<p>So I'm currently taking chemistry over summer and my lab partner is awful. He was blatantly rude to me when we first met because he thought I was avoiding him (I wasn't. He was facing away from me when the TA told us to introduce ourselves.) Then he kept his backpack in the way during the entire lab so I couldn't reach the table. When pouring chemicals into water, he poured half of them on the table (mass is VERY important for these calculations.) When I suggested we redo that trial, he just blew me off. Then later I wanted to weigh the mass of our calorimeter after we added the ice (to be more precise than just measuring the ice which is what he did.) When I asked him to not pour it out yet so I could weight it, he just said "Nope!" and poured it down the drain! Now I'm losing points on my chemistry lab because our data is extremely inaccurate.</p>
<p>Whenever I try to suggest anything (that is objectively a more accurate way to do things) he just hoards the lab equipment and won't let me do anything. The lab questions even assumed we had done things I suggested which he wouldn't allow me to do.</p>
<p>I would have done more trials my way at the end but there was absolutely no time, and we aren't able to come back to finish labs. Does anyone have any suggestions for dealing with this? I mostly wanted to vent but if anyone has dealt with this before let me know how you handled it.</p>
<p>Ask for a new lab partner. It not only sounds like your lab partner is just uneducated, but he is also blatantly going out of his way to annoy you.</p>
<p>@CalDud: My last two lab partners were great. And everyone else in the section seems like they know what they’re doing. So I think this is just a fluke. I believe he’s a fifth year senior who’s only in second quarter Chemistry…</p>
<p>And I think I’ll ask the TA if I can do my own labs. We have our own equipment. There were a lot of reasons I couldn’t work alone during the first lab but if this continues I may have to in the future.</p>
<p>Yeah, you should definitely notify the instructor or TA or whoever’s in charge. Don’t worry about being a snitch or whatnot, your grade is on the line and your lab partner has clearly crossed the line and you shouldn’t be subjected to that.</p>
<p>Is he being a d0uche purposely, or is he just stupid? </p>
<p>Based on the fact you had to introduce yourself to each other, I’m assuming that you were assigned your partner? so it wasn’t your fault for picking a cretin. you can suggest to do the experiments yourself, but he will probably have to agree as well. my freshmen year, my lab partner dropped the class and I had to do everything myself. It all worked out.</p>
<p>@spectastic: You know that feeling when you’re working with a partner on something, and you know exactly what needs to be done but the other person just doesn’t understand and you both keep hinting at what you should do? That’s how both of us feel; the only difference is, he’s wrong.</p>
<p>He also is just really stubborn. I mean, even if you know you’re right, at least try to explain why you’re right. And he wouldn’t even let me take 10 second of my own time to do it my way.</p>
<p>I feel kind of bad because I think he might have asperger’s or something, because he just presents himself very oddly and is unsettlingly blunt. Also, accuracy is an extremely small percentage of lab grade (I missed 3 points out of 109.) So, should I just suck it up? Maybe I can try to be more assertive and do things correctly next time.</p>
<p>Sounds like a menace, and some one who doesn’t belong in college. I think you handled yourself pretty well if you never showed any anger. But also, you shouldn’t let anyone step all over you like that either.</p>
<p>It sounds to me like he planned to purposely make you guys fail, and then drop out so his grades wouldn’t be effected and yours would. You should tell the instructor everything that happened like you said in this thread.</p>
<p>it’s called compromising. A lot of people have different ways of approaching various situations. It was his fault for not wanting to work together. Maybe he’ll figure it out, but you don’t have to feel bad about it.</p>
<p>@spectastic: I guess I was referring to what happens when one or both of you is bad at compromising haha.</p>
<p>@AwkwardBear2016: He definitely didn’t do that. He showed up to the first discussion and was answering questions. And he needs the class to graduate. I’m not positive if he dropped the class, but he wasn’t at lab and we can’t make them up during the summer. And if you miss one lab you automatically fail the entire class. I can’t imagine someone actually doing that, especially since they’d have to pay a prorated portion of the class fee.</p>
<p>It’s kinda funny. I have asperger’s and I am definitely told that I am being rude when I don’t know I am (girlfriend but maybe she is just in hysterics). I wouldn’t intentionally sabotage someone like that, ever. I’m very nice and sociable. I would say I blend in more than most until you’re around me long enough and pick up on all the clues. </p>
<p>Maybe he might have it or maybe he must just be a plain jerk. I know someone who also had it in my lab class. Most of the time I’d say he was exceedingly arrogant but was smart and helpful during the lab by going around the lab room to help others if they needed it (while doing his own lab). I’m pretty arrogant too, but I do have some learned “social grace”.</p>