A Semester of Firsts

Posted on October 2, 2011 by cbarrow

After a great summer of roller-derby, working at Sonic, and hanging out with my family (especially my niece and nephew), school is finally back in full swing (and I’m finally getting used to carrying a Puget Sound course-load again). So, naturally, because this is my last semester at Puget Sound, it is also a semester of firsts.

This is my first semester:

  • back from studying abroad in Vienna for a semester.
  • as a genuine senior.
  • being 21.
  • searching for a proper post-graduation job.
  • writing a thesis.
  • living off campus. (Check out the picture of my wonderous room!)
  • with a car to drive.

This last semester is presenting me with such a weird mix of nostalgia for the past, seize-the-moment sentiments for the present, and pure unadulterated panic for the future.

So I’m going to try and be a faithful poster between the thesis, all the other work, my radio show on KUPS, BGLAD meetings, volunteering with a local Girl Scout troop, trying to get some time on my roller-skates, my desire to enjoy my last few months of college, and the job hunt, and I’m going to try and keep you updated on how this juggling act goes!

Posted in 2011-12, Caitlin Barrow '12 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on A Semester of Firsts

Senior Year Whirlwind

Posted on September 26, 2011 by rmallon

Van 1: Team "Relatively Running". Punny, huh?

Whew! This last month has been a whirlwind! My senior year is off to a busy (but fun!) start and I’m running to catch up. I think I’m starting to feel the time crunch of only having one year left and am trying to do everything I possibly can. I got to kick off the weekend before the first day of classes by running the Hood to Coast with my parents and uncle, which is definitely on my list of the most fun athletic things I’ve ever done.

Summer Research Symposium! photo cred: Carol Curtin

Research wrapped up for all summer researchers at a symposium on September 8. There were a record number of posters being presented this year! It was exciting to be able to explain what I had been doing this whole summer and have something to show for it. Unfortunately, not all of my data had been collected, which means I need to spend more time in the lab this semester tying up loose ends. My advisor, Peter Wimberger will be presenting some of this research at a Thompson Hall Math and Science Seminar on December 1st (after he returns from Borneo. He’s visiting the students who are on PacRim!). I’m also going to be presenting this research next semester for my thesis. To see more pictures from the symposium, check out the UPS Biology Department’s Facebook page!

Photo cred: Justin Roberts

Swimming in an alpine lake! Brrrrrr....Photo cred: Justin Roberts

As far as classes go, I’ve been able to take more specialized courses within my major because I’ve now taken the prerequisites to do so. We’re only about three weeks into class, but I love all of my classes so far. A few weekends ago I had two back-to-back fieldtrips! The first was for the seminar that all Environmental Policy and Decision-Making minors take their senior year. We went up to the Sunrise side of Mt. Rainier for a one-night camping trip. Unfortunately, lots of other people were taking advantage of the sunny weekend to get outdoors, and we had to change locations for our camping spot because at one campground they were all full. During the day we went on a little hike, and later my classmates and I gave group presentations about the different types of land use within the Puyallup watershed (which we had driven through on the way up). On the way back the next morning, the group visited a dam and Federation Forest (a Washington State Park) to continue our education on the region. There were three of us who had overlapping fieldtrips, so we had to miss the second day, and instead got up early to meet our Marine Biology class to go whale watching!

photo cred: Rachel Ivancie

Our Marine Biology class drove out to Port Townsend to see some “charismatic megafauna”. Usually the class goes out with a UPS Alum, Eric Pierson, but he was unable to captain our boat this time. We rode out into the Strait of Juan de Fuca towards the San Juan Islands and were able to see two pods of orcas (Killer Whales) just outside False Bay on San Juan Island. We also saw Stellar Sea Lions, (which weigh up to 2,500 lbs!) and lots of Pacific Harbor seals. Along with seeing lots of wildlife we learned a little about the environmental effects of carcinogens on the Marine Environment, and the geologic processes that shaped the area we saw.

