“What is one way that BiSci has infiltrated your life?”
“Well, one day I wasn’t feeling well so I remembered a lecture from a few weeks ago and took a few drops of my pee and put it in Gatorade and drank it to feel better.”
“That’s wonderful.”
Location Overheard: 100 Thomas Building
If this doesn’t sum up the class, BiSci, then I’m not quite sure would. For those of you who haven’t taken the class (BISC 3: Environmental Science), then I’m sure you’re feeling a bit lost and confused, and for those of you who have taken the class, I’m sure you’re feeling right at home. BiSci 3 was a course that I originally didn’t plan on taking, however, after overhearing a conversation between a guy who had taken the course and was planning to become a TA because of how the course had completely changed his life (I know it seems like all I do is eavesdrop on people’s conversations, but trust me I promise this is not the case), I decided to cram it into my schedule just for fun.
So, I looked into what the course consisted of and pleasantly found that it was taught by Doc and Jen with the goal of uniting environmental issues with one’s self in mind. It is hardly a science class at all but rather more of a philosophical one and was ranked as one of the best GenEds offered here at Penn State. With weekly journal entries, the course focuses on looking within one’s self, thoughts, feelings, and capabilities in an attempt to solve the detrimental practices that we see manifesting today that are harming the environment and Earth. At times, it may seem corny, but all in all, the course has really taught me a lot about myself and how I can learn to utilize my own emotions, agency, and activism to combat the problems of the world.
BiSci has been famously characterized as a “tree-hugger,” “look at the stars,” “hippy-dippy” course, but, honestly the current academic system is so focused on standardized testing that sometimes a class that focuses on learning about yourself rather than cramming outside material that you’ll end up forgetting by the summer is a breath of fresh air.
Anyway, getting back to the conversation featured in this week’s blog post, this is the epitome of BiSci actions. Props to this girl for drinking her own urine in attempts to cure whatever sickness she was feeling that particular day. Urotherapy is actually a legitimate practice that dates back to ancient Rome, Greece, and Egypt where urine was used to treat everything from acne to cancer. It is said that it reintroduce nutrients into the body such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and especially plant nutrients, however, this practice should be done in very small quantities.
On the other hand, drinking urine in today’s society really isn’t advised. Urine can introduce bacteria, toxins, and medications into your system that may potentially be detrimental to your health.
All in all, maybe stick to DayQuil and Benadryl if you’re feeling a bit down in the dumps, but I appreciate the enthusiasm of skipping all the way to urine instead.
Grace, I have heard a few different perspectives of people who have taken BiSci 3, both good and bad. Having never taken it myself, I could only rely on the opinions I heard from others in the class. Hearing you explain a little bit more about what the class is about interests me because I am so interested in all things environmental. I think its funny that someone in that class would admit something so personal to such a large class, but I guess that goes to show that classes really can affect your daily life. What’s even more shocking is that urotherapy is actually a real practice! I think you did a really good job explaining what you heard and about the class, and I also really enjoyed your visuals.
Grace, I first want to say that this blog post was both extremely well written and informative as well as extremely funny. I most certainly did not realize the urine could potentially help cure some sicknesses. While I myself am probably never going to try this form of medicine, it was interesting to know that this is not just some random people doing this, but rather several different societies and cultures throughout history.
That’s wild. I personally would never drink my own urine (or anyone else’s) in the hopes to cure any sort of illness that might be going on, but more power to that person that did. I agree that it’s probably better to stick to medicines, for all of the reasons…honestly mostly because the idea of drinking urine is really gross to me (and probably also to a lot of people). This was interesting to read about, I was vaguely aware of people drinking urine, but didn’t realize that it was an actual practice that people use.
I am interested now in BiSci 3 and I might take it. Ive also heard people drinking their urine to feel better, I saw a video about a girl that drinks it every morning just as if it was coffee. Not to be dramatic but I would rather die than drink my urine.
Wow! I just LOLed so hard internally. This blog was so fun and interesting to read. I, too, have heard about the BiSci 3 class, and it truly sounds like an interesting and exciting experience. I am baffled that someone actually said that they drank their own pee especially in front of a huge 700 person lecture hall. At the same time, I am impressed by her confidence to share this story. Overall, great blog once again and I can’t wait to read the next one.
I do not know how I would have reacted had I overheard that conversation! But, I am glad that you at least understood what they were talking about. Having never taken that class and knowing that drinking one’s urine is not good, I might have thought they were crazy. Drinking urine aside, that seems like an interesting class and I will have to see if I can take it sometime. I do not think, however, that I will try to drink my own urine, even though I have been sick a couple times this semester. I agree with you, I will just stick with DayQuil.