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sem-ender

Friday, October 23, 2009

First semester for the year 09-10 has officially ended. whew.

and i'm happy that i got out of it very much alive and unscathed. well, quite unscathed. i did not bleed out. points for me. =) yay.

here are my subjects for the first semester that i've had in UP. all in a nutshell.

MATH17 under Prof. Edmond Sison.

The Subject: well, it's algebra and trigonometry. i don't think i have to say anything anymore.

The Prof: is plain cool. he teaches really well. he explains the concepts really well. granted, it felt boring during the first weeks since we were discussing all about sets [which is, in fact, a boring topic. yes.] but as math17 goes on, it became more interesting.

The Exams: prof sison's exams aren't THAT hard. i mean, they're not easy but they're not impossible. if you have a good grasp on the topic, getting high scores on his exams is not at all unlikely.

The Grades: prof sison gives partial points. and he gives quite generously at that. really. during the first long exam, i copied down the wrong equation. i thought i was going to lose all five points in that particular number. oh well, i thought wrong. the prof gave me a 4 out of 5. it struck me as peculiar, at the very least. i think i asked him about it and he told me that my solution and answer were actually correct, that is, if that was the equation that he gave. cool, right? i mean, who else gives a 4 out of 5 points for a number where the given equation was copied incorrectly? i don't know about you but my math17 prof surely does.

The Uno-ability: math17 is unoable. i think. oh, no, i won't get an uno for this subject. that's actually dreaming too much. hah. but any subject is unoable if you have the ability to get an UNO. unless your prof doesn't want you to.

CHEM16 under Prof Cherrie Pascual [lecture] and Sir Mark Cleofas [lab].

The Subject: it's general chemistry. the stuff you learned in highschool, basically. just tougher, yes.

The Profs: Prof Pascual can be an intimidating professor once you come to know her educational and professional background. she is a PhD degree holder who pursued higher education in australia. she's also one of those chosen people who have the power to vote who's going to be deemed as a nobel prize winner. yes, she is one of the chosen ones. oh, she's also from analytic chemistry. and she was the chem16 coordinator. need i say more?

Sir Cleofas is quite new since he just graduated last april 2009 and i think that was what made him a good instructor. he still has his student heart safely tucked within his ribcage, with competency to boot.

The Exams: all of the short quizzes are made by prof pascual and seeing how she wants her students to be the best in chem, the quizzes aren't as easy as those given to other chem16 students. but if you have a good grasp of the topic, you'd do quite well.

the three long exams are actually what you need to focus on. each exam is worth 150 points [160, actually, because of the ten-point bonus] and your grades for the three long exams would determine your prefinal grade. 2.00 above would exempt you from the finals. just practice on your chem problems and you won't have that much of a difficulty. and, don't forget what you learned in highschool. *wink*

KAS1 under Prof. Ruel Pagunsan.

The Subject: it's philippine history. what more do i have to say?

The Prof: my kas1 was a 4-5.30 subject. yes, that dreaded hour when the Sandman visits quite often. but prof pagunsan has this ability to shoo away Mr. Sandman. oh, he has a knack for discussing any topic in full 24-color-palette detail. yes, we discussed the significance of history and the prehispanic era for the entire sem [i'm not sure if that's an exaggeration or what.] which wasn't bad at all. all of his students know the twists and turns of the prehispanic era by now. and we know how important history is. he hammered the point home, after all. =)

i've heard highschool classmates how they dislike their kas1 subjects. i don't know but it seems that i was the only one who has a good kas1 experience. you won't find history boring under this professor. he is a living ilustrado after all.

The Exams: one written exam. essay-type. just brush up on your notes and you'll do just fine. there's another, btw. a sem-ender exam. oral. you pick two questions from a box and you have 6 minutes to answer it. scary, i know, but it really wasn't. that's just nerves.

The Grades: i don't know my kas1 grade yet but as far as i can see, based from the written exam, he gives grades that you deserve. plus points for complete attendance. plus more points if you joined the banahaw field trip. oh, don't forget to recite and let the prof know you by name. that'd make a huge difference on your grade.

