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Andy’s a teacher?!

So, I got my first taste of teaching recently… As I may have explained before, the Pharmacological and Physiological Science Department at SLU (of which I’m a member…) runs a class for undergrad non-science majors every Fall titled “Drugs We Use And Abuse.” It accepts 50 students a semester and tends to be pretty popular, mostly because instead of learning basic biological principles, you learn more about specific drugs and their effects on people and society.

This is my first time teaching the class, and teaching in any form for that matter… I got to teach the Alcohol section, which consisted of two lectures, the first of which was Alcohol and the Body (i.e. mechanisms and physiological effects) and the second was Alcohol and Society (i.e. alcohol on campus, alcoholism, Prohibition, etc.). The first lecture was infinitely more interesting for me, and for the students too, I think. I talked about how alcohol works on the body and had a decent number of questions… The stuff today was pretty straight-forward and largely consisted of things the students already knew (as in, heavy alcohol use tends to lead to drunk driving, violence, skipping school, etc.).

So yeah, I think I enjoyed the experience overall. I had to write a quiz for my section, then wrote a few exam questions that will be administered in a week or so. Perhaps next year I’ll expand a bit and run more of the class, and more lectures. It’s team-taught, meaning that we each get a section to work on and all contribute to the exam for each section.

Regardless, I’m still planning on the “going into industry” route after graduation (in three years…), but teaching wasn’t bad! Maybe I’ll get more into it later on? Who knows…

More and more craziness, I say…being on the other side of the desk for once… 😛

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Andy's a teacher?!

So, I got my first taste of teaching recently… As I may have explained before, the Pharmacological and Physiological Science Department at SLU (of which I’m a member…) runs a class for undergrad non-science majors every Fall titled “Drugs We Use And Abuse.” It accepts 50 students a semester and tends to be pretty popular, mostly because instead of learning basic biological principles, you learn more about specific drugs and their effects on people and society.

This is my first time teaching the class, and teaching in any form for that matter… I got to teach the Alcohol section, which consisted of two lectures, the first of which was Alcohol and the Body (i.e. mechanisms and physiological effects) and the second was Alcohol and Society (i.e. alcohol on campus, alcoholism, Prohibition, etc.). The first lecture was infinitely more interesting for me, and for the students too, I think. I talked about how alcohol works on the body and had a decent number of questions… The stuff today was pretty straight-forward and largely consisted of things the students already knew (as in, heavy alcohol use tends to lead to drunk driving, violence, skipping school, etc.).

So yeah, I think I enjoyed the experience overall. I had to write a quiz for my section, then wrote a few exam questions that will be administered in a week or so. Perhaps next year I’ll expand a bit and run more of the class, and more lectures. It’s team-taught, meaning that we each get a section to work on and all contribute to the exam for each section.

Regardless, I’m still planning on the “going into industry” route after graduation (in three years…), but teaching wasn’t bad! Maybe I’ll get more into it later on? Who knows…

More and more craziness, I say…being on the other side of the desk for once… 😛

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A good weekend for one and all…

…well, hopefully… 😛

So yeah, Yanela was out of town at church this weekend (our Worship Leader), so I got to run the show this weekend…and as I got to be in charge, I got to recruit the people I wanted to…and Mom and Kristen got the call (Dad, you would have too, but you don’t play the recorder all that well…sorry! ;-)). Brooke played bass (of course), I played guitar, Mom played piano and Kristen sang. We did some old songs and some new ones, all of which seemed to turn out pretty well! Thanks, family!!

Otherwise, Mom and Dad left on Sunday (after a lovely brunch at Norton’s…great place…we should go again sometime…), and then Kristen, Brooke and I tried going to Fast Eddie’s in Alton, IL. This place, apparently, Alton Brown went to in his “Feasting on Asphalt” show on the Food Network. Well, they’ve got really cheap eats and a nifty biker atmosphere (where I don’t exactly fit in, needless to say…). And, they were rather packed. As in, not a seat available in the house. And a long line for food. And lines of people watching for empty tables. We ended up leaving, unfortunately, so we’ll have to try going back some other time. We ended up just going to Joanie’s (after we tried going to Ferraro’s Pizza…which wasn’t open, dammit…).

