Diagrams — BIOL 220 x OCEAN 250
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I took Physiology and Marine Biology in the same quarter, and both classes had regular diagramming assignments. I used them as an opportunity to refine what I learned about documenting natural processes in ESRM 201. This time, it was on a more granular scale, and the assignments required rigorous attention to clarity, detail and accuracy. This was my wakeup call that diagram creation is a rewarding skill to develop, especially for improving my science communication. Both of these classes got me in the habit of flowcharting out a process that I initially don’t understand, which I still use for ecosystem analysis and esports project management to this day.
Field Journals — ESRM 201 x BIOL 446
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ESRM 201
Over the summer, I took a break from the stressful intro classes by dipping into the Environmental Science prerequisites. ESRM 201 was an overview of Pacific Northwest ecosystems. I connected deeper with the nature around me using weekly field journals that I later presented in class. It was fascinating to explore the same hikes and trails I've been walking my whole life with a fresh perspective and goal in mind. I had to record measurements, species data, habitat conditions, and ecological interactions. The hardest part was drawing the subject; some weeks it was a single organism and others were an entire habitat. I'm not an artist by any means but I'm grateful ESRM 201 equipped me with the skills to translate my field observations onto the paper — both in the form of writing and drawing.
Over the summer, I took a break from the stressful intro classes by dipping into the Environmental Science prerequisites. ESRM 201 was an overview of Pacific Northwest ecosystems. I connected deeper with the nature around me using weekly field journals that I later presented in class. It was fascinating to explore the same hikes and trails I've been walking my whole life with a fresh perspective and goal in mind. I had to record measurements, species data, habitat conditions, and ecological interactions. The hardest part was drawing the subject; some weeks it was a single organism and others were an entire habitat. I'm not an artist by any means but I'm grateful ESRM 201 equipped me with the skills to translate my field observations onto the paper — both in the form of writing and drawing.
Flowcharts — BIOL 446
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No class expanded my depth of knowledge in a specific area more than BIOL 446 did for plant identification. Before the quarter started, I could not identify a single plant species by its scientific name. Now, I have the vocabulary to distinguish between 35 different angiosperm families and 17 conifer species. I probably learned around 200 new words like “diadelphous” and “mucronate” that are necessary for describing very subtle plant traits. To have a chance at surviving the exams, I needed to get creative with organizing all this new information to help my own memorization. I ended up creating 22 sketches of different angiosperm species, two massive “key traits” tables that list features of every family, and two flowcharts to summarize the evolutionary history of the Plantae kingdom and the Cupressaceae dichotomous key. All my hard work paid off: during every new hike I go on, I bore my friends to death by pointing at wildflowers and blurting out which family it belongs to.
Insect Photography — ESRM 435
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Arguably the most fun artifact from my sophomore year was my ESRM 435 final project. The objective was to go outside and take photos of ten different insect species, then do some research about their ecology. I had a blast with this project. I take my friends on walks and hikes pretty regularly and I collected all the insect photos throughout the quarter. It circles back to the theme of gaining a fresh perspective on familiar nature, which several former and future classes also touch on. ESRM 435 got me to examine nature at the smallest scale and appreciate that insects -- despite their size — are crucial elements of virtually every ecosystem. I also dipped my toes into taxonomy, and now I can identify almost every insect order. I consider this a good warmup for the plant classification class (BIOL 446) I will take this summer.