20.10byee

I walked into 109 with zero wetlab experience. Apart from this, I can’t cook for the life of me. If I could burn water, I would. This potentially disastrous combination had me imagining all sorts of scenarios on the first day of lab. Now, four months later, I can honestly say 109 has been the class that taught me the most. I no longer feel completely incompetent in a lab setting. I don’t have to keep asking my lab partner what pipette to use. 109 also exposed many of us to our first real technical writing and everything this entails: reading numerous papers and being able to understand their main findings and identifying potential areas of future research, writing clear and concise methods, creating intuitive and instructional figures and captions, knowing when and where to include interpretations, exactly how to interpret data, and discovering the real meaning of ‘significance’.

Having the class split into 3 different modules allows us to become exposed to different areas of the field by scientists who are working on the cutting edge. All three modules were exciting and interesting, with fun lab components that allowed us to get comfortable with different techniques and research practices important in bioengineering. Although they were very challenging, the assignments also helped us improve our scientific writing and oral communication, which will become vital in our futures regardless of what we decide to do.

The open, safe, and enriching environment of 109 made this challenging class extremely enjoyable. I loved our small lab section, where we got to work close together while learning and collaborating. Despite the long hours spent on the assignments, I always felt like I was writing about something new I was learning, and I was fortunate enough to see it in action. The amount of time and dedication the 109 staff put into this class in order to make it such an invaluable experience is incredible, and I think it shows. Not many people can say they enjoy their lab classes, but thanks to you, I can J.

Thank you for a great semester!