Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Doug's Lab

highpower48 - 15-3-2017 at 12:25

This might be the wrong forum for this post, if so please place in the right one.

Anyone know what's happened to Doug's Lab YouTube channel. Looks like he last uploaded a new video around 7 months ago. Thanks....

Amos - 15-3-2017 at 12:40

Doug (Praxichys on this forum, he's still fairly active around here) is a busy guy, so he doesn't get to make YouTube videos all that often. He's alive and well, though.

Texium - 15-3-2017 at 13:04

Yep, if you look back at Doug's video posting history, you'll see he tends to do them in bursts, often with months of inactivity between them.

j_sum1 - 15-3-2017 at 22:11

Deja vu
https://www.sciencemadness.org/whisper/viewthread.php?tid=65...

Magpie - 16-3-2017 at 09:54

Maybe Doug has a demanding job and a wife/girlfriend. Those can take a lot of time, not leaving you the time needed to continue making professional quality videos.

Liamatpm - 22-3-2017 at 16:19

He contacted my friend. He said that soon he will be going to post soon again.

Liamatpm - 23-3-2017 at 02:25

Although it might be worth noting that was over a month ago. I hope he posts again.

Praxichys - 25-3-2017 at 16:23

Quote: Originally posted by Magpie  
Maybe Doug has a demanding job and a wife/girlfriend.

Your suspicions are correct. I'm a homeowner, trying to get married, and the company I work for is picking up a lot of business in the wake of the massive Takata airbag recalls. Consequently, my workload is absolutely insane until the company can fill in the gaps with additional personnel. It's not necessarily that I don't have the time, it's just that after 12 hours at the office followed by home responsibilities, it's hard to find motivation to cram labwork into that two hours of "beer time" I get before going to bed!

It has been a crazy few months as well with several business trips, a January newborn for my in-laws, and a rare and deadly cancer diagnosis for one of my closest friends, which has been soaking up my weekends.

I try to answer as many emails as I can. Many of them express concern for my well-being, so I try to respond to avoid anyone raising the alarm in response to my frequent disappearances. Rest assured that I'm definitely not out of the lab game, just on standby until I can scrape together some time. You guys rock!

Doug

j_sum1 - 26-3-2017 at 00:18

Well, in that case, all the best, Doug.
[Scratches head trying to figure out exactly what "trying to get married" means...]

XeonTheMGPony - 26-3-2017 at 04:40

Really I just got dogs, less needy and more fun! lol

FlaskBreaker - 7-1-2018 at 20:13

Sorry to bring up such an old thread, but Doug actually just came back to YouTube today. He says that he will be posting every Sunday of 2018 from now on.

[Edited on 8-1-2018 by FlaskBreaker]

TheNerdyFarmer - 8-1-2018 at 14:36



Yes, I saw the video. I'm super excited to see what he has in store for us now! Only Doug can turn an on average, 10 minute video into a 30 minute one.:D





[Edited on 8-1-2018 by TheNerdyFarmer]

Praxichys - 18-1-2018 at 11:06

Yeah, I get excited and that makes me windy. I sit there cutting together the video like, "well, I can't cut THAT... if I cut THIS then I have to cut THAT... hmm, I should probably leave THIS in..."

Next thing you know the video is a half hour long...

MrHomeScientist - 18-1-2018 at 11:19

I have the exact same problem. You should see how long my raw video files are. Filled with false starts, overall poor narration, and copious swearing! :D

aga - 18-1-2018 at 12:22

You both do good videos, also both have good speaking voices.

I've only done a few utoob vids, and yes, it is actually very hard to get the editing even half-right !

Writing a script kinda helps condense things down.

Magpie - 18-1-2018 at 13:00

Doug's videos are superior to any others I've seen.

[Edited on 18-1-2018 by Magpie]

aga - 18-1-2018 at 13:36

The lack of polish does make Doug's videos come across more like a chemist doing chemistry, rather than a utoober making another video.

That makes his vids stand out to me more than nerdy & nile.

Edit:

Technically their vids are more 'well done'.

[Edited on 18-1-2018 by aga]

The Volatile Chemist - 18-1-2018 at 15:19

Quote: Originally posted by Praxichys  
...trying to get married...

Isn't everybody...

Yeah, I agree - the nice wood bench and the not white background or other 'youtuber' trappings are a nice refreshment. Same for Ex&F, but he's even a bit less polished than Doug...

Magpie - 18-1-2018 at 16:23

Polish doesn't matter to me. What I care about is creativity, educational value, and usefulness.