We went to the zoo the next morning, saw the penguins (w00t!), and then Kristen went home… And today, of course, we’re back to the real world…

Guess I’d better prepare my lecture for this Friday… I’ve gotta shape young minds!

Edit: Oh yeah, and by the way, the Kansas City Royals have a better record than 9 other teams in Major League Baseball. Just wanted to throw that out there…. 😛

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Craziness…

Yeah, this past week got pretty nuts at work/school… While I’m not taking classes, per se, I’m still required to get a few things done…namely, my Prelim… At this rate, I need to have the 8-page treatment done by mid-October so it can be approved before doing the 25-page version for mid-November. After it’s approved, I can do my Oral Defense in early/mid-December and life will be good. I chatted with Dr. Macarthur earlier in the week about where I stand thus far and I think I’m in decent shape, but there’s a lot of research to do.

This process is different from a more classical undergrad “research paper” in that there’s a lot more critical thinking involved. You have to determine whether your science is sound, whether there is evidence to support the ideas you’re putting forward, and whether they’re even do-able experiments. At Truman, all I had to do was look up a subject and write about it – there wasn’t very much “opinion” needed… Now, theoretically, my opinion matters and I have to defend it on paper…and then to five professors… So yeah, while 8 pages doesn’t sound all that hard, there’s a lot of thought that goes into it…that I need to really get started on.

That, and I’ve got two lectures to deliver, one on September 7th and one on September 10th…both on alcohol (I know…no first-hand experience there, right?). I’ve got last year’s PowerPoint presentations to start from, but I’ve still got to update them a bit and learn the material before the 7th. I think I’ve got a pretty good handle on the science that goes into it, but some refreshing would be useful…

On top of both those things, Dr. Macarthur wants me to start putting together all my data from the last year (plus a bit more…) so it can be published. I’ve got some decent data, but there’s a little more I’d like to get… I really need to get started on the Prelim, though, so I’ll likely shut down all experiments for a few weeks while I get started, then fire them back up toward the end of September. That way, I can do additions to my Prelim (’cause it’ll already be pretty far along) and I won’t have lectures to accomplish anymore… If all goes well, I should be able to get a paper done for publication by the end of the year, and that’d be sweet to get a paper out already, ’cause I’ve still got a few years left…

Anyone else busy already? The school year has barely started!!

Shenanigans, I tell you…

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Sling Wing!!!

Ok, when we were kids, we played with these contraptions, thanks to my Uncle Bob’s brother.  They’re called Sling Wings and until a few weeks ago, I thought everybody had them, but apparently, they weren’t that well known outside of the Poor family.  Anyway, Mom found one in the garage and brought it to me when Rachel came to visit this weekend, so we headed to the park with the dog to show Andy how real kids have fun…here are the results of this outing:11.JPG

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If you look closely, you can see it in flight (it’s yellow…with red, blue, and silver stickers, in case you were wondering).

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Me, imitating the Sling Wing.

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Rachel.  You use a rubber band to shoot the styrofoam piece like a sling shot.

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Andy gives it a try.

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Something was funny…

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I shot myself and bled…I’m cool like that!

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Last, but not least, Edie.

I’ll now take orders…I’m sure Bob will give me the patent…you know you all want some!!

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Review: The Bourne Ultimatum

Well, I saw the third (and likely final) installment in the “Bourne” series, following “The Bourne Identity” and “The Bourne Supremacy.” For those that remember, Matt Damon plays Jason Bourne, a CIA assassin that is still recovering from amnesia and trying to piece the remainder of his life together. For the previous two movies, the CIA was out to get him and take him out, as they a). weren’t sure what he remembered about how they screwed him over, or b). just wanted to close the door on a bad chapter of their operations overseas.

“The Bourne Ultimatum” picks up generally after “Supremacy” with Bourne inching closer and closer to the truth behind what he did for the CIA and why they were after him. Of the trilogy, I think this one is by far the strongest. The first one was very cerebral, and got kinda boring occasionally… I just watched “Supremacy” again yesterday and, as I remembered, it was a bit more fast-paced and more interesting to watch. “Ultimatum” really brings in the best of both the previous films, where it shows Bourne staying a few steps ahead of his predators, while also getting information he needs to really bring them down once and for all.

