tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70442051515199233722024-03-04T20:51:44.529-08:00’17 ILC at ChicagoDon Gosneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17110247579694408858noreply@blogger.comBlogger136125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-25665003477612465362017-08-03T18:29:00.001-07:002017-08-03T18:29:04.910-07:00It All Worked Out<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When I went to the ILC presentation in the fall I wasn't sure if it was something I really wanted to do. The overall experience seemed to be worth it, but you could also end up writing essay after essay, and going to interview after interview with no luck. Initially I wasn't sure if I was up for that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When Don sent the email detailing what was necessary to apply to be a part of the UChicago cohort, I was instantly intrigued. UChicago was going to be one of the schools that I was seriously considering, but wouldn't get a chance to visit, therefore taking away all personal aspects and experiences of the school. When I looked at the course listings and saw the Physics of Stars as an option, I knew I had to jump on it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Of course, I procrastinated and ended up rushing to write both my pre-essays and my topic essay, get them all edited and tidied up, and turn them into Don on time. Then it was time to wait. When I didn't receive an email on the date we were first told about I immediately figured I didn't make it to the interview stage, so when Don called me to tell me that I was going to interview I was ecstatic. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I had so much nervous energy at the interview, so I couldn't keep my mouth shut. Luckily Jahnvi was also in the mood for talking, so we talked almost the entire time we were waiting. I interviewed sixth, and though I was initially nervous, the farther I we got in the questions the more confident I was in answering. Though it hadn't felt long when I was in the room, when I left I found out I had been gone for 20 plus minutes. The next hour or so was incredibly nerve-wracking. The panelists took some time to deliberate, and when Don came back into the room to tell us the results, he framed it in the worst way possible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Our names were stated followed by "Pack your bags... you're going to Chicago." By the time I had processed that I was actually chosen, we had already been whisked into another room to take pictures. The whole night was completely surreal to me.</span></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-H-szGoBcxKnxPeYSpiy4dv44woOITW_D8m9v0ftsa4kAkUUyT3eQPWnA8re7bvEQDKLXmFML4tT78wVTWsgeLZMR0RVSf9darrm4PHmla0_n3zRcx_5aMyKFrk6mHwf5d3nl5ASa8EQ/s1600/17+Chicago+at+Town+Hall-060A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-H-szGoBcxKnxPeYSpiy4dv44woOITW_D8m9v0ftsa4kAkUUyT3eQPWnA8re7bvEQDKLXmFML4tT78wVTWsgeLZMR0RVSf9darrm4PHmla0_n3zRcx_5aMyKFrk6mHwf5d3nl5ASa8EQ/s320/17+Chicago+at+Town+Hall-060A-DG.jpg" width="256" /></span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Throughout our other activities in preparation for heading off, we got to know each other better as a cohort. Immediately after the interview we exchanged phone numbers and began a group chat where we of course discussed our plans behind Don's back, only to let him in the loop later.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When the dinner and school board meeting rolled around, I realized just how important ILC is as a whole. We had an amazing opportunity to represent WCCUSD to alums and members of the school board. Raqeeb and I even had the opportunity to speak at these events and share how we will be able to bring back what we learn to our community. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">By the time we left, I wasn't really sure what to expect. I had predictions about how my class would be, but I didn't know how much I would like UChicago or the city of Chicago in general.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBH63L1yJH_fIEKOh46DqY5Hi4ee1jlwd-IuG3XEavuk2T_mhpxejFCrAmJ_Egspo_k6xQKVZTNVhU0OJvpg8wpm_zVbRqzuGpws2R-pYmzJ2JtysPHc_T-KDus1zotj_ETZHIJwSsLx4/s1600/17+Chicago+Departure+Day-023A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="799" data-original-width="1600" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBH63L1yJH_fIEKOh46DqY5Hi4ee1jlwd-IuG3XEavuk2T_mhpxejFCrAmJ_Egspo_k6xQKVZTNVhU0OJvpg8wpm_zVbRqzuGpws2R-pYmzJ2JtysPHc_T-KDus1zotj_ETZHIJwSsLx4/s640/17+Chicago+Departure+Day-023A-DG.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Before we realized the great time we would have!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The first week I socialized a lot with people throughout the entire program and in different classes, but not really in my class. When Jahnvi switched into my class I found myself being more social with my classmates, but still not talking to everyone. Over the weekend after the first week and when the Pathways program moved in I talked to more people and went out more often.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The second week I realized that this was going to be my last week at UChicago before we went to Yerkes, so Jahnvi and I went out more and talked to people we definitely don't see often in our district. People who can afford Prada and pay for rides downtown in exchange for shoe deliveries. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">At Yerkes I had the amazing opportunity to work with great functioning telescopes and gather data that furthered the project Jahnvi and I worked on. I also made more friends within my class and found people I wish I had talked to sooner.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Upon being back, and beginning school on Wednesday I realize how much I enjoyed the environment at UChicago. Though Middle College High School is probably better about people wanting to be there than other schools, there are still plenty of people who don't appreciate the environment. In classes students speak over classmates and teachers, and don't pay attention to the information. I didn't realize how spoiled I was at UChicago with people actually liking the class and being respectful to speakers. It was an environment that was conducive to learning both from your teachers and your peers, and I really miss it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I have already been able to in person speak to a classmate who was unsure about applying to UChicago and convince them to go for it, and I can't wait for more opportunities to do so.</span></div>
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Lindsay Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02937262396779257944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-61020533907990713362017-08-03T13:53:00.001-07:002017-08-04T00:02:24.247-07:00Final Farewell<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">At that time, I would not have realized it yet,
but the ILC presentation would open many doors for me. </span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My journey with ILC
after the presentation began before my interview and – surprising, even to this
day – subsequence acceptance for the Chicago program. Back around December or
so of last year, I still had my heart and goal set on getting into the Vanderbilt
program, strongly attracted by the Medical 101 course. I wrote the pre-essays
and main essay, submitting just a matter of minutes before the deadline. Even
though I put in effort into those essays, it still came as a somewhat of a surprise
to both me and my parents when I made it to the interviews. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I pretty much entered into that competition
the worst way possible – I knew what I wanted, and I worked to try to obtain
it, but in reality, I lacked much of the motivation and ambition to see my
desire into reality. Obviously, I did not make it into the Vanderbilt program,
but I did leave that night with a few new friends and new experiences. Thus,
for a while, I was content to put ILC in the back of my mind, and in the
corners of my mind it stayed – until the email for the Chicago program came
around a month later. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">I'm so glad I met everyone!</span></td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Now, it would make a very nice story to say
I learned from my mistakes and flaws from my first time applying to ILC and
channeled my determination to improve into my second applying, which was to the
Chicago program. However, that was not the case. I was much more uncertain the
second time around about whether I even wanted to apply. What had attracted me
so much to Vanderbilt that first time had been its medical course, and the
offerings listed at Chicago made me hesitate. Luckily, at the gentle nudging of
my parents, I applied again and made it to the interviews once more.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br />I remember arriving at ECHS for the second
time, only to find that all the interviewees were much more intense than what I
had experienced that first interview for Vanderbilt. Unlike last time, I didn’t
find anyone I just clicked with. I remember looking around the room and feeling
the seriousness of the competitive atmosphere, everyone’s anxiety and jitteriness.