ENGLISH11 under Prof. Isabela Mooney

The Subject: literature. and society. and literature. yes, and have i mentioned literature?

The Prof: makes you channel that hidden analyst in you. she gives out rhetorical questions that aren't so rhetorical after all. once the heavy symbolisms and literary weight start to drown you, she gives little hints just to prod your subconscious into letting all those insights rise up to the surface. and then, there's her knack for blurting out little sarcastic remarks that would make you chuckle a bit [the lightness of the chuckles depends on the person, say, if you're the brunt of the remark]
all in all, prof mooney is a very interesting and competent professor in her field. really.
The Exams: first exam was about poetry. we were given a poem and we had to make a critical essay on it. oh, our essays had to reach at least the centerfold mark of our bluebooks. yes. expect finger and wrist cramps.
second exam was about short fictions and Oedipus Rex. it was a takehome exam. oh, don't jump for joy just yet. i actually shuddered when prof mooney announced that the second exam was to be taken home. after all, takehome exams are never easy. oh, i wasn't disappointed. it was NOT easy. actually, when she dictated our exam, my mind was whirring.
she made us do the impossible ---- create our own novels in one day.
kidding. really, i was kidding, don't just scream your head off. what she made us do wasn't actually impossible. just a bit difficult. but hey, it was a takehome exam after all.
The Grades: i haven't seen my grades yet. but prof mooney once told us that if a student is physically and mentally present in class every meeting then that student will never fail. so, if you've got a complete attendance [and by that, i also mean to say that you're not just sleeping in the class] then you're already guaranteed the good ol' tres. if you want higher than that, then exert effort. i recall several CW majors who told me that prof mooney dislikes mediocrity. well, who does?
oh, if you're not outspoken, have no worries. you don't have to be a recitation freak in this class. prof mooney once said that you can talk as much as you want and not make any sense at all but you can also be the quietest yet the most brilliant student. talk seldomly but make sure that whatever comes out of your mouth makes perfect sense and she'll never forget your name. i mean it.
The Drawback: professor mooney is going to be out of the country for a year and half. so even if you see her name in the CRS, she wouldn't be the one teaching that section. she'll be somewhere in the west.

SOCSCI3 under Prof. Soledad Dalisay.
The Subject: gender and sexuality. don't even ask me why i enlisted the subject. it was fun. you just watch documentaries and you discuss. really.
The Prof: knows how to keep her students intrigued. well, it IS an intriguing subject after all. you'll just laugh your head off when she starts bringing her magical bag of goodies.
The Exams: just one exam. half-objective, half-subjective. just read the notes that you copied from the board and those readings that she asked you to get and you'll ace the exam.
The Grades: divided into three. exam, paper, and presentation. the exam, mentioned above, is the only thing that's done individually in this class. you form groups of four or three and you pick your topic and you make a paper out of it. that's it. oh, you have to present it on class. be creative and fun. that's basically it. highschool stuff, really. and if you know your research format well, here's some cookies for you.
oh, there was one individual paper. you get to choose among all the documentaries and films that you've watched in class and you make a reaction paper. fairly easy.

PE WF under Prof. Edwin Barber.
The Subject: walking. for fitness. yeah. basically, you walk, as the name implies [or states].
The Prof: prof barber seriously wants his students to walk faster. and to lose weight and fat. he wants his students to become physically fit and walk faster.. and lose some fat. and have i mentioned how he so wants students to walk faster? oh, but he is a really nice professor. a comedian at heart. really.
The Exams: none. really. we were supposed to have a 4.4km walk [two acad oval rounds] but due to the storms it was postponed for a week. then, because it was drizzling that morning, he decided to just scrap it since it might disrupt our major subjects if he were to reschedule it some other time. haven't i told you how nice he is?
The Grades: people told me that this PE is unoable and easy. oh, fairly easy since you just need to walk. FAST. but the unoable part is certainly true. you get a shining uno and you lose weight as well. what more do you want?

