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BlakeT

@blaketresca.bsky.social
204 followers 171 following 108 posts

chemist, teacher, and maker

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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 14/10/2026
Colleagues and I have established that dirty NMR tubes are autocatalytic. A single dirty tube will convert any amount of clean tubes to their dirty form, when not observed by the lab manager or PI. We also found the process is irreversible until the supply of clean tubes has been fully exhausted.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Expected better than this from @wired.com Completely misses the mark on challenges to science education in the US and how industry can support education programs. AACT has many great teaching resources with balanced perspectives. #chemsky
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
I can tell this paper is almost done cause we’ve reached the “fighting with Zotero” stage. Do I try to make it work? Or suffer through correcting by hand?
static.klipy.com
Doc Brown: Where We're Going, We Don't Need Roads
Alt: Doc Brown: Where We're Going, We Don't Need Roads
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
If it’s Friday and you have deadlines, all the instruments will pick today to fail in new and creative ways. Also: Don’t neglect preventative maintenance.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
As a chemist, Chiral and Achiral are jarring names for villains that are mirror images of each other. Alrhough, not the worst villains in Sailor Moon. At least they speak in full sentences.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Anyone have recommendations for an NMR spinner depth gauge? Maybe a 3D printed version. Our old one disintegrated today. #NMRchat #chemchat
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Second pizza on the grill came out perfect.
Homemade pepperoni pizza on a metal peel.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Finished a whirlwind week of science and travel from Michigan to California to Utah. Started with peptoid synthesis with the Nanobio team at the Molecular Foundry. Finished with supramolecular anion chemistry at the NSF CASC meeting. www.nsfcasc.com Next week it’s time to clean up the peptoids.
Landscape picture of San Francisco from across the bay over Berkeley.Bubble, bubble goes the peptoid synthesizer. Reactions to make polymers are mixed with nitrogen bubbles on an automated synthesizer. View from the airplane window as we lift above the fog in San Francisco Bay. The tops of a few hills are just visible on the horizon. View of Great Salt Lake from the airplane window as we land in Utah.
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Andre the Chemist @andrechemist.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
Mrs. the Chemist is wearing a holiday sweater with "Ho Ho Ho" on it. So of course I asked my older child if they knew what "Ho" means. Kids: "Uh, it's a bad word." Me: "No, it's a chemical element, holmium. Do you know what the atomic number holmium is?" Kid: "No." Me: *smiles* Got 'em.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
-ate is such a weird suffix in chemistry. Brominate is a verb but silicate is a noun. And oxygen is element eight. #chemchat
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Greatest dunking cookie, Oreos or Tim Tams? #chemchat
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Michael Pittelkow @pittelkowlab.bsky.social · 09/10/2025
I have a fully funded PhD position available in my group in Copenhagen: candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationI...
candidate.hr-manager.net
PhD fellowship in Organic Synthesis and Supramolecular Chemistry
The Department of Chemistry at the University of Copenhagen invites applicants for a PhD fellowship in Organic chemistry with a particular focus on supramolecul
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 02/10/2025
Today is shaping up to be a real “professor yells at cloud” kind of day. And the cloud is mostly AI.
media.tenor.com
a cartoon of homer simpson is holding a newspaper that says old man yells at cloud
Alt: a cartoon of homer simpson is holding a newspaper that says old man yells at cloud
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
Garden is doing great. I may have planted too many eggplants this year. Oh well!
Cluster of six pink bulb eggplants on a vine, still green and unripe. Small raised garden bed that is overflowing with a cornucopia of eggplants in three different varieties.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 17/06/2025
What does a PI do? Purchasing and Ideas. I stock the lab with supplies and crazy ideas #chemsky
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
I ran out of pots and there’s still a tray of seedlings left to transplant. I may have started too many vegetables again.
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Bri Barbu @bribarbu.bsky.social · 09/04/2025
Hi #chemsky #scisky folks--I'd love to collect some community responses to this cut-back on GRFP awards for @cenmag.bsky.social story. If you have thoughts about the situation, please please get in touch--and share with your network! My DMs are open, and I'm also reachable by email or Signal :)
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 09/04/2025
Should a science resume be cut to one page for undergraduate internships or research technicians? Or for grad school. What resume advice would you give for a new scientist? @chemjobber.bsky.social #chemsky
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 20/02/2025
Bruker NMR SampleXpress users, has anyone seen this error? We can’t eject or change samples right now. #nmrsky
Error message on SampleXpress screen, The sample release could not be deactivated.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 18/02/2025
This but getting data off an old instrument workstation. #chemsky And every computer has a different version of the proprietary software.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
Isn’t there a fable about calling out the emperor when he walks naked through the streets?
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Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 04/02/2025
A long post about what’s happening to the science funding agencies in the US and why. As mentioned, this one just kept getting longer even as I kept stripping curse words from it. www.science.org/content/blog...
science.org
What's Happening Inside the NIH and NSF
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Science Magazine @science.org · 30/01/2025
Exclusive: NSF this week began to search through billions of dollars of grants the agency has already awarded for anything touching on topics that President Donald Trump has criticized. And NSF has blocked grantees and trainees from accessing funds while the review is underway. scim.ag/3El0NZh
scim.ag
EXCLUSIVE: NSF starts vetting all grants to comply with Trump’s orders
