Hi All!
Yeahhhhhhhhh! Year 2 has now seen its first week go by. But how different it feels from the first year!
Last year I did 2 gen.chems, 1 biology, 2 calculuses, and 3 physics and German. In a nutshell, for me, this meant some reading, lots of concepts, mega amounts of problems, along with weekly assignments to hand in, in nearly all courses. Needless to say, I became quite proficient at using my scientific calculator.
But this year I’m doing molecular biology, physiology, histology, and Orgo I & II. I have a strong sense that my learning methodology will have to adapt. I already have significant amounts of reading to do, no assigned ‘problem sets’ as such, and two labs per week. It feels so different.
Are any of you out there with me on this ‘learning curve crevace’?
What tricks and techniques are you all using to accelerate & deepen learning in subjects like physiology and histology? (BTW, I’m a U1 anatomy and cell biology major.)
I used cue-cards extensively in one of my physics courses last semester, quite successfully so, I must say. Do any of you use these or other similar tools?
Have a great school year!
Ron
my trick for memory-intensive courses like anatomy and physiology has been lately to record my lecture notes, in my own words, edit the audio to remove the dramatic pauses, ums and ahs, stuttering, etc. squeeze it down as much as possible, then play it all the time. After listening to the Krebs cycle about 10 times I had basically memorized all the reactions, reduced electron carriers, etc. I play it while jogging, while driving in the car, taking the bus, on my bike, and sometimes while sleeping. As a terrible memorizer, I have found that this technique really improves my rote grasp of the material.
Cheers,