Reflection #4: It seemed like this week, the main focus was on whether the idea of reproducible data actually interested the undergraduates in our class. I say this because from the questions asked in class, it is clear that almost none of the students has any personal experience with how reproducible data could benefit the scientific world. Personally, I am on the same boat; I took this class because I was extremely interested in the real world mechanics we would learn by operating with iPython and Github, and not so much the process of making sure what we did was reproducible. Keep in mind that is what I thought beforehand. As the class went on, I realized that this topic was extremely relevant to professionals who were doing their own research, and therefore, worth learning. For example, Eric and Phil's research shows how important getting data that both accurately and quickly depends on the reproducibility to past data. Their research examines factors that are relevant to all of our lives, and if there is a way to make sure that research comes out faster with less error, I think it is worth investing in. However, a few things about the class have bothered me. We have spent a lot of time emphasizing the communication aspect, but almost no time on the skill set that the class intends to teach us. I know we are close to starting, but this is just a point I wanted to reaffirm. An even better method of approaching this class in the future is to do the following flow:

1. Get all programs downloaded and have guidelines on how to use Github
2. Start programming small projects where people who need help can COMMUNICATE with peers and the online community for solutions to their problems.
3. Form groups after everyone gets to know each other from the small projects for a more collaborative atmosphere.
4. Give these groups larger projects that require specialization.
5. Repeat step four, but assigning different roles to people.
6. Tackle the final research project. I would be more than happy to discuss anything I relayed in this reflection during office hours, thanks for reading!