I won’t say much more about the story, as you probably shouldn’t know if you’ve seen the previous films. It’s almost required that you at least see “Supremacy” before seeing “Ultimatum,” but “Identity” is still worth watching. The action, on the other hand, I will comment on…and it’s rather awesome… The complaint I’ve always had about the “Bourne” films is that the fight scenes are very close-range, as in, you’ll be focused in on Matt Damon’s shoulder and fists during the scene, and you wish they’d just zoom out a bit to get a better feel for what’s going on. I think “Ultimatum,” while still not quite the way I’d like it, was better than the previous ones in that regard. Everything was well choreographed and a pleasure to watch, like they were dancing through all the dodges and punches.

So yeah, Rotten Tomatoes has “The Bourne Ultimatum” ranked at 93% (as of 8/12/07), and it’s pretty well-deserved. If you like spy movies and action, check it out. Matt Damon, again, proves what he’s capable of…

…now, if only Ben Affleck had some talent…

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Ranting and raving…

So yeah, Brooke and I have been having some “issues” with our air conditioning unit. Perhaps we weren’t nicer to it earlier in the year…I dunno… Either way, it is being rather uncooperative…

A few weeks ago, we noticed that the air being pushed around wasn’t all that cold… I walked outside and saw that the A/C unit wasn’t even on, but the fan inside still was. We came to find out that it, apparently, had tripped the breaker. The A/C guy (that our landlords promptly called in) said that the A/C unit itself was fine, but it was probably pulling too much current for the 20 A circuit installed in the breaker – we should put in a 30 A circuit instead (like the clothes dryer has).

So, we didn’t have any problems again, really, until this past weekend. On Sunday, we had this happen two times or so, and then another two times overnight (once around 2:00 am and then Brooke had to trip it again when she got up at 7:30 am). We called BSB (our landlords) again and they sent out an A/C person (who said the same thing as the last guy), and an electrician was called out. This person switched out the 20 A circuit for the 30 A and it worked just peachy keen…

…until about 6:00 pm. I was about to go outside and get picked up by Brooke to go to dinner when I noticed it was getting warmer again in the apartment, and again, the fan was still running. This time, however, the breaker wasn’t tripped. I went downstairs to the A/C unit and the thing was running (i.e. you could feel it vibrating as it normally would…), but the fan in the unit itself wasn’t spinning. It was also rather hot to touch (as compared with the A/C unit next to it for the apartment below us). I turned off the system and went to dinner, came back a few hours later, and turned it back on – it worked again!

…but then the same thing happened a little later, so we just left the A/C off all night. We pulled the futon mattress downstairs and turned some fans on us, but the humidity didn’t make sleeping easy. I think I got 4 hours of sleep, but Brooke fared a bit better…

So yeah, now I’m at work (which is air conditioned, thankfully…) awaiting a call from BSB again to tell me what they’re going to do. Edie and Sam are still at home, and I’ve got water and fans turned onto their typical sleeping areas to hopefully keep them as comfortable as possible.

It’s just Murphy’s Law, I guess, that the A/C would go out during the hottest week of the year. I guess it’s better than the power outage last year, when we didn’t even have fans to cool us down or keep the refrigerator/freezer running, but still…it’s damned uncomfortable to sleep in!

Hopefully something gets worked out shortly…otherwise, I think we’ll go nuts…and/or more nuts than we already are…

Update #1: As of 3:00 pm on Wednesday, BSB has decided to spring for a new A/C unit for us. The guy came back today multiple times, and on the third time, found problems with the motor and fan. Hopefully, the new unit will be installed tomorrow or Friday at the absolute latest.

Update #2: Our new A/C unit was installed today (Thursday), and it’s taking forever to cool our place down from 105 F to 80 F…but it’s a start… At least we get TV and internet again!

