C&EN Onion European Chemical Sciences Correspondent Fluorogrol Reports
Oxford, UK
Exchange student
Michel Fontaine's report on his summer's work at the University of Oxford,
which included an acknowledgement of "Automatic Reply: Prof. C. Newman,
for his constant encouragement and helpful suggestions," has left his
former labmates scratching their heads.
"We can't work
out if it's a joke or not," explained third-year graduate student Graham
Lewis, who supervised the French chemist. "We've spent the whole summer
trying to distinguish deadpan humour from genuine language difficulties. I don't
know if there's a French word for impenetrable, but if there is, that's him all
over." According to Lewis, Fontaine's research interests include quantum
dots, carbon nanomaterials, and hand-rolled cigarettes.
Despite the promptings
of postdoctoral researcher Bruce Gilbert, Prof. Newman seemed confused about
the summer student's identity. "Michel? Of course I remember her. Three
months' worth of free labour seems like a good deal, but then they send you a
stocky French girl with a moustache," he blustered, as Gilbert stared at
the floor and shuffled uncomfortably.
C&EN Onion
attempted to contact Fontaine for his side of the story, but he proved as
transient as one of his trademark enigmatic shrugs.
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