Wednesday, May 26, 2010
1st Year Done!
Officially 1/4 way done with med school! And the next three years are supposed to be living hell. Oh boy. Oh well, can't think about that now! Gotta enjoy my "freedom" while I can before I head off to Sierra Leone to work on Project Peanut Butter and malnutrition!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Sad News
My great aunt just passed away. :( God has given me a relatively grief-free life, so it's kind of a shock. Granted she's had three strokes, completely bedridden, can't express herself, and wasn't expected to survive past 2009, it still brought about a couple of tear drops. She and my grandmother took care of me from age 2 to 6, so she's essentially a grandmother to me. I wish I had just spent more time with her, whether it meant singing, reading, or just talking to her. I suppose there's always a time for people to move on with their lives - even if it means leaving it behind. She never accepted Christ - so I really wonder what happens to her soul. I suppose I'll be praying that she'll be in a better place now.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
DeNovoMeter!
Teammate's status: CONGRATULATIONS team DeNovoMeter!!!! We won in the IDEAS competition ($3000)! Looking forward to building an affordable blood glucose monitoring device for diabetics in developing countries this coming year! Check us out at: http://beta-globalchallenge.mit.edu/teams/view/50
Avenue Q and Class Show
So who would've thought an innocuous musical featuring puppets could be so NOT innocuous and very much so raunchy and inappropriate for little children. Little children't don't be fooled! It may look like Sesame Street - but it's Sesame Street gone very, very, horribly wrong. Here are some feature songs that might say what I'm saying...better:
- It Sucks to Be Me
- If You Were Gay
- Everyone's a Little Bit Racist
- The Internet is for Porn
- I'm Not Wearing Underwear Today
- You Can Be As Loud as the Hell You Want (When You're Makin' Love)
- My Girlfriend, Who Lives in Canada
And I will never look at teddy bears the same way again. Sadness! But overall, it was pretty funny.
Short synopsis: Boy out of college finding his purpose in life.
Our Class Show was Baller
Totally showed the 2nd years! (Class show is tradition where we make fun of all things related to med school). Sample of our show: Real First Years of Genius
Our Class Show was Baller
Totally showed the 2nd years! (Class show is tradition where we make fun of all things related to med school). Sample of our show: Real First Years of Genius
Sunday, May 2, 2010
B-day Farmhouse
hahaha...made funny cake for friend's b-day to make fun of his farm-like ways:
The best part was we all went to fro-yo dressed up in farm clothing (yes....straw hats, rolled up jeans, plaid-shirts, boots, etc...)
Grounding?
Hahaha...friend's (SD) random status message:
Question: Did you ever get grounded as a kid?
Answers: "no, my parents didn't know about grounding"; "no, my parents don't even know what grounded means"; "nope, I got beat"; "lol, it's called getting a beating. means no grounding"; "haha, I got smacked"; "my mom would just make me do chores" ... sighh
Question: Did you ever get grounded as a kid?
Answers: "no, my parents didn't know about grounding"; "no, my parents don't even know what grounded means"; "nope, I got beat"; "lol, it's called getting a beating. means no grounding"; "haha, I got smacked"; "my mom would just make me do chores" ... sighh
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Once Upon a Mattress
At the prime age of nine, YW had to make the most important decision of her life. Although she already had a well-paid job as the baby boy mouse in the Nutcracker, she risked it all to be a pro-tennis player. Like most decisions she make, it was the wrong one, and she has since then failed to win the U.S. Open. Reminiscent of being a ballerina and her good old days in elementary school as the pink fairy in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, YW decided to take a break from chasing after fuzzy green balls and be a lady – a lady who screeches, spins in the wrong direction, and looks utterly confused...
...And that's how I landed the role of a random lady in Once Upon a Mattress. Yup - rehearsal every Saturday since the beginning of the school year, and 4-5 hr practices the week before the shows - and i don't even have a speaking role! (I "sing" and "dance" in the chorus.) Wow, now I have A LOT of appreciation for those in the arts. Man, people are so talented! Their voices that go so many notes higher than mine, and their priceless facial expressions! It was definitely a lot of fun!
