Chemistry in Bangkok

I thought I would post a quick update on my work here in Thailand. I am working in the Chemistry Department of Chulalongkorn University. My research focus is on the development of biosensors that can be used to measure environmental pollutants and markers of different diseases. The goal is to ultimately provide these to the thai people who live in rural areas to improve their quality of life. At the same time, this has also been a chance to do science in an environment that is very different than the US. For example, the lab I work in has 20 graduate students, only two of which are male. This is the norm in Thailand as there are many more women seeking advanced degrees than men. Second, major equipment (items costing more than $10,000) are harder to get here and thus most of the labs have many students and not as much equipment. This has made doing some of the science much more challenging than in the states. At the same time, it has also made me more appreciative of the resources available at home and the importance of educating students from all over the world in the ways American science is done.