The next weekend was Homecoming! My parents were able to stop by on their way from dropping my little sister off at Western Washington to start her sophomore year. Four of my close friends lived on the same floor freshman year, and we’re living together as seniors. Two of my housemates’ families were in town for homecoming, they we were all able to meet each other. The next time all of them are together might be graduation…

Posted in Rachael Mallon '12 | Comments Off on Senior Year Whirlwind

Grad school life

Posted on September 23, 2011 by kdillmcfarland

I had some friends ask me about what grad life is like day-to-day. What to know what you’re getting yourself into, eh? So here goes a little run down of what I (and most other first years) do.

My schedule

Classes:

I have 2 "real" classes. Each has 3 hours a week of lecture. One also has an optional 1 hour a week discussion section (we mostly talk about ethical issues in biology and research). One class is more like your standard undergrad classes. It has tests and is mostly lecture by the professors teaching it. The other class is nothing like this. It is very interactive, has no tests, and is focused around making us into scientists (as compared to science students). I can already tell I'm gonna love this one! No tests though, huh? So how do we get graded you might ask. Well, we have homework problems sets that we're encouraged to work on in groups and we also write a mock grant proposal. We even get to form review boards and "decide" whose proposals get funding. Very science-y indeed. Homework is those problems sets and reading scientific journal articles that will be discussed in class. I have no textbooks this semester which is awesome for my bank account and my back! OH! And I only have one final to worry about this semester!!

I also have two seminars. One is presentations by students and one is by professors. For the student ones, we learn some science, give some constructive feedback, and leave. For the professor ones, it is more like a class and we have journal articles to read and discuss.
In general, class is taking up a lot more of my time than I had expected (and a lot more than I would like). I look forward to when I don’t have classes and anymore and I can just do research. Btw, most first years take two classes each semester and second years take one each semester, plus do one semester of teaching.

Research:

I am spending 4-6 weeks each in 3 different labs. This is to help me decide what lab I want to complete my thesis work in. Each lab has their own mentality about rotating students (i.e. people like me). My first rotation is more focused on me learning what the lab is like/about than on me actually getting any research done. So I spend about 3 hours a week attending their various lab group and subgroup meetings, 5-10 hours a week shadowing a post-doc in the lab, and several hours a week reading papers published by the lab. The meetings and the shadowing are to let me get to know the lab as a work environment. The paper reading is to help me figure out what sort of research I could do if I chose to enter this lab.

Other first years have told me that there rotations have set them up with a mentor to shadow but have also given them a specific project to try and complete during their time. This is a small project but it is common knowledge around the science world that research never goes as planned (esp. if you're just learning the techniques) and the department accepts that students rarely get any publishable work done during a rotation. But not to worry! That's what a thesis is for!

Real life:

Some of the first years at the Taste of Madison

Now for the fun stuff eh? Well, I LOVE my roommate and could not have found a more fitting one if I'd set up interviews lol. We hang out as a class a lot since we're kind of the only people we know so far. That's working out well. There are a lot of microbial science events where we meet other micro grad students as well as some undergrads and we've hung out with some of them some.

The most exciting thing to happen so far was the Taste of Madison where tons of restaurants set up booths around the capital and sell cheap, small plates so you can try their food. There's also a special zoning thing those days so you can buy and walk around with your beer all day 😀 Wisconsins sure love their beer!

So basically that’s what I do with my time. Well, the interesting stuff anyway. I figured ya’ll don’t need to hear about grad student laundry day or calls home. 🙂

Posted in Kim Dill-McFarland '11 | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Grad school life

Interfaith 9/11. Better late than never.

Posted on September 22, 2011 by ifox

Hello world! It’s been a while since I’ve blogged here. I had a fantastic summer and this year has been off to a great yet busy start, but more on that in a future post.

In this post, though, I thought I would share a speech that I gave a couple weeks ago. For September 11th I was asked, as the Interfaith Coordinator for Jewish Life (that’s right, loyal followers, my title has changed), to speak at Emanuel Presbyterian Church in Tacoma about my experiences with/relating to September 11th. Another Interfaith Coordinator, Rosemary Dinkins, also gave a great speech at the service.

The congregation/community were super welcoming and really open to having a non-christian at their pulpit, which was really cool. I loved meeting everybody there. The pastor there, Dave, is also the coolest, most energetic guy I know. I might go to church some time just to hear his sermons…

Anyway, this is the text of my speech. I’ll have a more update-on-normal-life post up some time soon.