I questioned my right to be there. Somehow, during the interview, I managed to
stutter out worse responses (at least, in my opinion) than I had at the
Vanderbilt interview. I braced myself for the worst. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It was a shock for me when I heard Don
announce my name as part of the 2017 Chicago cohort. I was completely stunned
and floored; I was about to head back home after congratulating whoever got
selected this time. My parents were so happy for me when they found out, and I
was, too. But I think a part of me still didn’t believe in myself completely.
The following months, the ILC school board meeting and dinner with alumni happened
– and I shrunk away from experiences such as the short speeches that other
members gave. I talked to people during ILC events, but I knew I could have
made more effort to socialize and communicate more with other people. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">ILC Orientation</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I didn’t really break out of my shell until
after I arrived at UChicago, and I realized that unless I wanted to live my
life as a hermit in my dorm the whole three weeks, which some may argue I still
did, I had to go talk to people and make friends. I didn’t have room to feel
intimidated or to doubt myself. Even if I had to pretend confidence in the
beginning, that confidence eventually become real, and I could strike up small
conversations with random people everywhere (the dining hall staff is really
nice, btw. I loved all of them).</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">During my time Chicago, I met a lot and all
kinds of people. There were people I liked (my class was awesome!), and people I didn’t like. There
were people whose values and choices I didn’t agree with, but it’s also thanks
to meeting those people that I found my own identity. Where I once went with
the flow – letting go small differences in principles because they weren’t
worth it to fuss about, doing it so often that my own feelings become subdued –
I was forced to abandon that way of living in Chicago because it was no longer a
matter of subtle differences in values that existed between me and the people I
met. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Memories with friends</span></td></tr>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I was faced with people who were very
different from myself, but difference is not always good (though it could be,
and I met many wonderful, different people in Chicago).
I realized I needed to start drawing lines, defining my own boundaries, so I
know where I stand and for what I stand, after being passive and indifferent for
so long. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Finally, during the past three weeks, I was
reminded again how picky I am with choosing who to befriend, but I also learned
the friendships I do form are strong, healthy, and supportive. I don’t – can’t –
make friends left and right, but the friends I’m willing to make are ones I’m
willing to make an effort to keep for a long time, and that’s fine by me, even
if I don’t have the most friends.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, thank you to Don, who made everything
possible and never gave up on us even while irritated at us. Thank you to Ms.
Sciacca, who leaves the sweetest comments on our blogs and is the best
chaperone ever. Thank you to my cohort, the only pieces of “home” I had back at
Chicago. Thank you to my parents, who supported me and suffered through my innumerable
calls home. Thank you to my friends, one in particular <3, back home, who eased
my transition and homesickness when I didn’t want to talk to anyone else. Thank
you to Ms. Kronenberg. Thank you to UChicago. And a thousand more thank yous to
the panelists, the school board, and everyone else who made this experience possible
for me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I have grown much as a person during those
three weeks, and none of this would have been possible without everyone at my
side.</span></div>
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Cecilia Chakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12911336898406755045noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-24735513212105035762017-08-03T12:26:00.000-07:002017-08-03T12:26:22.599-07:00Many Sacrifices, No Regrets<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNaOzxGc0QhCfilL5ikaQmb2S-qnQxq7jy36it4UvgH7K4sYYKOtwUQwIPFGNLW0jWw_vP-47biB9xrzIL3LmV1dfAHAGOWDXrnH0lgTjNO3pjZbyPBjEdCSIKbeoGo36CkqQimGhyphenhyphenBdES/s1600/20170515-17+Chicago+at+Town+Hall-027A-DG+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="864" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNaOzxGc0QhCfilL5ikaQmb2S-qnQxq7jy36it4UvgH7K4sYYKOtwUQwIPFGNLW0jWw_vP-47biB9xrzIL3LmV1dfAHAGOWDXrnH0lgTjNO3pjZbyPBjEdCSIKbeoGo36CkqQimGhyphenhyphenBdES/s400/20170515-17+Chicago+at+Town+Hall-027A-DG+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Speaking at the Chicago-Vanderbilt dinner; public speaking<br />has always been something I've tried to avoid.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s been such a long ride with the Ivy League Connection (ILC) program. There have been times where I’ve wanted to give up, and there have been times where I questioned how much time I was willing to sacrifice to become a participant on this trip, but every time that I really gave it some thought, the more I realized that what I truly wanted was to be able to call myself a part of the ILC program and to represent the district at a top university as a student, even if only for the summer. Looking back on this lengthy adventure, I realize that the magnitude of effort and the amount of hours that I’ve put into applications, meetings, and writing for this program has been great, but also that I don’t regret committing any of it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-3b27ecc8-a974-e7a4-e624-4e8ed447ddcc" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I remember being pulled out of class to attend the initial informational meeting in the school library. After it, a lot of kids were complaining about how much work the application sounded like and how they didn’t want to deal with someone as seemingly overbearing as Don. The meeting had the opposite effect on me; I was motivated by the slight chance that I would earn the right to attend a top university for three weeks of the summer, and that there was a person as invested in the program as Don was that would be there for support along the way. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My first set of application essays, to the Vanderbilt program, were rejected. Don emailed me after the scores were sent out to tell me that if I had formatted the titles of my documents correctly, it would have given my scores the boost needed to push me into the interview pool. Galvanized by the new apparency of my problems, I re-formatted my titles and eagerly awaited the results for the Chicago applications. I got a call on the day of my school’s jazz festival that one of the eight selected interviewees could not make the interviews and that I, as the applicant whose essays landed in ninth, was now invited to interview. Even after being told that my formatting was incorrect, I had still landed outside of the top eight, except that now I had a chance to prove my worth.