Freckled Science @freckled@qoto.org

Hi #qoto #chemist #engineer #scientist #scicomm friends !! This instance has been blocked by several other instances because it has had some controversial takes. I am moving to mstdn.science :) Maybe I will see you there!

@SwetaBioX OH gosh! You just gotta dive in and see where it goes. There are so many ways to do #scicomm now: longform live streams, podcasts, tiktoks.. blogs... little tweets, little infographs. Its so insane. Just play and see what youlike! I really love #twitch -- its long form, directly interactive with viewers, and much easier to monetize, which helps make even MORE scicomm content!

@Constababble LEE I HAVE FOUND YOU HI !!!!!!!!!!

Hi! #introduction ! I am a #phd student in #chemistry in #vancouver ! I study #nanoparticle #liquidcrystal self-assembly, which has implications in our understandings of #biology nanostructures, #materials chemistry, and #nanotechnology

I’ve been #scicomm ing my #research live on #twitch where I am developing #3dprinting inks made from seaweed and other #biomaterials !

I also interview scientists weekly, so if you are ever interested, let me know! I’d love to have you as a guest!

#phdchat #academic #academia #academicchatter #introduction

@disc Thanks! I just went to the main Mastodon homepage and there were ~100 servers there to choose from. I didn't realize it wasn't an exhaustive list and #qoto just seemed like the only #science one.

I guess I will just hang out for the next few days and see whats up. I saw in my profile there is a cool-off period after changing servers.

Thanks again!

@lmedinar Oh you can ABSOLUTELY do that! 3D printing cellulose is pretty easy (its typically shear-thinning) as long as you get the consistency right. I have already printed seaweed, which realistically is just a cellulosic material that hasn't gone through the extraction steps.

I have 3D printed cellulose nanocrystals (from woodpulp) as gels, but they dry like paper and are very brittle. My first seaweed print was also very brittle. So the goal is to try and make it like some kind of useful, open-source material. The problem is that the concentrations of solid content are less than 10%, so I'd like to get it to the point where 1. the organic hydrogel framework doesn't collapse or 2. the concentration is high enough where even if water evaporates, we don't lose so much volume.

There are some existing materials, but they often add polymers like acrylamides or acrylates, and those monomers aren't so pretty or readily available for an at-home science lab!

(I develop it live on Twitch.tv/freckledscience).

#qotojournal
I'm a PhD student obsessed with bio-based nanoparticles, so I'm trying my hand at 3D printing seaweed using at-home supplies. The troubleshooting is intense. Creating an at-home lab without funding is VERY HARD. Mashed seaweed was OK to print (with cellulose nanocrystals), but optimization? Yikes. Would love any tips !

Making the jump from Twitter and I wish I knew how to find #chemistry and other #womeninscience on Mastodon ! Hope I made the right server choice..