new changes

This week there have been quite a few changes that have appeared as a result of the approaching Olympic games. For instance, on Monday we all had to get photo ID cards made to enter into Peking University's gates. So far I haven't had any problems getting access through the gates after showing my card, but yesterday Spencer got stopped by the guards so the undergraduate student I work with had to help him out. Also, there seem to be many Olympic teenage volunteers around Beijing, who are easily recognized by their blue and white uniforms. Some even look to be helping with traffic crosswalks, which I think is a very noble task given that the intersections here are much more dangerous than back home. Many of the buses are becoming more crowded too since the amount of traffic allowed on the roads is now restricted, which started this last monday. The other day I got bumped into after the bus driver made a halting stop and consequently stepped on a girl's foot in front of me. I tried my best to say "I'm sorry" in Chinese, but even if I said it perfectly she didn't let on. Now, though, since bumps on the bus are becoming more of a frequent part of the ride back to WanLiu, I've gotten used to it.

I continue to be busy in lab with research and am waiting until I finish this coming Thursday/Friday before I work on my final presentation for our lab meeting this Saturday. So far we've been unsuccessful in our attempt to photo-oxidize multi-walled nanotubes, but there's still a few different ways we plan to do this before Thursday that may work so I continue to be optimistic until then. Now, in lab it feels as though I'm much more a part of the group than when I first arrived. I think the more time I've spent here putting in long hours with experiments I garnered more respect. Many of the lab members tell me I work hard, but in reality I work no harder than anyone else. All the lab members in Prof. Liu's lab are very dedicated workers. The undergraduate student I work with, Wu Di, for instance, decided to get a head start with his grad school work by staying here over the summer instead of going home like most undergraduates do when they graduate before they attend their first year of grad school. He's been a great help since he's been collaborating with me on my project. Recently, we've been looking through many papers and thinking of different ways to get our photo-catalyst to work. If I'm not able to get a good result before I leave, I'm confident he will be able to achieve this when I go back from the insight we've gained this summer.

This weekend after as my lab work draws to an end, I plan to go with a student in our lab to visit a modern art exhibit called "789", which requires about a 1hr. bus ride. I hope it will be a fun event to explore.