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I went into the interviews with a chip on my shoulder. My pride was hurt by the fact that my essays weren’t good enough to earn me selection into the initial pool of interviewees, even after I fixed my formatting issues. A couple of days before the interviews, Alice Johnson, a Chicago cohort member from last year, sat down with me to go over the interview process and possible questions that might be posed. I felt well prepared on the day of, and added to the motivation I had to do well by my lackluster performance on the essay section, I was really excited to show the interviewers that I deserved to be on the plane to Chicago come July. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikxod7dXqUSEVdtu_ThzXiHkw1zPdyX8ly5C1UKdYlDMl2MvCPr8gNIQFblD_RJuNH5eKo4a8PnSYy9CFUa32YXnmZHjE4kkNe1jHdDfbMdVVyKyiRz74SN_Cg6dH_Bmb5XUHJyNcKXTqy/s1600/20170524-17+ILC+at+the+School+Board-007A-DG+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1350" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikxod7dXqUSEVdtu_ThzXiHkw1zPdyX8ly5C1UKdYlDMl2MvCPr8gNIQFblD_RJuNH5eKo4a8PnSYy9CFUa32YXnmZHjE4kkNe1jHdDfbMdVVyKyiRz74SN_Cg6dH_Bmb5XUHJyNcKXTqy/s640/20170524-17+ILC+at+the+School+Board-007A-DG+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Looking back at our performance on the interviews.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">
</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The session went well, which is why I’m writing this blog post. However, it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing after that. There were more applications to complete, forms to fill out, meetings and info sessions to attend, and emails to respond to. A lot of emails to respond to. At a crucial part of the application to the actual class that I wanted to take at UChicago, the emails from the school kept ending up in the “Promotions” tab of my inbox, buried under scores of shoe discounts and online sales offers. I feel like that period was a quintessential couple of weeks for the relationship between myself and the ILC program; there were many complications and problems that needed to be solved, but when they were all taken care of, what was left was something greater than I could possibly have hoped for. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDvUiZ_IRSrMin9r1O2kzkq1MLrHd2R5TBFVnD1N-tf-d5B462sHRdW8wbN7eHKGEoGp9E5Ii3ZI2i9ezZVceeiRYXvT_3qiqoAs-4TvTwG5kKUWqCg2Rqf9o-DPJBB2xyRoW6U7Mvhuol/s1600/20170603-RC.04.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDvUiZ_IRSrMin9r1O2kzkq1MLrHd2R5TBFVnD1N-tf-d5B462sHRdW8wbN7eHKGEoGp9E5Ii3ZI2i9ezZVceeiRYXvT_3qiqoAs-4TvTwG5kKUWqCg2Rqf9o-DPJBB2xyRoW6U7Mvhuol/s640/20170603-RC.04.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Around the time of the Chicago application, with the rest of the cohort.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">
</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even while I was in Chicago, I had to make time to blog for the program, which was the least I could do to give back to the organization that flew me there. And now that the program is over, I’m still blogging. The ILC has truly become an ever-present aspect of my life since the first time that Don introduced it at school. I don’t regret even a single second that I’ve spent on this program, be it reading emails, writing blogs, listening to Don speak at meetings, or just worrying about applications. It hasn’t always been easy, but the whole journey turned out to be a great learning experience and a lot of fun in the end. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLGlg799X845UFHJNL09A-BLZE5m5CYN_D5Y5NSB6lm6hqtwlFi5PWRvvKpUDmWcKbjlY1-pTFxt7L6F2sjvwH8A7jQmeEzEVbJxo4IRYcXXkhfDgHbg6LpecdLG4O-H8aVuCgaXEhCgp/s1600/20170729-17+Chicago+Returns-136A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1350" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtLGlg799X845UFHJNL09A-BLZE5m5CYN_D5Y5NSB6lm6hqtwlFi5PWRvvKpUDmWcKbjlY1-pTFxt7L6F2sjvwH8A7jQmeEzEVbJxo4IRYcXXkhfDgHbg6LpecdLG4O-H8aVuCgaXEhCgp/s640/20170729-17+Chicago+Returns-136A-DG.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">These people helped make the trip as fun as it was.</span></td></tr>
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Raqeeb Changhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09676559739991109605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-67963360186221895332017-08-01T14:41:00.000-07:002017-08-02T19:32:12.372-07:00An Indescribable Experience<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: black;">The 3 weeks I spent in Chicago have helped me
grow in so many more ways than I thought possible from what is supposed to be a
predominantly academic experience. While I did learn and develop in the
classroom, rising to the challenges set for me by my professors, I also learned
an incredible amount outside of it. I learned about myself and how I relate and
interact with others that I seemingly don’t have much in common with. I also
learned about how to divide my time and abilities so that I perform as well as
possible in all areas of my life and about how people from different parts of
the world see school and studies.</span> </span></div>
</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqby78BnoJIkLtZcWD__2oFrmkdTCZLRNL8zFEXTlg4X1ul7Fp14ZT_spQEaEtqe8p6JTyS7XVuCrOu1SUs9aftAM-YqRN0fXNS1RjwDvRTDmPwV-kaWWYKzYl_cHdFL7T9S3XPcaUUCau/s1600/RC.31.0-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqby78BnoJIkLtZcWD__2oFrmkdTCZLRNL8zFEXTlg4X1ul7Fp14ZT_spQEaEtqe8p6JTyS7XVuCrOu1SUs9aftAM-YqRN0fXNS1RjwDvRTDmPwV-kaWWYKzYl_cHdFL7T9S3XPcaUUCau/s640/RC.31.0-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The cohort and I on one of our first days in Chicago. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5qtAVYhgq66uwGrsmj9NMInU7VhUxag8TvSmsjQvuPQcyU2j2WIjHJVKO_V3dgsd6WjVTssYXJ-6ClWu-fgMtMUSijRGUY7lx3D49YJUGkOgBfu7rWqO8SC6oymwahbgN8SRacfy8-gmL/s1600/RC.31.0-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="763" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5qtAVYhgq66uwGrsmj9NMInU7VhUxag8TvSmsjQvuPQcyU2j2WIjHJVKO_V3dgsd6WjVTssYXJ-6ClWu-fgMtMUSijRGUY7lx3D49YJUGkOgBfu7rWqO8SC6oymwahbgN8SRacfy8-gmL/s400/RC.31.0-9.jpg" width="282" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Doing my own laundry was a first.</span></td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: black;">My class took up so much of my time while I was
actually at UChicago that I didn’t have the chance to step back and take a look
at how rapidly I was changing as a person, but now that I’ve been back for a
couple of days, I can see that what the program actually influenced me the most
in was not my attitude towards academics, but my sense of self and
understanding of my personality. Having to balance class, coursework,
meal-times, practicing my instrument, getting exercise, doing laundry, and
making sure that I was saving enough time for fun and sleep was tough, but in
doing so, I was exposed to a new level of responsibility that I had to reach to
succeed. I realized that I’m the type of person who needs to have something to
schedule around, so I structured my life around the opening and closing times
