Frequently Asked Questions
Last revised: Friday, August 27, 1999
If your question isn't answered here, send it to me by e-mail. I'll answer it and post the answer here, if it's of general interest.
Q. Why should I bother with College? Do I really need it?
A. Dave Barry Explains College.
Q. How can I get some research experience in biology? I'd like to get into a research lab.A. There are several options for research experience.
- Independent study in a UConn biology lab, with corresponding course credit (MCB 299, PNB 299, etc.). Many faculty members have grant-supported research programs, and typically have a lab with several graduate students and a few undergraduates. Independent study is always arranged on a one-to-one basis; typically a student would be in the lab one or two afternoons a week.
To get started in independent study, you need to find a faculy sponsor who has space in his/her lab and negotiate the time and credits. We offer a course specifically designed to introduce undergraduates to the variety of faculty research programs:
Biology 295. Introduction to Undergraduate Research. 1 credit. Tuesdays 3:30-5.A different faculty member comes each week to talk about research in their labs. Most interested students take this for both semesters of sophomore year, and by junior year have a good sense of the kind of research that interests them and some acquaintance with the variety of research at UConn. It's good practice to stick with the same lab for several semesters of research, since you build up your skills and competence with time.It's always good practice to prepare a short handout about yourself when looking for a faculty sponsor for research. Include a transcript and a list of any relevant background you've had, including any lab experiences and techniques you're familiar with (including things like photography, skill with microscopy, prior experience with gel electrophoresis or other techniques, etc.)
- UConn Coop program allows juniors and seniors six months of full-time, paid, career-related work experience. Contact Dept. of Career Services, 486-3013, for further information. This involves off-campus experience, usually working with companies in Connecticut. A number of students have found this to be a very rewarding way to find out how research is applied in the "real world", and some have continued working at their coop company after graduation.
- Work study. If a student applies for need-based aid (through the financial aid office) and receives work study money, the student can always find work in biology, including laboratory work. Go to TLS 161 and talk to Anne or Jan. They have a long list of job needs, and will try to match a job to student interests.
- Student labor. Some faculty obtain money to pay undergraduates from research grants for work in their labs. When these positions become available, faculty will look for qualified individuals from student applications on file in the biology office in TLS 161. If you wish to be considered for such work, go to TLS 161 and talk to Carol or Jan about submitting an application to be considered for student labor.
- The Honors Program is designed especially for students interested in gaining research experience. Even if you didn't join the program before you came to UConn, it's not too late. Visit the Honors office in Wood Hall, Room 113 for more information.
Q. When I go to print out lecture notes and other material from the Web, sometimes the font size is too large and I waste a lot of paper. Can you make the print on your Web pages smaller?A. The size of the font on your machine is set by you, not by me. The HTML Web coding language doesn't specify font type or size, but entrusts this to user preferences set by the browser software on your machine. To change these preferences, proceed as follows:
In the Netscape (or other browser), go to the "Options" menu item and open "General Preferences". Select "Font". You will be able to choose a proportional font (default is Times, but I prefer Times New Roman, Helvetica, or Palatino myself) and a font size. Someone (probably before you) may have reset this size (or the font) to a larger size. If you want smaller print, set it to 10 point. 12 point is the most common. Note that Times is much more compressed than other fonts. Once you reset the font size to your specifications, it should print out smaller pages. A similar approach with different particulars should apply if you are using a Web browser other than Netscape.
An even better procedure is not to print out the pages at a computer lab, but to save them to disk and bring them back to your own computer for printing. When you choose "Save as" from the "File" menu, you can save any Web file as a text file. Text files have no specified font or size -- this is set entirely by you, using any text reader or word processor. This allows even more flexibility and economy.
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