Our Time 1998

I nelastic collisions. Boh r 's model. Homozygous. Kinetic energy. Pressure, volume, and temperature. Meiosis. Thermodynamics. Moles. Deoxyribonucleic acid. With words and topics such as these, it is no wonder that the esteemed and highly valued Science Department is the sternum of the Illinois Mathematics and Science Acad– emy. While not all of the students at IMSA are studying to be engineers, like the taxpayers would like us to, most students could not imagine a semester at the academy without engaging in highly stimulating courses such as Human Ana t omy and Physiology, Organic Chemistry, Astrophysics, Ecology, Advanced Chemistry, and Electron– ics. Unlike the wonderful world of the seniors and their electives, the sophomores and juniors had a prescribed program. The sophomores either had to take both Physics and Chemistry as traditionally separate courses, or take Integrated Science, which supposedly combines the two into one effective program. Some juniors were introduced to the cornucopia of living things under the expertise of Mr. Traina, Dr. Pine, Mr. Thompson, and Mr. Merczak, while others finished up their three semester commitment to (Dr. (Don (Dosch (Dr. Edgoebel Norman Merczak^ Integrated Science. Junior Mike Okoye said, "The Inte– grated Program does not work as well in the classroom as it does on paper, but I enjoyed my experience in it nonethe– less." Mr. Kawa, who taught Survey of Organic Chemistry for the first time this year, provided valuable insights into the world of chemistry for budding upperclassmen scientists, as his class made lava lamps, aspirin, and gooey slime. Dr. Workman prepared students for the Physics AP as he taught his students the basics of electricity and magnetism in Calcu– lus-based Physics. Dr. Pine taught Human Anatomy and Physiology, which Senior Leigh Spencer enjoyed because "it introduced me to the way my college biology courses may be taught." Dr. Goebel's General Microbiology was a popular class among the seniors, and they obviously enjoyed it, as Senior Josh Stream attests, "Gen Micro was pretty fun. The hands on stuff was cool, and I wreaked some havoc in the lab." Senior Kim Ishida concurred, as she said, "In Gen Micro, butt stabbing was my favorite activity!" Although this may sound like some weird social ritual, in actuality, the yearbook staff has learned that "butt stabbing" is a way to inoculate an agar slant with an inoculating needle. (Dr. Ron Pine (Dr. Susan Styer John Thompson Joe Traina Dr. Dosch relaxes with his Cheetos in his office as he calculates grades. 132 ( sAcademics'