of the dining hall. I quickly learned that it was really hard for me to do work
around anyone I had even a remote relationship with, so I used my resources and
studied in the library or reading rooms. Not being able to walk back and forth
from my room to the bathroom conveniently forced me to be more efficient with
my time there, which made me plan every trip before I went anywhere. That was
especially important for my laundry trips; sometimes I would forget money,
other times detergent, sometimes even clothes that I meant to wash. Before I
knew it, I was managing my own time more effectively than I ever have, being
more disciplined than I ever had to be, and planning my days and activities
beforehand. Now, I wasn’t exactly perfect, but I did everything as best as I
could and I made growth that was obvious to even myself.</span> </span></div>
</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwDZUEn4gE65K5cF4XmkG6Qw9EG0pGap1RCM9zs6EcDvq_D7oXADraKda44sYzDzhAgh2cCN4-CmY0KFNFN1pnPNp_XT4aY_-7IURy-BZPsxcuN0YK55IvvdbBUHWbcJeaWCI2yJ8iexRC/s1600/RC.31.0-15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwDZUEn4gE65K5cF4XmkG6Qw9EG0pGap1RCM9zs6EcDvq_D7oXADraKda44sYzDzhAgh2cCN4-CmY0KFNFN1pnPNp_XT4aY_-7IURy-BZPsxcuN0YK55IvvdbBUHWbcJeaWCI2yJ8iexRC/s640/RC.31.0-15.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNraVuY5LHyB8_ZTxvvp__CD4dNq9J2G1daFZ7y5mq9kEJxJ754Tuev6lC9XxWgS6EPFilvoRKyrdbt0SxKPxkpAj2fqSE-GSPUTnC25ehq09M_dfLBpR0fAcXmmiLaJPlwnaWFVbezWu7/s1600/RC.31.0-11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNraVuY5LHyB8_ZTxvvp__CD4dNq9J2G1daFZ7y5mq9kEJxJ754Tuev6lC9XxWgS6EPFilvoRKyrdbt0SxKPxkpAj2fqSE-GSPUTnC25ehq09M_dfLBpR0fAcXmmiLaJPlwnaWFVbezWu7/s640/RC.31.0-11.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I learned that I was easily distracted by people, so I spent a lot of time studying in the library.</span></td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: black;">I</span><span style="color: black;"> said
that the ILC experience wasn’t entirely academics-focused, but that doesn’t
mean that the class wasn’t a priority; it was, but the other aspects of the
trip were just more influential than I expected. In class, I had to learn about
how to stay attentive enough during lectures to be able to participate during
the discussions and stay ready for the random quizzes. I also had to learn how
to balance my coursework with the daily blogging; some assignments were
open-ended response answers, and if I wanted to get a reasonable amount of
sleep, it was required that I learned to balance the time I spent on them with
the time I put into the blogs. It was my first exposure to necessary
compromise; I wasn’t always maximally efficient and I also spent time on
activities for leisure, so it wasn’t realistic for me to pour all of my heart
and soul into both coursework and blogging. Instead, I tried as best as I could
to sacrifice from both equally with losing too much quality, and it turned out
well for my class grade and the amount of sleep I got.</span> </span></div>
</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikgvD4m8__zmRoX_AP4um-doCvVaL7VpaXfjy-6l2B9dh3xW-BmfjCYekHmGt7kAR5yg3C8pfp9fNGxNbOwYW6WEtW6gR_0UOV3fiySzfYQlVhxcZCsfcTysAD3o4h_mPE9sNynMqaOh2k/s1600/RC.31.0-33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikgvD4m8__zmRoX_AP4um-doCvVaL7VpaXfjy-6l2B9dh3xW-BmfjCYekHmGt7kAR5yg3C8pfp9fNGxNbOwYW6WEtW6gR_0UOV3fiySzfYQlVhxcZCsfcTysAD3o4h_mPE9sNynMqaOh2k/s640/RC.31.0-33.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">From the top: late night soccer; Shake Shack; and the view from a downtown rooftop. I had to manage my time so I could have fun.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: black;">One thing that was totally
unexpected about the program was the amount of foreign kids there were,
specifically from China. Around half of the kids living on my dorm floor were
Chinese. Speaking to them exposed me to completely different perspectives. For
one, anything less than perfection in academics is seen as a disappointment to
most of them. My friend Lucy, who lives in Shanghai, was upset that she got a 4
on the AP Language and Composition Test as a foreign speaker. Most people at my
school would be delighted with that score. Another common trait among them was
their work ethic. Putting in the hours studying one topic was something that
was new to me, but it was normal to them. They were used to the rigor of a more
challenging school system, a system that involved a lot more stress and
pressure. That being said, many of the kids from China that I met were outgoing
and social; they were delighted with their newfound internet freedom, and were
excited to make American friends. </span><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: black;">In addition to international
kids from the other side of the world, there were also so many American
students with very different backgrounds. A lot of the people went to boarding
schools and were very wealthy, while others came from inner cities and were
also there on scholarship. When I was meeting someone, I had no idea what to
expect, which taught me to judge people less based on their looks and my
preconceptions of them. Some people were shocked when I told them that my
school has almost 400 people per class; their schools had 400 people in total.
Learning about their lives gave me an idea of what kind of opportunities people
who may go to more privileged schools get, and it made me realize that I was
going to far fall behind if I didn’t make the most of mine.</span> </span></div>
</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnT7QMGNuD0QCuHi2bgY4t-M2uFvXU7AbdXP7LUAVps-O6-4_tXBZTtZsuprcpVeazxBNgkDRcXZvkf4MjLNT6q38vbyV3YOunQ26qNZO4ev3kt9S-emRNfIyw7CvI9SLNUcmc9ZihGZ2Y/s1600/RC.31.0-34.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnT7QMGNuD0QCuHi2bgY4t-M2uFvXU7AbdXP7LUAVps-O6-4_tXBZTtZsuprcpVeazxBNgkDRcXZvkf4MjLNT6q38vbyV3YOunQ26qNZO4ev3kt9S-emRNfIyw7CvI9SLNUcmc9ZihGZ2Y/s640/RC.31.0-34.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm0khUZc194_PK60RZmntfbgl4IlWfE1Nsp430P2B3iJ3SYY9OG47dIbqQIRkaOh3TACvgahMnm9fH2S0oTUosKEXpdSfOhYtQ3KcEbsn7Dedne6tPnENtEQ09dmr1UK52ELtqk99kdn92/s1600/RC.31.0-36.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm0khUZc194_PK60RZmntfbgl4IlWfE1Nsp430P2B3iJ3SYY9OG47dIbqQIRkaOh3TACvgahMnm9fH2S0oTUosKEXpdSfOhYtQ3KcEbsn7Dedne6tPnENtEQ09dmr1UK52ELtqk99kdn92/s640/RC.31.0-36.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMVU-TTXNj-U40X6QBzqOV8cMd7gTWZheLJJ6LNcraUaVaHpwZP_hj0trLjjOqLhQ_ckc2VpXyVGNY8aYvQmBqluiXmekGQkZ3kI0bGd1EOHZ2Vu4VTr1NjggTddYGljSDM0p7_ldbEnSg/s1600/RC.31.0-37.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMVU-TTXNj-U40X6QBzqOV8cMd7gTWZheLJJ6LNcraUaVaHpwZP_hj0trLjjOqLhQ_ckc2VpXyVGNY8aYvQmBqluiXmekGQkZ3kI0bGd1EOHZ2Vu4VTr1NjggTddYGljSDM0p7_ldbEnSg/s640/RC.31.0-37.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Some of the friends I made on this trip.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBN7jec5bXhi-TwaUEoBZqinCUEKvelQ5KRm0Ob9W54SjbxP4NK52pGnkcqy4T89Lch09mtwpK9jQ-KZyjfeuxsNzUExai_F41DgCriMHVPNlghSP-A7dBJzqLtegKBOuXM9rUiCY5SOKD/s1600/RC.31.0-35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="810" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBN7jec5bXhi-TwaUEoBZqinCUEKvelQ5KRm0Ob9W54SjbxP4NK52pGnkcqy4T89Lch09mtwpK9jQ-KZyjfeuxsNzUExai_F41DgCriMHVPNlghSP-A7dBJzqLtegKBOuXM9rUiCY5SOKD/s400/RC.31.0-35.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My professor, Kate, and I.</span></td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: black;">My time in Chicago was like an accelerator for
