Mad for Molecules

As a student, I served as a guinea pig twice: once in math and once in science. Both were successful tests.

In 8th grade, I was in the first group of students exposed to Algebra I. Someone selected us on some basis (I remember hearing nothing about this change), and we were separated from other students for a new program to see if 8th graders were ready for algebra. Boy was I ready. Having been bored for years with math, I loved the x's and y's.

Two years later, I participated in another educational test, this time to see how first-year biology students might respond to DNA. Again, the change saved my life. I became so fascinated with biology that I went into the lab during free periods to chat with the teacher and work on projects. When I went to university, I entered thinking I would become a molecular biology major thanks to the stimulation of that class. Unfortunately, first-year biology merely repeated what I had already excelled in, dampening my enthusiasm.

There are days when I miss the excitement of math and biology, and yesterday was one. This remarkable video brought back the joy of my youth when the concept of DNA was still only a decade old and when no one could have predicted such realistic mathematical/computer modeling.

Watch, and maybe you'll remember that rush of excitement, too.