Our Chemistry teacher is a unique person. I will refer to him as RC. The other day I so badly wanted to throw something at his face that I broke a part of my geometry box in an attempt to restrain myself. That was one class I thought I have to record.
He is short and he always walks with his head facing the ceiling. Thus, he strode into our class in his usual way and opened his reference book (the contents of which he attempts to learn by-heart everyday). He stood staring at the opposite wall for a few seconds and then, without moving his eyeballs, began explaining a certain topic from the text book, or should I say narrating. When he begins this routine everyday, he goes on with breathless continuity until the bell interrupts him. But that day he, surprisingly, stopped of his own accord. He borrowed a textbook from a student seated at the first bench and instructed, "Turn to page147, para 2, line6, word5. The spelling of 'liquefaction' is wrong. It is given as 'liquifaction'. It should be 'liquefaction'. Okay. Now, turn to the exercises at the back. Start question number 5.13. I am writing the hints on the greenboard." Having had his say, he proceeded to copy down the 'hints' from his reference book. This was what he wrote on the board: Try yourself (yourselves):
Hint(s):
...............................................................
Five minutes after this he proceeded to explain the next topic which was surface tension, vapour pressure and viscosity. He began, "Suppose there is a bedsheet and four students are holding it at four corners. Then what will happen to it? It will become like a stretched rubber membrane. Now if a small child is added inside the bedsheet and he starts pinching it from down, then it will become like concave shape. Now, throw that child and put another child on top of the bedsheet. This child will pinch it from top, no? Then what will happen to it? It will go up. It will become convex in shape. So, this is surface tension if you think in terms of molecules of a liquid. ......................................................................................................................................................................... Now, when we go to high altitudes, the atmospheric pressure decreases. So the boiling point of water decreases. That is why people in hilly areas need pressure cooker to create pressure and cook, otherwise they have to go hungry. But nowadays new pressure cookers are available which are automatic. You press one switch and the food cooks by itself and then the switch is made off and the next switch is made on. .......................................................................................................................................................................... You may have seen small small ants swimming in a bowl of water. But actually they don't swim, they walk. When you were small, your mother must have told to take sugar out of its container carefully because many ants will be there, no? Actually when you put it in the milk or tea, the surface of the milk or tea acts like stretched rubber and the ants walk on it, so you may drink ants also. .......................................................................................................................................................................... Okay. Today I have practical class with you, right? Let me ask you, which do you prefer; hot soup or cold soup? Obviously, as all of you said, hot soup. Why do you prefer hot soup? ...... Yes, it is more tasty, but why can you tell me? .......... Okay, you think about it ha, tomorrow I will discuss." Thus ended his class. In his usual way he picked up his reference book and walked out with his head towards the ceiling.
If you were sitting there, in his class, wouldn't you feel like tearing his hair off?
As promised, the next day, he resumed his discussion on soups. This was what he said, "Hot soups tastes better because of surface tension. When the soup is hot, surface tension is less and the soup can spread out uniformly on your tongue and touch all the taste buds at the same time. So, you will get all the tastes which your taste buds can perceive. But if the soup is cold, then it will not get chance to spread on your tongue before you will eject it."
:)
He is short and he always walks with his head facing the ceiling. Thus, he strode into our class in his usual way and opened his reference book (the contents of which he attempts to learn by-heart everyday). He stood staring at the opposite wall for a few seconds and then, without moving his eyeballs, began explaining a certain topic from the text book, or should I say narrating. When he begins this routine everyday, he goes on with breathless continuity until the bell interrupts him. But that day he, surprisingly, stopped of his own accord. He borrowed a textbook from a student seated at the first bench and instructed, "Turn to page147, para 2, line6, word5. The spelling of 'liquefaction' is wrong. It is given as 'liquifaction'. It should be 'liquefaction'. Okay. Now, turn to the exercises at the back. Start question number 5.13. I am writing the hints on the greenboard." Having had his say, he proceeded to copy down the 'hints' from his reference book. This was what he wrote on the board: Try yourself (yourselves):
Hint(s):
...............................................................
Five minutes after this he proceeded to explain the next topic which was surface tension, vapour pressure and viscosity. He began, "Suppose there is a bedsheet and four students are holding it at four corners. Then what will happen to it? It will become like a stretched rubber membrane. Now if a small child is added inside the bedsheet and he starts pinching it from down, then it will become like concave shape. Now, throw that child and put another child on top of the bedsheet. This child will pinch it from top, no? Then what will happen to it? It will go up. It will become convex in shape. So, this is surface tension if you think in terms of molecules of a liquid. ......................................................................................................................................................................... Now, when we go to high altitudes, the atmospheric pressure decreases. So the boiling point of water decreases. That is why people in hilly areas need pressure cooker to create pressure and cook, otherwise they have to go hungry. But nowadays new pressure cookers are available which are automatic. You press one switch and the food cooks by itself and then the switch is made off and the next switch is made on. .......................................................................................................................................................................... You may have seen small small ants swimming in a bowl of water. But actually they don't swim, they walk. When you were small, your mother must have told to take sugar out of its container carefully because many ants will be there, no? Actually when you put it in the milk or tea, the surface of the milk or tea acts like stretched rubber and the ants walk on it, so you may drink ants also. .......................................................................................................................................................................... Okay. Today I have practical class with you, right? Let me ask you, which do you prefer; hot soup or cold soup? Obviously, as all of you said, hot soup. Why do you prefer hot soup? ...... Yes, it is more tasty, but why can you tell me? .......... Okay, you think about it ha, tomorrow I will discuss." Thus ended his class. In his usual way he picked up his reference book and walked out with his head towards the ceiling.
If you were sitting there, in his class, wouldn't you feel like tearing his hair off?
As promised, the next day, he resumed his discussion on soups. This was what he said, "Hot soups tastes better because of surface tension. When the soup is hot, surface tension is less and the soup can spread out uniformly on your tongue and touch all the taste buds at the same time. So, you will get all the tastes which your taste buds can perceive. But if the soup is cold, then it will not get chance to spread on your tongue before you will eject it."
:)
wow. you have impeccable writing skills for one so young. keep writing!!!! and irritating as this professor is, it gave me a nice recap of my chemistry lessons from high school:)
ReplyDeleterofl :D throw that child?????seriously??
ReplyDeleteyo! no exxagaration at all. n thanks shri priya didi. :)
ReplyDelete