ONLINE REGISTRATION
February 8, 2010
My University has started online registration of all students this semester. So this means that i will get to register for all courses i am going to do this semester online.
Previously, we have been registering at the registrar’s office, which was time wasting and slow.
We all have to register by 15th February, so i have about 6 days to decide on which courses to do. I hope i won’t have second thoughts after registering some courses because once you register any course, it’s permanent. You can’t undo it.
For now i have decided i will register for 9 courses including Field Attachment, but i will wait to register till about Friday when i am done checking with my classmates on how they gone about with the process.
LECTURE TIMETABLE
February 8, 2010
shaded areas indicate time of lectures
DOING BOTANY AGAIN
February 7, 2010
At the start of last semester, i decided to drop Botany after doing it for one year. So i only did Biochemistry and Zoology. However, i am going to do Botany again this semester.
I will be doing 2 courses there (Basic Bacteriology & Virology and Biostatistics)
Botany is the study of Plants. However there are some courses that are not under Plant Biology but are offered under the Botany Department only. For example Genetics, Microbiology and Biostatistics.
Since these courses are important for my future career and are only offered in Botany Department, i had to offer Botany again.
I will offer Botany for all the remaining semesters in my programme. Hoping it doesn’t disappoint!!
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EXAM RESULTS
January 31, 2010
This week, i received the results of last semester’s exams and just like the past semesters, my GPA has risen again and i am so proud of my self. i am hoping to continue with this trend till the end.
My cGPA (cumulative Grade Point Average) rose by 0.02. This might seem like a small increase but any increase can make a huge difference no matter how small.
cGPA is the average GPA of all semesters.
My Semester GPA has however dropped by 0.18. I believe this is because i did less courses last semester, so unless i performed very well in all courses my Semester GPA was bound to fall. However i am still happy about the results because inspite of this, my cGPA still increased.
my best performed course was Vertebrates (structure and function) and the worst performed was Basic Entomology. Biochemistry was good too.
Next semester (starting tomorrow) i am hoping to improve my grades by giving more attention to tests and section B questions of Biochemistry courses.
Looking forward to the new semester.
Graduation Week
January 20, 2010
It’s Graduation Week at My University this week. It’s going to last till Friday and this Graduation is unique because for the first time ever, transcripts will be issued on the day of Graduation.
In the past, transcripts were issued after 1 year or more but now it’s going to be immediately after graduation.
So it means that after graduating I can use my Transcripts to look for Jobs immediately. I would love to get job before graduation but it’s quite hard to land on a good one.
If everything goes well, I am graduating in January 2012 and looking forward to it.
RECAP SEMESTER 1, YEAR 2
December 12, 2009
Everything always comes to an end and so is this Semester. It’s finished faster than I imagined but that’s the way its supposed to be.
This Semester has been unique in it’s own way because I had fewer than normal courses. Instead of the usual 7, I had only 5.
In all the remaining 3 semesters (next semester and 2 semesters in year 3) left in this programme, I am going to do a minimum of 6 courses. So this semester has had the lowest number of courses done in my whole entire programme.
Another thing which is characteristic of all Semesters is the hard courses. As usual Zoology Courses led in this Category with Vertebrates 2 and Basic Entomology leading the pack. Biochemistry has had some hard courses too but not as hard as those in Zoology.
Also unique about this semester is the fact that I didn’t do any Botany Course. That’s why the number of Courses i have done has been low. But I will be doing at least one course from Botany in all the remaining 3 semesters.
Despite the fact that I had 3 courses in Biochemistry unlike the usual 2, I had fewer than usual number of practicals in Biochemistry this Semester. We only had about 5 practicals so we wrote 5 reports for them.
In Zoology, I wrote more reports than usual. I wrote about 11 reports, which is very high and yet I did the same number of course units (2) as the previous semesters.
Then came the exams which ended yesterday. I had fewer exams (5) so it meant that I would take a shorter time to do them. It only took me 2 weeks, unlike the usual 3 weeks.
Generally, exams went fine but of course there are always a few exceptions but I am sure the final results won’t be disappointing. I am expecting them next year (probably by end of January).
Now the Vacation is here and it’s going to be a long one (approx. 2 months). I am planning on doing lots of stuff and I am surely going to enjoy it.
Next Semester starts on 1st February 2010. I will be doing 7 courses and I will be publishing the list soon.
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ESSENTIAL TEXTBOOKS – Biochemistry & Zoology
December 2, 2009
The following Textbooks are good study resources for Biochemistry and Zoology students. I have personally used them during the past 3 semester I have spent at College and they have helped me understand several aspects in the above subjects.
There are definitely lots of Textbooks out there but I am only reviewing the ones I have used. For information about the relevant textbooks for different courses that you do, consult your tutor or relevant authorities.