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Immunology Exam Fun (ya, i know, exam and fun in the same title O_o)
This was one of the exam questions (scroll down for funny responses):
7. If you could “redesign” one component of the immune system to make it more effective/efficient, which component would it be and why? (4 points)
The most common responses:
(1st number is # of students; 2nd is % of class)
improve IgE responses to eliminate allergy: 27, 22.0
make vdj recombination more efficient: 12, 9.8
simplify/alter complement: 12, 9.8
suppress autoimmunity somehow: 11, 8.9
improve response to HIV/viruses: 8, 6.5
speed up adaptive response: 5, 4.1
T cell selection/development: 5, 4.1
allow MHC to bind polysaccharides: 5, 4.1
be better able to clear immune complexes: 4, 3.3
change class switching: 4, 3.3
improve response to tumours: 4, 3.3
more redundancy in cytokine receptors: 3, 2.4
have a new type of T cell: 3, 2.4
enhance NK cells: 2, 1.6
remove barriers to immunopriv sites: 2, 1.6
no response! Loss of 4 points right there: 2, 1.6
_________________________________________________________
And some of my(TA's) favourite excerpts:
… What we need is better innate immunity based on better barriers - a more acidic mouth, maybe, or scales that mosquitoes and tsetse flies can't penetrate with their little teeth
… get rid of c2 and c4 for pete's sake!
… Ah, my world would be such a better place without my mast cells degranulating to dust, pollen,…
… And we all know that he who has the ATP makes the rules. I think that's a quote from Aladdin.
… Also harsher punishment for negative selection violators… and world peace.
… [in regards to complement] It would also make for happier medical students because they don't need to memorize as much
… Also, I would eliminate Factor H. Honestly, who invited that guy?
… Then, when [the NK cells] migrate to a site of inflammation, they'd be all like "ZOMG OM NOM" to more viral infected cells…"
… It wouldn't be easy, but sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same.
… I would also give our CD8+ cells laser pistols and sunglasses [picture included, with a granzyme grenade]
… The thought of "design" and the immune system contradicts mountains of scientific evidence and vertebrate evolutionary history, but for four points I will "intelligently re-design" a component of a system that natural selection has been acting on for millions of years.
7. If you could “redesign” one component of the immune system to make it more effective/efficient, which component would it be and why? (4 points)
The most common responses:
(1st number is # of students; 2nd is % of class)
improve IgE responses to eliminate allergy: 27, 22.0
make vdj recombination more efficient: 12, 9.8
simplify/alter complement: 12, 9.8
suppress autoimmunity somehow: 11, 8.9
improve response to HIV/viruses: 8, 6.5
speed up adaptive response: 5, 4.1
T cell selection/development: 5, 4.1
allow MHC to bind polysaccharides: 5, 4.1
be better able to clear immune complexes: 4, 3.3
change class switching: 4, 3.3
improve response to tumours: 4, 3.3
more redundancy in cytokine receptors: 3, 2.4
have a new type of T cell: 3, 2.4
enhance NK cells: 2, 1.6
remove barriers to immunopriv sites: 2, 1.6
no response! Loss of 4 points right there: 2, 1.6
_________________________________________________________
And some of my(TA's) favourite excerpts:
… What we need is better innate immunity based on better barriers - a more acidic mouth, maybe, or scales that mosquitoes and tsetse flies can't penetrate with their little teeth
… get rid of c2 and c4 for pete's sake!
… Ah, my world would be such a better place without my mast cells degranulating to dust, pollen,…
… And we all know that he who has the ATP makes the rules. I think that's a quote from Aladdin.
… Also harsher punishment for negative selection violators… and world peace.
… [in regards to complement] It would also make for happier medical students because they don't need to memorize as much
… Also, I would eliminate Factor H. Honestly, who invited that guy?
… Then, when [the NK cells] migrate to a site of inflammation, they'd be all like "ZOMG OM NOM" to more viral infected cells…"
… It wouldn't be easy, but sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same.
… I would also give our CD8+ cells laser pistols and sunglasses [picture included, with a granzyme grenade]
… The thought of "design" and the immune system contradicts mountains of scientific evidence and vertebrate evolutionary history, but for four points I will "intelligently re-design" a component of a system that natural selection has been acting on for millions of years.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Hello Seattle
I love Seattle! (and Owl City):
Can't wait to be home! 5 down, 1 more final to go!
