Reply to comment

Originally I registered for this class because I’m pre-med and needed an English class. I was relieved to see an English class cross-listed in Biology because I’m not a very English-oriented person. I appreciate the subjectivity of the class because many of my past classes have been very objective. I feel that through all the discussions I’m using my new ways of thinking than I would in other classes, which I find interesting. I feel that the format of the class works very well. I enjoy the larger lectures for all the viewpoints present, but the smaller discussions are better for a more personal dialogue.

This class is like no other class I’ve taken, in all the best ways. I enjoy the free-flowing discussions and the fact that Professors Grobstein & Dalke, while trying to main somewhat on topic, don’t dismiss a point that isn’t directly related to the subject. Through these tangents we are able to explore what we are discussing even more as a group. However, I feel that there have been a few times that the discussions became too philosophical and we were attempting to answer unanswerable questions, which grew somewhat frustrating. I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about the grading process because I like knowing my grade throughout the course. However, I think this grading format may be beneficial to me, and my classmates, by allowing us to focus more on the learning than the accompanying grade.

            One aspect of the story of evolution I am interested in exploring is the impact it has had on people, such as personal development and how evolution can have an influence an individual or a group of people. Whether or not drastic change to a person or group is adaptive would be interesting to discuss.