leaving... for now. (14I)

This week I went home for thanksgiving. It was crazy Tuesday trying to hang out with friends and pack for the long weekend. I wanted to say goodbye to all my friends but was unable too. Though the packing was hectic I was prepared for the weekend of food and old friends. So far I have done tons of work for my work at southern. My involvement this week was leaving southern. Mostly because there was two days of school and not much was going on except packing and leaving. I’m more nervous about my return because it will be two weeks of insanity and then nothing.

thankful (14B)

I am thankful for a great many things in my life. Going to southern and interacting with all the different people made me realize how lucky I really am. I have talked to many people and seen that life isn’t really as great as everything seems for everyone. And it has made me realize how lucky I really am.

First and foremost I am thankful for my family. They are all great, loving, and supporting. I know that no matter what happens to me they will love me forever. It was great seeing them over the break and look forward to spending Christmas break with them. Another thing I am thankful for is safety, a house, and food. There is nothing more necessary than have all of you basic need taken care of. Is the purpose of society and obviously something every American is thankful for.

Another thing I am thankful for is my friends. They are so great and supportive of me. They are also a lot of fun to be around. Next I am thankful for my opportunities and through that my education. I understand that many people even other Americans don’t have the same opportunities as myself. There is so much in this world to be thankful for it’s impossible to make a list and include everything. I am thankful for my world and the universe. I am thankful for everything in existence. I am thankful for the unanswered questions and the answered ones we know. I am thankful for my life and everything in it. It is an amazing chance I exist so I am thankful that all the things that were necessary for me to exist happened. There really is no possible way I can express all the different things I am thankful for in life.

relax (14A)

Thanksgiving break is a necessary because it’s a time to get a break before the final plunge. The last 2 weeks of college are by far the most stressful of the semester. While it’s important to relax over thanksgiving break it’s also important to stay on task. It’s also the time to begin studying for finals. This week I have hung out with friends watched TV, played video games, and slept A LOT, pretty much what anyone does to relax. However the fact that I have a lot of Spanish to memorize for Monday is not helping my stress level. I have also been stuffing my face with well, stuffing from thanksgiving. Also it’s scientifically been proven that petting animals relieves stress so I guess petting my cat has been helping as well. I have been listening to music and taking walks as well.

I saw the hunger games with my family Friday night. It was and extremely good movie and took my mind off everything that has been happening to me recently. I find that there is nothing better than sleep and a good movie to take you mind off stress. Waking up after 12-14 hours of sleep only to eat and watch a movie is the best. I watched TV with my mom and hung out with my brothers. It was really great catching up with everyone. However I won’t be totally stress free until the semester ends. Being able to sleep more than 5 hours at night was fantastic. I got advice from relative (all of which are in the medical field) on my education. This gave me some encouragement to continue on and finish my semester even though I have very difficult classes. Overall I have done many things this week to relax myself and it has been great.

investment (14V)

Google defines investment as an act of devoting time, effort, or energy to a particular undertaking with the expectation of a worthwhile result. Investment is relevant to college because college in itself is an investment. When you go to college you spend money on improving yourself and then in the future you can make more money. College is an investment in yourself.

This week I learned two new terms in chemistry:

electron affinity:  The energy change that accompanies the addition of an electron to an atom in the gas phase.

enthalpy:  A measurement of the energy content of a system.

dorm distractions creativity (13B)

Everyone has heard the term “work hard, play hard.” But what if someone’s playing hard while you need to be working hard? Not everyone has the same schedule and while some people may want to party in their dorm others may have an important project to do or a major test to study for. Now this seems like a pretty classic problem that occurs at all colleges, however in this project I need to tackle this in a creative manner. So aside from the statistics and boring facts and surveys I will make a fun skit with people from my dorms. This will hook people into my video and also illustrate creatively the problem and solution my video is about.

I plan to find different way to solve disputes about excessive noise, roommate problems, and much more. I plan to have numerous slides and different methods to describe my statistics from my survey and the different comparisons on what are the best ways to deal with problems in any dorm. However I will also cover the reverse, how to have fun while respecting that others have work to do. One such way to have fun is that you can listen to music without it shaking the walls.