__________________________________________________________________________

Last week I started watching a video series (called StoryCorps) where they try to document at least one story about every victim of 9/11. There was one video that I thought was pretty impactful, though. It was about a man and a woman who met when they were teenagers, fell in love, got married, had kids and then got divorced. An unfortunately common one, but a sad story already. The man, however, worked on the 101st floor of the North Tower. As the plane hit his tower he called his ex-wife to say that he loved her and their kids and to say that no matter what happens, they will “always be a family.”

“Always a family.”

My family has always been pretty close. One thing that (I like to think) contributed to that was our weekly Shabbat dinners. No exceptions, every Friday night you were always at the dining room table at 6:30 sharp. We would have challah bread, light candles, do prayers, the whole schpiel. And sometimes we would have guests over.

Really quick, here’s some back story. My Dad, for about 14 years now, has been involved in a program called the Middle East Project. It (very briefly) brings together Jordanians, Palestinians, Israelis, Egyptians, Serians, etc. through the use of a universal educational curriculum as well as annual conferences, both in the US and in the region. Every year, a group of Middle Easterners would come to my Dad’s school, Hamline University in St. Paul, MN, for their US conference.

So one Friday night I walk downstairs to see a table full of twenty something men and women from all over the Middle East of all races and religions.
That night was incredible. My family, along with the other Jews, did our ritual Sabbath prayers over the bread and the wine, while the non-Jews sat and absorbed everything that they could. Some even tried to participate, which was pretty interesting.
Throughout the evening they talked politics and religion, ate together and sang songs together.
And at one point a man from Jordan stopped and said, very genuinely, “this would never be possible at home. I am so blessed to be able to share in your traditions and your faiths tonight.”

Not everyone is bad. Not everyone is a bigot. Not everyone is closed off to others’ life views. And to those who are closed off, you have every right to be, but what often happens is you learn about yourself in the process. One of my favorite Jewish philosophers, Moses Mendelssohn, put it well when he said, “None of us thinks and feels exactly like his fellow man: why do we wish to deceive each other with delusive words?”

So when someone asks me what gives me hope about the world after 9/11, I look at the 97% of the world who are open to dialogue and who welcome differences.

If there’s one thing that I’d like you to take away from my little schpiel here, it’s that we, as people of Tacoma, people of America and people of the world are all, were all, and always will be, a family. And even if we separate from each other, have differences or even start fighting, we will always be a family. And we should treat one another with that same respect.

I’m not the most religious person, but I still think that the Torah has wisdom in it. I’d like to end by reading from Leviticus, 19:33-34. “And if a man from another country is living in your land with you, do not make life hard for him; Let him be to you as one of your countrymen and have love for him as for yourself; for you were living in a strange land, in the land of Egypt.”

__________________________________________________________

I hope your year is starting off well, reader of this blog!

Be well.

Posted in 2011-12, Ian Fox '14 | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Interfaith 9/11. Better late than never.

Semester-Recap-in-Advance

Posted on September 21, 2011 by marcus luther

Every semester has a natural progression that is roughly-universal across the entire student body. Though the academic experience is only part of the college experience, its framework dictates the whole. Because of this overarching influence, you can come up a sketch of the Fall Semester’s ebb and flow from the academic calendar. Here’s a brief overview:

End of August: Everyone arrives. Freshmen obviously have their Orientation program, but for the other three-fourths of the student body August is a reunion of sorts. You dart all across campus and the surrounding blocks to greet returning friends, help move/unpack boxes, and get prepped for the coming academic year while simultaneously trying to forget that the academic year is coming. It’s definitely a paradoxical time, but it is a glorious one.

First 2-3 weeks of September: Most classes give students these weeks to ease into the semester. That is not to say that there are not lectures, assignments and tests; rather, they are usually of less consequence and length during this ‘grace period.’ Students are switching classes, charting their extracurricular activities for the year [LogJam video], and dusting off the essay-writing skills. There is a lighter evening load of homework than there will be later in the semester, and it’s much easier to do because everything is fresh and new after a summer of alternative activities and focuses. Students use this time to check out what’s going on across campus, hang out with friends, and generally to settle into being back at school. It’s a good time [but it is a sad moment for each student when their ‘grace period’ ends].

