Calendar
Monday
- 8:30 a.m.
- Drop my son off at the Day Care Center on my way to work.
- 9:00 a.m.
- Arrive at my office. Respond to email messages and phone calls that have come in since Friday afternoon.
- 10:00 a.m.
- Go into the laboratory. Study the microstructure (small-scale structure) of rock samples using the Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) or laser confocal microscope.
- 1:00 p.m.
- Microscopes can be connected to computers and the image viewed under the microscope can be enhanced or analysed using computer software. This is called image analysis and it provides more information about the image than can be obtained with the naked eye. I work on image analysis for a few hours.
- 3:00 p.m.
- I write computer programs for my work. During this time I design, develop, or debug the programs.
- 5:30 p.m.
- Pick up my son at the Day Care Center.
- 6:30 p.m.
- Go home and prepare dinner---I like to cook.
- 8:30 p.m.
- Read Winnie the Pooh to my son.
- 9:30 p.m.
- Read the morning newspaper before going to bed.
Discussion with colleague
Tuesday
- 7:00 a.m.
- Take the bus from Woods Hole to Boston. I am going to Boston to work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
- 9:00 a.m.
- Arrive at MIT and go to the Rock Physics Lab to conduct high pressure/temperature experiments. A typical experiment will last ~10 hours.
- 10:00 p.m.
- Return to Woods Hole by bus or if the experiment goes longer than expected stay the night in Boston and return to Woods Hole in the morning.
Rock Mechanics Lab at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Wednesday
- 8:30 a.m.
- Drop my son off at the Day Care Center on my way to work.
- 9:00 a.m.
- Arrive at my office. Respond to email messages and phone calls that have come in since Monday afternoon.
- 10:00 a.m.
- Go into the laboratory. Measure the transport properties of vent deposits using the bench-top permeameter. This will tell me how permeable the deposits are.
- 12:00 p.m.
- Have lunch.
- 1:00 p.m.
- Attend the Geochemistry Seminar Series.
- 2:30 p.m.
- I spend this time writing. Depending on what is most important at the time I will be writing a paper, a proposal to a funding agency or a report.
- 5:30 p.m.
- Pick up my son at the Day Care Center.
- 6:30 p.m.
- Go home and prepare dinner.
- 8:30 p.m.
- Read Winnie the Pooh to my son.
- 9:30 p.m.
- Read the morning newspaper before going to bed.
Thursday
- 7:00 a.m.
- Take the bus from Woods Hole to MIT.
- 9:00 a.m.
- Prepare the rock samples for next Tuesday's experiments.
- 11:00 a.m.
- Go to library to read scientific journal articles and make copies of those articles that will help me in my own work.
- 12:00 p.m.
- Take a lunch break and go to Toscanini for coffee and ice-cream.
- 1:00 p.m.
- Analyze experimental data that were collected during last Tuesday's experiments.
- 3:00 p.m.
- Go to the Earth and Planetary Science Department's tea hour at Ida Green Lounge. This gives me a chance to see colleagues and talk to them in a relaxed setting.
- 4:00 p.m.
- Meet with collaborators to discuss our recent research projects.
- 8:00 p.m.
- Return to Woods Hole on the bus. Take this time to read and review scientific papers.
Wen-lu competes in a ping-pong tournament on a research cruise in the Pacific Ocean.
Friday
- 8:30 a.m.
- Drop my son off at the Day Care Center on my way to work.
- 9:00 a.m.
- Arrive at my office. Respond to email messages and phone calls that have come in since Wednesday afternoon.
- 10:00 a.m.
- Work at my computer on physical models that I have developed to simulate my laboratory experiments. Also work on displaying the results in a way that my colleagues can understand.
- 12:00 p.m.
- Attend the Geology and Geophysics Departmental lunch meeting and seminar.
- 1:30 p.m.
- Talk to colleagues about the work that we are doing.
- 4:30 p.m.
- Attend TGIF to meet with colleagues and friends. These informal gatherings are often places where scientific collaborations are started.
- 5:30 p.m.
- Pick up my son at the Day Care Center.
- 6:30 p.m.
- Go out for pizza and ice cream with my son and husband.
Wen-lu makes a presentation on her research.
Wen-lu Zhu
- Associate Scientist, Department of Geology and Geophysics
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
More about Wen-lu
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Wen-lu's profile. - Interview
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Learn more about Wen-lu's field - Wen-lu's Calendar
See Wen-lu's typical work week. - Related Links
Other sites related to Wen-lu's career.
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