the development and maturation of myself and my values. From improving my
responsibility and time management to hearing about the world and the rest of
the country, I started to acquire skills and experiences that I wouldn’t have
if I had just stayed home this summer. Being exposed to so many intelligent,
privileged kids motivated me to do my best in school and make the most out of
the opportunities. Most of all, in addition to all of the learning and growing
I did, and this is something that I haven’t really mentioned so far, the trip
was an amazingly fun experience. Even before class started, the cohort was
going all over the city, doing touristy activities and having a good time. I
went all over downtown with my friends. I took public transport, I explored the
campus, and I captured many, many photos. I had more fun on this trip than I
thought possible from a class-oriented stay at a top university, and I’m really
grateful to have had this chance.</span> </span></div>
</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw_J3De8jhfEQ9xfFYspy-UxIrlJAKTxFyoGjrd3KjIQfdOkqSqG5bAQ2TbIS1uGOLDEAeesxu9SYWCShi_X9E1HzilIB_-0hTKOuSPfHjH71pJrY0TlD5mWVinZLQL9HW7YNdSF-IzJbz/s1600/RC.31.0-27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw_J3De8jhfEQ9xfFYspy-UxIrlJAKTxFyoGjrd3KjIQfdOkqSqG5bAQ2TbIS1uGOLDEAeesxu9SYWCShi_X9E1HzilIB_-0hTKOuSPfHjH71pJrY0TlD5mWVinZLQL9HW7YNdSF-IzJbz/s640/RC.31.0-27.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I'm going to remember these past three weeks for a long time.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Raqeeb Changhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09676559739991109605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-54162263888016020902017-08-01T10:37:00.000-07:002017-08-02T19:34:16.413-07:00Did That Really Just Happen?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When we met up at El Cerrito HS early in the morning and immediately had shuttle troubles, I was only sure about one thing. One way or another, my time at UChicago would at the very least be interesting. At this point so many other words also pop into my mind such as phenomenal, educational, or perfect.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8M3MI4-seSJ-2SNR1SUR4S94VcfWtJsFLEN68PGEvD9AjP8jI2wopPKYFmmrBh8NR9TItcJ3TdFlfQVtHX8m4HIm1yjZxnBS6wO4JmmmEULrB7hyphenhyphen5afEcKG-Lv2Cf3Tucc-v6p6S0-nM/s1600/RC.06.04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8M3MI4-seSJ-2SNR1SUR4S94VcfWtJsFLEN68PGEvD9AjP8jI2wopPKYFmmrBh8NR9TItcJ3TdFlfQVtHX8m4HIm1yjZxnBS6wO4JmmmEULrB7hyphenhyphen5afEcKG-Lv2Cf3Tucc-v6p6S0-nM/s640/RC.06.04.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">After we were finally on campus, I immediately became concerned with finding friends. My RA group was nice, but most had connections through their boarding schools and had mutual friends, so I didn't exactly fit in. My roommate wasn't a very talkative type and seemed disinterested in having a conversation with me. I was worried that I wouldn't make many friends all three weeks, but that quickly changed. Soon I was spending time with the rest of the cohort and Kara, Olivia, and Michelle.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWMKnQ6vWCZfyLb02yh5tQXGtOlM4qtRb460ygXOVwDSGkEtSOevfDsaXEbndX5yoNkE459arz20nNS6PQsaGWThnwQWwYIfIGbn-SDPLFobYnr3lvcoOgA3cMw2Hny2YB-UiQgMTWJ5E/s1600/RC.09.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWMKnQ6vWCZfyLb02yh5tQXGtOlM4qtRb460ygXOVwDSGkEtSOevfDsaXEbndX5yoNkE459arz20nNS6PQsaGWThnwQWwYIfIGbn-SDPLFobYnr3lvcoOgA3cMw2Hny2YB-UiQgMTWJ5E/s640/RC.09.09.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When class started on Monday, it was better than I ever could've expected. Instead of the competitive environment I thought I would be walking into, the class was supportive and curious. My instructors were all helpful and the class was not reliant on lectures. Even after the first few days I had learned so much from the material we were taking in, and the people around me. I had prepared myself to go in and immediately have to fight for people to take me seriously, but thankfully that wasn't the case. The class became even more fun when Jahnvi switched in.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Physics of Stars made me realize just how much I love trying to figure out problems and how much I love the feeling when I've figured something out. The first project I did seemed like I would keep running into dead ends, because there seemed to be no available information. When the information was finally figured out, and I found the luminosity of a pulsar, the excitement I felt was amazing and all I wanted to do was find out more about the universe.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Spending the weekends with the cohort along with our new friends was always interesting. A world I had never been invited to really opened up before my eyes when we went places I wouldn't think of going, or talked to people I wouldn't think of speaking to before. The ear piercings, hair dying, and trips downtown were all worth it. Spending time with the wonderful friends I made like Michelle, Kara, and Olivia, is what really made all the difference for me. Though it made for some late nights, I don't regret the time I spent with my wonderful UChicago friends. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsRaajSh3BRwtOuI3HcHEbXBL7LpI90DFKbezVXGtKIY4uvuG8Ue31XNJWp-EanmsVOgEwbtRRbFkjs_7mx0xD-JwoJ2lOGglReKHik7H-CsTbohd2eDJ0E2-QCTwdIRRV7G38vGT1Zyw/s1600/LL.22.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsRaajSh3BRwtOuI3HcHEbXBL7LpI90DFKbezVXGtKIY4uvuG8Ue31XNJWp-EanmsVOgEwbtRRbFkjs_7mx0xD-JwoJ2lOGglReKHik7H-CsTbohd2eDJ0E2-QCTwdIRRV7G38vGT1Zyw/s640/LL.22.01.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Kara was always being hopelessly honest, always barging in when she was bored, and creating our backup plans. I certainly would've gone far fewer places if she hadn't managed to work things out or hadn't wanted to go out so much. Michelle was our fellow Bay Area girl, and was absolutely crazy, but she was always introducing herself to new people and making new friends, which in turn gave me more friends. We dragged Olivia into our world on the first day, and she was our navigator and ever helpful, even when she was annoyed with our interruptions</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When it was time for the trip to Yerkes Observatory, initially I was sad to be missing out on time with the friends I had already made, completely unaware of the friends I would end up making while at Yerkes.