Reflections for Life Sci

“Everything is energy…” That is what physics claim. If that is true then I will say that life is the most mystical, whimsical and beautiful kind of energy there is. That is why I love biology: it is the study of life.

The three bio-ideas that fascinated me the most in the 2nd quarter are the concepts regarding beauty, recognizing people and the power of facial expressions.

In recognizing people, the brain is said to work in three major steps. First is perception. The brain constructs an image of the person he is trying to recognize through the data sent by his senses, particularly his eyes. Second is corresponding. The brain matches the image with a similar one contained in its database. This database is connected to another area that stores information (name, etc.) crucial to recognizing the person. The last – and not so obvious – step is the attaching of the emotional tag. Once the brain is able to match the face with that stored in memory, it sends out signals that make the person feel what he is supposed to feel for that person. Any failure in the process will lead to being unable to recognize the person, in denying the presence or in referring to the person as an impostor.

I love learning about life and I love the way life is trying to teach a hardheaded kid like me.
During the second quarter, I realized that learning is a matter of interest and will. Interest is needed because it is really hard to learn about something you hardly care about. On the other hand, learning becomes so natural when the topic stirs your interest.
It is also a matter of will because to be able to learn, one must put his mind and heart into it. One must also put in a considerable amount of effort because without any effort, even the sweetest victory is useless.

One must also aim perfection in his work. When I say perfection, it is not having the ideal work but for the work to reach its full potential. It is hard to reach it, but one must always aim high.

Lastly, it is necessary to be willing to improve. Without this kind of will, it is almost impossible to learn, since learning involves a lot of failing and improving from these failures.