You Know My Methods

Every time I think I am vaguely getting smarter, I thank Doc Whitecastle for keeping me daft and grounded.

Thanks to BIO 211 (which I aceminused* despite a surprisingly difficult final), my ability to understand the methods sections of peer-reviewed health literature (but not economics**) has skyrocketed in recent months, along with my ability to understand the work that I have been contributing to for the last 3.5 years.  Makes me wonder what I have been doing for the past 3.5 years.  But no matter, just ask me what the Watson-Durbin statistic is. 

OK.  I can't tell you, but I can eagerly nod my head in recognition.  But then Whitecastle goes and pulls a Cox model (let's all pause for a minute now to snicker) on me:

Whitecastle: You do know what it is, right?

Moi: I've heard it... a lot...

Whitecastle (sigh): Have you taken BIO 230?  232?  Will you take it?

I'm only at 211, with 210 on the horizon.  Then graduation.  And so many more models to misunderstand.
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*Aceminus: n) a person who is good, but not excellent in a particular field; v) to earn a high grade but not quite the definitive A or A+ that usually earns bragging rights.  See also: Me- at life and Lenny's e-coli medium.

**I come across a particularly confusing paper for our review and hand it over to Whitecastle for assistance.  For once, I concur wholeheartedly with his assessment:

Whitecastle: This is going to be a difficult paper to understand.  Let's exclude it.