Drosophila

Did I mention that Thursday I got to see the world's largest population of fruit flies? Will never quite forget that smell.

The IAEA isn't just about the safety and security of nuclear weapons and reactors - they also use nuclear technology on development projects involving food, water and livestock. They create practical techniques that they can transfer to the member states. It's really incredible the things they are working on for cancer, food security and water safety. It turns out that isotopes can do a ton. Considering how tiny they are, it's like an ant dead-lifting the country of Austria. We took a tour of Seibersdorf, the IAEA's lab just outside Vienna and saw all sorts of projects. Several of the projects were done in partnership with Texas A&M University (and not many other universities were specifically mentioned).

So here's the story on the fruit flies if you're curious:
http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Multimedia/PhotoEssays/OliveFly/