4th week of September until Midterms/Fall Break: This is perhaps the most frustrating time period. The weather is great, but the amount of homework/papers/tests puts a damper on the sun. Students end up appreciating the weather from the library and the classrooms in Thompson, and reality sets in: school often means a lot of work. There may be a trip every other weekend or so, but for the most part this is the period when the student life solidifies itself. [And for many students, Fall Break is simply essay-writing time or test-prep, since many professors use the following week for Midterms. So much for a break.]

Post-Midterms/Fall Break until Thanksgiving: Once again, this is very routine-ish segment of the semester. It is busier than the first 2-3 weeks of September, but most people have at least got their Midterms out of the way. The weather begins to take a turn for the worse, and studying becomes engrained in the routine. Despite sinking into any non-cement surface on campus due to the rain and poking fun at those who choose to use umbrellas rather than rain jackets, it is a very manageable part of the semester. But it goes fast. And with turkey and stuffing to look forward to, there is definitely a light at the end of the tunnel.

Post-Thanksgiving until Winter Break: Gah. For two-three weeks (depending on the year), this final segment of the semester is the essence of stress. The library is fuller than a hypothetical Chipotle in Tacoma would be at all hours of the day, and students are frantically typing to finish one paper only to begin the next after another Red Bull or shot-in-the-dark from Diversions. Want to really experience college? This is the time to do it. Good luck.

Winter Break: We all take solace in the break, and try not to think too much about the Spring Semester that always comes way too soon.

That’s your semester-recap-in-advance, folks. Have a great day!

Posted in Marcus Luther '12 | Comments Off on Semester-Recap-in-Advance

Multitasking

Posted on September 20, 2011 by corrie wong

It’s now 4 weeks into the semester and things are starting to pick up.

I’ve hung up my rainboots (actually I finally tossed them out) for the summer and I’ve traded my field notebook for textbooks. I’ve also presented my summer research findings at the Fall Research Symposium.

More on that later. First, let me tell you what I woke up to this morning. The smoke detector. That’s right. My alarm was set for 9am but the smoke detector went off at 8:20. And why did it go off? Someone took a really hot shower. Talk about a rude awakening. But, I can’t really complain since I set off the smoke detector in the kitchen a few weeks ago when I was frying some chicken. I’m still working on the whole cooking thing.

The Fall Research Symposium was-for lack of a better word-awesome. It was cool to see what other people researched this summer, and I was able to tell others what I found! I think there were around 50-60 of us in the Math and Sciences that presented posters, and 26 from the Biology department! I still haven’t decided whether or not to turn that research into a senior thesis, but I’m leaning towards yes.

Anyway, these past few weeks have been great. But now, there are more assignments to be done, but also all the fall TV shows start around this time. Don’t they know that it’s a bad time for us college students to start watching TV? I mean, do I work on my paper for animal physiology that’s due next week or do I watch the season premiere of Glee? Now I have to sort out my priorities!

For tonight, though, I think I’ll watch Glee AND do my homework at the same time. Multitasking for the win!

Posted in Corrie Wong '12 | Comments Off on Multitasking

Saturn and Beyond

Posted on September 20, 2011 by hshears

I just got out of my Connections class, which is the interdisciplinary seminar all upperclassmen are required to take. The class is “Mars Exploration”. Other than the fact that I get to hang out in Thompson more often (most of my classes are in Wyatt now since both my majors are in the humanities) this  is exactly why I’m so glad I came to a liberal arts school: I can take a class about astronomy, just because I’ve ALWAYS  wanted to, and not only is it about astronomy, it’s about how planetary exploration relates to history, economics, and politics…so it’s perfect for a student like me who never even took a basic physics course in high school. I get to look at giant images of Mars and Venus in class and my homework is to take pictures of the moon with a telescope I make myself. It’s a little overwhelming to sit in a classroom and realize consciously that the entire universe is reeling and spinning lightyears above my head. But I love that my education here, the classes I’m required to take, broaden my horizons instead of narrowing them. With each class discussion, the universe becomes larger and more complex, but it also becomes more accessible. I am given the tools to explore it for myself. Tonight, I fully intend to spend an hour messing around with the Microsoft’s World Wide Telescope, tracking constellations and looking at Saturn’s rings up close. And after that, I need to write an essay about Shakespeare’s Henry V…for  a course that counts for my French major.  Liberal arts education at its best! The world and its infinite intricacies opens itself up to me. Nothing is irrelevant. Nothing is off-limits.


