Rundown of UBC Physiology and Physics courses I've taken this year

This post is in response to a question posed by a student I am in discussion with for SPAC (Science Peer Academic Coaching). For more information, please visit www.my.science.ubc.ca/spac.

I’ll try not to tout either program, but I’ll give a rundown of the details of each and let you come up with your own ideas.

Physiology

Physiology only offers an honours program, make sure that you’re capable and willing to commit to an honours program prior to signing up (i.e. if you bomb a course and are forced to drop honours status, you have to switch specializations).

You can find all the information about the courses and application process at http://www.cellphys.ubc.ca/undergrad.html (or Google “ubc physiology”).

The class size is usually between 10 and 20 students (at least in recent years). You can expect to cover a broad foundation in Physiological sciences, particularly the structure and function of human body processes.

Discussion of required 3^rd year courses:

1. PHYL 301 - General overview of physiology. This is like British Columbia's BIOL 12 human body sections on steroids. The sections of the course are listed in great detail on the Cellphys website above. This is a very popular course, and gives a foundation of understanding in many human body systems. Different sections are covered to different depths, and there is, in my opinion, about a 50/50 balance between conceptual understanding and rote memorization. Different sections are taught by different instructors, which has so far been not a jarring experience. There are two exams, one at the end of term one and one at the end of term two. This course requires a fair bit of studying, but is fascinating and rewarding.
2. PHYL 303 - Our wonderful physiology lab. Whereas PHYL 301 has some 500 students, PHYL 303 is restricted to members of Hons. PHYL and Hons. PCTH (by option). Preparation for labs and the process of labs are generally fairly low-stress, though lab reports can be significantly more troubling. Weeks alternate between formal lab reports (fit to submit to a scientific journal), and brief results reports/worksheets. Marking is not easy, and this course serves as an excellent introduction to scientific writing. First term labs include a blood lab, a number of electrophysiology (nerve conduction velocity, electromyogram, etc.) labs, an electrocardiogram lab, and a neuroanatomy lab in which we examine and handle donated human brains. A highlight in second term is sessions on surgical techniques. This lab course is excellent for solidifying a number of concepts from PHYL 301, and offers insight on techniques most undergraduate students do not have the privilege to explore.
3. BIOC 301 - In this course we go through a series of experiments which mimic techniques many students would do in a biochemical research job such as PCR, gel electrophoresis, PCR cleanup, restriction enzyme digestion, DNA ligation etc. We aim to ligate a protein coding segment into a plasmid containing Ampicillin resistance. We then introduce this plasmid into competent bacteria, and plate the bacteria on Ampicillin-containing LB media. In the next term, we will attempt to use the bacteria to grow the protein of interest.

I did not take BIOC 302 this term, and I do not need to take STAT 200 or BIOL 300 this year.

Physics courses

I don't have too much insight on specializing in Physics, aside from doing a minor. In order to complete a minor, one must take 18 upper level PHYS/ASTR credits. I took 2 physics courses and 2 math courses this term, and I found it extremely rewarding. These courses have given me deeper insight on the way science is done and the nature of the universe.

In addition, I find the social atmosphere around the Physics program very warm and supportive. The UBC Physics society is located in the room HENN 307, and is a great place for physics students to hang out, have lunch, and discuss homework.

Taking physics courses had a semi-expected consequence. Weekly assignments. This term, I had to complete  assignments weekly for 3 courses, which took me anywhere from 4 to 12 hours each. I had biweekly assignments for a fourth course. This is on top of weekly lab reports for PHYL 303, and occasional lab reports for BIOC 301. Needless to say, these courses keep students busy, but it does also keep you on track, and prevent last-minute cramming.

1. MATH 316 - We start with brief review of MATH 215, followed by a discussion of series solutions to ODE's. We then discussed a number of methods to algebraically and numerically come up with solutions to partial differential equations. Weekly assignments took 4-8 hours to do. Very important for applied mathematics and physics courses (particularly PHYS 304, I found).
2. MATH 300 - I didn't actually have to take this course for any reasons whatsoever. It just sounded interesting. This is a course in complex variables, an introduction to analysis in the complex plane. This was incredibly eye-opening for a number of mathematical concepts which I had not had a complete understanding of before. The course is broken in to 5 sections: (1) Algebraic and geometric representations of complex numbers, (2) functions of a complex variable, (3) integration of functions in the complex plane, (4) sequences and series, and (5) residue calculus. Assignments were weekly and took about 6-10 hours each.
3. PHYS 304 - Quantum mechanics. I found the quantum mechanics in PHYS 200 somewhat disjointed and hard to follow. This course hammered the mathematical models of quantum mechanics into place. From first principles, we work our way into 3-dimensional radial quantum mechanics, and the mathematical construction of the Hydrogen molecule. Using an algebraic approach, we also develop the trends inherent in the periodic table of elements. This course is also an introduction to a number of mathematical concepts such as linear algebra topics, operator approaches to linear algebra, bra-ket vector notation, a number of well established polynomial sequences, partial differential equations, and more. This course had weekly assignments taking about 8-12 hours each.
4. PHYS 404 - Medical physics. I found this course fascinating but disjointed. It is divided into six 4-lecture topics, each taught by a different instructor. They are (1) introduction to imaging, (2) MRI, (3) nuclear medicine, (4) radiological imaging, (5) biomedical optics, and (6) radiation therapy. This was not an easy course, and not an exciting one either. It did serve as a good introduction to imaging concepts and radiation physics, as well as a great chance to tie together medical and physical concepts. There were bi-weekly assignments taking 1-3 hours each. There is a term paper (2000-3000 words) on a medical physics topic of your choice.

I will likely do a similar post at the end of next term. Cheers, and take care!

Happy holidays, and Happy New Year.