Cell Biology--Help

[Techmed07]

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I am taking the beast of a course Cell Biology next semester, it uses this book.

I am really concern about this class. Due to the fact I have not taken Biochemistry. Although it is not prereq for the class I heard it is suppose to be very helpful. I was wondering if anybody has any tips on a class like this or has the book outlines, I heard many university professors hand them out prior lectures.

 

[vman51]

I certainly did not take Biochem before I took cell, that would seem backwards to me..but hell, what do I know?

My advice: Enjoy the new year, relax for a few days, then maybe do some pre-reading if you care to

Theres a lot of info in that book, but very manageable if you know what is expected of you..its the usual advice for class - just stay on top of it, any confusion ask for help, etc etc

oh yea, use youtube for videos (actually that really helped me out with that class). It gave me a basic understanding of a concept (say transcription/translation), then id use the book to get more details

 

[Zona Pellucida]

Cell is so interesting. You will be fine. I did not take biochem before.

The place where Biochem would help would be regarding G Proteins and signalling cascades as there are a lot of cellular cascades involving proteins you learn in cell (Ras, Rab, etc).

I guarantee you will be fine. Your prof. will teach you. Relax

 

[Daedra22]

I have to admit, now that I'm taking biochem I understand cell biology better. However, I took cell biology before biochem and did really well. I found that visual aids (youtube videos and diagrams) helped me the most. I wouldn't stress the class unless you just hate cell biology already >.>

 

[JJMrK]

Probably the hardest class I've taken in undergrad, but because of the professor, not the material. In my class reading from the book was a huge waste of time. The powerpoints had pretty much all of the information you needed to know, but there are a lot of details (names of proteins, etc). You just have to get a feel for how whoever is teaching your class writes his/her tests, and then you'll be fine.

 

[Techmed07]

I have taken genetics and the molecular genetics was kind of difficult but I got through it. My plan is the try print out the outlines before class, rewrite my notes and record lecture. I am taking this class along with organic chemistry II I am just worried that is all. I hate to read before the class has even begun. Any other suggestions? Is it helpful for the MCAT?

 

[Lewist02]

You'll be fine as long as you put the time in for the class. I haven't taken Biochem...but all my friends who took both said Cell was like "Intro to Biochem." There is a lot of material and small details...so the amount of time you end up putting in will really depend on your professor and how he/she tests you. I used that same book as well. I hated it. I did use it for the practice problems but I felt like the text was confusing and sometimes included unnecessary detail.

 

[Techmed07]

it is a lot of memorizationnI heard. How do you all memorize things quickly and well?

 

[TTigers70]

it is a lot of memorizationnI heard. How do you all memorize things quickly and well?

Well you took Orgo I and there is no denying there was a considerable amount of memorization involved in being successful there. I was fortunate because I was actually interested in the material so I pursued an understanding of why MCPBA or other peroxycarboxylic acids behave the way they do, etc which let me approach Orgo I with more of an analytical/application of knowledge standpoint than just sheer memorization. Basically what I'm saying is you will have to find your own way to grip the material, there are TONS of details out there but do you need to know every little one? I encourage pre-reading if nothing else but to get a feel for the subject matter. I ultimately agree that you will really need to see what your professor asks of you before you can hammer out an effective study plan for this class. In the meanwhile, if you are still genuinely nervous, you can start reading and maybe outline important processes/relevant information. Enjoy break, I've bummed out for a bit and just played Call of Duty with my friends but I also find time to get ready for the upcoming semester; nobody likes a burnout.

 

[Spiker]

I am taking the beast of a course Cell Biology next semester, it uses this book.

I am really concern about this class. Due to the fact I have not taken Biochemistry. Although it is not prereq for the class I heard it is suppose to be very helpful. I was wondering if anybody has any tips on a class like this or has the book outlines, I heard many university professors hand them out prior lectures.

The book is good: awesome pictures, great explaination, EXTREMELY up-to-date with current research. HOWEVER

but very inappropriate for undergraduate courses. There is just too much information and details. So if your teacher is annoy they can ask you about the numerous factors that affect actin formation. It is really easy to make the test extremely hard using that book.

