While I prefer variations of phaco chop for most of my cataract surgery cases, residents typically start learning cataract surgery with divide and conquer. And for good reason: it is a safe and reliable technique and it largely removes the constraint of timing. With phaco chop there is only a small window of time, usually about 1 second, when the vacuum holding power is maximized and the nucleus is fixated for chopping. With divide and conquer there is no limited window of time and therefore it is easier to learn and more forgiving for beginners. It is a good, solid technique that you can use for the entirety of your career, should you choose. This video is about case 250 from an anonymous resident and it highlights a very good divide and conquer technique. In particular, pay attention to the sculpting of the grooves, which is ideal.
