This week, I interviewed Dr. Nowack from the Biochemistry department and chatted about his current hobbies and interests. Although Dr. Nowack will sadly be retiring after this year from Andrews University, we can make the most of the time left and appreciate his insights on life and other matters! Read on to learn more about this amazing professor.
Are there any projects you are currently working on?
“I just started working with a student to pick up a project I started last year. You know the enzyme tyrosinase, the enzyme you and I worked with in the biochem lab? This project is basically exploring some of the ions that interact with the tyrosinase enzyme. So, I’m teaching these students to make solutions. Another major project in the department is repairing the ultracentrifuge in my lab. The centrifuge goes up to 70,000 rpm or 80,000 rpm. I mean, it's a really fabulous instrument. It’s been used freely here in the science complex, but it stopped working, and so I'm trying to repair it.”
What do you think is the best and worst thing about being a professor?
“The best thing about being a professor here is the students. They're delightful and encouraging. It's meaningful for me to work with students in that aspect because I get to assist in laying a foundation for their future. It’s meaningful to know that they're better servants of God because of the training that I've been a part of. And this impact lasts generations, I hope! In addition to engaging with students, working with great colleagues here in the department is one of the best things I get to experience. The worst thing about being a professor is grading tests and grading papers. It's just tedious and sometimes discouraging, like, how could you have gotten that wrong? You know, was it me? Most likely it was, but nevertheless that's the hard part of it. I'm sure ninety percent of the teachers will tell you the same thing.”
What makes a good day at school for you?
To be perfectly frank, one of my habits is to procrastinate, and a good day for me personally is when I've made sure to manage myself away from procrastinating. If I get important projects done, big and small, it's a good day. Furthermore, a more professional aspect of a good day involves engaging with students, either in teaching or research. Especially when we sort of have a dialogue about the topic at hand rather than just me blabbering on and on about something I love. For example, I'm teaching sophomore-level high school students in chemistry, and it is their first exposure to chemistry. And I'm honored to teach them, and it's fun! We started talking about the structure of the atom, which is primarily the electron structure, principle energy level, the sublevels, and so on. This particular group is dynamic and it's fun to watch them go, “Really? Wow!”. You have the aha moment.
Do you have any hobbies? Are there any recent ones that you've picked up?
“Yes! Photography, actually.” “I picked it up recently. I used to do it when I was younger, but stopped later on. Now, I've gotten cameras and all kinds of stuff. Dave Sherwin, who is a photography teacher, has helped me a lot. Besides photography, I like to hang out with my wife. One of the more fun things we do together is we like to go out to eat together. And then, of course, we also try to figure out how we can hang out with our grandchildren as much as possible. It sometimes goes, “Grandma and Grandpa are here again! Oh man, when do I get my room back?”
Do you have a favorite place to eat around here?
“Out of various places in Berrien County, our favorite would probably be Silver Beach Pizza. It's everybody's favorite! Then, a close second would be the Mason Jar. And then, after that, it's Baguette. If we go a bit further, we also like Hacienda in South Bend. I have both discovered over the last couple of years that we like potbelly sandwiches. I also like Chipotle a lot! My wife likes it less. If we don’t go to Hacienda, then we sometimes go to La Perla in Benton Harbor.”
Do you have a favorite book?
“A religious book other than the Bible would be the book, “Education” by Mrs. White. And then a non-religious favorite book, which I've read more than once is Lord of the Rings. Every time I've read it, I've enjoyed it. CS Lewis was a Christian, you know. And there are hidden themes throughout the book that are supportive of the classic, the Great Controversy. The Great Controversy is also a favorite book of mine as well as the Lord of the Rings and they really are about the same thing.”
Do you have any pets or would like to get one?
“No, we don’t have any pets. It's somewhat because of our cleanly lifestyle, but now that we're approaching retirement, we certainly would not want it to be a burden. A pet is not a burden, it's a member of the family. However, we would like to have the flexibility of not having a pet.”
Speaking of retirement, do you have any plans for retirement or anything that you're looking forward to in particular?
“Well, yes! So there's a variety of things. One is fundamentally increased flexibility in what I do. I hope to continue to be busy. So there'll be volunteer work, finding a part-time job, photography, and general house maintenance. There's a lot there! And then after that is travel. I'm probably older than most people who retire and that is because university teaching is a very easy physical thing to do. You don't physically wear yourself out doing teaching. So I’d like to travel overseas and within the United States, and after that, just mostly go to the doctor.”
What do you think you'll miss most about Andrews?
“Friendships and social interactions. There's no doubt that out of everything I've read about retirement, I believe that there are important social interactions that you miss. I'm pretty outgoing and I like people, so that's one of the challenges I'm going to be facing.
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