@KayTrue (Sarah L. Keller)
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kaytrue.bsky.social
@KayTrue (Sarah L. Keller)
@kaytrue.bsky.social
690 followers 53 following 210 posts
Scientist at UW-Seattle. Excited about membrane biophysics and increasing access to STEM. Opinions my own.
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kaytrue.bsky.social
It was really a joy to see how the new data from Fred’s lab for PC-lipids fall on top of Sarah's 20+ year old data, whether the lipids are mixed at 1:1:1 (thin black outline) or 2:2:1 (thick black outline)! All our labs are so much better at making vesicles now, yet the old data hold up very well!
The image is an adaptation of a figure from a paper by Veatch et al. (Biophys. J., 2003). The paper is linked in the previous post in the thread. The figure is a plot of data for the melting temperature of a saturated phosphatidylcholine lipid (on the x-axis) against the temperature at which a membrane in a uniform liquid phase demixes into coexisting Lo and Ld phases (on the y-axis). Data points shown in symbols in many different shapes (e.g., diamond, star, triangle) with color are estimated from Mehta et al. BioRxiv, 2025. (I am sure I did not manage to place them in exactly the right spots, but they are close). Data for mixtures of 1:1:1 PC/DOPC/chol are marked by open circles bounded by a thin black line. Data for mixtures of 2:2:1 PC/DOPC/chol are marked by open circles bounded by a thick black line (and two of these points come from the table in that same paper). I have made the data for other mixtures less distracting by making them grey. There is very nice agreement between the data by Mehta et al. and the data shown in black symbols. Isn’t that awesome?!
November 7, 2025 at 6:16 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Hey UW Colleagues! Want an easy way to help our community (and a way to get kid stuff like board books and infant car seats out of your house) @uwchemistry.bsky.social has big collection bins for food to the UW Food Pantry, for warm clothes to Aurora Commons, and for kid stuff to Westside Baby
The image is a photo of three big boxes outside the door of the main office of the Department of Chemistry at the University of Washington. The boxes are covered in purple and gold paper. The box on the left has a sign for Westside Baby, the box in the middle has a sign for a food drive, and the box on the right has a sign for Aurora Commons. You can't see inside the boxes, but there's TONS of room inside for us all to donate things! I know because when I put my own items inside to donate, my contributions suddenly seemed so small.
November 6, 2025 at 7:18 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
I love being able to fill out my ballot at home and then drop my ballot in a box while biking to work. Big thanks to all of you across the U.S. who will be standing in lines tomorrow to vote. Even little elections can have big impacts. (When they come with free Molly Moon's ice cream, even better!)
The image is a photograph of a hand in a bicycling glove sliding a ballot through the slot of a King County ballot drop box. The envelope of the ballot says "vote!"
November 4, 2025 at 2:58 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Me: Happy Halloween!
Girl 1, with her friend: We’re from the same movie!
[Pause]
Girl 1: Harry Potter!!
Girl 2: But I don’t come out until Book 5
The image is a photo of a pile of packaged candy: m&m's and smarties. No, these are not the smarties you can buy in Canada (and are made in Germany). However, the smarties in the photo were "Made in Canada for Smarties Candy Company". Glad to support you in my small way, my fine Canadian neighbors!
November 1, 2025 at 2:59 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Double vaccinated for flu & Covid today! Even better, I was right behind Julie Theriot (pictured) & Beth Traxler (the photographer), so we to got to say "hi" before heading off to our respective labs. Feeling great so far. Thankful to UW for making it easy to be healthy (and network with colleagues)
The image is a photograph taken by Prof. Beth Traxler of two other women in science: Prof. Sarah Keller (on the left) and Prof. Julie Theriot (on the right). Sarah and Julie have their left shirt sleeves pulled up to show two adhesive bandages that cover where they were both double vaccinated for influenza and Covid-19. They are both smiling. Behind them are a couple of buildings of the University of Washington’s Medical Center. They are standing directly in front of a small maple tree whose leaves have turned yellow, orange, and red. It is a lovely autumn day in Seattle. But really, when you have great colleagues like these, every day is pretty awesome.
