Dear Quintilius,

How do you think the world will end? Buddy bet $20 on nukes, I think meteorite.

Sincerely, 2012 Survivor

#NatureWinsVSMan

Dear Captain Obvious,

You humans and your mortality, you always manage to amuse me with your trivial questions. Acting like life will ever end is never the proper way to look at the cycle of the world. First of all because as an immortal time traveling Demi-god I don’t have to worry about death and secondly because I have seen the world at the time of both its “creation” and “destruction,” and neither were exactly overly exciting nor substantial events. There is no end, all lines are continuous, all possibilities exist, they have happened, will happen and are happening around us everyday.

The world carries itself in a cyclical path. The only things that will possibly destroy the world include a black hole or the explosion/dying of our Sol, but he’s a pretty solid guy so we got quite a few hundred millennia till that point. Otherwise the world will burn itself down (nukes) or drown itself (global warming) or suffocate itself (meteorite), in order to clear out the old and get on with the new. Really the way it goes doesn't matter. You hairless apes weren’t the first and you won’t be the last. You’re just a rebound, the world just isn’t that into you, it’s time to accept that and move on.

Yep, humans wont last, but you know what will? The eternal glory of Roma. It is not a place but an idea, it is an energy. It will not die like humans nor wither like flowers, instead it’s energy shall live in the animate and inanimate world for eternity. Therefore it cannot end, but shall be reborn through disaster time and time again.

Due to the relatively small class sizes and few lecturers in the Bio Department it is likely that anyone taking courses in said department will get to know each of the professors. However for those new students with their first time being here, this is just a little heads up on what you can expect in the first two courses CGE and BFI. We'll begin with the Cells Genetics and Evolution profs. Dr. Ahmad, this is the prof that will be expecting turkey sandwiches come thanksgiving so make sure you bring a few. If you aren't prepared to answer on the spot question in class be aware that you might have to hide. He loves his multiple choice exams but you won't! In the old CGE dynamic Dr. Rutherford was the relief after a string of intimidating profs, not to say that the others were bad. She's the Chair of the Department, but as a lecturer she tends to not overpower students with information. She likes to get students to write so prepare yourself. First years though won't have to worry about that, at least for a bit. Dr. Melvin is new to BU so make sure to take note of how he does for the edification of future students.

Onto the profs of the second term course Biodiversity Functions and Interactions. Dr. Untereiner will, as an introduction, likely give a lecture on how to properly formulate an email to your prof. Don't deviate from this, certain profs are less formal than others but you should still always address them properly as a rule. She tends to emphasize technicalities such as spelling and proper formatting of taxonomical names on her tests. Later on you'll find that she uses the white board an awful lot so show up to lectures! Dr. McGonigle is the same in that sense. He very much seems the role of plant person. He is very soft spoken so sit near the front. Closing out the first year profs is Dr. Cassone. He makes lectures quite interesting and likes to test you on the curiosities so pay attention to those. A Rate my Prof review says "I think he is hilarious and easy on the eyes", so there's that. He has a lot going for him not least of which is the best team of student researchers on campus! For the time being those are the profs that you'll be dealing with in your first two semesters.