So for school I’m working on this project in which I’m building a virtual receptor to use programs to dock my potential drugs to. In making the model I have to find a template, align my receptor sequence then build the model. But I don’t just build one, because my receptor is not the same as the template I had to build some variation into my model; I have to make what is known as loop models. In my case, I made 3 initial models and 10 loop models of each. So I have 30 unique models to work with. Within each model I have 5 interfaces that my potential drugs can interact with; which means I have 150 unique interfaces in which I have to work with. In order to dock my potential drugs I then have to set up a separate file for each one for each interface. So for the last week I’ve been setting up all of those hundreds of files. To top it off, once I have all of those set up, I have to write a script for each interface so it will automate some of the next steps, like docking each potential drug individually. Well, with this script I’ve had to tweak it probably 4 times already in the last two days. Then when I uploaded it all to let it run I got an error message. That error made me go back and have to tweak an earlier file that the script has to pull from. So needless to say, I’m tired of editing and re-editing the same damn 150 files (or their variations).

So lately I’ve been so unmotivated with school. Maybe it’s because it’s my last (hopefully) semester so I have senioritis (despite being in grad school). And it’s not for lack of wanting to be motivated. I want to get finished with my research and get out of here. I don’t want to work in this lab synthesizing the same compounds forever. But I suppose part of me is comfortable here and doesn’t want to leave and explore the doors that will open with this advanced degree.

In either case, it doesn’t change the fact that I’m taking two classes that for the most part bore me but I have to take them and I have to do well in them. And they aren’t boring classes, for me it’s just a boring presentation of interesting material. I guess I wish that professors would stop standing up in front of the class teaching from notes they compiled on the subject five to ten years ago and actually get their students interested in the subjects. Or at least stop handing me complete notes that you’ll teach from with a date stamp from 1992 and expect me to pay attention. I’d really wish that for these smaller graduate level classes they would make them more interactive and less preaching. But I suppose you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.