UoM General Chat

[hobbitle]

I am a massive procrastibaker but don't live in a place with an oven atm which let's be honest is probably a good thing.

[Ballerina]

WHERE THE HELL ARE MY COOKIES HOBBITLE

[Belgarion]

WHERE THE HELL ARE MY COOKIES HOBBITLE

In the past week i have had macaroons and cupcakes  I love my procrastibaking friends

[Ballerina]

So in which lecture theatres would I find these friends of yours next semester?

[Belgarion]

So in which lecture theatres would I find these friends of yours next semester?

You can come suffer with us in human structure and function (2nd year Biomed core)

[vox nihili]

You can come suffer with us in human structure and function (2nd year Biomed core)

It can't possibly get worse...

[Shenz0r]

stonecold was telling us that some kids liked HSF more than MCB, but it's not taught as well.

MCB is pretty hard to top imo. Has been my favourite subject this whole semester and I would totally give it a 5/5.

[vox nihili]

stonecold was telling us that some kids liked HSF more than MCB, but it's not taught as well.

MCB is pretty hard to top imo. Has been my favourite subject this whole semester and I would totally give it a 5/5.

To be honest, I haven't disliked it really. It's been really well organised and everything links pretty well. The teaching has been pretty good, though perhaps not in the last couple of topics. The only enormous issue with MCB is that it doesn't encourage people to think at all. It's a subject simply for testing memory, and I think that's probably an issue. Some of the immuno lecturers absolutely hate it for that reason.

[Russ]

To be honest, I haven't disliked it really. It's been really well organised and everything links pretty well. The teaching has been pretty good, though perhaps not in the last couple of topics. The only enormous issue with MCB is that it doesn't encourage people to think at all. It's a subject simply for testing memory, and I think that's probably an issue. Some of the immuno lecturers absolutely hate it for that reason.

Welcome to science?
I don't think I did a subject where this wasn't 75% of the effort required

[vox nihili]

Welcome to science?
I don't think I did a subject where this wasn't 75% of the effort required

It's all well and good to say that, but that suggests it's just the status quo, not what's necessarily right. People who will make the best scientists are people who are able to think creatively and apply scientific method to find answers. Memory work has nothing to do with either of that. Sure, it's great to remember facts, but with so much accessible at your fingertips, it's time they start pursuing the skills they actually need. Good scientists get turned off it because they're bored by memory work, and unsurprisingly so.

I understand that there is an element of it, and it's not as though I'm just having the typical sook about it. Personally, I do relatively well at the memory and recall side of things. Just doesn't seem a very good way to get the best people excited by science and into science.

[Ballerina]

Comparative Nutrition and Digestion = amaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazing, 10/10. Kristy Giacemnmemenccionemo is a doll, and I love the way she thinks. Intimate class size with a practical-minded, sensible lecturer.

Human Physiology = I'm considering not showing up for second semester because I have to wait until third year to see Charles again, what a babe magnet

Biological Psychology = The content is the closest to neuroscience possible in second year, lots of love for the content. And the format is eerily similar enough to MBB2 to make assessments breezy if you've completed MBB2. But it seems quite disorganized and communication is eh.

Genetics, Health and Society = Do it do it do it do it. It's the breadth among breadths. It makes other breadths look like advanced thermonuclear physics under utilization of magnetohydrodynamics.

You can come suffer with us in human structure and function (2nd year Biomed core)

beepbeepbeep check your inbox for a ~**~time sensitive message~*~*

[Holmes]

Some of the immuno lecturers absolutely hate it for that reason.

Do the immuno lecturers teach anything antithetical to the 'rote-memorising' that they hate?

[Shenz0r]

Do the immuno lecturers teach anything antithetical to the 'rote-memorising' that they hate?

Not really.

[vox nihili]

Do the immuno lecturers teach anything antithetical to the 'rote-memorising' that they hate?

I remember I was talking to one last year, and she gave all the arguments I gave. "In immunology we're just not interested in how much you can remember. We want people who can think. There's no point have a scientist who can just remember facts. With books and google and all that, you can find them straight away. We want thinkers. It's fine for doctors, who need to know the facts, but we want thinkers".
I was thinking "oh yeah! I'll do immuno, wew!"


As Shenz0r has very rightly pointed out though, either she's full of shit or that memo didn't reach Odilia Wijburg...

[Russ]

It's all well and good to say that, but that suggests it's just the status quo, not what's necessarily right. People who will make the best scientists are people who are able to think creatively and apply scientific method to find answers. Memory work has nothing to do with either of that. Sure, it's great to remember facts, but with so much accessible at your fingertips, it's time they start pursuing the skills they actually need. Good scientists get turned off it because they're bored by memory work, and unsurprisingly so.

There's plenty of time for that when you're doing postgraduate work (and to a lesser extent third year, if you take the research project or capstone subjects in Biomedicine etc.). They can push skills but ultimately when you don't know anything about biochemistry, you need to actually learn that and not how to think creatively. Creative thinking doesn't help you interpret Michaelis/Menten whatevers. When you can do that, you can start developing abilities with broad application. There's no point asking a second year student to apply the scientific method to explain T cell migration in the thymus when they don't know what the heck an AIRE is.

I grabbed the exam paper for the last core subject in biomedicine (3rd year, 2nd semester) and it has a slightly decreased focus on rote learning eg

9. a. Describe the main neurotransmitters, pathways and brain region(s) involved in the development of dependence on drugs that act on the central nervous system.
(5 marks)
b. Outline the different approaches that may be taken to reduce the incidence of cocaine abuse.
(5 marks)

It's a neuroanatomy and pharmacology question that requires memory work but you also get some extra marks if you can synthesize a few social factors into your answer to part b and demonstrate breadth of thought.