Modern Biology research happens both in the laboratory running experiments and in offices building and simulating model or experiments, and analyzing data. Yet these two spaces are very separate as if two existed had little relations. The goal of the e-LabBench is to connect laboratory and office work. By making the move between these two spaces easier we aim at:
Easier access to digital data, biologists can easily move information back and forth between their office and the bench.
More exploration, based on the Activity Based Computing principles, the bench supports open-ended experiments where little is planned in advance, but where structure can be added progressively;
Better tracking, yet by capturing what actually happened at the bench, the tubes’ content, personal notes or photos of the bench, biologists can easily document their experiment for themselves and others.
Faster iterations, this is where the Mini-Grid joins the bench. If researchers can get analysis results fast, they can adapt the experiments they are running on the fly.
The eLabBench is currently deployed in a Molecular Biology department at the University of Århus.
Juan David Hincapié-Ramos 