A Note on Biosafety - really just safety.

The Centers for Disease Control sign is seen at its main facility in Atlanta, Georgia June 20, 2014.

Credit: Reuters/Tami Chappell

A subject near and dear to me - as it is how I make my living; biosafety is the most important facet of biological research today. Though not a booming field of study, if biosafety falls apart, so does all of the research. Since it is in the news and a hot topic (for the moment), lets keep in mind that the safety of our work place and our colleagues all comes down to how safe WE, ourselves, are.

The safest car in the world will not save an unsafe driver.

Conversely, no matter how safe I act, the outcome of my actions will still be dictated - in some part - by the effects of other's actions. Safety, in some significant sense, is an illusion. All we can do, should do, is work to mitigate risk and prepare ourselves for when our construct of safety falters.

Science - Quit Flexing!

We are nearly half way through the most intriguing event in sport. Since the Greeks, the Olympics have embodied sportsmanship, camaraderie and athleticism. And there is no doubt that science has always been entangled in the games. One cannot exist without the other. However, it seems that in my life time, science is claiming more grandiose credit for accomplishments and Olympic medal successes.  

I am a scientist. I am an athlete. I find it easy to recognize the interwoven nature between science and sport. Yes, science can build a sleeker sled, slimmer suits, or faster skates. Yet, on the darker side, science brought PEDs to sport, and when they came to light, science brought “better” (undetectable) chemicals to the underbelly.

Yes, sport is an aspect of life and life is in every way science. BUT…

I’m sorry Scientific World, the Olympics, and athletics in general, is not your world. You don’t make or break winners. You enhance the field, sure, but it is the individual (or team) that dictate their own performance. Every second, every fleeting moment is a win or lose decision. The best athletes in the world can win with “antiquated” equipment.

All the money in the world, all the best technology and scientific breakthrough will never make me faster than Usain Bolt, nor a better skater than Russia’s Evgeni Plushenko, or as talented as Switzerland’s Snowboard Gold Medalist IPod (Iouri Podladtchikov).

P.S. GO TEAM U.S.A.

Katie Uhlaender of the United States makes a run during the Women's Skeleton heats on Day 7 of the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics at the Sanki Sliding Center (www.sochi2014.com)