If you’re seeing this sentence, chances are that I pretty much speedran this ENTIRE blog. Usually, I’d be cooped up in my room on a Monday or Tuesday morning, peacefully writing at my own pace. But NOOOOOOO! University had other things in mind…and WOW, was it a hill to climb!
As of writing this sentence, it’s 8:30 pm on a Friday. Usually, I’d be celebrating the start of the midsem break with my friends or playing a calming video game. But the last two weeks were…quite different. But hey! I get lots of material to write a blog about.
On to today’s horrible joke. Don’t worry, I cringe every time I get to this as well. But hey, its tradition.
Did you hear that oxygen went on a date with potassium?
It went OK!
(omg this is so a*s…)
Wait, CHEMMAT Has Coding?
Yep, you read that correctly. CHEMMAT indeed has a few coding assignments. If you decided to pick up CHEMMAT (the best specialisation in the world), then in semester two of your second year, you will come across a course known as CHEMMAT 203: Transfer Processes. Just a really, really fancy way of saying heat transfer and fluid mechanics.
I’ll admit, its a cool course! It gets you to that point where you can actually see what you’ve learnt all around you. I’m looking at my PC right now and I’m seeing heat transfer. My smartphone? Heat transfer. My body as I’m sprinting towards my bus stop because its about to leave? You guessed it, heat transfer (and disappointment because I am NOT fast enough to catch up to a bus…)
But this course will come with two coding assignments. My first coding assignment is actually due in a few days, and me and my friends just had a lock-in session about it. I can imagine if you’re adamant on CHEMMAT, you probably don’t like coding as much as the average Part I student. (If you do, then hooray! More coding for you). But, I’ll tell you this. It’s a lot more relevant to CHEMMAT industry than coding your Part 1 assignment about rockets…okay that actually sounds a lot more fun than my first year coding assignments…
In our current 203 assignment, we’re modelling how things lose or gain heat in certain real-life contexts (like furnaces and stuff). And that’s gonna be SO useful in industry. Prepare to put MATLAB proficiency on your CV when applying for a…j*b…ugh…
Lab Reports – Cool Sciency Stuff
If there’s one thing non-CHEMMATers get right when they think about the greatest specialisation in the world, it’s labs. We do a LOT of labs! In fact, I have a lab manual in front of me right now! (I have a habit of leaving uni stuff outside my bag, it can get real messy once I’m done studying). It’s fun, especially if you get a funny technical assistant. But most labs come with reports you have to fill out about what you did in said labs.
Most of the time, I find fun in writing these reports. Maybe its because im a nerd, and only nerds would find fun in writing 20-page essays about random things happening. But as engineers, I’m sure we’re all just a bit nerdy on the inside.
Honestly, if I have any advice about these things? Embrace the nerd. Embrace the “erm, ackshually” that lies within. Play your favourite music (I just put on one of my faves a few seconds ago) and go to town on writing. After some cleaning up, I’m sure your first lab report will be amazing! Your brain is gonna feel like Tesla or Einstein over there in that photo.
And, report writing is also quite useful in industry! How else are you gonna tell non-engineers about what the greatest specialisation in the world does?
ENGINEERING REVUE!
It’s time I admit it. I am a PROUD member of the Engineering Revue’s skits cast. We’ve been prepping for the last 6 weeks for the show that we’re gonna put on in Week 7.
I know what you’re thinking. “What’s a revue?” Well, it’s a production-show-dance-comedy-music-thing that’s completely organised by us engineering students! Us skits cast members have to make and perform comedic skits scattered throughout the main plot and dance numbers. Not to glaze or anything, but I think we’ve got some really funny jokes this time.
Come to think of it, like half of us Part II Bloggers are part of the Revue. And a whopping 3 of us Part II CHEMMAT students are in it too. I’m serious, for such a small cohort, 3 is a lot!
I would put an embarrasing/cheesy/funny photo of myself in Revue but this is actually my first year! You guys should watch, just search it up and it’ll be the first result!
Okay, glazing over.
To Sum Up (Because This Blog Has Been Quite Chaotic)
So yeah, all of that is why I’ve had to rush my entire blog in one night. As of right now, its 9:50 pm on the same Friday night. Turns out my friend’s account got hacked and I almost fell for it when the scam account approched me! (unc status approaching)…
But I can still leave you with one piece of advice. Two, actually. Let me put it in cool bullet points
- Start doing your assignments as soon as you get them! This isn’t just a CHEMMAT thing, but a general thing. Trust me when I say last-minute lock-in sessions are NOT fun!
- There will be times when you have to do things last-minute. Especially if you do extracurriculars like Engineering Revue (which you should absolutely do!) It’s completely okay and its normal.
Anyway, I hope you, dear reader, enjoy the mid-sem break coming up. I know I will, I haven’t had this much free time in ages! I’ll see you in the next blog!