Last night, Wednesday night, I had my first church experience. I was walking to my dorm after my chemistry lab with Sam and we saw Nicole and Zach. They were headed to Eucharist, a late night worship. Nicole kind of peer pressured me into going. I was a little apprehensive about going. There are a couple of reasons I have never been to church: 1) My parents never went so I never had to either and 2) I never really believed in the Bible and 3) church reminded me of funerals.
We got there and there was live music playing. I thought, okay, this isn't going to be so bad. The service started. First we sang a song. Next, someone got up and spoke about something in the bible. After that we prayed for a while. This I actually liked. It was almost complete silence and I felt like I could think. I had never prayed before like that so I really didn't know what to do. As I thought about it, I just thanked God for everything he has done for me and to keep the ones I love in my life safe. I felt good after this. Next, came the communion. This I had never seen before. I did not take any bread or wine. Nicole said this was a very personal choice. I really did not get the significance of it until she explained it to me. She said it was like making God an part of you and that is a really intimate thing. I did not take anything because I felt I just shouldn't. It was my first time talking to Him. After that we sang another song and then had treats.
In the end I am glad that I went. I felt like it opened my mind up to new things. Looking back on my reasons why I never went to church, I feel like those still hold true. I did feel a little sad when I walked in because it reminded me of sad times at funerals. I feel like this was something good for me to experience. Something that college is all about is exploring new things and I think this was one of them. Overall, I had a good first experience and am considering going back next week.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
I am now scared...
On Monday I took my first college test. This was a Biology test. I know you are suppose to start studying about a week before a test. I kind of did, but not really hard core until the day before. I tried not to psych myself out that it was going to be really hard. In reality, I had no idea what to expect, except for that it was a multiple choice test. I kept on telling myself I am going to do awesome and I know everything I need to know. So I walked in, sat down, and got right to work. Honestly, it was not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I think I got a pretty good score. So I thought to myself, this Biology thing isn't going to be so bad. Well I thought that until today.
Today, during the Biology lecture, a panel of successful students came in and talked to us. They described study skills, test taking skills, and their overall opinion about Biology and being a Biology major. Wartburg's Biology major is one of the hardest majors. One of the students said that it is challenging but worth it. If you want to get into graduate school, say Iowa, you have a really good chance. They said Iowa would pick a Wartburg student over an Iowa student any day because of the good reputation and success the biology department has at Wartburg. When they explained some of the things I will be doing as a biology major I got scared. I started to question myself, is this really what I want to do? They said do not expect to get all A's like you did in high school and that is okay. They said with the reputation Wartburg has it is okay to get a C in a biology class because it is equivalent to getting an A at UNI.
Overall, I think I am going to stick with a Biology major. I am not sure what I want to do when I graduate, but biology is the only major I think I am interested in. The panel of students reassured me and scared me at the same time, but I think it will be worth the hard work and effort.
Today, during the Biology lecture, a panel of successful students came in and talked to us. They described study skills, test taking skills, and their overall opinion about Biology and being a Biology major. Wartburg's Biology major is one of the hardest majors. One of the students said that it is challenging but worth it. If you want to get into graduate school, say Iowa, you have a really good chance. They said Iowa would pick a Wartburg student over an Iowa student any day because of the good reputation and success the biology department has at Wartburg. When they explained some of the things I will be doing as a biology major I got scared. I started to question myself, is this really what I want to do? They said do not expect to get all A's like you did in high school and that is okay. They said with the reputation Wartburg has it is okay to get a C in a biology class because it is equivalent to getting an A at UNI.
Overall, I think I am going to stick with a Biology major. I am not sure what I want to do when I graduate, but biology is the only major I think I am interested in. The panel of students reassured me and scared me at the same time, but I think it will be worth the hard work and effort.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Europe
In this blog I am going to talk about my trip to Europe last summer. I traveled with the Iowa Ambassadors of Music to seven countries in two weeks. The seven countries were England, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, and Liechtenstein. During this tour, we played concerts for the locals. I played the clarinet. There were about three hundred total who went. This trip was the trip of a lifetime for me.
To start off, I was going to be a senior in high school and this would be my first time away from my parents for an extended amount of time. I thought it would be a good college like experience for them and for me. They were a little more nervous about me going on the trip than they were leaving me at college because well I was leaving the country and literally almost on my own. I had to make sure I kept my passport with me at all times. I was in control of money spending and across the ocean, the dollar isn't worth a whole lot.
