This may only be applicable to postgrads who are pursuing a full research Masters' degree in any science field that is lab-based (biology-related fields in particular). I may add more if I can think of any.
Enjoy! :)
NOTE: This is written in no particular order or preference and that some labmates may have 2 or more of the following characteristics. These are all written in the lab context and MAY have been exaggerated for a humorous effect.
LEGEND: PI = principle investigator
1. The Reagents Supplier
This is the person to go to for any reagents that you're too lazy to prepare. He or she has a collection of different pH Tris or Phosphate buffers (or other reagents) at varying molarities or even stacks of agar plates with different antibiotics added. You need it, they've got it! And, they are usually very generous with their reagents.... or perhaps they will give those reagents to you for a price.2. The Inconspicuous Bench Hogger
These sort of labmates will place their racks of tubes closer and closer to your side and if you didn't notice it or are too timid to stand up for yourself, one day, they will have hogged half of your bench. Or perhaps, after a two-week conference trip (Vacation!), you will return to see that your bench has been taken over by the hogger. Sometimes, they might even informed you that they are just borrowing your bench space for their racks for a couple of days, only to take over that spot on your bench forever. Be extremely wary!3. The Saboteur
The stealthy and malicious saboteur may have been previously wronged by the already graduated postgrad or the postdoc who has left the lab ages ago, but he/ she decided to heap his/ her unfulfilled vengeance onto the other students in the lab. Re-filling your 10% APS with sterile water? Checked. Hide your antibodies so you cannot find them? Checked. These people are the worst and may have contributed to the new trend of using several heavy-duty padlocks (or if you're rich, biometric locks or retinal scanner) for your lab drawers and lab fridges (if you're lucky to have a whole -20C fridge to yourself). The saddest thing is that they are so busy sabotaging other people's work, that they developed extreme paranoia over time and hardly have any time to work on their own experiments... leading to delayed graduation dates and generating even more frustration. It's a vicious cycle.4. Lab's Version of Gossip Girls
(Can be boys too, gender does not apply much in the lab IMHO)From what Prof XX is doing on his weekends down to which underwear the lab prettiest girl is wearing (no, not really), if you ask them anything remotely gossipy, brace your ears coz they are going to be blasted off by these 'Gossip girls'. You may even hear about stuff that you wish you didn't hear about. These 'Gossip girls' know about the petty squabbles between lecturers and their 'cold wars', who is no longer talking to whom, all the wrongdoings the new postgrad or undergrad in the next lab has done... well practically everything, really. They even talk while doing their lab work... so it's not surprising if their lab work failed spectacularly.
5. The Spontaneous Singer/ 'Bollywood Star'
These are the sort of people who, at unexpected moments, burst into song or dance and the song or dance may be something that is popular ages ago (but is currently considered outdated).Yes, you get your own live show in the lab and it's pretty cool too, except if the person who is spontaneously singing or dancing or both is not really very good at it. They may have accidentally and indirectly destroyed someone else's experiments or sensitive and fragile equipment while that someone else is being distracted by these people's singing or dancing.
6. The 'Lone Ranger'
The person in the lab who come, do his or her experiments for the day and goes home every day without talking to any of the other lab people unless absolutely necessary. Most 'Lone Rangers' are independent, but is antisocial. They usually won't join in the festivities or any Happy Hour sessions that the other labmates may be enjoying.7. The Borrower/Stealer
These sort of people are among the worst kind in labs... and can also be associated with the saboteur since you cannot truly know whether they really forgot to return the items to you or they purposefully wanted to steal from you. This may include transferring items (like antibodies) from your -20C boxes to theirs or use your reagents and finishes them off without helping you to re-prepare them and. all the while. conveniently forgetting to ask you for your permission or to return the items to you.... every time. What's even worse is that the borrower can also be coupled with The Contaminator as well (Refer to 10).8. The FB-er
The FB-er only comes to the lab for a couple of hours at a time and within the short periods of time, he/ she only check their oh-so-many social media sites... Facebook in particular. What's surprising is that these sort of people may somehow graduate... perhaps even faster than you all the while doing absolutely nothing! They must have 'magic skills' or they have managed to blackmail the PI... this is all up to your imagination.9. The 'Boss'
They are usually the chemical-store-keeper and the person to go to if you encounter any problems during your research as well. Don't bother spending any brain cells on troubleshooting or learning a new skill, just get the know-it-all boss to teach it to you. The only difference between the 'boss' and the unpaid 'lab assistant' is that the 'boss' usually doesn't do your work for you... they will only teach you. And of course, they practically oversees the lab for the supervisor/ PI. Some 'bosses' may even report any wrongdoing to the real Boss (your supervisor/ PI). There will also be 'pseudo-bosses' who act like they are the 'boss' in the lab when they aren't even close.10. The Contaminator or the Person with the Finger of Doom
You wouldn't want these people anywhere within a 10-mile radius of your reagents or culture plates. Anything they handle will end up in the biohazard waste... and there goes your months or years of hard work. What's even worse is that when the borrower is coupled with the contaminator, all your reagents may already have been contaminated, but you won't know until you failed your experiments multiple times... or until when you decided to prepare ALL your reagents again.This can also be applicable to damaged lab equipments. Their favourite phase? 'It's already damaged when I used it, but I didn't or forgot to report to the lab officer about it'. Sometimes, if the equipment is extremely expensive, they may even deny using the equipment at all. Hence, in the case of lab equipments magically getting damaged by their own accord after being used by a person, that person is called 'The Person with the Finger of Doom'.
11. The Lab Kid
This person is usually the life of the lab due to his/ her childish tendencies to do silly things or pranks in the lab. He/ she will think that the lab is a huge playground... literally. For example, spraying you with 70% ethanol solution or dropping ice cubes down your lab coat or in your lab coat pockets... when you're doing lab work. However, the downside here is that he/ she will frequently get into a lot of trouble and will drag you down along with him/ her if you joined in.12. The Unpaid 'Lab Assistant' or The OK Man / Lady
Also known as The OK Man/ Lady. These people are usually the most junior in the lab or is perhaps an undergraduate/ intern and will have to do whatever work that the other more senior people needed doing (and are reluctant to do)... including washing the autoclaved flasks or Scott bottles, cleaning the gel tanks, disposing of biohazard wastes or some simple lab work like DNA extraction. They are usually unpaid and will have to do these work in addition to their existing responsibilities. These people may also turn to complaining to whoever who listens in order to reduce their stress and frustration.There are many more other 'types' of postgrad students in the lab of course... what other types can you think of? Feel free to post them in the comments below. :)
Disclaimer: I do not intend to offend anybody through the display of my lame sense of humour. If you don't like this, you can just click away and continue watching your cat videos on YouTube. :P
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