Reflective Essay, Fall Semester 2012 - Reflections

Upon officially beginning my first semester in the University of Puerto Rico at Cayey, the challenges grew bigger. Despite the rigorous experience I had in Summer Bridge Program, it was not easily compared to a full semester. The combined courses, with an additional course for the RISE program, tested my limits and capabilities. With good fortune, I managed to balance my work and was able to dedicate myself to all the courses, including RISE.

This semester, RISE offered the course BIOL 3095, which was an introduction to Scientific Literature and Scientific Writing. In this course we were presented with opportunities to learn about citation skills. We were offered seminars in online research for prior papers written on terms of interest. And finally, the group was presented with the opportunity of learning how to write a paper, practicing said skill with a Review Paper in the topic of our choice.

The paper I wrote is titled: “Variation in Dopamine and Cortisol Levels in the Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal axis and their Association with Pediatric Aggression”. It deals mainly with the different types of hormones that affect a child’s behavior, and how changed in the levels of those hormones affect their behavior and personality. For more information, this paper can be found in the following link: http://portfoliogustavomartinez.wordpress.com/reports/ . The presentation done for this paper can be found in the link as follows: http://portfoliogustavomartinez.wordpress.com/presentations/ .

This course and semester offered new skill and knowledge in many ways. The course taught me about online research and the proper way of writing a paper. These skills will aid me in both my life as a student and in my future career as a scientist. The semester has offered me the knowledge of understanding how to better organize myself for studying. Also, punctuality has been better incorporated into my understanding. I hope that these learning experiences can be better employed for my future in the university and beyond the point of graduation.