Something I've noticed lately: I've gotten really good at certain types of problem solving that I used to suck at. For example, for my structural biochem class, we were given a couple problems on spectroscopy; one was a MS sequencing problem, and the other was a problem with 2D NMRs, asking you to identify chemical shifts of protons in a short peptide via a COSY spectrum and assign the order via a NOESY spectrum.
Now I helped some classmates with these problems, but that sort of problem is exactly the type of problem I would have gotten incredibly tripped up on a year or two ago. Now before biochem, I had never been shown how to interpret a 2D spectrum or a protein MS. But somehow these two problems were relatively easy for me.
I wonder if the skills gained this summer by looking at 1D spectrums of proton NMRs helped (I was doing synthetic organic research, so I basically was running things and then trying to decipher the NMRs). I mean, the strategy you use in interpreting 2D NMRs is quite different from 1D NMRs. Being familiar with chemical shifts of various protons helped, but I think more importantly, despite the details of the strategy being different, it just helped by giving me a set of learned problem solving/critical thinking skills that extend to reading any sort of spectra.
Well, it's good to know that I'm getting something out of this education thing.
ACS Spring 2023 in Indianapolis
1 year ago
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COSY was AWESOME when we learned about it in spec ID. i have yet to actually use it in the lab, though. then again, NMR isn't all that important to my research group...we rely much more on xtallography :)
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