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The overall Yerkes was amazing. From a scientific standpoint, it was a great opportunity to collect data and be in a place where actual observation and data analysis happens. We were given an amazing opportunity to be able to use the available equipment for our data, and with it we dove into and found out remarkable things. Socially, I ended up talking to people I only had limited conversations with before and had some great laughs anytime from 2 AM in a dorm room to 7 PM at the lake. Jared and I really only started talking in the middle of the third week, which is a bummer considering we have similar senses of humor and managed to be in the same class without really speaking. Nick is almost scarily nice, and I wish I had started talking to him sooner, even though his jokes are ridiculous. Lister is fearless and wildly intelligent, I'm sad I only started talking to her the last week.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhklNYVgmcCTHUH5Rm7TDLJ75VYYPbr6CQPviudgBpVbGVRQB467GoLIEs7SLSNSNdkKAKoanWVar4IihMgLyIxg6ZGMHk_vU1HPKFt9gZIKH3UiY2Bf2Ye9PSpzI9y0MUBisZoeqhH9d0/s1600/IMG_8852.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhklNYVgmcCTHUH5Rm7TDLJ75VYYPbr6CQPviudgBpVbGVRQB467GoLIEs7SLSNSNdkKAKoanWVar4IihMgLyIxg6ZGMHk_vU1HPKFt9gZIKH3UiY2Bf2Ye9PSpzI9y0MUBisZoeqhH9d0/s640/IMG_8852.JPG" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jahnvi and I spent so much time together. When we first met at the interview, I hoped we would get in together, and I'm so glad we did. We've stayed up way too late, invaded people's rooms, and wandered around downtown together. Cecilia was the sane one of the group, which is exactly why we all needed her. Raqeeb, fell asleep on the L every time which is ridiculous, but didn't completely ignore my and Jahnvi's constant pestering. Ms.Sciacca/Mom/Sciacca Flocka Flame was the best chaperone we all could've hoped for.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Our time at UChicago was an amazing experience I'll never forget. </span></div>
Lindsay Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02937262396779257944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-72400902920952995472017-08-01T03:50:00.000-07:002017-08-01T03:50:36.386-07:00The End to a Long, Winding Journey<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Making a home out of a new city and a
completely new place in the short span of three weeks is not an easy thing to
do, both in theory and in actuality, as I have learned. I think this rang true for
me the most, the one who is more reserved compared to the rest of my cohort. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">It never really sunk in for me until
departure day that I was going away to a foreign city, away from my family, leaving
all my friends and everything I’ve known so far (okay – maybe that’s a little
dramatic). Maybe a part of me just denied it until the very last minute, but it
definitely hit me – and hard – on departure day, as we stood in front of ECHS
for hours waiting for our late shuttle.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwFmsrkkQGxYBxrl7vFOPfFQUl02Pe6w1Fh4SCfkk7sUyUjRFoWie8cZsHO5yZbinoHZAS7p-7IWadPgaBoop_IJa3UQ2CV97c_ZOS2vTFVoAlLZNcVK8zNim-D-X-kArYfieZd0ceBw0/s1600/TS.8.04JPG.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1354" data-original-width="1600" height="540" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwFmsrkkQGxYBxrl7vFOPfFQUl02Pe6w1Fh4SCfkk7sUyUjRFoWie8cZsHO5yZbinoHZAS7p-7IWadPgaBoop_IJa3UQ2CV97c_ZOS2vTFVoAlLZNcVK8zNim-D-X-kArYfieZd0ceBw0/s640/TS.8.04JPG.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arrival to UChicago</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The first few days at UChicago, I spent a
bit of time away from people in general, however hilarious that might sound. I saw
my cohort here and there, but I retreated to my dorm room whenever possible. I
think I needed that break away from everyone. Everything was moving so fast; I
needed that time to regroup and figure out where I stand on this shaky, new
ground. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I am not afraid to admit I was intimidated
at the beginning, by all my fellow summer session students and even by my own
cohort. I was suddenly dropped in an environment where everyone was talking
about their fours or fives on their AP tests and their high SAT scores that
they are still not satisfied with. On the RA tour trip the first day, that was
basically what everyone talked about. Everyone was so much more competitive
than I am, and when even some members of my cohort were feeling the pressure, I
had to wonder what did that meant for me, when the schools my cohort are from back
home here are generally considered much more competitive than mine. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Somehow, though, I dealt with the pressure.
I knew I could either cave in or strive to do better, and I chose the latter.
And in doing so, I learned many things. The most important and surprising thing–
maybe even to you all – is that while there is undeniably a certain, solid gap
between standards here at home and at UChicago, it wasn’t nearly as wide as I
thought. Either it was that, or Dr. Fineschi did such a beautiful job of going
over basics that I honestly never really felt like I was somehow behind or
lacking compared to my classmates. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I might have experienced some struggle
finding my voice and my confidence inside the classroom in the beginning due to
my own insecurities, but if you have read my blogs, you will know that I was
soon very engaged in the class discussions and enjoyed every minute of it. I fell
in love with the learning atmosphere of our class, with the way Dr. Fineschi always
encouraged questions and anything that involved us thinking for ourselves, with
everything we did in our labs, and with my whole class as a whole.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzsYb4AHjZokHrBJT2Ox6-a_tfYerVQ09oUH14vE5HvKTOhh1zvppONpHhQ8fNmjO5nSyehYaNggYstWSmt7hhr7uyy4M0NzkQi6wB_PDZO3XYgyWJIMSKI1dKjwUyEsTHdPrFr-ecICU/s1600/IMG_5365.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzsYb4AHjZokHrBJT2Ox6-a_tfYerVQ09oUH14vE5HvKTOhh1zvppONpHhQ8fNmjO5nSyehYaNggYstWSmt7hhr7uyy4M0NzkQi6wB_PDZO3XYgyWJIMSKI1dKjwUyEsTHdPrFr-ecICU/s640/IMG_5365.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I don't know who took this picture (actually, I think Dr. Fineschi did), but I've yet to figure out why it's so yellow. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">There were so many lovely people in my
class, and although we were all awkward with each other in the beginning (surprisingly,
there wasn’t any really super outgoing person person), we soon became familiar with
each other. We made fun of Jonathan, with his “headaches” and how he thought we
didn’t have class on Thursday. We loved Isobel’s British accent, and we literally
told her to just keep talking so we could hear her voice. We made so many good memories
with each other, the whole class went by in a blast, and I wished I had more
time to get to know them better. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Over the course of these three weeks, there
were times I admit where I envied my cohort’s wildness and their ease in making
friends. I wondered and worried at times whether I was simply too uptight, that
maybe I should let go and just go with the flow more. But I also realized long
ago, in the beginning of the trip, that that wasn’t me – because I have been
there with them, and I learned that while I love my cohort with all my heart, I
needed to stop myself from feeling like I have to change to catch up with them.
