Monday, March 22, 2010

Lessons taken to a whole new level

I had the most interesting tutorial today. We, the biochemist to be, were told to meet in a different location for our tutorial this week. I went to the location and was surprised to see that the doorway leading to the lecture room was draped with long, dark curtains, like those you would find in a cinema. The room was like a mini-theater. The seats are those cushioned types and you have to pull it down before you can sit on it. The 3D glasses were located below the seats. Yes, you saw it right. We were in a virtual reality classroom.

We were learning about protein-protein interaction and our tutor, Grant, thought it would be best if we could see those proteins in real life. And omg we love that guy! Once we put on our 3D glasses, he took us through many different types of proteins. Most of which we have heard of in his lectures. And we saw more than the 3D conformation. Grant rotated the molecules, zoomed in, zoomed out, removed their residues, added side chains, I felt almost like I was in the magic school bus!

I now see the wonders of my university. I am not in some ancient and forgotten building. Hidden behind those brick-red walls, are great facilities which can enhance teaching and learning. The uni of adelaide, I see you in a different light. But are there more of you which I don't see?

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