biology sucks

[NE2000]

Yep but the fundamental principles of chemistry taught in 1/2 are useful for biology, specifically for biochemistry. All the stuff on organic molecules in 1/2 also helps. There is a nice overlap.

[Akirus]

All the biology-related stuff in chem makes me really regret I elected to do it.

[NE2000]

All the biology-related stuff in chem makes me really regret I elected to do it.

Why?

[Studyinghard]

All the biology-related stuff in chem makes me really regret I elected to do it.

Thats the only reason im excited about chem . I can atleast try to drop some bio knowledge on all the chem nerds in my class cause like no one has except one of my good friends. So then I can be like bam bam. DNA and what not

[cindyy]

i would just like to say that i agree with you, and biology sucks !!
i think i am gonna drop it - yay

[physics]

biology sucks =P (because i didn't do good in it ) and my brain hurt

[herzy]

i think biology is a good subject. if you get it, find it interesting and concentrate/follow on in class you'll probably find that minimal external work is required (apart from a bit of revision). that said, if you find it interesting, you may find that you dont mind doing the work so much... i definitely enjoyed biology as a subject a lot.

[herzy]

so my advice would be try to understand and think about everything as you learn it and you shouldn't find it too bad. any issues (which if you're thinking in depth, you should have, contrary to popular VN opinion)  just post them up here.

[NE2000]

i think biology is a good subject. if you get it, find it interesting and concentrate/follow on in class you'll probably find that minimal external work is required (apart from a bit of revision). that said, if you find it interesting, you may find that you dont mind doing the work so much... i definitely enjoyed biology as a subject a lot. So my advice would be try to understand and think about everything as you learn it and you shouldn't find it too bad. any issues (which if you're thinking in depth, you should have, contrary to popular VN opinion)  just post them up here.

+1

[kyzoo]

All the biology-related stuff in chem makes me really regret I elected to do it.

Even though I decided in Y10 that I was averse to Biology, I couldn't help but find this "biology-related stuff in chem" the most fascinating component of Chem 3/4 I've encountered so far. Terms like mono-saccharides seem intimidating at first, but it's mesmerizing once you understand it. You're learning about the stuff that makes food and humans, it's very relevant to rl =)

[Akirus]

That's the thing, though. I have almost no interest in real-life applications and memorizing a tonne of stuff about how the body works just turns me off. It's more tedious than difficult, really. This is why I prefer physics and maths, and even then certain topics that tend towards application like circuitry I am not fond of. I like the theoretical part of chem: why things react, the technical details describing it, theories about the nature of matter, etc etc, but when it comes to learning 6-7 different spectroscopy techniques, I want to fall asleep.

Hell, that might even be a way to cure my sleep problems...

[kyzoo]

^ I think I understand you.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you are fond of hard to understand but easy to remember abstract systems that have a logical pattern to them, rather than arbitrary "human-made information" that is easy to understand but hard to remember.

[Akirus]

Close enough.

I just fail to see the intellectual merit in memorizing information and regurgitating it on a paper.

[NE2000]

Close enough.

I just fail to see the intellectual merit in memorizing information and regurgitating it on a paper.

Oh biology has its own paradigms (and dogmas) if you go far enough. I see where you are coming from though, however I don't think biology is rote learning or memorization and neither are the spectroscopic techniques in chemistry. For spectroscopy, you have to learn the basic principles, and then from those basic principles you have to learn how to use them. It is incredibly relevant to further progress in the chemistry field and is actually very interesting. I took a lot of joy out of getting a mass spectrum, IR spectrum and NMR and % compositions and being told to go ahead and draw out the structure. It felt like I was doing something for a change.

For biology, at first I was a bit daunted by it as well. I think it was during yr 9 that I started exploring as I had to pick what 1/2 I wanted to study in yr 10 and at first I was put off pretty quickly. But in reality the brain has the capacity to understand all those things and make the long words just seem second nature. If you understand the central dogma of molecular biology (essentially: DNA --> RNA --> protein, with some exceptions) and how it occurs then you understand the structure and function of many of the components of a cell. Similarly, if you understand the basic concept of 'structure determines function' then you make it a lot easier to understand aspects of molecular biology. I also enjoy biology because it relates to our own existence: our own structure and function and is pretty much the basis for all medicine, all evolutionary theory and all our knowledge about the way life works.

[vexx]

^
I have looked through the entire course for biol, and sorry i'll have to disagree with "i don't think biology is rote learning or memorization". there are a lot of parts of biol that must be memorised, however unlike legal/psych, it does not have to be close to perfect. understanding it certainly aids in the memorisation of some parts, but others require a ROTE learned answer.