Friday, October 8, 2010

This Class Format

I wanted to say something about the format of this class. I really like the fact that we are getting so much exposure to current research. I am getting a lot out of my BYU graduate study experience generally. However, it have felt a need to have more exposure to what is going on right now in other places, in labs other than my own.

I can see that professors have a lot of demands on their time and are not able, or it is not easy for them to stay abreast of all important developments. What Dr. Zappalla is doing now seems very effective. Have the students go and and find new stuff, and then help them to understand it and put it in perspective, as they help you to see what else is going on.

Not only am I getting so much more exposure, but I am gaining what I think is valuable experience in finding relevant work. We are surely very blessed to have such effective modern tools to help us find such work. I feel I am getting better at using those tools.

I feel I am also getting better at picking up a new paper and quickly digesting its primary contributions. That is a valuable skill for the budding scientist.

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