Nerd is a twit with a big ego. I say this because of the silly remarks he made about masking his voice. How dumb.

Doug's ketene furnace design and operation is brilliant. He is as clever as garage chemist. Gawd how I miss GC.

Praxichys - 19-1-2018 at 11:14

Wow, thanks for all the positive remarks guys...

MrHomeScientist, I cannot agree more. If I could put together all the tongue-tied stumbling, dropping things, growling stomach and sniffles, colorful language... there would be one heck of a blooper reel! :D

My thoughts toward some of the more popular channels are more "live and let live." NurdRage has played his cards right as far as the YouTube game goes. The cheezy anonymity gives him that Walter White persona, and it clearly works. The dude makes thousands on Patreon, doesn't collaborate with anyone, and has access to university resources but plays like he's in a home lab. There are lots of others who are borderline chemistry but end up pouring metal down anthills and putting fidget spinners in LN2, because that's what the viewers want. Many of these things are actually quite fascinating, but I've always drawn the line at "If I wouldn't use this video on a resume, I shouldn't make it." I try very hard to prevent viewership or money from influencing my focus.

Magpie, it means a lot to me to hear that from you considering my lab was largely inspired by your work, among others like Len1, GarageChemist, engager, etc.. Your preps continue to be some of the best in the business, and I hope to eventually acquire the level of analytical equipment you seem to have amassed. I would love an in-depth virtual tour of your lab. Particularly impressive is the IR spectrometer. I seriously need to get some form of advanced analysis, whether it's FTIR, Raman, GC/MS, maybe even HPLC. I'm saving my pennies!

aga - 19-1-2018 at 13:10

Quote: Originally posted by Praxichys  
... I would love an in-depth virtual tour of your lab.

Pretty sure many of us would re-mortgage our left kidney to have a tour of Magpie's lab ;)

Magpie - 19-1-2018 at 17:13

Quote: Originally posted by Praxichys  

Magpie, it means a lot to me to hear that from you considering my lab was largely inspired by your work, among others like Len1, GarageChemist, engager, etc.. Your preps continue to be some of the best in the business, and I hope to eventually acquire the level of analytical equipment you seem to have amassed. I would love an in-depth virtual tour of your lab. Particularly impressive is the IR spectrometer. I seriously need to get some form of advanced analysis, whether it's FTIR, Raman, GC/MS, maybe even HPLC. I'm saving my pennies!


IMO: GC has the best grasp of chemistry and is a clever engineer; Len1 is the most erudite scientist we have ever had on the forum and has access to all the equipment at the university in Australia where he teaches physics, engager is a clever Russian who showed me how to make KCN carbothermically.

Thanks for the kind comments about my preps. However, you are mistaking me for benzylchloride1 in reference to analytical equipment.

[Edited on 20-1-2018 by Magpie]

NEMO-Chemistry - 19-1-2018 at 22:00

Quote: Originally posted by j_sum1  
Well, in that case, all the best, Doug.
[Scratches head trying to figure out exactly what "trying to get married" means...]


Means he's having problems with the rohypnol synth :D

Magpie - 20-1-2018 at 16:39

Quote: Originally posted by NEMO-Chemistry  

Means he's having problems with the rohypnol synth :D


Whispering "sweet nothings" in her ear will work better.

Fleaker - 25-1-2018 at 12:45

Quote: Originally posted by Magpie  
Polish doesn't matter to me. What I care about is creativity, educational value, and usefulness.

Nerd is a twit with a big ego. I say this because of the silly remarks he made about masking his voice. How dumb.

Doug's ketene furnace design and operation is brilliant. He is as clever as garage chemist. Gawd how I miss GC.


What the hell happened to GC?

Magpie - 25-1-2018 at 14:22

I think he just got bored and moved on. He was only interested in tough challenges.

NEMO-Chemistry - 26-1-2018 at 20:15

Quote: Originally posted by Magpie  
Quote: Originally posted by NEMO-Chemistry  

Means he's having problems with the rohypnol synth :D


Whispering "sweet nothings" in her ear will work better.


But the other is faster and works on deaf people as well :P

Magpie - 26-1-2018 at 21:00

You are certaintly fighting for the deaf:D

ampHoteric - 27-2-2018 at 01:35

ROTFL !!!

Funniest thread I’ve read in awhile.

ampHoteric - 27-2-2018 at 01:44

Quote: Originally posted by aga  
The lack of polish does make Doug's videos come across more like a chemist doing chemistry, rather than a utoober making another video.

