The first session ever at Shodor of Medicine and Biosciences began with a good first day. Bob2 introduced what SUCCEED meant and then overviewed what the students would do throughout the course of the week. Next, there was a get-to-know-you session where the students introduced themselves.

Then, the students went outside and were shown Bob2's ¨stupid rope trick,¨ which actually did have a purpose, aside from giving Bob a chance to show off. The students were asked how to get better observations of what was actually happening in the trick. After the students came in from the heat, Bob2 showed the students how to tie a shoelace, then he showed them how to represent this action mathematically. The students then discussed what different computers and computer platforms can do differently and what scientists can use each for. Bob then held a short lesson in learning STELLA® to get the students used to the modeling software they would be using throughout the week. To test the students skills, the class, together, modeled a basic population graph. Then the students were required to model a predator-prey relation ship using Lynx as the predator and Hares as the prey.

In the afternoon Bob explained in detail ODEs, or Ordinary Differential Equations. The class also learned how they could model these equations in STELLA®. Next, the class was shown a model of how a flu epidemic will spread in a population by Erin Bell a graduate student in epidemiology at UNC-CH . Then for the rest of the day the students were given the task to model how an ebola outbreak would affect a population. It was enough to keep the students busy.