first day of classes

i am very scared of this semester.
i had my advanced cell biology lab this morning and - i'm very scared. i tested out of molecules, genes and cells and so the last time i had any of this information was in high school. this class is an experiment that hasn't been done before. there are 7 or 8 people in the class and on mondays and wednesdays we are learning about - whatever we want to learn about, discussing problems, learning really in depth about applications of cell biology. on tuesdays we have lab where after the first 3 weeks we are designing an experiment to carry to completion by the end of the course.

the grading breaks down like this:
problems: 6 (3 oral and 3 written) x 100 points
quizzes: 5 X 20 points
Lab
-participation 100 points
-proposal 100 points
-presentation 100 points

problems make up the majority of the class. this is our first problem:
Do viruses cause cancer? if so, how? on the way to answering this main question, answer at least five of the following:
*list five types of cancer that have demonstrated relationships with viral infections
*can the common cold give you cancer?
*is cancer contagious?
*why do some viruses lead to cancer, but not all?
*do all viruses that lead to cancer formation do it in the same way?
*why do some infections with the Epstein-Bar virus lead to cancer, but many don't?
*Give a clear and detailed cell biological mechanism for how a particular type of virus can lead to a particular cancer
*Compare the mechanism of oncogenesis by Epstein-Barr virus vs. human papillomvirus

so then we get a list of "suggested readings" and the advice to do more research outside of class, and we write a report or give an oral presentation, and get graded. yeehaa!

today we were just going over basic cell structures and two of the people in my group are - super scary smart seniors that I recognize from last year. one of them did research with one of the chemistry professors and one worked at a cell biology lab this past summer. they know soooo much and i felt very out of my depth, comfort zone, whatever you want to call it.

i know that this class will be very good for me - it is an awesome chance to develop lab skills, problem-solving skills, independent research skills as a sophomore. and it is good to get this information that i missed in molecules genes and cells. but: i'm a little nervous. ;)