03 February 2011

The Black Market on Lab Coats

It was Tuesday, the day of my first real lab in Principles of Ecology. I sat awkwardly at the back of the room, positioning myself behind the other students to hide my color in a sea of white. At the University of Botswana, it is mandatory for all students to wear a lab coat, buttoned up, while in the lab - even if all you're going to do is count colored corn kernels and it's 86° outside with no fans and no AC to cool you down.

The lab began with the usual announcements, and a stern warning about wearing the proper lab attire for future labs - a sort of "we'll let it slide: this time." I partnered with a random guy at the back who introduced himself as Owen. Our experiment, a simulation of natural selection which required the counting and moving of colored corn kernels, was a breeze. We flew through it, and were out of our three-hour lab session about half-way through. The first ones - and no one else looked even close to finishing.

On the way out, he asked me, "Do you need a lab coat?" "Yes," I replied. "How much can you pay?" he asked. "Fifty pula," I stated. "Ok, I'll call you when I get it." We exchanged numbers, parted ways, and I headed off to an early supper before choir rehearsal. Let me explain something about what just happened: lab coats are not cheap. The school bookstore has the monopoly on them, and the chances of me finding such a random article in another store are slim to none. The cost for a lab coat from the UB bookstore? app. P180. That's about $30. And P50? You're looking at about $7.40. It's a pretty significant difference.

The next day I was eating lunch at Moghul when Owen came up. Turns out he'd been calling me all day but had one digit wrong in my number. No matter: he pulled out the lab coat, I tried it on, folded it into my bag, and handed him a P50 bill. Transaction complete.

It was Tuesday, the day of my second real lab in Principles of Ecology. I sat right up front, just another white lab coat in a sea of white lab coats. And of course, at the University of Botswana it is mandatory for students to have their lab coats buttoned in the lab, even if all you're going to do that day is watch a video, so I was sweltering in 86° heat with no fan and no AC to cool me down. But standing at my workbench, lab coat shining in the sun, I have to say that I felt pretty darn cool.

:)

2 comments:

  1. Should I tell you about the half dozen lab coats I have in my closet? Which I haven't worn in many years!

    Sorry, and way to go black/white coat/ market

    ReplyDelete