How do you deal with such stupidity?? - Page 2

Jay Cohen · 11-23-2008, 11:35 AM

Why do you feel that you have to say anything. It becomes you vs them.
Get your degree, practice / preach how ever you want, but get over trying to change the world, or change anything for that matter.

There will always be at least three sides to every debate, your side, their side and the truth, somewhere in between.

You really need to take a few breaths, chill out and move on.

Grissim Connery · 11-23-2008, 05:41 PM

right now i'm a junior undergrad majoring in "nutritional biochemsitry and metabolism." i'm actually entering the grad school at the end of this school year. i am also on the DPD track, so in 2 years i will enter the dietetic intership, and then take the test for the RD license. first i'll say that the biochem classes will explain a lot of what you really wanna know. the nutrition classes need to be approached differently. for example, this semester we had a few weeks where we were reviewing papers on dietary fiber and what not. the entire time i had 2 questions running through my mind.
1. are there any benefits from fiber intake from grains over fiber intake from fruits and vegetables?
2. what are other benefits (aside from obvious ones) to taking in fiber from vegetables and fruit over grains?

i found that my goal was to try to prove myself wrong. if the teacher made some statement that i felt went against my opinions on nutrition, then that was beneficial. since people are going to start asking you nutrition questions more and more often, its better to be ready. i don't feel that i necessarily have to argue with my teacher over any issues (although it sounds like my teachers don't make the same extreme statements that yours do), but instead i work to take their info for what it's worth.

when we were reviewing omega-3's and their benefits, i talked to my teacher after class about grass-fed meat. she admitted that she had not reviewed any material regarding whether there was a higher content/better ratio of w-3 to w-6 in grass fed meat. this was a good response. i did not attempt to argue with her at all, i simply asked if she had any knowledge on the subject and she responded that she didn't. i did not do this in front of anybody else. my goal was not to embarass the teacher or anything like that. i simply was curious what she knew on the subject. thus i could better under why some studies were picked by our teacher for our review as opposed to others.

not every teacher knows everything. what's hard for me in nutrition is to get as interested in a few specific sectors. for example, nutrition for burn victims has a lot of research. i find that most of my focus concerns diabetes, obesity, and heart disease since these issues tend to surround me more often. your nutrition teacher may have participated in studies involving babies with PKU disease and how to feed them. one of the biggest things i've learned in college is that it's hard to know everything. this may be as big as a divide between nutrition and aeronautical engineering, or may be as small as one biochem class that i can't take because i won't be able to graduate in time if i take it. people generally learn what they need/want to know. thus you should try to recognize when you're more familiar with a particular subject than somebody else. i do get frustrated with other nutrition students a lot. for a lot of them, they don't try to connect the dots with everything they're learning. for them, if you're skinny, then you're eating well. in some cases, they just need a major that will supply the right courses to take the MKAT. you should focus on becoming an expert on the things you want to know.

Grissim Connery · 11-23-2008, 05:46 PM

my nutrition class this semester required us to write 2 big papers. my first was on IF. my next is to review soy protein and the past associations it has had with heart health (the association is not being supported anymore).

basically, try to exploit all the opportunities you can to get your opinions out.

Chris H Laing · 12-03-2008, 04:45 PM

I say get your teachers to fight you, on the grounds that if their diet is healthier they should be in better shape. Once you whoop their asses they'll all see you were right

Greg Battaglia · 12-03-2008, 07:48 PM

Jay,
I thought I made it pretty clear that I'm not trying to "change the world". I'm simply frustrated at the fact that my professors refuse to at least consider the research that I present them. Like i said, I do it in a calm and professional manner. I don't stand up in the middle of class and boldly proclaim that the teacher is a complete fucking moron, as much as that might be the truth. An academic setting should be open to new ideas, not set in dogmatic beliefs regardless of contradictory findings.

College is expensive. I think I have every right to be concerned that I'm not getting a very good education.

Gittit Shwartz · 12-03-2008, 10:43 PM

Greg, I'm in the first year of college too. I put it off for a long time (I'm 26) partly because of this very concern - that I would be wasting my time studying things that were unimportant, irrelevant to what I want to do, or just plain wrong.

You have to understand that your education is in YOUR hands. There's nobody in the world, no institution, that you can go to, say "gimme an Education", and then just sit back and absorb it. The world is full of opinions and bad science right up to the highest levels. Almost everything needs to be questioned at some point. Just accept what you're getting in college for what it's worth: a degree that'll open doors for you, some useful information, some trash that you can use to hone your acuity. If it's worth it to you, good; if not, get out - college isn't the only way to learn. Personally I'm still undecided.

My majors are psychology and biology and when I see the 20-year-olds in my class swallowing Freudian theory like it's the gospel truth I'm really glad I waited til I was older.

It sounds like you've always been active about learning, and you're keeping your head on, that's the important part. Good luck

Garrett Smith · 12-04-2008, 06:28 AM

If you think what they have to offer (degree, certification) is worth it, jump through their hoops.

People are addicted to their grains and sugar, they will not believe your other presentation (most likely).

I had a nutrition minor. While I didn't know very much on our favorite nutrition topics back then (Paleo, low-carb/GI, etc.), I still felt that those classes were more enjoyable than taking more chemistry classes...

Eyes on the prize.

Camille Lore · 12-04-2008, 07:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chris H Laing

I say get your teachers to fight you, on the grounds that if their diet is healthier they should be in better shape. Once you whoop their asses they'll all see you were right

I'm entertaining a career switch to physical therapy, just bc I think it would have a lot in common with what I learn now...or maybe not. I would go a little nuts in that class too. I like the idea of using your papers to open some eyes.

Gant Grimes · 12-04-2008, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greg Battaglia

An academic setting should be open to new ideas, not set in dogmatic beliefs regardless of contradictory findings.

This thinking went out the window circa 1900.

Grissim Connery · 12-04-2008, 10:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Garrett Smith

I had a nutrition minor. While I didn't know very much on our favorite nutrition topics back then (Paleo, low-carb/GI, etc.), I still felt that those classes were more enjoyable than taking more chemistry classes...

Eyes on the prize.

i'm in the chemistry professional fraternity. we don't do much, but we think chem is pretty legit. we had to learn alchemy history for initiation. that's a quirky bit of history.