Abstract
"Progress in science depends on new techniques, new discoveries, and new ideas, probably in that order" - Sydney Brenner. The dissertation is one that takes this maxim to heart, and thus presents three explorations into developing and improving techniques to attempt to address unmet needs in biology. The first such exploration is an inexpensive and scalable SARS-CoV-2 molecular diagnostic test that relies on saliva as a diagnostic specimen. The second is a method developed for analyzing transcriptional dynamics with limited biological material - Bulk analysis of nascent transcript termini (Butt-Seq). The third is an exploration of circadian rhythms - a foray into a deep learning approach for defining rhythmicity in low-resolution circadian transcriptomics, followed by a dive into the molecular features of transcriptomic rhythms in Drosophila melanogaster. Although these chapters may seem disparate, each offers new avenues for discovery and technological development in the field of biology.