so, there. those were my subjects for the first semester, all in a nutshell.
i'm fairly satisfied and happy with how things went. now, second sem is approaching and i have nothing to say except GOOD LUCK. =)

12:41 PM
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saccharine spice

[+] full-time UP Diliman BS Chemical Engineering student
[+] 50% Filipina (by citizenship) 50% Chinese (by blood)
[+] true-blue argentine kiddo
[+] bookworm
[+] mangaddicted
[+] trilingual (filipino, english, spanish)
[+] aspiring writer
[+] appreciates learning and beauty
[+] dreamer
[+] traveller at heart
[+] linguist wanna-be (at least 5 languages!)
[+] looks at the world through multicolored glasses

esteemed authors

in order as dictated by my memory

+ neil gaiman
+ michael crichton
+ sidney sheldon
+ stephen king
+ jeffery deaver
+ caleb carr
+ kathy reisch
+ christopher pike
+ chuck palahniuk
+ clive staples lewis
+ john katzenbach
+ john ronald reuel tolkien
+ anne rice
+ peter beere
+ heather graham
+ richie tankersley cusick
+ ian fleming
+ chris wooding
+ patricia cornwell
+ mary higgins clark
+ stephen coonts
+ vladimir nabokov
+ agatha christie
+ robert lawrence stine
+ dean koontz
+ john grisham
+ jonathan kellerman
+ paulo coehlo
+ roald dahl
+ lewis carroll
+ sir james matthew barrie
+ frank baum
+ mark twain
+ michael connelly
+ arthur conan doyle
+ edgar allan poe
+ piers anthony
+ clive barker
+ tamora pierce
+ mary wollstonecraft shelley
+ bram stoker
+ dan brown
+ edith wharton
+ sue grafton
+ william blatty

anime/manga

as far as i can recall, these are the animes/mangas that i've read and/or watched. currently still incomplete. blame my memory.

[] one piece
[] battle royale
[] get backers
[] death note
[] bleach
[] ouran highschool host club
[] gatekeepers
[] blood +
[] black cat
[] fushigi yuugi
[] ayashi no ceres
[] full metal panic
[] full metal alchemist
[] fruits basket
[] flame of recca
[] spiral
[] shuffle!
[] slamdunk
[] tactics
[] fate stay night
[] ultra maniac
[] tsubasa chronicle
[] evangelion
[] elfen lied
[] escaflowne
[] ghost hunt
[] elemental gelade
[] detective conan
[] darker than black
[] DNangel
[] gakuen alice
[] gakuen heaven
[] chobits
[] gundam seed/wing/destiny
[] gunslinger girl
[] dot hack SIGN
[] dot hack legend of the twilight
[] harukanaru toki no naka de
[] hayate no gotoku
[] hunter x hunter
[] inuyasha
[] kyou kara maou
[] hana yori dango
[] hanazakari no kimitachi e
[] zombie-loan
[] vampire knight
[] loveless
[] yuyu hakusho
[] you're under arrest
[] yami no matsuei
[] wolf's rain
[] xxxholic
[] weiss kreuz
[] naruto
[] prince of tennis
[] rosario + vampire
[] saiyuki
[] pretear
[] shaman king
[] special A
[] B.O.D.Y.
[] koukou debut
[] kimi wa petto
[] boku ni natta watashi
[] codebreaker
[] lost+brain
[] doubt
[] eternal sabbath
[] luck stealer
[] number
[] liar game
[] kyou koi wo hajimemasu
[] deadman wonderland
[] mirai nikki [future diary]
[] saboten no himitsu
[] koizora
[] majin tantei nougami neuro
[] 07ghost
[] camelot garden
[] blank slate
[] beast master
[] pandora hearts
[] [switch]
[] kuroshitsuji
[] d.gray-man
[] wild ones
[] trinity blood

nexus

propphi anne fernando