I have my own comfort zone, which is different from theirs, and that’s totally
okay, too.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0nISwbqwyb0TDX58iEu2cowv2SCzjY40quYhPa8E-3WkyH2A4xUFlAft6Bfv8GJqXKEqadKmjEHmM1qzvmekRZegfP8XEXSmst1rh2GJfxv2l6Q0mMpI56LQ74QAqjykFvgQqjEmBPuQ/s1600/IMG_20170722_185545+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0nISwbqwyb0TDX58iEu2cowv2SCzjY40quYhPa8E-3WkyH2A4xUFlAft6Bfv8GJqXKEqadKmjEHmM1qzvmekRZegfP8XEXSmst1rh2GJfxv2l6Q0mMpI56LQ74QAqjykFvgQqjEmBPuQ/s640/IMG_20170722_185545+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Another thing I forgot to add - my photography skills became much better!!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Although I still hung out with Jahnvi,
Lindsay, Raqueeb, Olivia, Kara, and Michelle very frequently (featuring Kara pounding
on the door and taking naps on my bed while I wrote my blog), I made sure to go
out and make my own friends – and I did. I met Karla, and through her, Makayla
and Elena.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Karla, who was my gym buddy, who talked
about everything from books to anime to Game of Thrones with me, who would gush
over our favorite character’s birthday with me. She was easily my best friend
at Chicago. Then, there’s also Makayla, who ate cereal at almost every single
lunch, who also went on that last RA trip to see the sunrise, and Elena, who
was so nice and sweet to me when I first began sitting with them at their table
during lunch. I am the type of person who likes to stick with only a few close
friends at any given time, and those three were definitely it for me.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiCu6X_FjgJ482GkyRFxmeCkJGfb5P8yPBTmG6lMROYa7qo-0y86A5C-_U3sHyv9KNTn7IIQhBVl9ee16dhqzHM2OCV_UtW0E9ArsgIrhpRjLQ69EiWCx7jIl79ub2uFk4IfFOPUnAWc4/s1600/IMG_20170728_055844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiCu6X_FjgJ482GkyRFxmeCkJGfb5P8yPBTmG6lMROYa7qo-0y86A5C-_U3sHyv9KNTn7IIQhBVl9ee16dhqzHM2OCV_UtW0E9ArsgIrhpRjLQ69EiWCx7jIl79ub2uFk4IfFOPUnAWc4/s640/IMG_20170728_055844.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Makayla and I were walking buddies on the RA trip to see the sunset on the last day </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">It was sad to part way with everyone I've gotten to know. I have spent so much time with Karla, Elena, and Makayla; it's going to feel weird without them to eat lunch with me now. Michelle was a wild roommate, but the dorm never felt the same after she left. I will never forget how Kara and I got matching rings for 99 cents that were supposed to be our wedding rings, but I had to wear mine on my pinkie while she wore hers on her middle finger because of sizing issues. Olivia is the nicest being on this planet, and I am forever grateful to her for letting me stay in her room that one night even though I kept her up with my typing. Raqueeb's sleeping posture, or lack of, is comically and legendary, something I'm sure none of us with ever let him live it down. Jahnvi and Lindsay made me question whether they were long lost sisters separated from birth. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I’ve grown into my own person over the past
three weeks, and I would never have been able to do it without the awesome
friends I have made on the way (both new ones and old), my family (I called
them very often), my lovely and ever so lively cohort, the best chaperone ever,
and Good Don on my side. That’s a lot of people, and it’s thanks to each and
every single one of them that I was able to find my footing when I was at a
lost.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6LmeCPGCpoAAs7m9oh-5sI-pzmP59Tjg8v9IiwEoX6WB_HExJddfUw4mWhp3adj84_4FtdtFvemTfsS9ZcXAZ9iU-ltuemM_5g1soIix0ExIhV6gVgZWNhRX1FCcq6AebUsJaSZiLVLE/s1600/IMG_5357.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6LmeCPGCpoAAs7m9oh-5sI-pzmP59Tjg8v9IiwEoX6WB_HExJddfUw4mWhp3adj84_4FtdtFvemTfsS9ZcXAZ9iU-ltuemM_5g1soIix0ExIhV6gVgZWNhRX1FCcq6AebUsJaSZiLVLE/s640/IMG_5357.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">The class picture were finally uploaded to us!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Although
there are still many thing about my future I haven’t figure out, my time in
Chicago has made me sure of who I am and who I want to be.</span></div>
Cecilia Chakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12911336898406755045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-39631819690973418332017-08-01T01:44:00.000-07:002017-08-02T19:41:11.081-07:00I Guess it is the End<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Anything said about these past three weeks would almost be an understatement. I truly don't know how to express how much I've enjoyed my time there.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I was afraid I wouldn't be able to make new friends. I was afraid my roommate and I wouldn't get </span><span style="font-family: times, 'times new roman', serif;">along. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to understand what's happening in class. I was afraid I would return back the same as I had left. I shoved the negative thoughts to back of my mind, and instead tried to use them to push myself further and ensure none of those came true.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-s0IkxkPZP8lerY-2hPE1f78kUFEBEwPtpp9mfMIXtd4ugQyvK6LoVo6YZFgP9qLX_mHC6Ibl-aSnSnnG07WfeAqS0vGNsFgoeX2JPPbSUTyKaUqSZ_vLHUmc7i-_i3_8-YDT0LX39E-i/s1600/17+Chicago+Departure+Day-025A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="861" data-original-width="1600" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-s0IkxkPZP8lerY-2hPE1f78kUFEBEwPtpp9mfMIXtd4ugQyvK6LoVo6YZFgP9qLX_mHC6Ibl-aSnSnnG07WfeAqS0vGNsFgoeX2JPPbSUTyKaUqSZ_vLHUmc7i-_i3_8-YDT0LX39E-i/s400/17+Chicago+Departure+Day-025A-DG.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Back when we had no idea what would be in store for us</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I remember opening my dorm's door, excited to see who my roommate would be. When it hit me that I had a single, I was devastated. I thought I would be missing out on one of the best experiences. Mom consoled me saying that I would be fine, and I believed her. As time went on, it hardly felt like I had a single. Friends would come into my room all the time, and even fall asleep on a beanbag they dragged in.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDD08ty5LbyOU4NdhU1x5vc1flTDqG4P2-vPwHH5RmEVGDDxP02ElP6bKCL6eYbWppREYXmx6om3ez_iCxJxYN3BEF3wupzIOefdxTnMVVgZV0WAVR6ad9NYX78zAPVtRI_NSgg00O-H_/s1600/TS.7.16XA+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="904" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDD08ty5LbyOU4NdhU1x5vc1flTDqG4P2-vPwHH5RmEVGDDxP02ElP6bKCL6eYbWppREYXmx6om3ez_iCxJxYN3BEF3wupzIOefdxTnMVVgZV0WAVR6ad9NYX78zAPVtRI_NSgg00O-H_/s400/TS.7.16XA+%25281%2529.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Our true colors coming out after a few days</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In comparison to Vanderbilt last year, I felt a lot more comfortable. I made multiple friends in our RA group tour, with the first being Olivia and Stella, and my anxiety subsided slowly. As the day went on, things only seemed to get better. I was able to talk to more people than I expected. I could almost sense myself using the small talk skills I picked up last year in Vanderbilt.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When law class started, I became more anxious. Everyone in the room was set on pursuing law and did everything they could to be the best in the class and get on the good side of Ms.Scott. The amount of work given to us was proving to be too much for me, especially since I hated this subject. Social sciences had always been a weakness for me, and I really didn't think I was cut out for this class. I know I took it because it would be a challenge, but this challenge was seeming to be more detrimental than constructive. I remember spending time at dinner worrying more about how to add to the discussion the next day rather than enjoying my time with the </span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimAxDFMhvLELRKTTajQSkqjvmYT1-I0qVGmf5M0Bc2C9lrK-hrkxg466ijqVveD2ZQbskO35haPRbFpsDgEKyzgMIKr_CYhfTfEwZuJyWxcWRQkvbG2NfPLChfKbyJszvy3MgAdnSB_TtW/s1600/RC.09.09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimAxDFMhvLELRKTTajQSkqjvmYT1-I0qVGmf5M0Bc2C9lrK-hrkxg466ijqVveD2ZQbskO35haPRbFpsDgEKyzgMIKr_CYhfTfEwZuJyWxcWRQkvbG2NfPLChfKbyJszvy3MgAdnSB_TtW/s400/RC.09.09.