October 29, 2025 at 2:31 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Fascinating data! The article below is Open Access – anyone can read it. I've included a higher-resolution image of the authors' key data showing that when retakes are offered on physics exams, women's scores increase on the FIRST try to be equal to men's. Implications for course design are huge
A graph showing that the "gender gap" of grades earned by men and women in college-level introductory physics courses. In courses that did not offer re-takes of exams, women's scores on exams were lower than men's scores. This gender gap was eliminated (became equal to zero) when the courses included the opportunity to re-take the exams. A fascinating part of the data is that the gender gap was eliminated on the FIRST attempt of the exams. This implies that the women knew the material as well as the men did all along – they did not need subsequent revision of the material to show what they knew. The article is Open Access at https://journals.aps.org/prper/abstract/10.1103/ngrs-dxtf, so you can read it yourself to decide how the results might impact the design of your own courses.
October 22, 2025 at 6:02 PM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Great job, Washington State and @doh.wa.gov ! It is awesome to see COVID vaccines available and advertised again on the doors of this pharmacy. I've booked my appointment for my dual flu/COVID vaccination and am looking forward it!
The image is a photo of two sliding glass doors. Each door has a blue sign that says "Pharmacy. Flu, COVID and RSV vaccines available at no cost to you. No appointment needed."
September 26, 2025 at 5:52 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
I'm so grateful to every donor to the UW Dept. of Chemistry! Donations help our students do things that our federal grants could not support. For example, Sena, a great grad student in my group, traveled to the Lindau Conference in Germany to talk with Nobel laureates! Go @uwchemistry.bsky.social!
The image is a screenshot from the website https://artsci.washington.edu/news/2025-09/where-world-arts-sciences. The photo shows two smiling scientists, Sena Noaman and Akira Yoshino. They are both wearing glasses and they have conference name tags on lanyards around their necks. The text says "Sena Noaman, Doctoral Student, Chemistry. Sena Noaman attended the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting in Germany. (In the photo, Sena is with 2019 Nobel laureate Akira Yoshino.) The travel was supported by the Department of Chemistry's George H. Hitchings Endowed Scholarship Fund."
September 10, 2025 at 5:08 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Dear @doh.wa.gov: My local pharmacy used blue tape to cover up “covid” in their list of possible vaccines. I like how you boosted immunization at bsky.app/profile/doh.... . Please follow New Mexico’s lead in issuing a health order removing federal vaccine restrictions (see bsky.app/profile/luck...)
The image is a photo of a sign on a glass door, written in white letters on a blue background. The word "covid" has been covered up with blue tape, leaving a big blank spot. As a result, the sign reads as: "Pharmacy Flu, [big blank spot] and RSV vaccine available at no cost to you. No appointment needed."
August 31, 2025 at 10:31 PM
kaytrue.bsky.social
This summer, on a high-speed rail line, I mulled over the @economist.com cover: Talangflykten. Driver Trump amerikanska forskare i Europas och Sveriges famn?

TRANSLATION: Talent flight. Is Trump driving American scientists into the arms of Europe and Sweden?

ANSWER: Yes! I think about it every day
The photo shows a scientist seated by the window of a train carriage. She is looking at a magazine called “Världen om” which translates to “About the World”. The magazine licenses articles from The Economist. The cover story for the June-September 2025 issue shows an elephant in a red hat chasing a line of scientists. The scientists are taking their valuable equipment (a microscope) and their data (a notepad) with them. The title of the cover story translates as “Talent flight. Is Trump driving American scientists into the arms of Europe and Sweden?” The scientist is on her way to an international conference. Throughout the conference, Europeans will frequently ask American researchers, with pity, if there is any hope left for American science and technology, and the Americans will share tips about how they can best find jobs in Europe for the fabulously talented American and international undergraduates, PhDs, and postdoctoral fellows they have just trained (and themselves).
August 9, 2025 at 4:42 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
As a kid, I learned to read with Sesame Street & the Electric Company. I'm horrified that the US Congress killed funding for the public resource of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which supports public radio and public television. I got so mad that I donated my car to my local PBS station!
Bye, bye, wonderful car – we went on many great adventures together. The image is a photo of my lovely car being loaded onto the back of a flatbed tow truck. The car is on its way to being sold, and the funds will support a Public Broadcasting station (PBS) that serves the Puget Sound Region. I loved this car. It made me feel badass when I shifted through its manual transmission to navigate Seattle's steep hills, while rockin' a vintage mixtape cassette. Now how am I going to play all those old mixtapes that friends made me??