A week before we actually left we had a music camp. This was an intensive band or choir rehearsal. This was fun and I learned a lot. It boosted my confidence musically because we were playing songs like Stars and Stripes Forever. It felt good to play in a band of almost two hundred and play musically challenging songs because it was a huge step up from high school band, whose attendance was about twenty-five.
We left on the morning of July 3, literally the morning of, I think it was one o'clock. We drove to Chicago airport and waited to board the plane to Minneapolis. At Minneapolis we had an eight hour layover until we could fly into London. We finally made it on the fourth of July. It was weird being there on Independence Day because they don't care. After London, we crossed the English Channel and arrived in Paris. The Eiffel Tower was amazing! From there we traveled to Switzerland. The Alps were gorgeous! It was my favorite place because the people were nice, the scenery was beautiful and it was all so relaxing. After that we went on to Austria, traveling through Liechtenstein. This country was about an Iowa county wide. While we were in Austria, we took a day trip to Venice, Italy. This was super hot and it was also memorable. The gelato was very good! We then traveled on to Germany. The first day was a sad one because we stopped at Dachau, a concentration camp. It is one thing to just hear about them, but it is another to actually be there where it happened. On July nineteenth we flew home to New York then to Chicago and then the ride back into Iowa.
This experience has definitely change my life. I respect more people seeing what other cultures are like. I have learned to appreciate life more and to take opportunities as they come. It has made me see the world in a better light, seeing that all people in the world are almost the same.
To start off, I was going to be a senior in high school and this would be my first time away from my parents for an extended amount of time. I thought it would be a good college like experience for them and for me. They were a little more nervous about me going on the trip than they were leaving me at college because well I was leaving the country and literally almost on my own. I had to make sure I kept my passport with me at all times. I was in control of money spending and across the ocean, the dollar isn't worth a whole lot.
A week before we actually left we had a music camp. This was an intensive band or choir rehearsal. This was fun and I learned a lot. It boosted my confidence musically because we were playing songs like Stars and Stripes Forever. It felt good to play in a band of almost two hundred and play musically challenging songs because it was a huge step up from high school band, whose attendance was about twenty-five.
We left on the morning of July 3, literally the morning of, I think it was one o'clock. We drove to Chicago airport and waited to board the plane to Minneapolis. At Minneapolis we had an eight hour layover until we could fly into London. We finally made it on the fourth of July. It was weird being there on Independence Day because they don't care. After London, we crossed the English Channel and arrived in Paris. The Eiffel Tower was amazing! From there we traveled to Switzerland. The Alps were gorgeous! It was my favorite place because the people were nice, the scenery was beautiful and it was all so relaxing. After that we went on to Austria, traveling through Liechtenstein. This country was about an Iowa county wide. While we were in Austria, we took a day trip to Venice, Italy. This was super hot and it was also memorable. The gelato was very good! We then traveled on to Germany. The first day was a sad one because we stopped at Dachau, a concentration camp. It is one thing to just hear about them, but it is another to actually be there where it happened. On July nineteenth we flew home to New York then to Chicago and then the ride back into Iowa.
This experience has definitely change my life. I respect more people seeing what other cultures are like. I have learned to appreciate life more and to take opportunities as they come. It has made me see the world in a better light, seeing that all people in the world are almost the same.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Robots
I just read an article in National Geographic about robots titled "Us. And Them."(I have a link to the website of pictures of the robots in the article here). It talked about many different robots all of different intelligence. I found this article really interesting. It was a little creepy seeing the different pictures and how alike they are to humans. In the picture where the guy is talking to the robot woman's head is really weird. She is so lifelike! A statistic that really worries me is that in five or ten years robots will be routinely functioning in human environments! That's a little scary!
The first robot the article talked about is Actroid-DER. It, the robot, is a girl and was developed in Japan. She can talk to humans and looks like one too. The article says she has a habit of appearing to nod off momentarily as if she were on something stronger than electricity. I thought that was funny. The second robot was HERB, standing for Home Exploring Robotic Butler. He has wheels for legs and a computer for a body. He actually thinks and "dreams". In his system is a video camera and a laser navigation device and has pressure sensitive system like human tendons. He is a gentle robot. He first scans objects and determines what they are. Then he has to decide how he is going to approach the object. He keep a memory of all the objects and environments he has experienced and puts those to use when he meets something new. This just like humans when we learn from past experiences. This technology could be very useful. Also in the article it talked about a guy reproducing himself as a robot to be in two different places at once. I think this is a little extreme, but if you have the money to do it, well go ahead. Another robot they talked about was military grade robots. These robots would be trained to shoot guns. In order to do this they would have to determine what is a dangerous situation and what is not. They would use video cameras to do this and would work out different scenarios in their "heads". Of course, a human could override the robots decision.