Saturn

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So did my UPS education actually prepare me for grad school?

Posted on September 6, 2011 by kdillmcfarland

In so many words, “as much as is reasonably possible” and “basically yes.”

I don’t want to sound like I’m on a soap box or like I’m some spokesperson for the school… But, yes, UPS did all they could to help me get where I’m going. I loved my time there and have few complaints. That’s not to say that every student doesn’t have some complaints; we’re only human after all and it did rain at my graduation. 🙂

But I digress. The next logical questions are “How did UPS prepare me? What did they do?” Well most importantly, UPS allowed (and in fact encouraged) me to do independent research during the school year and full-time during the summers. That’s what grad school is all about in the sciences; research. I feel comfortable rotating in a chemistry lab where I’ll be one of the few biologists there because I have such a strong background in research. I know that I know enough to start a biology project in a chemistry-focused lab and I’m also comfortable enough with what I know to realize when I need to go back to the micro department and get some insights and help from people there. Without all my time at UPS doing research on my own, I don’t think I would feel comfortable in this position.

UPS’s classes also super prepared me, more than I could have ever guessed. For one, I came into my PhD program with no deficiencies. That means as an undergrad through my undergrad major, I took everything (and more) that my PhD program wants me to take. This means I can pretty much take whatever I want now and don’t have to waste time “catching up”. At least half of the other first years have at least one deficiency they need to make-up this year.

Right now I’m in two genetics-type classes. And you know what? Genetics at UPS totally prepared me for them. I have all the background I need (maybe even a little more than I need lol). Also a lot of time professors with ask us what we already know about the basics of their research, the big picture stuff. More often than not, I’ve at least heard of what their talking about and I heard it in my upper division science courses at UPS!! So yeah, enough praising UPS; I think you get the picture.

The point of this was to say that you shouldn’t be afraid of graduate level studies. Graduating from UPS means you’re ready if you want to be.

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Goodbye worms!

Posted on August 22, 2011 by rmallon

Crazy Spandex Day!

Crevasses near our Rainier field site have been getting bigger as the year progresses.

I guess it’s true what they say… ‘all good things must come to an end.’ Last week Karina and Imade our last trip up (together) to our field site at Mt. Rainier. To celebrate, wore crazy spandex shorts, and received a few amused looks from fellow hikers. Most summer research students have moved onto other activities this past week like Passages or Perspectives training, work study jobs, study abroad programs, and simply preparing for the coming semester. Luckily, Karina and I are able to extend our summer fun because our research starts so late as we wait for the snow to melt in the spring.

This week has been especially exciting because the incoming freshmen arrived on Friday. I’ve been reminiscing with my housemates that I met my freshman year about our first few weeks. We’re all surprised how quickly our first three years have gone and the fact that we only have one year left until we graduate!

Karina and I recently got back to Tacoma after another week-long worm hunting adventure similar to our previous one in Central Oregon. We were able to see some of the same views as our last trip, but with less snow-still as beautiful as ever! The recent snowmelt also made for much faster travel.

Collecting on the Diller Glacier (Middle Sister)

Once again, we were unsuccessful finding worms on Broken Top’s Bend Glacier, and now I’m excited to research possible explanations for their absence there. While hiking from Broken Top to our next glacier on Middle Sister, we met an Outward Bound program, and I was excited to discover they had collection vials that Peter and I had delivered last year. We hoped with the frequent trips that Outward Bound might be able to collect some worms and educate the kids. Hopefully we’ll hear back that they collected some worms!

Goofing off at the summit of Middle Sister!

We were able to collect worms on Middle Sister’s Irving and Diller Glaciers. Because we have to wait until about 4PM for the worms to surface, we sometimes get to spend mornings hiking just for fun. On one of these side hikes, we climbed to the summit of Middle Sister and were able to collect worms on the Hayden Glacier (one Peter and I had collected on last year) around 2PM, which was surprisingly early!

Part of the view from the Tam McArthur Rim.

