What do I do when I have no idea how to answer a problem?

You might find this to be a common occurence (just as it is in real life). First of all, don't panic! This is normal. This is life. Learn to welcome confusion as an old friend. When you remain unsure of your moorings, that is when anything is possible. Like complaining muscles during exercise, a complaining brain -- I'm confused! -- is good! (and others have said the same thing). Revel in that brief freedom! Relax and let the problem tell its story.

The true enemy is not confusion but despair. If you find despair beginning to eat at you, avail yourself of one of the many sources of help: from your colleagues, from the TA, or from me.

Second, reflect on what you need to know in order to answer the problem. Seek a connection like, "the problem would be easy if I only knew how many bilirumps there are in a frazzle." Then your task reduces to the usually simple matter of finding the requisite fact. If you determine that the difficulty lies in a specific hole in your molecular education (e.g. "What in the world is a southwestern blot???), visit your friend, Google, or seek help -- perhaps someone in the class has already gone down this road. But the first step is to pin down exactly what you need to know so that you can go to the web or possibly helpful colleagues or me with a question that might be recognizable.

Don't throw yourself prostrate in front of the proposed helper and whimper "Help me! Please, help!" Learning is most effective when you direct the learning process. Figure out what questions you need to ask before you ask for help. Here's some advice on how to prepare for calling on others.

Perhaps you feel that there is not enough information available to answer the question. That's a start! In that case, try writing out an unassailable proof that the question cannot be answered. Cast it in the form of a letter to whoever wrote the question ("Dear Idiot,..."). Often in doing so, you find a hole in your argument, a hole through which you can escape and answer the question (I've written hundreds of Dear Idiot letters, never sent). And, like a worm on a hook, keep wiggling. The more you try new twists, the greater the chance that you find a way to work yourself loose. But if you reach the end of the letter and the proof is still sound,... send it.

Finally, we will devote considerable time in class to problems. This requires, however, that you bring with you the issues to be discussed. We can't jump over any hurdles until you have encountered them.

Feel free,... no, invited,... no, URGED to attack the problem sets with your colleagues. However, so that feedback is meaningful, hand in the product of your own mind, in your own words.

Will problem sets be graded?

No. But you may turn them in to receive feedback. This service is offered up to the published target date (and beyond, if the TA is willing). This policy is intended to encourage you to do problem sets as they are dispensed (to avoid unsightly buildup at certain times during the semester) and also to protect us on the receiving end from gluts of more work than we can handle.

Then why should I... I mean they're not going to be graded, right? So...

Who am I to tell you the best way to master your craft? In MY experience, however, concepts aren't really learned unless I can USE them in their actual contexts, i.e. by solving problems. With that in mind, all exams will be based on problems. And, since I am not infinitely creative, I will generally take the questions on the exams from the problem sets we've already handed out, with minimal modification.