Seth Kinast’s Blog

Summer school started today, and with it, my time in the lab will also increase. I’m taking Quantitative Analysis, a chemistry course that emphasizes lab technique and accuracy of measurement. Unfortunately, that’s not my strong point. In a class where your entire lab grade is based on the hundredths place in a decimal, I’m a bit worried. I shall somehow overcome, though.

I’m not taking summer school because I need to catch up or anything, just in case you were suspicious. The opposite is actually true; I had run out of courses to take in the fall. So why am I taking this one out of my limited remaining pool? It goes like this. Because I knew I was staying an extra year, I needed to take something in the fall and spring (12 hours worth to be enrolled full-time). I asked my advisor, Dr. Nagle, what I could do to stretch things out a bit. He found that because my current degree program is a research-oriented Microbiology set, it already included almost every course needed to complete a Chemistry degree as well. So with just three more courses, I’d graduate with two degrees and my three minors (French, Computer Science, and the History of Science).

The RA job in the summer takes barely any of my time. I am in the office once a week, from 2:30-12:00, and that’s it. It doesn’t pay a ton, but it keeps me from having to find a place to live while I take this class, and it gives me lots of meal points to spend on tasty things.

(I’m typing this on Sam’s computer, which needs a hard drive replacement. So while it’s backing itself up to my iPod, I wrote this. iPods are great data shuttles; their drivers are ubiquitous, they’re compact, and relatively fast over USB2.)

(Also, I have no clue how I ever typed QWERTY. It’s so clunky compared to Colemak. My finger strain has eased a ton since switching. Check it out. I retain most of my QWERTY accuracy, but little QWERTY speed unfortunately; down to about 40-50 WPM vs. my old 90-100. I type about 120 WPM in Colemak though.)

Yesterday I loaded up and drove to Tulsa, where I met Mom and Dad and we came the rest of the way home to Joplin.

Today, we left about 10am for Springfield, arriving just after 11. They dropped me off at the Prometric Testing Center to take… the MCAT! I had been studying quite a bit ever since Christmas break started, so I felt pretty ready. The test took about four and a half hours but honestly it was pretty fun and I enjoyed taking most of it. All except the chemistry– I hate chemistry Background on the MCAT: it’s the exam needed to get into medical school in the US; you take it the year before you apply (your penultimate year of university). The test comes in 3 and a half sections. Physical Sciences includes physics, inorganic chemistry, optics, E&M, and electrochemistry. Biological Sciences includes human biology, genetics, organic chemistry, and vertebrate anatomy. Verbal Reasoning has reading passages and associated questions. Each section gets a score of 1 to 15 points, where 15 is the best. The “half section” is essay-based; you write two short essays in 30 minutes each about a provided prompt. Some highlights:

• I really decimated the Verbal section… I missed practically none. I’d say no more than 2.
• Having switched to Colemak, typing the essays was kind of a beast. I practiced QWERTY for about 10 minutes before starting the writing section timer. I had to look at my hands the whole time but I got it done .
• I really should have studied more chemistry.
• Tutoring at ZAP really helped my Biology.

I think I did pretty well but scores come back in a few weeks, so we’ll see! Yay for it being over!