August 8, 2025 at 3:24 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
It was easy to call my members of Congress today... all I did was quote from this week's issue of @economist.com. I agree with the assessment that when the US slashes funding for scientific research, it is the US "that will feel the pain most of all... It is first and foremost an act of self-harm"
The left side of this two-panel image is the cover of The Economist magazine from the US edition of the May 24th-30th 2025 issue. The image is of an elephant wearing a red hat who is chasing scientists carrying a laboratory equipment. The title is "The assault on American science." On the right side is text from their first Leaders story, titled "America's assault on science". Some underlined text says: "It is America, however, that will feel the pain most of all." Another passage says that the US's "triumphs–its economic prowess, and its technological and military might–were interwoven with [its] scientific success. As America pulls back, it will cede ground to authoritarian China as a scientific super-power, with all the benefits that confers... It is first an foremost an act of self-harm."
May 30, 2025 at 2:38 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
So grateful to the Friends of the Burke-Gilman Trail who have been replacing invasive plants with pollinator habitat. It's beautiful. Balmy summer weather is here, so if you'd like to get outside and play in the dirt, sign up at www.seattleparksfoundation.org/get-involved... (search for "Burke")
Photograph of a long row of flowers: purple lupines and a mix of orange, white, and red poppies. To the left is the Burke-Gilman trail, a paved trail for bikes and pedestrians. To the right is Lake Union. In the distance, the I-5 bridge and the University of Washington are visible. The sun is shining and the sky is blue.
May 23, 2025 at 5:34 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
A U.S. poll published April 27, 2025 shows >75% of respondents oppose reductions in federal funding for medical research, and 70% oppose efforts to increase the government’s role in the operation of private universities. (www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...
Screenshot from an article in the Washington Post with the text "More than 3 in 4 oppose reductions in federal funding for medical research; 7 in 10 oppose the administration’s efforts to increase the government’s role in the operation of private universities; 2 in 3 oppose his effort to end birthright citizenship, an issue the Supreme Court will hear soon; and more than 6 in 10 oppose shutting down the Education Department, cutting back on environmental regulations on oil and gas drilling, and freezing foreign aid that provides food and health services to people in poor countries."
May 12, 2025 at 5:11 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Honored to host @drdavidhu.bsky.social for today's Cross Lecture. The plaque was made by UW's Salvage Wood Program. Grateful for National Science Foundation funding that enabled David's research and to donors to UW Chemistry who enabled David to share his results with us. @uwchemistry.bsky.social
The photo is of Dr. Sarah Keller (on the right) handing a wooden award plaque to Dr. David Hu (on the left). They are both smiling. They are standing in front of the first slide of Dr. Hu's talk. The bottom right of that slide has the logo of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF).
May 7, 2025 at 5:49 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Happy Earth Day! Falling magnolia petals and fast-growing slugs are a sign that spring is definitely underway in the Northwest US. I celebrated by calling my members of Congress to ask them to fight harder for laws and budgets that will make our world better (and avoid ones that will make it worse!)
A photograph of two magnolia petals on a concrete background. A slug that is about 2 centimeters long is crawling across one of the petals. This slug was definitely not sluggish – it was moving fast! It seemed eager to get right back to the flower stem where I had found it.
April 23, 2025 at 4:25 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Deep thanks to many outstanding colleagues for their service to the @biophysicalsoc.bsky.social by chairing topical subgroups
Photo of a page from the BPS Bulletin titled "Introducing the next class of BPS subgroup chairs". The page shows the names and headshots of 20 scientists who have volunteered and been elected by their peers to be Chairs of specialized topical groups of the Biophysical Society
April 19, 2025 at 9:10 PM
kaytrue.bsky.social
I visited the post office today, and, OK, I didn't neeeeed stamps, but there were sheets commemorating Title IX and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. I mean, I *had* to get them, right? (Also available at store.usps.com)
The image is a photograph of two sheets of U.S. postal stamps on top of a glassine envelope with the logo of the United States Postal Service. The first sheet of stamps has the header "Title IX" and has a series silhouette images of women athletes. The second has the header "Ruth Bader Ginsburg", and each stamp has an identical photo of former U.S. Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Siiiiiigh, I miss her.