I am glad that this technology is in the future. I don't think our world is ready for artificial intelligence. I think it is weird that the robots can "think" for themselves, but really it is humans all along. There could be some bad people out there run robots and could do really bad. In conclusion, after reading this article, I am not ready for robots.
The first robot the article talked about is Actroid-DER. It, the robot, is a girl and was developed in Japan. She can talk to humans and looks like one too. The article says she has a habit of appearing to nod off momentarily as if she were on something stronger than electricity. I thought that was funny. The second robot was HERB, standing for Home Exploring Robotic Butler. He has wheels for legs and a computer for a body. He actually thinks and "dreams". In his system is a video camera and a laser navigation device and has pressure sensitive system like human tendons. He is a gentle robot. He first scans objects and determines what they are. Then he has to decide how he is going to approach the object. He keep a memory of all the objects and environments he has experienced and puts those to use when he meets something new. This just like humans when we learn from past experiences. This technology could be very useful. Also in the article it talked about a guy reproducing himself as a robot to be in two different places at once. I think this is a little extreme, but if you have the money to do it, well go ahead. Another robot they talked about was military grade robots. These robots would be trained to shoot guns. In order to do this they would have to determine what is a dangerous situation and what is not. They would use video cameras to do this and would work out different scenarios in their "heads". Of course, a human could override the robots decision.
I am glad that this technology is in the future. I don't think our world is ready for artificial intelligence. I think it is weird that the robots can "think" for themselves, but really it is humans all along. There could be some bad people out there run robots and could do really bad. In conclusion, after reading this article, I am not ready for robots.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Coming Home
This is the first weekend I have been home since arriving at Wartburg two and a half weeks ago. I looked forward to it all week. This was my school's homecoming and I wanted to come back and see everyone again.
My mother was a little apprehensive about me coming home. I had told her all week how busy I was and that I would have to do homework while I was here, at home. She felt since I had homework I should stay at Wartburg and study. I probably should have. Either way, I am always going to have homework or something else that needs to be done. That is one thing that is really different than high school. In high school you can get to the point of having no homework, but in college you have a syllabus and always have something to do, whether it be due two days or a week from now.
Another thing that has bothered me while being at home is my sister. We are twins, so we are pretty close. As you know she is going to Luther, four hours from home. I just felt bad that I was coming home sooner than she will be. She was telling me how much she misses everyone and just wishes she could see them soon. One of her reasons why she can not come home very often is because she does not have a car, but she could rent one. She just made me feel a little guilty that I was coming home and she was not. I don't feel too terrible because I know I will see her next weekend as she is coming down to Waverly for family weekend!
So overall, my experience of being home for the "first time" has been pretty good. I have relaxed a little more, have a better outlook about how the next few weeks are going to go at school (thanks, Mom!) and have reconnected with the ones I love.
My mother was a little apprehensive about me coming home. I had told her all week how busy I was and that I would have to do homework while I was here, at home. She felt since I had homework I should stay at Wartburg and study. I probably should have. Either way, I am always going to have homework or something else that needs to be done. That is one thing that is really different than high school. In high school you can get to the point of having no homework, but in college you have a syllabus and always have something to do, whether it be due two days or a week from now.
Another thing that has bothered me while being at home is my sister. We are twins, so we are pretty close. As you know she is going to Luther, four hours from home. I just felt bad that I was coming home sooner than she will be. She was telling me how much she misses everyone and just wishes she could see them soon. One of her reasons why she can not come home very often is because she does not have a car, but she could rent one. She just made me feel a little guilty that I was coming home and she was not. I don't feel too terrible because I know I will see her next weekend as she is coming down to Waverly for family weekend!
So overall, my experience of being home for the "first time" has been pretty good. I have relaxed a little more, have a better outlook about how the next few weeks are going to go at school (thanks, Mom!) and have reconnected with the ones I love.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Jurassic Park
I have to admit that the movie, Jurassic Park, scared me a little. I knew for a fact it was not possible for scientist to replicate dinosaurs. But the possibility lingered in the back of my mind. What if someday it is possible to recover enough DNA and genetics to generate dinosaurs back to life? I think it would be a great scientific accomplishment, but also a scary discovery for man kind. I am sure there are people out there in the world who could hack into the place where they are storing the "dinosaur" and take it for themselves. Of course they would do bad with it. This would be the most extreme bad situation. A good thing that might come out of the discovery is just knowing what the world was like millions of years ago. Having the technology to do that would create more opportunities for other impossible scientific discoveries.