That makes his vids stand out to me more than nerdy & nile.
[Edited on 18-1-2018 by aga]


Agreed. I feel more like I’m hanging out with a buddy who’s showing me the cool chem he’s doing rather than attending a lecture. Doug’s love for chemistry shines through and I feel comforted knowing I’m not alone geeking out over the same stuff. ;)

(And now I’m worried... I do hope he’s OK....
3 weeks without a new video. Just a tweet back on the 12th saying the video from the 11th had a rendering issue and should be up that night)

walruslover69 - 4-4-2018 at 06:41

Does anyone have any updates or information on why Doug stopped posting videos?

JJay - 4-4-2018 at 14:28

I was wondering the same thing. It is very easy to get caught up in other things in the middle of an experiment, and sometimes things don't go as planned, but I was expecting more videos... does anyone know?

j_sum1 - 4-4-2018 at 15:24

He was confident of putting out regular videos this year -- at a rate that I thought was a bit ambitious.
Quality before quantity. But I am looking forward to the next installment.

Geocachmaster - 4-4-2018 at 18:36

Very weird though. On 2/12 he posted on Twitter that a video was coming out that night. That was the last I heard of him. Not active on SM in over two months either. I messaged him but got no reply :(



365325D7-C4D1-419C-BC9F-162C0A0B0F99.png - 1.2MB

ampHoteric - 12-4-2018 at 12:54

I am truly worried about Praxichys. I know he disappeared for awhile before but when he returned he seemed so determined and was sticking to his weekly schedule even throwing in a few mid-week videos on top of that.

Doug had put so much emphasis on getting a video out every Sunday. His last video that he posted on a Sunday over 10 weeks ago he mentioned that even though he didn’t have dry product & final weight that he wanted to keep that commitment to put a video out each Sunday. He made mention of plans for several projects for the month of February etc. He had also just added more ways to stay in touch with subscribers through social media. Then just ...... poof!
No activity on his YT account, SM account, Google+, Twitter, Patreon.

His complete disappearance just doesn’t fit the narrative at all. Truthfully, negative events seem the most plausible explanation at this point. I do hope someone has the ability to reach out to him and verify that he’s ok.

[Edited on 4/12/2018 by ampHoteric]

aga - 12-4-2018 at 13:17

If you've ever tried making a video, it becomes apparent how much Work that is.

Doug's Lab is very well edited.

The 'edited' part consumes a Lot of time.

Personally i occasionally like editing and messing with video, using Kdenlive (on Ubuntu).

In any case, producing videos takes time, i.e Work.

CobaltChloride - 14-4-2018 at 09:47

What worries me the most is that he said in his final video that he is going to make trichlorophenol. As NurdRage mentioned in the comments, that reaction can create one of the most toxic polychlorinated dibenzodioxins, which is so carcinogenic that he didn't do the reaction. I sincerely hope that he's ok.

madcedar - 14-4-2018 at 22:20

Another theory:
Doug had the bad luck of starting to make videos when many people were having problems with Google's new monetization robot marking many videos unfit for payment. Maybe Doug's wife put her foot down becuase she was not getting enough Doug time? Spending a lot of time making videos and getting nothing in return would certainly annoy most partners. Doug is probably just decided to appease his wife. I don't blame him, most of us would do the same. I certainly hope he is healthy and well.


[Edited on 15-4-2018 by madcedar]

Velzee - 8-5-2018 at 10:47

I do wonder...

The jersey rebel - 12-5-2018 at 18:57

I’ll send a U2U. Hopefully he’ll respond. The timing worries the hell out of me to be honest as that next reaction had several points it could go wrong with. Also, the wife bit seems to not make sense as you’d at least expect him to comment and stuff.

ninhydric1 - 12-5-2018 at 20:55

Chances are if he's not on YouTube, he isn't going to be on ScienceMadness either.

The jersey rebel - 13-5-2018 at 06:07

You’re suspicions are correct as he hasn’t been active since the dimethyl oxalate video. Just checked his page.

The jersey rebel - 28-5-2018 at 07:25

Honestly, I am rather worried about Doug. The unfortunate aspect of this whole case is that a welfare check may very well be in order. There are fewer and fewer positive reasons remaining for this disappearance. I recently sustained a spinal injury and was only off the forum for a month or two, 4 months with no activity whatsoever is a worryingly long time, especially considering his commitment to publishing every Sunday.

j_sum1 - 28-5-2018 at 12:37

Likewise. Does anyone have any contact with him?

aga - 28-5-2018 at 12:40

Unfortunately i do not.

The jersey rebel's assessment makes worrying sense.

I hope Prax is OK.