Grantee accounts remain frozen, while union accuses NSF of ignoring rules governing peer review
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 28/01/2025
In case anyone was wondering.
Stickers with shooting stars and “Everything is terrible” in a fun, friendly front.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 12/12/2024
This week it’s “dry vacuum column chromatography”.
Glass vacuum column loaded with silica gel and clamped over a hot plate.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 04/12/2024
The Kzoo Chem Club had a fun fall of museum outreach! All thanks to the awesome students who volunteer their time. @kzoochem.bsky.social www.kzoo.edu/news/chemist...
kzoo.edu
Chemistry Club Engages Community in Science - News and Events
While sharing scientific knowledge, the Chemistry Club participated in two events where children could engage with hands-on experiments.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 30/11/2024
Delicate work to resuscitate a pair of controllers. Time for new joysticks.
A game controller partially disassembled and scattered on a black mat along with an assortment of small tools.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 23/11/2024
A rug made from the butt of a corgi. A corgi butt rug.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
The best way to enjoy ice cream is under a fuzzy blanket while it’s sleeting outside.
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Altmetric @altmetric.com · 18/11/2024
We strongly suggest that academic publishers and other platforms that host research rapidly implement a Share to Bluesky button for their articles. Here's how: docs.bsky.app/docs/advance... #AcademicSky #HigherEd #Altmetrics
docs.bsky.app
Action Intent Links | Bluesky
Authors, websites, and apps can use action intent links to implement "Share on Bluesky" buttons, or similar in-app actions. Logged-in users will be directed to the corresponding action view in the Blu...
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
“A beautiful presentation of a failed experiment.” Here we celebrate the beauty of learning through failure.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 13/11/2024
What’s the best Oreo? My pick is the classic. Halloween orange is also great.
Two Oreos on a plate, one classic and one orange Halloween.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 05/11/2024
Cooking up some lactic acid from 3D printer PLA. Turns out the microwave was not a good choice. #realtimechem @chemjobber.bsky.social
Pink polylactic acid is being digested in an Erlenmeyer flask inside a kitchen microwave.
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Randall Munroe @xkcd.com · 03/11/2024
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 15/10/2024
Fire burn and caldron bubble. We have an exciting new addition to the lab! Just in time for a Halloween witches brew. #chemsky
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 08/09/2024
We are hiring an Assistant Professor of analytical chemistry to start September 2025. Join the team at Kalamazoo College! Review of applications starts Oct 1. #chemsky provost.kzoo.edu/faculty-info...
provost.kzoo.edu
Assistant Professor of Chemistry & Biochemistry (Analytical focus) – Office of the Provost | Kalamazoo College
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Kalamazoo College invites applications for a tenure track Assistant Professor of Analytical Chemistry; position to begin in September 2025. A Ph.D. in A...
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 31/08/2024
Job alert! We are hiring a Assistant Professor of Analytical Chemistry to join the great team at Kalamazoo College. The posting will be up soon.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 17/08/2024
New group photo for summer 2024! Only one week until the poster session.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 31/07/2024
We have entered the trough of despair for summer research. Instruments won’t connect, VWR’s website won’t work, and reagents are running low. #chemsky
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 19/07/2024
Solid Phase Pept. Synthesis people, what are you replacing DCM with in the resin drying and rinse steps? 🧪 chemsky
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 18/06/2024
And it begins. First day of summer research was a success.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 11/06/2024
Grant proposals: 0/5 Maybe #6 will turn the tide? 🤷‍♂️
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 11/06/2024
Discovered a new pest munching away on my tomatillos. A gang of three-lined potato beetle larvae had eaten most my poor tomatillo. These repugnant fiends prefer tomatillos for the glycoalkoids most bugs hate. *And they wear a coat of their own feces to fend off predators.* 🤢
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 23/05/2024
My organic students have helped me update my mechanism terms for a new generation. Loss of a leaving group = Yeet “The bromine yeets as the nucleophile attacks in an Sn2 reaction.” Other suggestions? #chemsky
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 22/05/2024
We’re hiring for an instrument technician. Primary responsibility for physics lab prep, and maintaining small to large instruments. Experience with NMR/MRI cryogens a big plus. #chemsky #nmrsky hr.kzoo.edu/scitechnicia...
hr.kzoo.edu
Science Division Instrument Technician – Human Resources | Kalamazoo College
Primary Objective Kalamazoo College seeks an instrument technician for the Science Division. Reporting to the Physics Department Chair in consultation with Chemistry Department Chair, this full-time, ...
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 07/05/2024
Rabbits ate my entire garden. I hope they get a stomach ache. 😤
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 11/04/2024
Febreeze is my favorite supramolecular chem fact!
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 01/04/2024
Working on an example conclusion for lab reports: Pancakes are more delicious and make a well-rounded breakfast when fruits are included, such as blueberries and bananas. Banana pancakes were overwhelming preferred by a panel of experts, with blueberries a close second…
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 19/03/2024
Mac has a whole Rename tool with extra options when multiple files are selected. 🤯 Would have saved me so much effort before now.
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BlakeT @blaketresca.bsky.social · 18/03/2024
@chemjobber.bsky.social Review for my gen chem final exam (tonight) was all questions about DCM and river water. 😁
chemjobber.blogspot.com
Methylene chloride spill at Pfizer plant causes no-contact warning for the Kalamazoo, MI
Via MLive, this news from Kalamazoo, MI:   KALAMAZOO, MI — A no-contact advisory along a stretch of the Kalamazoo River was issued Wednesday...
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