made for District 9 as an example of how a prop goes from a 2D idea to a 3D object you can handle. Starting with sketches on paper the design evolves to incorporate color, texture, and weathering details. Then a rough prototype is hewn on a 3D axis mill out of chunk of wood. From there additional details are fine tuned and then a mold is constructed. The mold is then filled with the appropriate material, most likely a hard but lightweight plastic. Lastly, it goes through the paint shop where the colors, faux textures and weathering elements are added.

When we were standing there listening Tim nudged me and pointed to a huge leather holster and its gun that were hanging on the wall just above us. I nodded that I saw it and then, suddenly, my brain snapped to attention as my eyes scanned the tag next to the items that told me of their origin. It read, Hellboy, which, as I said earlier, is one of my favorite movies and by far my favorite comic book series. I would've never imagined that on this tour I would see something from Hellboy! This particular gun, deemed The Samaritan, is used in the first of the two Hellboy movies and fires four gigantic, albeit entirely fictitious, rounds. Upon taking this in I despaired because I was so excited to see something from one of my favorite movies but I couldn't take a photo! Gutted! Despite this fact I've included a couple photos below that I found on the web because you should be able to see The Samaritan.

After seeing The Samaritan my day had been made but we still had a good portion of the workshop to peruse. In the end I wished we had had more time because there was simply so much to look at and I know that I probably didn't see everything they had displayed. I should tell you that we prepared for this excursion by watching the first of The Lord of the Rings movies the night before. With the details fresh in mind it was amazing to see villain Sauron's suit of armor in all its glory in the Workshop. We learned that, in an effort to make him as tall as possible, the shoulders of the suit actually sat up higher than the actors shoulders. The actor was 6'4" and dwarfed by the costume as, even at that height, he had to look through the holes in the helmet at mouth level. All together they achieved a giant, terrifying Sauron who towered over, well everyone, at a staggering seven and a half feet tall!

From there we heard about how the Workshop, for filming things that were too large to recreate full scale, would create detailed models. They had one of these castles in the Workshop and we learned that, as you would imagine, the closer the shot, the more detail needed to be added. This is staggering to consider when you have a giant castle in miniature that you need to shoot close up; that means someone has to go back and add detail, by hand, to each of the million and one tiny bricks in the castle walls. 

The Workshop employs a full time sword smith. He was originally an accountant but enthusiastically pursued medieval reenactment in his free time. He decided to build a sword by hand and soon had commissions to build them for others seeking high quality and craftsmanship. Eventually, Weta heard about him and, as they were looking for a sword smith, snatched him up into the Workshop family. While he wasn't working yesterday we were able to catch a glimpse of his workshop where he built many of the weapons for The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

We then learned about chainmaille (chain mail). The real deal is incredibly heavy and while warriors of the past endured this crushing burden during battle, today's actors benefit from advances technology. In short, the chainmaille used in modern movies is actually a special type of plastic that has the look and motion of traditional chainmaille but is considerably lighter and more comfortable. At the same time building chainmaille into shapes that can be donned by actors is a time intensive job. These dedicated artisans have to piece the small links together and fasten each one on its predecessor to ensure that the garment stays together during filming. 

Our tour group was in luck as two Weta employees were busy at work when we came along. One was a gentlemen building a giant sculpture that replicated, although was greatly increased in size (~100 times), a small statute (about one and a half feet tall). He was starting to work on the legs of the man and we saw that the inside of the sculpture was a light expanding foam material. This base was then layered with a type of molding clay to mimic the folds in the man's clothing. Incredible. 

The other artisan was a women who was working on a beautiful gown you might expect one of The Lord of the Rings she-elves to wear. We could see the ideas sketched on paper and colored in loosely. On the mannequin was the lining of the gown where seams marched across the bodice. The next layer of satin would follow these seams and all of this would be carefully covered in a light burlap type fabric with swirling metallic threads to create the outermost seams of the gown. She said, if it turned out to her liking, she might enter in The World of Wearable Art fashion show held each year in Wellington. 

After hearing from these two artists we turned to peer into the machine-shop portion of the place. There we saw lathes cutting out tiny details on huge pieces of wood. I also noticed giant pieces of Styrofoam waiting to be cut into shapes. I thought to myself, "Timmy would be right at home in there". :)

Before leaving the Workshop we stopped by a model of the great ape who stars in King Kong. This particular model never appeared in the movie but served as an intricate point of reference for those working to produce digital King Kong. Upon close inspection you could see the close attention to detail and we learned that every hair on his frame had been hand punched. This took a whole team of people several weeks to complete. It is difficult to fathom the work that goes into these projects. I found the intersection of art and engineering fascinating. These artisans are able to conceive designs and build the products that look and move correctly so as to believable in a movie setting. Amazing!

After the toured ended we headed back to the Weta Cave for another look and then outside to see The Lord of the Rings trolls that guard the front yard. I had to get a picture of me next to one of them for scale. :)

We're planning to watch the other Lord of the Rings movies in the near future. Timmy has deemed them a tour de force. And that, they are.