NUS High School of Mathematics and Science (Diploma)

[dagong99]

phtthp:

you did not waste - because today is Saturday.


i) NUS High library is closed on weekend:-
http://www.highsch.nus.edu.sg/library/

the library is open on weekdays (Mon - Fri), to only currently enrolled students, teaching and adminstrative staff.


ii) NUS High bookshop also closed on weekend & public holiday.

DS so keen in chemistry, already started reading secondary chemistry book given by his cousin, memorizing the periodic table & ask me to test him after every chapter he read. I really see 'stars' when he told me about 'atom', electrons, protons, etc ... I'm 'arts' n commerce student, not science :?

[phtthp]

from page 17 - 25 if scrutinize detailed Biology curriculum,

http://www.highsch.nus.edu.sg/userfiles/file/Academic%20Curriculum/Module%20offer%202011/Programme%20of%20Studies%202011_Public%20Version_11.02.23.pdf

it defintely helps to build a strong foundation on Microbiology, Biochemistry, Physiology, Ecology stuff. do lots of microscopic work, cell staining, mounting specimens ....

will benefit those who have strong, deep interest in research work next time or potential nobel prize winners, example: interested to work in IMCB (the Institute of Molecular & Cell Biology)

but don't seem to teach nor cover topics like Physiology & Anatomy of Human body system.

[phtthp]

hi ecafllort,


Thanks for feedback, but what a pity !

due to animal rights group, teachers now don't do live specimens anymore. Study animated dissection in paper Theory isn't quite the same as having direct hands learning from Practical work in the past like smelling the blood, touching the slippery intestines, etc. In Theory, often our mind tells us: 'I think the organ looks like this, or like that'. But it is often through useful practical dissection work that helps to confirm whether the mental picture formed in the student's mind, is correct or wrong.

regarding no dissection of rabbits, body parts of goat / sheep specimen. Bio students miss the hands on feeling of how arteries, veins, capillaries are like....the texture, the touch, the feeling, getting an idea of how the organs are arranged, lie inside the abdominal cavity.

i feel bad for current Bio pupils who have never had a chance to handle such specimens. They've to imagine what it is all like.....

there was once an RI boy who was so skilled with his hands that he could disect a rabbit , peel back the skin and still, the heart beats. That boy became a leading surgeon today in Singapore. Fine motor skills combined with rapier-sharp intellect made a top surgeon.

[ecafllort]

There’s actually a chance to handle sheep hearts and get a good idea of the ventricles and atria. As with all fresh biological specimens sometimes the experience is limited by the availability.


Physiology and Anatomy is covered, and integrated under the normal curricula. Students will likely encounter bits and pieces in the formative years, then move on to the actual module in Y5/6. Specimen handling is a must in almost all labs, so mounting, staining and observation are part of that process. There’s no real delineation of these skills into a specific module.

IMHO the content covered in microbiology, ecology, etc. is hardly adequate as concrete experience for work in A*STAR RIs. Specimen mounting and cultures can be done in a variety of ways, and it is much more likely that individual labs adapt these "standard practices" to suit the needs of their research, which is at a much higher level. For example, in schools, cultures are stained by first mounting the specimen (normally using water), then drawing the stain under the cover slip by using capillary pressure. In labs, however, where the quality of a stain is imperative for results, the sample will be fixed using a chemical agent, likely treated, then stained with multiple passes by immersion. Residue stain will be flushed before a cover slip is applied. A lot of IMCB’s work is based off genetics and microfluidics. Microscopy is almost always phase-contrast, fluorescent or SEM instead of compound or stereo-microscopy. The know-how for this content, realistically speaking, is almost always acquired as part of the induction process to the specific research project. No doubt, the core skills remain the same, but their use and application is rarely immediately apparent.

[dagong99]

ecafllort:

Been following this thread for some time and would like to clarify the following:


1) NUSHS bookshop does not sell past-year examination papers.

2) Instruction in classes comes from lecture notes and only in certain classes are textbooks utilized. At the junior level, purchase of textbooks is not particularly useful since they are quickly outgrown. A more reliable text to purchase, for example, would be:

Biology - Campbell and Reece
Chemistry - Chemistry3 for general, Clayden for Organic
Physics - Young and Freedman or Jewett and Serway

And to preempt the question as to where these books can be purchased - they are not easy to come by at local stores. The school bookshop should stock them, and sales options are normally made available when there is definitive need and use for them. Elsewise, copies are normally available in the library.

3) NUSHS students do not dissect goats or rabbits. The biohazard clearance required for organisms with potential for carrying blood-borne diseases is higher than that of NUSHS labs. Students will have the chance to dissect frogs and mus musculus (a type of rodent). At the Bio Olympiad level, where training is conducted under the purview of a different organization, the dissection may include insects and other small organisms.

Hi, may I ask if you are current student in NUSHS, which year ? Yesterday went to popular & national library but can't find the 3 reference books you had mentioned. Are they only available in NUSHS book store ? Do you mind if you can give me the full name of the books ? I use the search engine in the national library but still can't find, guess name may not be correct. Thanks !

[phtthp]

hi ecafllort,


Thank you for sharing your intimate laboratory knowledge.

just realized that found on page 20 - BL3101 the module on Animal Physiology does teach Human body physiology. Most of the Biology modules will have experiments to support their learning. Also just discovered that every year, have NUS High students eagerly opt for Medicine and got admitted into the Faculty of Medicine.

[biiyeo]

Is anyone interested in second-hand textbooks used in the NUS High curriculum? These include Young and Geller, Campbell and Reece (3rd, 5th, 7th and 8th eds.), Brown, LeMay and Bursten, as well as lower-level textbooks like Kenneth Miller’s "Biology" and Paul Hewitt’s "Conceptual Physics". Prices negotiable. Details upon request. Availability subject to circumstances. Please contact by emailing this user name @ yahoo.com or via PM.

[phtthp]

a) in Yr 5 and 6, do the lecturers in NUS High help students get attachment to do internship to glean industry practical valuable experience / exposure, or students need to write CVs to source for internship opportunities in organizations, on their own initiative?



b) since it is compulsory to do Triple Sciences at NUS High - does it mean that each student has to do 3 industry attachment projects, ie.

for Physics subject - need to do 1st attachment (example: to an Engineering company) ?

for Chemistry subject - need to do 2nd industry attachment (example: to a Pharmacuetical company) ?

for Biology subject - need to do 3rd industry attachment (example: to a Hospital, for Clinical practice ) ?

[biiyeo]

To phtthp:


A) Students are encouraged to source for internships on their own, whether by approaching relevant organisations or by proposing independent work. However, the Office of Research, Innovation, and Enterprise also collates available research projects and sends regular updates to the studentry calling for interested students, while the Office of College Counselling provides internship opportunities such as work attachment at hospitals, hospices, museums, and others.

B) No; the graduation requirement is that students complete one Advanced Research Project in Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, <em>or</em> Physics, preferably in Year 5 but definitely by Year 6. Students can also take up other Independent Research Projects of comparable standard in any subject, whether through traditional attachments like the Science Mentorship Programme, Nanyang Research Programme, Young Defence Science Programme, Science Training-in-Action Programme and Humanities & Social Sciences Research Programme, or through self-initiated projects. These research projects are reflected on the graduation transcript, including awards, publications, and participation in science fairs like the SSEF/ISEF, International Student Science Fair, and other industry forums.

[biiyeo]

Dear all,


Thank you for your interest in used textbooks. We are consulting with graduating students and hope to have a full inventory with prices for your perusal in a few weeks.