Is what I'm doing considered research?

[Ursa_Major]

I've been doing a lot of routine work as a lab assistant like PCR, genotyping, and working with mice. I don't think our lab would get anything published soon. Is what I'm doing considered research?

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[Ursa_Major]

I feel like I am more of a technician than a researcher. I've tried to ask my postdoc to further involve me with his project but I'm not getting anywhere...

Thank you in advance for any feedback!

 

[SurfingDoctor]

I've tried to ask my postdoc to further involve me with his project but I'm not getting anywhere...

Well, the post-doc is not the driver of the project, the PI is. Have you talked to them?

To answer your initial question, what you are doing are experiments (and some animal husbandry maybe). Those are an important part of research for sure, but not the only part. Formulating hypotheses or idea, testing those idea (via experiments), analyzing the results and writing it up whatever you have done, is research. It doesn't have to be published to be considered research, but it does have to have all the elements.

Again, I don't know the context of your situation (is it work-study, volunteer, a course, etc.), but if want more out of your time in the lab (and more to show for it), talk to the lab PI.