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Bear Grylls vs Les Stroud

So, does anyone watch the Discovery Channel? If you do, you’ve undoubtably seen advertisements for one of their latest darlings, Man vs. Wild, hosted by Bear Grylls. The premise is that Grylls is dropped via parachute in places like the Scottish highlands, a glacier in Greenland, or the deserts of Mexico (amongst others), and he has to survive until he can find his way out. He finds water to drink, eats spiders, and builds shelters, and shows his viewers what they need to do to stay alive.

Now, we’re now in the second season of this show (on Friday nights at 10:00 pm, I think), and we only started watching it because of Les Stroud.

Stroud hosts another show, “Survivorman,” which was originally on the Discovery-owned Science Channel, then appeared on the Discovery Channel last year in reruns… It’s very similar to “Man vs Wild,” but with a few differences I’ll get to shortly. Thankfully, while the show only lasted one season, it’s returning on August 10th to the Discovery Channel! Brooke and I are excited…

Anyway, here’s the thing: Stroud and Grylls are both very capable, but while Grylls goes off with a camera crew, Stroud goes alone. He carries 50 lbs of camera equipment with him (and a pocket knife!), sets them up along the way so he can tape himself walking by, then backtracks to pick it up again. Stroud doesn’t do anything stupid, because he doesn’t have a camera crew with him – Grylls will jump down a waterfall to show you the “safe” way to do it, but in reality, the “safe” way is to simply avoid the waterfall altogether. He can only do it because there’s a group of people with him in case he screws up.

That, and Grylls will do things like drink his pee to retain water. Stroud never does that – he would instead extract water from nearby trees or harvest it from a contraption he built to catch dew in the morning… It seems like Grylls has a bit more “shock factor” than Stroud cares to (i.e. not quite as based in what I call “realistic situations”…).

And that’s where the controversy begins. Last week, I happened to have Letterman on and he brought up some “questions” that are being asked by a news organization in Britain. Apparently, having that camera crew with you has its advantages, like allowing you to stay in a hotel, or having an accompanying survival specialist do most of the work at crafting the raft that gets you off a deserted island.

These are questions Brooke and I had from the beginning of the show… We don’t have these questions with “Survivorman,” however, as it’s quite obvious that no one is with the man for 7 days. We also like the fact that Stroud mentions that he doesn’t like killing animals, “but if you’re in a survival situation, it’s all fair game” – Grylls, instead, makes no such mention and seems to revel in catching a rabbit (or turtle) and killing it on camera. Stroud isn’t preachy about it at all…we’re just glad he mentions it briefly and moves right on…

Anyway, you ought to check it out…both shows…see what you think. This week is Shark Week on Discovery though, so neither one is on (but Les Stroud is hosting!), but next week, you can catch reruns and new episodes of each. “Survivorman” is the superior show, but “Man vs Wild” is still entertaining…

Anyone ever watch these shows? Besides Brooke? I’m sure no one cares…just had to get it out there… 😛

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Quotes and Links…

On my iGoogle page this morning, the following was my link of the day…and I enjoyed it:

“Equations are the devil’s sentences.”
– Stephen Colbert

On another note, Zachary Quinto will be playing Spock in the new “Star Trek” movie that J.J. Abrams is producing/writing/directing… Honestly, I’m not sure how I feel about this. I mean, I think the guy, with the proper hair, could look the part, and I know he can do “unemotional acting,” but the character he plays in “Heroes” is Sylar…and that guy is evil. There are certain actors that just seem to play good “bad guys,” and it’s hard to imagine their transition to a “good guy” role. I’ve heard they’re envisioning a trilogy for these “Star Trek” movies, assuming this one does well enough, meaning that this guy could be playing Spock for years to come, but still…I just dunno…

In other news, my boss is still out of town, so I’ll be going home early today…maybe play some “Super Mario World” and “Resident Evil 4,” but I also need to get started writing my Prelim. This document will be a 25-page grant that I have to defend in order to “officially enter the doctoral program” here at SLU, so it’s kinda a big deal. I generally know what I’m writing it on, but it’s a little hard getting the ball rolling. I hope to defend in November/December, so I’ve still got time – that, and I don’t have classes to take anymore, so there isn’t much getting in the way of the writing…

…I just need to get started…that’s all…