Together with a wide array of means telling the statistics and results of my survey and interviews along with my creative skit on studying will accurately and creatively portray my problem solution video at a college level thinking level. Much of the editing will also add the creativeness in that it will smoothly and uniquely slide from fact to fact. I have so many ideas I can’t wait to get started on my final video project for Inquiry, but first I need to plan out my project and get people to act in my skit.

dorm distractions (13A)

Before I get into my plan on how to make my final video project contain college level critical thinking I will define what that is. College level thinking is when a high level of effort and intellectual thought goes into a task. It is not the level of thinking college student have, but are striving to achieve.

I plan to do a few things to make the intellectual part of my project of a college level. One is I plan to make my own survey and give it to people in my dorm. Because my project is on dorm distractions it would be best to get first had data due to the subjectivity of the topic. Some of the questions I will be asking are:

1        1.      If you need to study/work do you need to leave your dorm in order to concentrate?

2        2.      Is sleep difficult to attain due to noise?

3        3.      How often do you encounter a serious distraction in your dorm? (i.e. loud music a party)

I will add more questions but these will be the basic questions I will ask people. I will then research possible remedies to problems encountered in dorms. I also plan to compare my southern statistics to other schools to see if southern is a good or bad place live.

I will also explore what to do in case dorm distractions arise. For one I will explore what to do if people are playing loud music or if you have a bad roommate matchup. Also where can you go in case things are out of control and you need to focus on your work. So all in all I plan to make my own survey and compare its data in a statistical setting and then come up with the best solutions to dorm distractions.

SPDC (13I)

On Sunday November 17 I went to the Symphonic Pulse Dance Company dance competition. The moves some of the people were capable of were insane. While all the teams did a great job I particularly liked when they had people from the audience come up. They were all good and it was interesting what dance moves people could come up with on the spot. I would recommend this event to people because it was extremely exciting and entertaining. The dance teams choreography was great and if I were to give the overall event a rating it would be 8/10 stars.

purpose (13V)

Purpose is a relatively simple word when used in general however it can become very complex. When you say the purpose of government is to protect its citizens it is a simple concept to grasp. When you say your purpose in going to college is to get better pay in life then everyone knows exactly what you’re saying. Purpose can also be hard to explain, such as what is your purpose in life? in general purpose is the reason or meaning of something.

This week I learned 2 chemistry terms:

alkali metals:  Group I in the periodic table.

alkaline earth metals:  Group II in the periodic table.

liberal arts pros 12A

There are many pros and cons to a liberal arts education, but in this blog I will talk about the pros. One of the biggest advantages to a liberal arts education is the ability to approach problems in life and work from different perspectives. In today’s constantly changing world people need to know how to change, and solve problems other than those directly related to their field.

Rebecca Chopp says:

“Liberal arts is founded on a whole person, developing a person athletically and academically. Liberal arts is going international. The 21st century is one of entrepreneurship and innovation. There will not be fixed careers. The liberal arts teaches you to think outside the box.”

(http://rendezvous.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/22/two-views-on-liberal-arts/)

I completely agree with Rebecca Chopp, this new age has ushered in a seemingly endless supply of new inventions and ideas. It is absolutely necessary to obtain these skills in today’s world because employers want someone who can think outside the box.

Another bonus is that you know you’re in the field you will love. Instead of just choosing a career that sounds nice liberal arts schools allow people to explore different majors and in turn different careers. I always thought of these extra classes as a waste of time and a bunch of bull. However many of my classes this semester have sparked new interests in fields I had not yet been given the opportunity to explore. This has given me faith in the system of liberal arts and even made me second guess my major and career choice.

It also allows people a “buffer” year or two before jumping into their major’s classes. Instead of learning how to inject I.V.s into people I’m learning math and science for a deeper understanding of what’s really going on with people. It’s almost like a prep-period for when the real classes begin.

we are the millers (12I)

This past Tuesday I went to movie night at Procon. They played "We are The Miller's." which was a hilarious comedy about drug dealing and crossing over the Mexican American border. They serve popcorn and candy with drinks and the whole night was a really fun time. I would recommend going to movie night with some friends for an enjoyable night. My only complaint is that it’s in the middle of the week when work is at its heaviest. But overall a great time and cool movies lie in wait! But by far the best part about it all is that it’s free!

interdisciplinary (12V)

Interdisciplinary according to google is “of or relating to more than one branch of knowledge.” That pretty much sums it up. If you are interdisciplinary then you have a wide range on knowledge in a wide range of fields. You have skills in many areas in comparison to just one.

This week I learned some new chemistry terms:

Acyl Group: It is a functional group of organic compounds which is usually obtained by replacing the hydroxyl group (--OH) from any carboxylic acid.

