Special Molecular and Cellular Biology
Like many other concentrators, I had pretty much decided to concentrate in MCB even before I had even stepped foot in Wigglesworth because I wanted to learn more about the cellular processes underlying life. I quickly learned, however, that MCB was more than just interesting trivia about cells. Having been warned about the inevitable pain that awaited me organic chemistry, I initially dreaded the Chem17/27 requirement. But those classes actually encouraged me to explore the interface between chemistry and biology. When I arrived at the med school vs. grad school fork in the road, my interest in using small molecules to study diseases pretty made the decision for me. From Professor Lue’s awe-inspiring Life of the Cell animation on the first day of LS1A to troubleshooting western blots for my thesis, my concentration advisors have always been there and I can’t imagine my Harvard experience without MCB. The department’s support staff is also especially helpful. The wide array of interesting upper level classes from mitosis and cancer to the pharmacology of disease offers a plethora of exciting options for looking into the mechanisms of life. Flora Luo ’11
Music
I had been playing the piano and violin since age six, but I never imagined attending a conservatory or concentrating in Music. Performing and competing was not fulfilling enough at the time, and I wanted to have a more well-rounded education. After trying Chemistry and History and Science, I took a music class as an elective, and was immediately intrigued by that little building behind the Science Center that no one realizes is the Music Department. I realized that despite my extensive performance background, my music professor still had so much to teach me about concepts and composers that I did not know existed. The music concentration is, after all, not centered on performance, but on musicology — the scholarly study of music theory and history. I began to see how, if music was a constantly moving entity, it spun differently in every generational cycle throughout history--affected by social class arrangements, political affiliations, cultural movements, and technological innovations. My classwork, which mainly consisted of compositional exercises and various forms of analytical papers, was challenging, but surprisingly rewarding. Also, in my science lectures, I had thought I was not bothered by lectures with hundreds of students, but let's face it, being in a classroom with twenty people makes you feel like a real person rather than a number. Finally, the professors, more than anything, are incredibly friendly, funny, and knowledgeable. My music concentration allows me to exercise my analytical skills and creativity, not unlike other humanities concentrations, and as for a job, I'm not worried... we humanities concentrators will always have consulting. Hanna Choi ’12
Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations
Although it is a small concentration, there is a number of different tracks within Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations including Modern Middle Eastern Studies, Jewish Studies, Iranian Studies, Turkish Studies and Near Eastern Archeology. In-depth study of a language of the region is required as part of the concentration and the various language programs in the department are very strong. My own experience as a student of Arabic has been wonderful — the teachers are incredible in their commitment to both their students and the language. In general, I have found the faculty in the department accessible and helpful, even though there is relatively little unsolicited guidance. The course offerings are great and there is also a wealth of related classes offered through
8
independent1969@gmail.com
other departments. Joint concentrations with another related concentration such as Sanskrit and Indian Studies is also possible, but it does require a senior thesis. Furthermore, there is a great sense of community among the small group of concentrators in each year. Harvard also boasts excellent textual resources for the study of the region, ranging from Sumerian cuneiform tablets over Medieval manuscripts to contemporary academic works. Nicolas Roth ’11
Neurobiology
The Neurobiology concentration provides a great opportunity to learn more about why people behave the way they do. From taking both Psychology 1 and Molecular Cellular Biology 80 (which are introduction courses and both count for concentration credit), I was able to garner a general overview about the brain from a behavioral and molecular perspective. Delving further into the Neurobiology concentration allowed me to begin answering questions about how atoms and molecules, which form the basic makeup of the entire world, cause such macro-changes in humans. Since the Neurobiology field is a mysterious but rapidly-advancing field, there are a variety of courses that can count for Neurobiology credit. As I was interested in the molecular aspects of Neurobiology after MCB 80 sparked my interest, I decided to take MCB 115. This is a great course to learn more about the specific molecules that flow in and out of certain cells as an action potential is propagated down the axon. Since I am also pre-med and I am interested in diseases related with Neurobiology, I also took the Interactive Case-Based Online Network (ICON) Neurobiology tutorial. This class allowed me to work with a group of students to diagnose patient cases and propose treatments. Furthermore, MCB 105 is a course to take if you are interested about the neurobiology in the body, but not exactly from a molecular perspective. Neurobiology truly provides an opportunity to break down complex actions occurring throughout the body into simple processes that have no doubt been tested by nature and time.With such a variety of courses, I am very excited to be able to call myself a Neurobio concentrator. Yingna Liu ’12
Organismic and Evolutionary Biology
Advised by celebrity lecturer Andrew Berry, who you may recognize from last year’s Harvard Thinks Big, concentrators in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology investigate the functions, evolution and interactions of organisms from both molecular and ecological perspectives. Concentration courses range from OEB 10: Foundations of Biological Diversity to OEB 139: Evolution of the Vertebrates (5.0 Cue scores, anyone?) and cover everything in between. Even classes in applied math, chemistry, physics, statistics, and computer science count towards the extremely manageable 13 required halfcourses. If you’re looking into OEB, make sure you keep a spring break or two free! Several courses in invertebrate biology, plant systematics, and bird diversity include tropical retreats to exotic locations as far as the Caribbean, Dominican Republic and Brazil — mainly to study local wildlife, though some relaxation on the beach is permitted. The student group OEBug is constantly organizing trips to check out local wildlife at the Arnold Arboretum or Harvard Forest. Although a thesis isn’t required for graduation, research opportunities within the department are widely available and the professors are more than happy to host undergrads to their labs. Kevin Lin ’12
Philosophy
Here are some of the perks of concentrating in philosophy:
