Aurora Toennisson
@tatoennisson.bsky.social
Plant Pathology Postdoc. Interests: Plant Biology, Microbiology,
Entomology, Space biology, Gardening, Ham radio, & Makin' things. Writes at http://biologistsgarden.net and http://sproutsinspace.blog
Entomology, Space biology, Gardening, Ham radio, & Makin' things. Writes at http://biologistsgarden.net and http://sproutsinspace.blog
Very excited to get to update my signature today!
August 18, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Very excited to get to update my signature today!
Another monarch sighting!
August 10, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Another monarch sighting!
Revised version:
August 2, 2025 at 5:38 PM
Revised version:
Do these stats look reasonable?
August 2, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Do these stats look reasonable?
How I imagine I'm going to feel when all my revisions are done, lol.
July 24, 2025 at 1:32 AM
How I imagine I'm going to feel when all my revisions are done, lol.
Defense presentation: Done! 😅
Orals: Unconditionally passed! 🙌
Thanks to all the support of my lab mates, committee, friends, and family!
Orals: Unconditionally passed! 🙌
Thanks to all the support of my lab mates, committee, friends, and family!
July 18, 2025 at 7:29 PM
Defense presentation: Done! 😅
Orals: Unconditionally passed! 🙌
Thanks to all the support of my lab mates, committee, friends, and family!
Orals: Unconditionally passed! 🙌
Thanks to all the support of my lab mates, committee, friends, and family!
Current state of my upcoming talk:
July 14, 2025 at 12:57 AM
Current state of my upcoming talk:
WE HAVE A MONARCH CATERPILLAR ON OUR MILKWEED!
May 31, 2025 at 10:16 PM
WE HAVE A MONARCH CATERPILLAR ON OUR MILKWEED!
Maybe someone just got the wrong memo and though the Declaration of Independence was a to do list and the Constitution a list of complaints? Can someone in Congress correct this mistake?
April 17, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Maybe someone just got the wrong memo and though the Declaration of Independence was a to do list and the Constitution a list of complaints? Can someone in Congress correct this mistake?
I managed to do a bit of "home microbiology" over the holidays in the form of attempting homemade pineapple vinegar. Current status: it smells like a boozy pirate ship.
January 10, 2025 at 11:44 PM
I managed to do a bit of "home microbiology" over the holidays in the form of attempting homemade pineapple vinegar. Current status: it smells like a boozy pirate ship.
I extracted bacterial DNA from Arabidopsis roots and did a 16S PCR. I got very strong clear bands on my gel, but they 150 pb too small. I'm worried that these bands are actually plastid or mitochondrial DNA from the plant root tissue. Any advice from #plantbiology or #microbiology folks?
December 18, 2024 at 5:23 PM
I extracted bacterial DNA from Arabidopsis roots and did a 16S PCR. I got very strong clear bands on my gel, but they 150 pb too small. I'm worried that these bands are actually plastid or mitochondrial DNA from the plant root tissue. Any advice from #plantbiology or #microbiology folks?
Every space conference the lab goes to makes my advisor's door a little more festive...
December 12, 2024 at 10:32 PM
Every space conference the lab goes to makes my advisor's door a little more festive...
Sneak peak at my latest #3DPrinting project for a my #plantbiology lab.
November 27, 2024 at 1:01 AM
Sneak peak at my latest #3DPrinting project for a my #plantbiology lab.
And because I'm new on this platform, I thought I'd share this delightful PSA on the "Hidden Dangers of Botany". Don't say I didn't warn you! 🪴🌾🌱 biologistsgarden.net/2016/11/05/t...
November 13, 2024 at 2:51 AM
And because I'm new on this platform, I thought I'd share this delightful PSA on the "Hidden Dangers of Botany". Don't say I didn't warn you! 🪴🌾🌱 biologistsgarden.net/2016/11/05/t...
My homemade grow-light is on PAR.
October 7, 2023 at 12:13 AM
My homemade grow-light is on PAR.
Some days in the lab be great, and some be like:
October 4, 2023 at 6:00 PM
Some days in the lab be great, and some be like:
It looks like a *plant* biology student office now! #plantbiology
September 28, 2023 at 5:39 PM
It looks like a *plant* biology student office now! #plantbiology
Holy serial dilutions, Batman!
#plantbiology #microbiology #spacebiology
#plantbiology #microbiology #spacebiology
September 23, 2023 at 1:35 AM
Holy serial dilutions, Batman!
#plantbiology #microbiology #spacebiology
#plantbiology #microbiology #spacebiology
I designed and #3Dprinted some custom #Arabidopsis plate holders for my lab mate. We might need to tweak the lighting a bit, but we're pretty pleased with pleased with how they work so far.
September 20, 2023 at 4:45 PM
I designed and #3Dprinted some custom #Arabidopsis plate holders for my lab mate. We might need to tweak the lighting a bit, but we're pretty pleased with pleased with how they work so far.
An entomology grad student down the hall from me has this on their desk, and it perfectly encapsulates how my experiments have been going recently.
September 16, 2023 at 12:21 AM
An entomology grad student down the hall from me has this on their desk, and it perfectly encapsulates how my experiments have been going recently.
Turns out that making a copy of someone else's custom growth chamber control prototype *with no directions* is hard. I have spent several weeks putting it together and taking it apart again to troubleshoot. It's still not done yet...and I really need it for #PlantBiology experiments.
September 15, 2023 at 1:21 AM
Turns out that making a copy of someone else's custom growth chamber control prototype *with no directions* is hard. I have spent several weeks putting it together and taking it apart again to troubleshoot. It's still not done yet...and I really need it for #PlantBiology experiments.
I got carnivorous plants for my birthday and made a little terrarium for them with other stuff I already had. I'm kind of in love with the Pinguicula, especially, and I'm showing great self-restraint in not spending all my grad stipend on them.
September 9, 2023 at 2:33 AM
I got carnivorous plants for my birthday and made a little terrarium for them with other stuff I already had. I'm kind of in love with the Pinguicula, especially, and I'm showing great self-restraint in not spending all my grad stipend on them.
Surprise (almost) birthday stickers delight me!
September 1, 2023 at 12:28 AM
Surprise (almost) birthday stickers delight me!