Thursday, January 04, 2007

9.

9 is the title of the new damien rice album and it has really explicit songs when you listen to the lyrics. but yet the melodies are so beautiful and his voice is just amazingly suited to each song. each tone. each nuance. each rise and fall. each emotion. i love the melodies, and occasionally the words. but some, like the 4th track, is just horrible to my ears 'cos i don't like it when people say the 4-letter word out loud.

anyway today was the first day of school. spent the day at pharmacology II, where the prof was quite humourous; calling men "rats" 3 times in 30 mins. and lectures are only 50 mins! but 3 times a week. i feel like i'm back in tj. then went to the health sciences library to settle my subjects. went to see a prof regarding enrolling into a graduate course.

the story goes like this. when i scroll through the UW subjects and the schools, i just picked out the modules that matches the mods i'm supposed to be taking back in NTU, like pharmacology and drug discovery and all. and i was able to find them. so i submitted the subject codes and all to our coordinator. that was back in dec. and when we arrived in seattle, ms chua the NTU GIP coordinator happily told me out of 6 of my courses i picked for winter quarter, 5 are year 5 modules. year 5 is 1st year masters degree courses. oh well done. and she tells me to pick undergraduate courses because the masters courses are really difficult and i won't be able to get in and the fees are more expensive.

so i launched into this debate with her that if i do not take those modules i won't be able to graduate from NTU and i already signed an agreement with MOE that i have to graduate within 4 years. if i didn't take those mods i'll have to stay back 1 year in NTU. and i tried to convince her in my politically correct tone and manner that maybe US school system is just a little less advanced than what we have in singapore. hence my year 3 and 4 modules are only taken by graduate students here.

yes. even their introduction to biochem is taught in year 4. and we did that in year 1.

so i was talking to my prof. and showing him my degree audit. and he was so surprised at the modules that i have taken and was telling me "wow you can go and get a phd now." and he was listing all the modules. "wow, development biology, neurobiology, BIOPHYSICS?!?!"

for once, i'm proud to be educated in the singapore system. all those endless nights of slogging through the lecture notes and tutorials. paid off in that single second. and i was immediately enrolled in the graduate course.

and graduate courses mean no exams and tons of readings and assignments and projects.

something i've never done before for a bio module.

challenges and more challenges.

just got accepted into another grad module for proteomics. at the fred hutchinson cancer research center campus! ohhhh there're like 3 nobel laureates there!

so exciting. but i have readings for tmr's class already. the first lesson of the course!! =(

ok time for dinner. wonder what shall we cook.

will ramble more next time. =)

everybody take care! please say hi to singapore food for me.

Labels: damien rice, life in seattle, UW

This girl posted at 9:53 AM