(no subject)
I'm halfway done my genetics course, and so far, I'm surviving. It's a four week course, with one semester's worth of material crammed in, that started two weeks ago, so our midterm was on Friday, and our final exam is in two weeks. I know I didn't do spectacularly well on the midterm, but I hope I get a respectable grade. We had a quiz at the end of the first week worth 10% of our grade, and I really fucked up on one question, but in the end I got 70%, which isn't great, but it could have been worse. The course is pretty intense because it's so condensed and you don't get any time to absorb the material, but it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be, and I'm keeping up with the material. Thank goodness I have an awesome TA!
On of the things we learned was genetic mapping, which is tedious and boring. I really don't care how far away a gene is from the centromere! My friend, who was also accepted into the microbiology program, had also applied for the cell biology and genetics program. She hasn't heard back from them, but said, "Thank goodness I got into the microbiology program and don't have to do more genetics!"
The genetics prof is known for being an asshole, but so far, he's been rather pleasant, to my surprise. Because of all the things I have heard, including from my sister, I was expecting the course to be a nightmare, but it hasn't been that bad, despite the fast pace. His lectures are fairly good, and while he doesn't write much down, he speaks slowly and clearly enough that you can catch what is being said. And if you have a question or ask him to re-explain something (which I have done several times), he does so in a patient, non-condescending way.
On the first day of class he asked who was in microbiology, so of course my friend and I raised our hands (I think we may have been the only two). It turns out that he has a background in microbiology, so I think that put us in his good books. We sit in the third row so we're close enough that he can see us during lecture, and whenever he talks about bacteria, he looks in our direction and sort of addresses us. For example, last week he started talking about mini cells, and while I don't know much about them, I understood what he was talking about as they were briefly mentioned when we learned about bacterial cell division in MICB 324 (and while he was talking about them, I was remembering all the proteins involved in the process). He looked at me (or me and my friend) and asked if I/we knew what mini cells were or something, and I was able to say yes.
Also, on Friday, he mentioned that on Monday we would start chapter 5, which is about bacterial genetics (of course he looked at me and my friend when he mentioned this!). He started talking about "Hfr mapping", something I have never heard of, and said that we probably won't cover it in depth, as we don't have much time, and it will probably be cut out of the course syllabus soon. He said that he had to do Hfr mapping (and that it was a pain), but it's not something that is done much anymore. He looked at me and asked if I knew anyone who has done Hfr mapping, so I truthfully said no, and then he asked if I knew what Hfr mapping was, and I admitted that I didn't (he didn't seem to think that I was an idiot for not knowing). He wasn't trying to be an asshole or put me on the spot or anything like that--he's just interested in microbiology, so I think he's excited that he has a couple of micro students in his class. So I don't mind that he always looks at us or addresses us when he talks about microbiology, and it's kind of flattering. At any rate, it's a good thing that he looks upon us favorably! I've learned that even if you fail your tests and get poor grades, if the teacher thinks you are somewhat competent, you will get a passing grade, and at the end of the day, it's those three little credits that matter.
On of the things we learned was genetic mapping, which is tedious and boring. I really don't care how far away a gene is from the centromere! My friend, who was also accepted into the microbiology program, had also applied for the cell biology and genetics program. She hasn't heard back from them, but said, "Thank goodness I got into the microbiology program and don't have to do more genetics!"
The genetics prof is known for being an asshole, but so far, he's been rather pleasant, to my surprise. Because of all the things I have heard, including from my sister, I was expecting the course to be a nightmare, but it hasn't been that bad, despite the fast pace. His lectures are fairly good, and while he doesn't write much down, he speaks slowly and clearly enough that you can catch what is being said. And if you have a question or ask him to re-explain something (which I have done several times), he does so in a patient, non-condescending way.
On the first day of class he asked who was in microbiology, so of course my friend and I raised our hands (I think we may have been the only two). It turns out that he has a background in microbiology, so I think that put us in his good books. We sit in the third row so we're close enough that he can see us during lecture, and whenever he talks about bacteria, he looks in our direction and sort of addresses us. For example, last week he started talking about mini cells, and while I don't know much about them, I understood what he was talking about as they were briefly mentioned when we learned about bacterial cell division in MICB 324 (and while he was talking about them, I was remembering all the proteins involved in the process). He looked at me (or me and my friend) and asked if I/we knew what mini cells were or something, and I was able to say yes.
Also, on Friday, he mentioned that on Monday we would start chapter 5, which is about bacterial genetics (of course he looked at me and my friend when he mentioned this!). He started talking about "Hfr mapping", something I have never heard of, and said that we probably won't cover it in depth, as we don't have much time, and it will probably be cut out of the course syllabus soon. He said that he had to do Hfr mapping (and that it was a pain), but it's not something that is done much anymore. He looked at me and asked if I knew anyone who has done Hfr mapping, so I truthfully said no, and then he asked if I knew what Hfr mapping was, and I admitted that I didn't (he didn't seem to think that I was an idiot for not knowing). He wasn't trying to be an asshole or put me on the spot or anything like that--he's just interested in microbiology, so I think he's excited that he has a couple of micro students in his class. So I don't mind that he always looks at us or addresses us when he talks about microbiology, and it's kind of flattering. At any rate, it's a good thing that he looks upon us favorably! I've learned that even if you fail your tests and get poor grades, if the teacher thinks you are somewhat competent, you will get a passing grade, and at the end of the day, it's those three little credits that matter.