Aliphatic: An organic compound in which the Carbon atoms are bonded together in the form of a chain. It does not have aromatic rings.

liberal arts. is it a pro, or is it a con. 12B)

Throughout this week’s reading I came up with a few important questions.

•  How is a liberal arts degree different from a less well rounded degree, such as HVAC?
• In what ways is a liberal arts degree useful and what ways is it useless?
•  Is it better to get a liberal arts degree, or a non-liberal arts degree?

Throughout this week’s reading many good points were brought up on why it is important to get a liberal arts degree, however the biggest question is when is it important. Everyone talks about how you will be a more well-rounded individual and will be able to approach different problems with a unique take or will be more empathetic because of the difference in education. The fact of the matter is companies and those hiring in today’s world want people to be able to do their job, and not many jobs require you to have a vast skill range.

For example, my father is a computer programmer for traveler’s insurance company, and in reality they really only care about him being an excellent programmer and having good people skills in order to be a successful manager. He doesn’t need to know CPR or how to speak Russian. While yes it is good to have a wide skill range in some fields the majority of jobs today are specialized. Nurses need to know how to give someone an I.V. and math teachers need to know calculus.

Another reason a liberal arts education isn’t as great as its held up to be is the fact that college’s purpose is to train people for their careers. In middle school and high school people can and are immersed in different fields and subjects, and then when college comes they decide what they want to do and are trained for it. So while the liberal arts education is good for some, it is not always the best and most efficient system.

sick shmick! (11I)

Since we are at the start of the flu season I figured I would find the student health center here at southern. It is located on Wintergreen Avenue and is close to the residence halls. The hours are from 8 in the morning to 4:30 in the evening. I think this is one of the most important buildings on campus due to its importance. No one can do well at school when sick. It stops you from going to class and ruins your focus on assignments. If you're sick then this is the place to go to get better faster and get back on track.

Other's Questions (11B)

While looking through the different questions on everyone’s blogs I saw many good college level questions. But a few stuck out as great questions too me.

The first one was by “stepphhr”. What is the relationship between creativity and people who have the greatest tolerance of uncertainty or boredom?

I think this question is great because it is specific to what it wants. There are no ambiguous words so what is desired for an answer is clear. It is easy to connect it to the reading through examples. And most importantly it is relevant to the subject or topic at hand.

The second question I thought was great is by “Jacqueline Reis”. What is the overnight test? How does not having enough time to reassess your work interfere with creativity?

I liked this question because of its simplicity. While you can write a lot on the topic the answer the author is looking for is very specific and relevant. Again it is clear and leaves the possibility to add examples.

The third great question was by “Kelsey Laudano”. What ways can parents, teachers or employers hinder a person’s creativity?

I think this is a great question because it has all the requirements of a college level question and even more. It is relevant to the topic, it’s clear and easy to connect examples to. However it goes a step further and relates the class work to real life. It is something everyone has experienced and can relate to.

This week’s activities have definitely helped me predict future quiz questions. Not in a way that I will be able to guess what exact questions will be on tests, but how to approach readings and assignments from a deeper level. I will no longer think of questions in the sense of what the article said but how the topics relate to the real world.

innovation (11V)

Google defines innovation as the “action or process of being innovative”, which is a pretty useless definition if you ask me. Innovation to me depends on the context. If someone is innovative then they are creative and have original thoughts and beliefs. If something is innovative then it is new and helpful to the world. Innovative is a synonym to creative because both mean a new original idea or creation.

Two words I learned this week are:

Activity Series: A listing of metals (and hydrogen) in order of decreasing activity

Amphiprotism: Ability of a substance to exhibit amphiprotism by accepting donated protons.

What's the question mean? (11A)

Before I give 4 good solid critical thinking questions I think it’s important to define what a good question has. The first aspect is relevance. A good question needs to be very relevant to the article or subject at hand. Second is the balance of specificity and broadness. If a question is too broad and too open-ended it’s easy to answer because you can write just about anything on a broad question. Secondly if a question is too specific the answer may be skewed with bias, or limit the persons imagination when it comes to the answer. And finally the wording of the question needs to be specific. You can’t have a question that has the possibility to mean two things or is ambiguous.

So here are some questions.

#1 In the “The joy of boredom” article it talks about how boredom is the gateway to creativity. How does creativity come from being bored? (Hint: what does one do when bored?)

#2 In the “The joy of boredom” article it says creative people have a higher tolerance for boredom. Is this true? Are they more creative than others or are the just differently creative?