I also have many other common sense questions about the movie that I will elaborate on. One question is: "How did the T-Rex get inside the building?" Let's just say I know the movie is not real, but I have to think how would it be like in real life. The dinosaur would never have been able just to walk in without destroying the building. Another question is "How were the people's physical strength greater than that of the dinosaurs?" Obviously the dinosaur is a lot bigger than man. I think man's strength was greater just for the effect of the movie. If Dr. Grant would not have been able to hold the door closed so the dinosaur could not get in before the system could be put back on and the doors locked, it would have just ruined the movie. The people would have died and that would be it. Going along with comparing human to dinosaur another question to ask is "Why did the people out run the dinosaurs?" Dinosaur strides are a large amount greater than humans. Again, I think this was so to not ruin the movie.
Overall, I think the movie was good, drama and content wise, not scientifically. It is interesting to see the possibilities of science. With the technology we have today, who knows what will be discovered in the future - maybe dinosaurs.
I also have many other common sense questions about the movie that I will elaborate on. One question is: "How did the T-Rex get inside the building?" Let's just say I know the movie is not real, but I have to think how would it be like in real life. The dinosaur would never have been able just to walk in without destroying the building. Another question is "How were the people's physical strength greater than that of the dinosaurs?" Obviously the dinosaur is a lot bigger than man. I think man's strength was greater just for the effect of the movie. If Dr. Grant would not have been able to hold the door closed so the dinosaur could not get in before the system could be put back on and the doors locked, it would have just ruined the movie. The people would have died and that would be it. Going along with comparing human to dinosaur another question to ask is "Why did the people out run the dinosaurs?" Dinosaur strides are a large amount greater than humans. Again, I think this was so to not ruin the movie.
Overall, I think the movie was good, drama and content wise, not scientifically. It is interesting to see the possibilities of science. With the technology we have today, who knows what will be discovered in the future - maybe dinosaurs.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Excitement and Disappointment
So my adventure really began about a year ago when I decide to become a Knight. I was so excited throughout my senior year to go to college. When my sister, Hannah, moved into her dorm at Luther a week before I moved in, it was an exciting experience for me. I helped her unpack and organize things. Her dorm was big and sunny and the campus was spacious and beautiful. Her roommate and her automatically became best friends. I saw the exciting new life of college I had been waiting for.
When I arrived at Wartburg on September 7, I had been anticipating the same kind of feeling I had gotten when I helped move Hannah in. I did, really, but there was a little let down. When I walked into my dorm room for the first time I was disappointed. It seemed like a jail cell. Then, when I met my roommate I knew we were not going to be best friends. That was disappointment number two. Disappointment number three was the activities of orientation. I did not realize that I would have so much free time. This gave me time to think about friends.
I was hoping I would automatically make friends like my sister seemed to do. In the months anticipating college I thought a lot about how life is going to be. I will hang out with my friends every night and we will go out and do things together. Well, of course, this friendship would take some time. I just did not like the idea of having to wait for friends. This waiting has taught me to just be yourself, meet new people, and that important things take time.
Today, I have a lot better, more positive attitude towards Wartburg. I have a dorm room that is spacious and bright, just the way I like it. I have a good group of friends who I can talk to and trust. I think if I had the chance to do the past week and a half over again I would. I would have walked onto campus with a better attitude and a more positive way of thinking towards everything. But, of course, I can not go back in time, so I will just appreciate what I have and live everyday to its fullest.
When I arrived at Wartburg on September 7, I had been anticipating the same kind of feeling I had gotten when I helped move Hannah in. I did, really, but there was a little let down. When I walked into my dorm room for the first time I was disappointed. It seemed like a jail cell. Then, when I met my roommate I knew we were not going to be best friends. That was disappointment number two. Disappointment number three was the activities of orientation. I did not realize that I would have so much free time. This gave me time to think about friends.
I was hoping I would automatically make friends like my sister seemed to do. In the months anticipating college I thought a lot about how life is going to be. I will hang out with my friends every night and we will go out and do things together. Well, of course, this friendship would take some time. I just did not like the idea of having to wait for friends. This waiting has taught me to just be yourself, meet new people, and that important things take time.
Today, I have a lot better, more positive attitude towards Wartburg. I have a dorm room that is spacious and bright, just the way I like it. I have a good group of friends who I can talk to and trust. I think if I had the chance to do the past week and a half over again I would. I would have walked onto campus with a better attitude and a more positive way of thinking towards everything. But, of course, I can not go back in time, so I will just appreciate what I have and live everyday to its fullest.
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