April 12, 2025 at 3:00 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
I remember my grandpa saying, "Young people think we were miserable ALL the time in the Great Depression, but the sun still shined." Well, I'm feeling pretty depressed now due to US economics and politics, but today the sun shined on the lovely cherry trees at the University of Washington in Seattle
Panorama photograph of cherry trees on a sunny day in the Quad at the University of Washington. The grass is green (as is the moss on the tree trunks) and the sky is blue. People have brought their kids and dogs and friends to hang out and take photos of the light pink blossoms.
March 27, 2025 at 3:10 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Big crowd at #standupforscience2025 in Seattle on March 7th! The organizers wisely reminded us to call members of Congress (5calls.org makes it easy). The ASCB has a great website at www.ascb.org/be-an-advoca... with concrete things to do, even if you have only minutes to give. #standupforscience
The image is a photograph of a big crowd of people participating in the Stand Up for Science rally in Seattle on Friday, March 7th, 2025. Within the frame of the photo itself are several hundred people. The people are gathered at an open-air amphitheater, listening to a speaker on a stage. Many people are holding signs. One says "Medical research saves lives", and another one says "Science makes America great". Part of Seattle's skyline is in the background.
March 9, 2025 at 5:02 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
My format of the "@" didn't work.... here's another go at it for @eaterofsun.bsky.social
The image is a photograph looking down the trunk of a small tree from up in the branches. At the base of the tree is a crescent of yellow crocus flowers, surrounded by grass and moss. I mean, it's Seattle... of course there's moss. The tree is just starting to bud.
March 3, 2025 at 4:16 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
.@eaterofsun.bsky.social‬
The image is a worm-eye view of a group of yellow crocus flowers, with the trunk of a small tree in the background. Quick, take the photo before any wild rabbits in the neighborhood eat the flowers!
March 2, 2025 at 7:48 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Tremendously proud that grad student Sena Noaman landed a Student Research Achievement Award at #BPS2025 of the @biophysicalsoc.bsky.social. Her research is in collaboration with @merz.bsky.social, and she won in the category of Physical Cell Biology. Go @uwchemistry.bsky.social!
The image is a photo of 14 the students, about half of the total who won SRAA poster awards at the Biophysical Society. Sena Noaman is in the first row, third from the left. She is wearing glasses and a grey suit jacket, and is smiling. The awards were presented by the president of the Biophysical Society, Gabriela Popescu, who is at the top of the photo. She is standing behind a lectern, wearing a white suit. Behind the group is a screen on which is projected some of the scientific categories and the names of the students who won in those categories. For example, one listing is "Physical Cell Biology, Sena Noaman".
February 18, 2025 at 9:52 AM
kaytrue.bsky.social
Awful things are happening TO science in the U.S. But maybe I can tell you about something great happening IN science. Alexis Cooper from @ucmerced.bsky.social has scaled up and also scaled down the papyrus method of making vesicles. She will be at the JUST-B session at #bps2025 today!
Photo of Alexis Cooper in front of her poster titled "Polymer-assisted assembly of cell-mimetic giant vesicles in physiological ionic solutions". She has long black hair, is wearing a grey suit, and is smiling. She has posted her results on the bioRxiv, so you don't have to be able to see this image to learn about her results.
February 17, 2025 at 7:49 PM
kaytrue.bsky.social
I’ve been biking a lot. That’s good, except I neglected the car so long that the battery died. I also neglected to think about it last night while making a birthday cake for a lab member. This morning the only solution was to bungee the cake to my bike, right? The result was crumbly, but still yummy
Photo of a bicycle with red panniers on the back and orange reflective pogies on the handlebars. There is a chocolate cake in a plastic carrying case attached by bungee cords to the front basket of the bike. This cake is currently beautiful. It is 2 layers of chocolate cake, covered with silky, smooth, chocolate icing. This cake has no idea what it is in for. In about 30 seconds it is going to be smooshed against the wall of the case and lose its icing on that side as we fly down a hill. Then it will be jiggled over rough Seattle streets. When we finally reach the bike path, it will be airborne and make contact with the lid as we bump over tree roots that have pushed up humps in the paving. Hey, at least it wasn't raining!
December 11, 2024 at 5:37 AM