 

[BlueElmo]

Our class was very conceptual, but that's how most of these bio classes are at my school. I never used the book, as professors chose to lecture with their slides and use the blackboards, and these were much better than reading from the book. That book, by the way, is very thick and detailed.

 

[cardiology88]

I used that same book. The class wasn't bad, it was detailed though. I would say I probably only learned about 10% of that book. I am not a big fan of cell bio I find it mind numbingly boring.

 

[Burk]

The curriculum at my College states that you should take Cell Bio before Biochem. Study the power points closely!

 

[meerkatmd]

techmed07, if you attend the school i think you do, i took that class last year. its really not as bad as people say. the professor is outstanding

if you dont attend the school i did, then youll still do fine, the class is really cool.

 

[obgyny]

I am taking the beast of a course Cell Biology next semester, it uses this book.

I am really concern about this class. Due to the fact I have not taken Biochemistry. Although it is not prereq for the class I heard it is suppose to be very helpful. I was wondering if anybody has any tips on a class like this or has the book outlines, I heard many university professors hand them out prior lectures.

my cell bio class had the same book!! It was a waste of $150!! It intimidated me too, but I soon found out that the book was completely unnecessary. I never needed to use it once. All the info was laid out for us on the PowerPoint slides. I don't ever remember needing biochem either, so you should be fine. It was a lot of material to memorize (so many pathways!!!) with a fair amount ofconcepts. It really helped me to study with a friend. Just try to stay on top of the material as best you can.

Good luck, you can do it!!! 🙂

 

[Lewist02]

it is a lot of memorizationnI heard. How do you all memorize things quickly and well?

If your professor teaches towards concepts, then I would say make sure you generally understand all concepts and do the practice problems. My prof tested based on concepts AND details, so I made sure I paid attention to the concepts during class time (I found I retained them well) and then when getting ready for exams I would use a lot of repetition of my power point slide material to help memorize the information. I also split up my study time (about two hours a day for about 5 days before an exam) so that I didn't feel like I was cramming). The day of the exam I would go over material I had starred as really important to make sure I remembered the info.

If you're a visual learner, maybe try writing, typing, or visually scanning notes over and over.

If you're an auditory learner, maybe try explaining your notes out-loud to yourself.

 

[ncguy2005]

I have to admit, now that I'm taking biochem I understand cell biology better. However, I took cell biology before biochem and did really well. I found that visual aids (youtube videos and diagrams) helped me the most. I wouldn't stress the class unless you just hate cell biology already >.>

I agree, using what you learn from past classes really does help in cell. Organic chem was never more applicable than when my professor made us memorize the intermediate molecules in glycolysis... It made the changes to pyruvate make much more sense when you consider the mechanisms you learn from organic.

 

[vin5cent0]

Cell bio can be somewhat hard. I found it sometimes difficult because my class was entirely based around pop quizzes. They consisted of giving us ~15-20 topics, diseases, organelles, etc and creating a web of attaching them all together and explaining their relationship. You generally have to understand a topic really well to do that.

That being said, cell is a lot of rote memorization and not too terribly difficult if you put in some study time. FWIW, I didn't take biochem before it. We touched on it a little, but it was so introductory that I can't imagine having taken biochem would've been all that advantageous.

 

[bravofleet4]

It's heavily memorization. Remember biochemistry with the kreb cycle? It's like that.

 

[FloatOn]

I have taken genetics and the molecular genetics was kind of difficult but I got through it. My plan is the try print out the outlines before class, rewrite my notes and record lecture. I am taking this class along with organic chemistry II I am just worried that is all. I hate to read before the class has even begun. Any other suggestions? Is it helpful for the MCAT?

Looks like your strategy is repetition. If this has worked in the past for you, then definitely try it again but be ready to adapt. Like above people have said, the difficulty of classes are often based on who's teaching them. Cell bio, for me, was tougher than biochem (which I took after cell bio) because the professor was tricky and into details.

As I learned in upper-level science classes, it helped me to redraw things out over and over again instead of staring at the nice diagrams in the textbook or in the lecture notes. My pics didn't look as pretty, but at least I remembered how stuff worked.

 

[fant 2]

my advice; unless this class is required, drop it. I took Biochem 1(got an A) and was taking Human Biochem (B) concurrently and it was still a struggle. The professor was a D-bag, which made it worse