If you need to purchase these books, i have added links to Amazon.com where you can purchase the editions i have indicated in brackets.
These are the Textbooks:
1. BIOCHEMICAL CALCULATIONS (2nd Edition) – Irwin H. Segel
This book covers the various of physical biochemistry such as pH and Buffers, Bioenergetics, Photometry and Enzyme Kinetics. It’s a purely calculation book so should be consulted for calculation purposes.
2. PRINCIPLES OF BIOCHEMISTRY (2nd Edition) – Albert L. Lehninger et al
It covers all aspects of General Biochemistry such as Structure and Function of Bio molecules (Protein, Carbohydrate, Lipids, and Nucleic Acids), Introductory Cell Biology and Hormone Action, Metabolism and Metabolic Regulation.
3. BIOCHEMISTRY (5th Edition) – Lubert Stryer et al
Is also a General Biochemistry textbook and covers Structure and Function of Bio molecules (Protein, Carbohydrate, Lipids, Nucleic Acids), Introductory Cell Biology and Hormone Action, Metabolism and Metabolic Regulation and some aspects of Muscle Contraction.
4. HARPER’s ILLUSTRATED BIOCHEMISTRY (27th and 28th Online Edition) – Robert K. Murray et al
This is a Medical Biochemistry Textbook and has information about Structure and Function of Hormones, Hormone Biosynthesis, Mechanisms of Hormone Action, Tissue Structure and Function, Extra cellular Matrix Components, Muscle Contraction and some aspects of Metabolism.
5. MOLECULAR BIOLOGY OF THE CELL (4th Edition) – Bruce Alberts et al
This Textbook covers all aspects of Molecular Cell Biology and is very detailed. It covers all components of the Cell and its Organelles, Microscopy, Cellular Transport, the Cytoskeleton, Cell Cycle and the Cell Cycle control system, Cell Death (Apoptosis) and all the general aspects of Molecular Biology.
6. ENDOCRINOLOGY (5th Edition) – Mac E. Hadley
This is strictly Endocrinology Textbook. It covers Mechanisms of Hormone Action, Structure and function of Hormones, Endocrine Glands, Neuroendocrine Hormones, Steroids and all the other Hormones. It also covers Medical (endocrine pathophysiology) and Historical backgrounds of all hormones in the mammalian body. It also covers some aspects of Comparative Endocrinology.
7. INSECTS: STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION (4th Edition) – R.F Chapman
This is a Zoology Textbook and covers all aspects of Entomology (study of Insects). It covers all insects body systems, respiration, reproduction, endocrine and nervous systems. It’s very detailed and has a lot of background information.
At the time of writing this post (December 2009), i was half way through my degree (3 semesters). i still have 3 more semester to go and i will publish the Textbooks that i use then at a later date.
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THE DILEMMA I AM FACING
November 3, 2009
Recently I was browsing my faculty’s website to check if anything new was posted. When I checked the Biochemistry section, I was surprised to read that Biochemistry majors (like me) need to do courses in Inorganic, Physical and Organic Chemistry from the Department of Chemistry because they are essential to understanding some concepts in Biochemistry.
It continues to say that, you also need to do a Genetics Course from Department of Botany. Lucky for me I already did the Introductory Genetics Course and I am going to do the advanced one in 3rd year, 2nd semester (in 2011).
That statement means that the best subject combination for Biochemistry majors is “Biochemistry, Botany and Chemistry”. As for me, my combination is “Biochemistry, Botany and Zoology”. I don’t have Chemistry. So I won’t do courses in Physical, Organic and Inorganic Chemistry.
However, i think Zoology is a good subject with good courses too. Although not so attached to Biochemistry, I still believe they are essential. Zoology has cool courses like Evolutionary Biology, Microbiology, Animal Behavior, Developmental Biology and others. So how can Zoology be a bad choice with such courses. I believe you can’t be called a Biologist without Evolution.
Chemistry comprises of mostly Physical Science courses as opposed to Zoology which has purely Life Science Courses. And the last time I checked, my specialty if LIFE SCIENCES not Physical Sciences.
I am not saying that Physical Sciences are not relevant to me, it’s just that I’ve learnt science for over 10 years and I believe the Physical Sciences I did in previous levels are enough to give the required background for Biochemistry.
So mixing Physical Sciences and Life Sciences would not be a good idea since I am supposed to be specializing at this level.
Plus, Chemistry has never been my best subject in terms of grades although I like it. So doing Chemistry would mean risking getting a low GPA.
One thing I have learnt in my short time at College is that, you can’t earn everything at once. You just have to be patient and everything will sort its self out. Everything happens for a reason!!
If I really need Chemistry or Mathematics or any other subject I haven’t done, I can always do a short course like a Diploma or Certificate in those subjects. For now, I have to concentrate on what I have, other subjects will come later.
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