Other songs that remind me of people:
* Daylight by Maroon 5 (WR)
* Crazy by Gnarl Barkley (OO)
* Photographs and Memories by Jason Reeves (LL)
* Across the Universe by Beetles (J)
* She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5
* New Soul by Yael Naim (MZ)
* Soul Sister by Train (MW)
Other songs I like:
Can't wait to be home! 5 down, 1 more final to go!
Other songs that remind me of people:
* Daylight by Maroon 5 (WR)
* Crazy by Gnarl Barkley (OO)
* Photographs and Memories by Jason Reeves (LL)
* Across the Universe by Beetles (J)
* She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5
* New Soul by Yael Naim (MZ)
* Soul Sister by Train (MW)
Other songs I like:
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Childbirth
"Dave Barry's account of childbirth. If you haven't read it, you should:
http://www.epilio.com/jokes.nsf/ed2ca744640a679c802560e6006f016b/63b3b52ed304255d8025600d004dbce1?OpenDocument
Here are two snippets that might give you a chuckle:
'Let's take a quick look at the history of baby-having. For thousands of years, only women had babies. Primitive women would go off into primitive huts and groan and wail and sweat while other women hovered around. The primitive men stayed outside doing manly things, such as lifting heavy objects and spitting.
When the baby was born, the women would clean it up as best they could and show it to the men who would spit appreciatively and head off to the forest to throw sharp sticks at small animals. If you had suggested to primitive men that they should actually watch women have babies, they would have laughed at you and probably tortured you for three or four days. They were real men.'
...
'Our childbirth-class instructor was very big on the uterus because that's where babies generally spend their time before birth. She also spent some time on the ovum, which is near the ovaries. What happens is that the ovum hangs around reading novels and eating chocolates until along comes this big crowd of spermatozoa, which are tiny, very stupid one-celled organisms. They're looking for the ovum, but most of them wouldn't know it if they fell over it. They swim around for days, trying to mate with the pancreas and whatever other organs they bump into. But eventually one stumbles into the ovum, and the happy couple parades down the fallopian tubes to the uterus. In the uterus, the Miracle of Life begins, unless you believe the Miracle of Life does not begin there, and if you think I'm going to get into that, you're crazy. Anyway, the ovum starts growing rapidly and dividing into lots of little specialized parts, not unlike the federal government. Within six weeks, it has developed all organs it needs to drool; by 10 weeks, it has the ability to cry in restaurants. In childbirth class, they showed us these pictures of a fetus developing inside a uterus. They didn't tell us how the pictures were taken, but I suspect it involved a great deal of drinking.' " -Courtesy of RA
http://www.epilio.com/jokes.nsf/ed2ca744640a679c802560e6006f016b/63b3b52ed304255d8025600d004dbce1?OpenDocument
Here are two snippets that might give you a chuckle:
'Let's take a quick look at the history of baby-having. For thousands of years, only women had babies. Primitive women would go off into primitive huts and groan and wail and sweat while other women hovered around. The primitive men stayed outside doing manly things, such as lifting heavy objects and spitting.
When the baby was born, the women would clean it up as best they could and show it to the men who would spit appreciatively and head off to the forest to throw sharp sticks at small animals. If you had suggested to primitive men that they should actually watch women have babies, they would have laughed at you and probably tortured you for three or four days. They were real men.'
...
'Our childbirth-class instructor was very big on the uterus because that's where babies generally spend their time before birth. She also spent some time on the ovum, which is near the ovaries. What happens is that the ovum hangs around reading novels and eating chocolates until along comes this big crowd of spermatozoa, which are tiny, very stupid one-celled organisms. They're looking for the ovum, but most of them wouldn't know it if they fell over it. They swim around for days, trying to mate with the pancreas and whatever other organs they bump into. But eventually one stumbles into the ovum, and the happy couple parades down the fallopian tubes to the uterus. In the uterus, the Miracle of Life begins, unless you believe the Miracle of Life does not begin there, and if you think I'm going to get into that, you're crazy. Anyway, the ovum starts growing rapidly and dividing into lots of little specialized parts, not unlike the federal government. Within six weeks, it has developed all organs it needs to drool; by 10 weeks, it has the ability to cry in restaurants. In childbirth class, they showed us these pictures of a fetus developing inside a uterus. They didn't tell us how the pictures were taken, but I suspect it involved a great deal of drinking.' " -Courtesy of RA
Sunday, March 14, 2010
MedBall & B-day Fun
MedBall is an excuse for all the med students (mostly first years) and faculty to dress up, eat yummy food, dance, and drink. Aside from an increase in debt, and deciding that I could cook better fish, it was gorgeous, there was a band that played swing-danceable music, and I had a great date :D. Yes...unbelievably, I did dance in public. haha. It was at the Hyatt Hotel so it was pretty fancy, and there were people in very extravagent clothing. Fun overload!B-day Surprises:
Thanks MNZ and KP for the awesome personalized Starbucks gift card!!! I can't believe you guys put "Take it easy now, not too much..." on it!!! hahahaha... and yes, you guys are truly drop-dead-gorgeous!
