January 22, 2003

First Impressions (Take Two)

Below are the remainder of my first impressions for my classes this semester.

Chem 130A

I wasn't expecting much from the class itself, because the subject matter seems kind of boring. Biophysical Chemistry. Now, what the hell is that anyway? But I was pleasantly surprised by the first day of class. I liked the professor's lecture style a lot—he is clear, writes big on the board, and explains stuff in a way that I understand. Also, we started off the day talking about protein folding, which is a very cool topic. Although it did later degenerate into gas theory and thermodynamics, which I did in the first 5 weeks of Physics 7B, I have higher hopes for this class and perhaps, it will actually be an interesting class. It was also pretty fun to watch all the life science folks squirm at the notion of derivatives, integrals, and calculus. I for one enjoyed Math 53 and even Math 54, so hopefully the math will be all right in this class.

EE 20

This class I was dreading, as I had heard nothing but horrible things about both the class and the professor. However, I was once again pleasantly surprised by both. The class doesn't seem as lame as most people say it is, and it definitely seems very relevant to the study of electrical engineering, and modern communication systems. Also, the professor was actually pretty funny, spoke clearly, and the class didn't bore me or make me fall asleep. This however, was only the first day. Hopefully the class remains the way it began.

Ed 197

I heard mixed reviews about this class, which is basically just the class where you learn to be a CalSO counselor. For those who didn't know, I'm going to be a CalSO or Cal Student Orientation counselor in the summer. This involves leading groups of students on their two day, one night stay in Berkeley in the summer, as they register for classes, become oriented with the campus, and learn about the resources this University has to offer. The people in the class are pretty cool and I look forward to getting to know everyone better. The amount of bullshit work doesn't seem too bad, the reader isn't too thick, and the busy work is tolerable, and actually enjoyable. Again, I hope that doesn't change.

Overall Assessment of Spring 2003

I haven't attended all my sections for this semester yet, but as of today, I have seen all the lectures that I'm going to be taking. My first impression of this semester is much, much, much more positive than it was last semester. Last semester, I knew from the very beginning that I was going to hate it, and I did. This semester, I have no such notion, and all I can say is, I hope that this assessment is accurate!