Maybe I shouldn't have started this blog now, not with everything that's been going on.

I offered the Computer Science students doing their thesis in astronomy quantifiable proof of the misconceptions people have about astronomy in the form of the diagnostic survey I have been giving my astronomy classes at the start of the term for the past year or so. They said they’d think about whether they’d use that or not.

After all, they can’t put in their related literature because I haven’t published the results of their survey. And if they analyze the results themselves and put their conclusions in their paper, they might be questioned as to when they were able to conduct the survey and why it wasn’t in their proposal.

With the system as it is right now, unless they are directly in my research group instead of just consulting, I don’t see a way they can use the raw data from a “research” I have started.

Now, on to my first lecture classes in mechanics last Monday.

I was surprised that in my 1120am class, all the chairs (around 30) were filled. So Monday to Thursday last week wasn’t enough for the students to take care of their enrollment, despite the sign-up sheet during the first three days.

One of my students from last term’s graphics class said it felt different that we were in class and he didn’t have a computer in front of him.

The cocky Student Council president, who in his campaign speech mentioned the certificates he received in high school (which included the subject I’m teaching), ruined my tactic gauging the students’ comprehension of the topic. I asked if they wanted more examples and he said, “No.” If there’s a case for having advanced placement exams, that’s it.

I finished the first chapter in one-and-a-half hours, which included operations while in scientific notation, conversion of different units, and a seatwork.

The second class, at 1pm, where my cousin was enrolled, also had more students, but this one seems to have more of the rabble-rousers, whose voices sporadically competed with mine during the lecture.

One of my students in Trig (who Maila failed last term) expressed his disappointment that there were no smart people he could ask for help in the class. “Look on the bright side,” I said, “With these as your classmates, you have a better chance of being the top student in this class.” Somehow that possibility comforted him.

Later, after I introduced what I said was the last example, he told the class, “He won’t dismiss us yet. There’s a seatwork. The other class told me so.”

Back in the faculty room, updating my class lists, I decided to just put the names of the students in both classes in one file (there’s 51 total so far), because just today there were instances where a student said he would attend the earlier class instead of the later one (to go home earlier), and another where someone else said they’d go to the second class (to take an extended lunch). I anticipate this will be a regular occurrence.

I have some more irregularities to report tomorrow. I have to be on my way now.