#3 Technological advancements are taking up more of our spare time that we would normally be “bored”. One of the articles claims that this is a problem and is lowering our creativity. Is this true? Provide a personal scenario that is relevant to the lack of “boredom” blocking or halting our creativity.

#4 One article listed innovations that the author was looking forward to. Were there any unrealistic expectations? Any there any useless or worthless innovations? Amazing or life-changing?

               Answer to #2:

               I would say that people with a high tolerance for boredom are not more creative, but in fact just have a creative mind. A big imagination if you will. Others however think in different ways. For example we recently read of a woman who was doing poorly in school. And when presented to a psychiatrist she was discovered to be a dancer. Just because she couldn’t think in a chair or invent a new device doesn’t make her less creative than others. It’s just makes her creative in different ways.

Chase rules. (10I #4)

             This week I interviewed my R.A. Cam. He said that while there are many great benefits to being and R.A. such as free housing cost and a great experience to put on a resume, it also comes with a lot of hard work. They have to work the front desk, and while that’s not necessarily hard work, it is time consuming and required night shifts on occasion as well. They need to inspect rooms and make sure everything is up-to-code. They need to be sure everyone is getting along and that roommates aren’t in severe conflict. They also need to attend various meeting and be familiar with all the current codes and regulations. 

video (10A)

               I would give myself an A- on my midterm video post. While I believe it was well done and it did fulfill all of the requirements and I ran into many problems but only a few errors here and there. I think my video flowed, had a beginning middle and end, and most importantly kept the interest of a viewer. I did have some technical errors. One of them is that for two of the interviews there was no sound for some reason. Also I had to switch video makers because the first one was giving me problems such as not fitting things together properly and making a mess of all the material in imported. Overall though I overcame the technical issues and made a pretty good video. I clearly explained both the benefits of intramurals and the benefits of playing intramurals at southern.

               It was the proper length of time and had 3 student interviews and 1 staff interview. The interviews were hard to get because many people said standard things like “sports are fun” or “exercise is healthy”. You know the stuff everyone on earth already knows. I think I had a great intro, listing all the different intramurals southern offers, why southern is great to play intramurals and finally what benefits (besides fun and health) it brings to individuals involved.

               If I had more time the only revision I would make is spelling. I made a typo that I only noticed after it was submitted. While nothing is ever perfect I think I portrayed my topic well and included all of the requirements successfully. An A- is a fitting grade for this reason. There were only a few minor mistakes in my project and because of the many problems I ran into, both technical and in finding material, I feel it came out very well.

creativity (10V)

Creativity to me is the ability to have original ideas or create something original that has some use or relevance to the world. Everyone is creative in some way and it is my personal belief that everyone is equally creative. For example if you are a master painter you’re probably not as creative as most when It comes to inventing devices or having deep insights (mentally) about the world.

This week I learned two new words in chemistry.

Actual yield: the amount of product obtained in a laboratory experiment

Wave: A signal which propagates through space, much like a water wave moves through water.

a blessing or a curse? (10B)

               Everyone has their own side of creativity, some can draw well, others can sing, and some can play sports. However creativity is not necessarily unique to every individual. There have been many great painters and many great composers. I personally find myself to be a very philosophical person. I think deeply about the things that interest me. Many times that I share these thoughts people don’t understand me; this may be because I’m either a poor communicator or that my thoughts are too deep for people understand. I think it’s a combination of both (however I like to think it’s just the latter).

               Many people have realizations about their lives and the world, but I seem to have more than most along with the exploration of these thoughts. What mostly provokes my thoughts and deep insights is music. If I listen to the rights songs while relaxed I just think about well, infinite thoughts about anything. I had thoughts about the afterlife, if there is one, to why I did something as kid. I’ve had insights on why people shouldn’t have regrets, and how many factors go into the world being the way it is. I find thinking about life both enlightening and relaxing.

               That being said I don’t consider myself smarter or better than anyone because of my “talent” if you will. Instead I see myself as unique. When I took a personality test I found out I have the rarest personality on earth. In the descriptions for my personality it talked about how in my head (or rather people with my personality) I see things and understand many abstract concepts; however I cannot convey or illustrate them properly. In my classes I find myself having great insights about the lesson or discussion but when it comes to explaining them to the class I am unable to clearly explain myself. It’s both a blessing and a curse.

http://www.personalitypage.com/INFJ.html