Welcome to Chemistry 250: Structures of Organic Molecules! We have hit the ground running full speed ahead in Orgo 1. Already students have dived into the first three (yes 3 !) chapters of their text books. They are learning how to draw organic molecules and identify different functional groups. Functional groups are characteristic groups of …
The Olympics, 2012
When I wandered through the City of London museum, I was bombarded by the magnificence of a city that has survived and thrived after thousands of years and many disasters in the forms of plagues, fires, war, and mad monarchs. The sheer fact that London had existed before the birth of Christ and survives to …
“I’m Not Sure I Get It” – A Visit To Tate Modern
As evidenced above, most of the art at London's Tate Modern isn't exactly what you might call "accessible". I personally know very little about visual art (and even less about the nebulous sub-category of "modern art"); to see this world-renowned gallery from the perspective of the uninitiated was an experience that was both exhilarating and …
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Tips for When You’re Lost in London
One of my favorite parts about being in London is figuring out how to get somewhere. This has been my first trip abroad where I have been given so much freedom. However, I have discovered that for the price of freedom is the need of a good sense of direction. When walking down …
Jet Lag, the Tube, and Other Miscellaneous Thoughts
At this point in my trip to London, I still can’t quite believe we’ve only been here for six days. For whatever reason, time has slowed down – although I think that’s due primarily to the jet lag, which is exactly as bad as I had heard it would be. Thankfully, my circadian clock caught …
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Friends versus Family: How to Vacation in London
I’ve been to London twice in the past six months. The first time I went with my family and absolutely abhorred the experience. After visiting every single possible tourist location in all of England, we rented a car and drove four hours to the ‘Dr. Who Experience’—which is some sort of strange hybrid museum/amusement ride …
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Strange Interlude
Last night, I attended the National Theatre’s production of Strange Interlude by Eugene O’Neill. The play, which spans around twenty-five years, centers on Nina Leeds, who keeps several men in her life in her search for her idolized happiness. O’Neill’s characters use asides consistently throughout the play in a way that makes beautiful, sweeping sentences …
Pedestrians Beware
“One does not simply wait for pedestrians. One runs them down so as to herd them and remove them more quickly from the path of a car.” If there was an adage for London drivers, this would be it. If walking is scary (because from personal near death experience on many occasions it is safe …
Proper Appreciation of the Globe Theater
The Globe Theater, located right on the banks of the river Thames, has not changed overmuch from its heyday in the Elizabethan era. The modern Globe being an accurate reproduction of the original theater, the experience of attending a show remains virtually the same. Here are two Globe conventions which help an audience member appreciate …
TATE Modern
Dead trees in a giant, empty white room. They reach toward the ceiling, materializing out of two blocks of industrial wood. Their barren trunks extend upwards from their square bases. Short, cut branches poke out in all directions. A small plaque says that they were chipped out of huge planks, ring by ring, until the …