We retraced our steps back from Middle Sister to Broken Top and stayed on the top of the Tam McArthur Rim. We were rewarded with a beautiful view of the sunset over the ten Cascade volcanoes.

Field research coming to an end means that I spend more hours in the lab, extracting DNA, running PCR, and analyzing my results. This part is sometimes a bit tedious for me-especially when I have to stare at a computer screen for too long. However, it’s always rewarding to see the finished product. The Research Symposium is fast approaching; I’m excited to see all the posters start to go up!

Posted in Rachael Mallon '12 | Comments Off on Goodbye worms!

A Beautiful Bedlam.

Posted on August 22, 2011 by marcus luther

It’s that time of the year again. The bulldozers and orange jackets have been replaced by freshly-placed sod and the new Commencement Walk with its grout still hardening. The barbershop quartets, Church of Latter Day Saints teens and high school cheerleaders are all gone; their two-month rental of our campus is finally over. Summer is still in full force weatherwise, but Fall beckons the return of what makes up Puget Sound’s essence: the students.

Freshmen getting their RSA-groove on

Freshmen are wandering around campus right now with parents trying to sneakily take photos without any rebuke. Orientation leaders are singing songs and dancing dances and being their goofy, approachable selves. School staff are running around trying to get all the final paperwork sorted out, and dealing with the unpredictable problems that are bound to occur from time to time when nearly seven-hundred students first step foot on campus as Loggers. It’s a beautiful bedlam.

And I’m seeing it all take place with a whole new lens.

Freshmen gathering for ASUPS-sponsored Playfair

Freshman year’s lens was inarguably one of survival, with so much of the larger picture blurred past the point of comprehension. The past two years, as an RA I had the chance to move-in a single floor of students–which is great, except for the fact that you don’t really get a chance to step back and see the entire canvas of commotion.

But this year has been different. In my role with ASUPS, I can see the administrative, staff, student leader and freshmen perspective. I can see optimism being overwhelmed by anxiety, and vice versa. Some freshmen follow their parents around campus for the first few hours, while others lead them like an anxious dog tugging on a leash–ready to be let free. Though we talk so much about entire classes, it’s refreshing to see the uniqueness of all the students. Their college experiences are about to begin, infusing a contagious energy into everyone within a ten-block radius of the Wheelock Student Center.

So what do we do with this energy? With this perspective? The three-step plan, of course:

Freshmen leaving Playfair with their new ASUPS shirts

One: We reflect back on our own. I remember what I was like as a freshman, dodging my mom’s camera while trying to figure out who I was going to talk to first. Enduring the awkwardness of Playfair until enjoyment kicked in. Buying things at the late-night Fred Meyer trip despite the fact that I didn’t need them. Passages and Perspectives (considering freshmen haven’t experienced these yet, I’ll leave them as abstract concepts for the time being). When I compare who I was with who I am now, it’s quite incredible. And almost all of my friends will admit to the same revelation–we have unknowingly came a long way together, individually and collectively.

Two: We do whatever we can to help make their experience just as fulfilling as ours was. From events–Playfair, the Hoedown, the Hypnotist and free ice cream scoops–to appearances and simple handshakes, we try to be a constructive presence without being an intrusion. This is their experience, not ours. But that does not mean we can’t participate and help it be the best that it possibly can.

Three: We channel that energy and ensure that it is aimed in a positive direction. Orientation is somewhat of a navigational experience; it takes the energy of a beginning and focuses it into a momentum for the coming year[s]. That momentum can carry freshmen (and the rest of us) through the numerous hurdles that the academic year presents–from research papers to annoying illnesses to alarms slept through–to the good parts. Freshmen year is difficult, but the good far outweighs the bad. As student leaders within ASUPS, it is our responsibility not only to foster energy and enthusiasm, but to provide meaningful ways for it to be exercised. Within all our student leadership opportunities, events and programs, and just daily work in general, we have an organization that allows freshmen not only to survive but to fluorish. That is why we do what we do, and do it proudly.

Convocation is just the beginning

A beautiful bedlam is what we have now. And really, that alliterative title could sum up most of our college experiences. No wonder everyone is so excited.

Posted in Marcus Luther '12 | Comments Off on A Beautiful Bedlam.