Awww, AS and TL - what great friends! They organized a surprise b-day for me and made/decorated a cake in the shape of a baby with a big head (oh dear) with the help of other friends. Oh man, I had no idea it was coming to me. I just got back from practicing interviewing/examining standardized patients, and my neighbor came to me asking if I wanted to try some pasta that she made. Of course, regarding food, I had no choice, so I followed her. And in this dark room bursted forth at least a dozen people. Out of sheer fright/flight response, I screamed and ran away to the other side of my hall. I think I surprised everyone even more with my running. Ooops! Anyhow, the cake was delicious, and the company was charming! Another great end to a day!
Friday, March 5, 2010
Irritated: My Response to Stress
We were discussing the negative effects of stress in physio today. During class, when I thought about how I respond, I thought of mainly two things: eating and playing tennis. But then just today, I noticed my true response: AHHHH!!!! ...and getting irritated.
I don't know ANYTHING about photo editing, but because I'm incapable of saying "no" to people, I managed to get myself the role of photo editor for the med school guidebook for next year's first years. And because I'm not so great at adding in new things into my schedule, I've come to realize how much time this is taking and how much I still have to do. Ack!!! So much to do this weekend! Aside from homework, I have to be the coordinator for the free clinic, and I also DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HECK I'M DOING!!! Thus, THIS IS MAKING ME STRESSED!!! Okay...I think I need to breathe! But I can't because my hallway smells like smoke!!!
Anyhow, I've become irritated with the co-photo editor, and I've become irritated with this person who smokes on my floor. gah!!! so irritating!!! I'm usually not like this! I think I need to say a prayer or think about the real reason I'm here at med school. Maybe I need to think about the big picture. There really isn't anything for me to be angry with. Some people are just mean and do stupid things, and I should get over it. No, no, that's not the right way to think. People probably have reasons for doing what they're doing even though I don't like what they're doing. There are things I don't understand. Ok...chill....
I don't know ANYTHING about photo editing, but because I'm incapable of saying "no" to people, I managed to get myself the role of photo editor for the med school guidebook for next year's first years. And because I'm not so great at adding in new things into my schedule, I've come to realize how much time this is taking and how much I still have to do. Ack!!! So much to do this weekend! Aside from homework, I have to be the coordinator for the free clinic, and I also DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HECK I'M DOING!!! Thus, THIS IS MAKING ME STRESSED!!! Okay...I think I need to breathe! But I can't because my hallway smells like smoke!!!
Anyhow, I've become irritated with the co-photo editor, and I've become irritated with this person who smokes on my floor. gah!!! so irritating!!! I'm usually not like this! I think I need to say a prayer or think about the real reason I'm here at med school. Maybe I need to think about the big picture. There really isn't anything for me to be angry with. Some people are just mean and do stupid things, and I should get over it. No, no, that's not the right way to think. People probably have reasons for doing what they're doing even though I don't like what they're doing. There are things I don't understand. Ok...chill....
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Beautiful Time-Lapse of Milky Way Over Hawaii
Well written: "In all the messiness of life's day-to-day, one tends to forget the majesty that is the universe on a grand scale. Let this stunning time-lapse of the Milky Way over Hawaii remind you of your insignificance."
http://tv.gawker.com/5485803/beautiful-time+lapse-of-the-milky-way-over-hawaii?skyline=true&s=i
It's amazing.
http://tv.gawker.com/5485803/beautiful-time+lapse-of-the-milky-way-over-hawaii?skyline=true&s=i
It's amazing.
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