1) The department: because this is a small-medium sized department, the attention you get as a philosophy concentrator is incomparable. All the professors (who are by the way, some of the world’s foremost philosophers) know you by name and your advisor and the head tutor always take the time to get to know you. Everyone is very friendly and welcoming here, and once you join the department, you can really feel the sense of community and camaraderie among the concentrators, the graduate students, the faculty and the staff. The department also hosts frequent tea and pizza parties for the concentrators and the concentrators themselves even organize philosophical discussions over snacks or drinks! 2) The people: the people at the department are some of the smartest and nicest people you can find at Harvard. Everyone is very passionate about what they do (namely thinking, arguing, writing about philosophy). If there’s a philosophical puzzle or an argument that you cannot figure out, you can walk up to anyone and they’d be willing to listen to you and puzzle out the problem together with you. The people here are incredibly supportive, and they genuinely care about your development. 3) The classes: one of the reasons that I chose philosophy is the academic experience. Most of my classes average less than 40 people (my tutorials had 5 people on average) so you really get a great studentfaculty exposure. Philosophy classes are extremely rigorous and challenging and the department is very proud of the high standards that it expects of its students. But in the end, the hard work does pay off. After all the reading, logical reasoning and writing training we get, all of us are well-equipped to critique any arguments thrown at us. These skills are also highly desired by financial services employers and law schools so studying philosophy doesn’t mean that you can’t find a job after college! Lisa Tang ’11
Physics
The Physics concentration is for the brave-at-heart, those who are eager and willing to explore the fundamental truths of the universe. Being a student in the Physics Department trains your mind to be analytical, logical, and creative. Although the concentration is accompanied with the pains of late-night problem set sessions and hours of utter confusion, your efforts will be repaid with enjoyable witty company (other physics concentrators of course) and sweet eureka moments of comprehension. The Harvard Physics department is full of eager, accomplished professors who devote a lot of time to the relatively small Physics undergraduate student body, whether through chats during office hours or through supervised independent research in labs. However, the more exciting part about Physics at Harvard are your fellow students, who will keep you sane through your problem set all-nighters and help you cultivate a tradition of nerdy physics-based jokes. Course requirements are very minimal, allowing each student to follow a different sequence of subjects based on their interests, be it optics or biophysics or string theory. This is what makes the Physics undergraduate body vibrant and diverse. Physics concentrators are also advised to take a lot of departmental math courses as well (analysis, group theory, topology), and as a result, many opt to joint concentrate in Physics and Math. Basically, Physics is awesome and those considering it should talk to Dr. Morin to find out more! Hamsa Sridhar ’12
Psychology
I came to Harvard with absolutely no idea about I wanted to concentrate in until the end of spring semester sophomore year. I had taken Introduction to Psychology with Professor Daniel Gilbert and his class completely won
me over. I remember our final lecture very clearly. Professor Gilbert said, “If you’ve enjoyed this class, it’s not because I’m a great teacher. It’s because it’s just difficult to make psychology boring.” Though I believe the first statement is false, the latter has rung very true for all the psychology classes I have taken. I have enjoyed learning about people and what makes us tick and have appreciated the many tracks the concentration offers. The Psychology department has a well-run advising program with a great community. For those concentrating in or considering concentrating in psychology, I have three main pieces of advice: Consider whether you would want to write a psychology thesis. Psychology theses are based on experiments you conduct and rely heavily on statistics so preparation begins as early as junior year. If you even think you want to do a thesis, get into a lab as soon as possible to gain experience and to form relationships with head faculty. Consider whether you want to study abroad during a semester. Going abroad is an amazing opportunity and the department is very flexible, but you must plan well and make sure you can complete all your requirements. Cessna Mac ’11
Religion, Comparative Study of
I really enjoy the opportunity to study Religion as it brings psychology into contact with theology, anthropology and literature. It also allows different religions into come in contact with one another. The community within the concentration is stellar. There are only about 50 undergraduates in it, meaning we get to have sophomore and senior tutorials as a group. Due to the direct access to the Divinity School, we get a wide variety of classes, library resources, and advisers. In addition to this, we also get to have one-on-one junior tutorials and not one, but two senior thesis advisers. Add in the flexibility of the concentration, where you can study art, politics, or whatever else interests you, and it’s the best of both worlds: personal and supporting, and broad and diverse. Any sophomore who believes that understanding religion is essential to understanding the modern world, or wants to find out just what in religion makes it such a defining part of so many people’s lives should absolutely consider the Study of Religion as a concentration. Matt Cavedon ’11
Romance Languages and Literatures
As with the mastery of any new tongue, learning a Romance language leads to the discovery of a new world. Unique to this particular language family is the richness of its Latin roots, as well as the historical, political, economic and cultural impact of its tradition upon the world. The Harvard Romance Languages and Literatures Department offers language courses in five of the six most widely spoken Romance languages, in addition to courses in the Spanish and Latin American, French and Francophone, Portuguese and LusoBrazilian, Italian and Catalan literary traditions. There is great flexibility in concentration choice: one may focus on as few as one and as many as three languages at a time (the latter known as the Romance Studies track, or the lot of the “language junkies”). Small class size allows for greater contact with the faculty, while the summer and semester-long study abroad programs consolidate your grasp of the language through direct exposure to the linguistic environment, whether you are just beginning or seeking complete fluency. The classes feature films, museum trips, visiting lecturers and a variety of projects, with room for creativity and liberty of interpretation. Recommended with enthusiasm for lovers of literature and language, foreign film buffs, classicists and all manner of Curious Georges. Lidiya Petrova ’11
11.11.10 • The Harvard Independent