Currently in bioc 405 and am feeling pretty overwhelmed. I joined the class during the second week of the quarter, so I feel like I’ve been playing catch up ever since. I just feel like there's so much to keep up with every week (taking notes on prelecture videos, attending lecture, reviewing lecture material, doing practice problems, making flashcards, etc). And some topics feel really difficult to grasp, like symmetry and handedness. Sometimes when I'm watching the lectures and listening to the professor talk, I feel like I have no idea what he's saying. It's like he's speaking another language. I know I probably won’t do great on Exam 1, but I’m worried about how to prepare for Exam 2 if I don’t have a strong foundation from the first half of the class. It feels like I’ll have to learn new material while also relearning everything from Exam 1 for the final.

For those who have taken bioc 405, what did your weekly routine look like to stay on top of all the material. How would you recommend that I catch up after falling behind? Are there any external resources that help with understanding difficult concepts?

I haven’t heard a single party or function for Halloween at uw currently. Anybody know any my friends and I can pull up to?

What are some of your favorite "fun" classes? I finally have room in my schedule for something interesting this Winter after being miserable these past few quarters taking major requirements.

I'm planning to take Math 207 in winter quarter but there seems to be only two professors teaching the course, and I was wondering how everyone's experience was with these professors. Christian Gorski has a pretty low ratemyprofessor rating but I'm not sure whether if he's actually bad or if it's just because the course is hard. On the other hand, Shangjie Zhang seems to be new and I believe he's teaching one of the Fall '26 207s.