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The first day</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">people around me. No matter how much I would read about a case, I just wouldn't know how to talk about it like everyone else did.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Things got better when I switched classes, even if I started getting less sleep. I was doing something I enjoyed much more. Struggling with make up work and having an underhand with quizzes and homework was still worth it. (Since I was borrowing Ms. Ramseyer's textbook, I couldn't highlight the book and use it during quizzes. I had to hand-write pages of notes and could only use those in quizzes). The first project was also proving to be difficult to work on since I couldn't get time to work on it with the surprisingly big pile of make up work.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Every day, my life probably would have been easier if I started my work at the time most people did, but instead I chose talking to people who barged into my room (*cough cough* Kara and Michelle), and then either socializing outside or going downtown. Do I regret doing that every time? No. In fact, I'd say that's what made this trip unforgettable.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaUubn-Pq5-gKjXsnspAyZrxCTOyCCgbXQzGABrrA7V8F5cZtCzD0zTDogfF8uZ7ptAN937ygqPaKwPukBXSgdTW2rCRfEdYagLf-MvjmjZ-BodJlpY61Lq1l6rydxb1iwryBVC0XJoYSb/s1600/IMG_16491.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaUubn-Pq5-gKjXsnspAyZrxCTOyCCgbXQzGABrrA7V8F5cZtCzD0zTDogfF8uZ7ptAN937ygqPaKwPukBXSgdTW2rCRfEdYagLf-MvjmjZ-BodJlpY61Lq1l6rydxb1iwryBVC0XJoYSb/s320/IMG_16491.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Us trying to deal with Raqeeb and his sleep</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Then, before I knew it, the time had come for us to go to Yerkes. Initially, I was very sad to go because I had gotten so used to the dorms and people I saw everyday. I didn't know how to feel about only being around people in the physics class. I hadn't talked to many of my classmates, and I was afraid I wouldn't have a good time.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Little did I know, the complete opposite would happen. Lindsay and I talked to people who we wished we had spoken to before. We formed lasting bonds and had made so many inside jokes in just a couple of days. We got to push around a huge telescope and view the beautiful night sky away from light pollution. It made the end of the trip harder to face as there would now be more experiences to miss.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Throughout this trip, I've made bonds with people I can never forget. To Lindsay, thank you for becoming my sister/lesbian wife. We did everything together, and told each other secrets we would never tell the world. To Kara and Michelle, thank you for teaching me how to be wild. To Olivia, thank you for putting up with me and my weird hair. Most importantly, to Raqeeb, Cecilia, and everyone else above, thank you for keeping me together in the time I was a mess switching classes. To Alia, Stella, Arthur, and Donna, thank you for supporting me when the switch happened and still keeping in touch. To Jared, Nick, and Lister, I will always regret not becoming closer to you earlier on this trip. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJc0h7kECs6yrtyNwFkibxQbfxWNtcAapbDU6Czch_JyPT7-IBXX33JMmngFlTqMPvAqSE1wvaDpltz-FcZEMp00HDnY7yo2m_9VvO-aB8BJ3WIpU_jTH33T-2IaxaNlW9MTWfYZvs4YLr/s1600/20542955_1940776616199648_464294134_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1334" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJc0h7kECs6yrtyNwFkibxQbfxWNtcAapbDU6Czch_JyPT7-IBXX33JMmngFlTqMPvAqSE1wvaDpltz-FcZEMp00HDnY7yo2m_9VvO-aB8BJ3WIpU_jTH33T-2IaxaNlW9MTWfYZvs4YLr/s400/20542955_1940776616199648_464294134_o.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Nick and I (on the last day)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I still don't feel like facing the reality that the trip is over. I currently have been texting friends the past day to make up for the unfortunate fact that we won't be seeing each other physically anymore. Even through all the downs and sleepless nights, these past three weeks have proved themselves to be some of the best weeks of my life, and I thank everyone who makes ILC happen for this opportunity. Thank you. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
</div>
Jahnvi Doshihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01608220218453474678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-4509089608188138872017-07-30T02:56:00.002-07:002017-08-02T19:43:40.128-07:00Oh no...It's THAT Time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I woke up in a panic because Lindsay and Raqeeb lied to me saying it was 6:30 AM. It still hadn't struck me that we were leaving and would never be seeing any of these people ever again. I ran to finish my final packing and say a final goodbye to Jared, Olivia, and Kara. When all four of us headed down to the lobby, it still hadn't struck me that I was never really going to meet these faces again.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">When we got to the airport, all four of us were ve<span style="text-align: left;">ry sluggish. My body felt weak since it was busy trying to fight the germs in my bloodstream. That didn't work out too well with the tons of luggage I had with me.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="text-align: left;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="text-align: left;"></span></span>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZzNzfAy7xHN6_pifdG3GN6Bb_6ZYOhpyRJgCgzClEf7uuHTlaV8WQcglBYJbRyTNsulSYPZ6Wibgj5qNlvf9nBusFW76KucAS9ufPliiYBzjXPtzNx4T5YNg-n66B2RAEgmpj1nfg7l8F/s1600/RC.29.05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZzNzfAy7xHN6_pifdG3GN6Bb_6ZYOhpyRJgCgzClEf7uuHTlaV8WQcglBYJbRyTNsulSYPZ6Wibgj5qNlvf9nBusFW76KucAS9ufPliiYBzjXPtzNx4T5YNg-n66B2RAEgmpj1nfg7l8F/s400/RC.29.05.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The inside of our shuttle</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; text-align: justify;">We grabbed breakfast at a news shop that had a cafe. I got hot tea to aid my sore throat, and, trust me, the hot tea was hot. It made me start thinking of the case where a woman sued McDonalds because their beverage was too hot and damaged her skin horribly after it spilled.</span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">All four of us pretty much just slept on the plane ride because we had time to be tired. Personally, so much had happened in the past three weeks and since I was very sick, I pretty much slept through the whole ride. The plane was very cold, and even with two layers of jackets I was struggling to keep my body heated. This quite obviously made my immune system worse, and I woke up feeling even more sick which I didn't know was possible.</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqsRQxdOgSKHIvQ_LkpUYLlxFi3ICbfdji1eAOss_gIjjw2shckgtmLIgqkUbHy2AuUcP3RatgOz4nK8XQopOPrGJ0HB1nuFAgFuKM5JNfOrEs2zkhw19eD96umdeHmcTpZnOYBw-NbCVW/s1600/17+Chicago+Returns-180A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqsRQxdOgSKHIvQ_LkpUYLlxFi3ICbfdji1eAOss_gIjjw2shckgtmLIgqkUbHy2AuUcP3RatgOz4nK8XQopOPrGJ0HB1nuFAgFuKM5JNfOrEs2zkhw19eD96umdeHmcTpZnOYBw-NbCVW/s320/17+Chicago+Returns-180A-DG.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My mom's hair looks redder than mine</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">While walking towards baggage claim, we noticed Raqeeb's jacket had Olivia's hair since she wore it sometimes. This started a conversation of realizations about where Lindsay's and my hair could be. We concluded that David must be faring the worst since all of us were in his room multiple times so now there must be so many long strands of girl hair everywhere.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">After some struggle at lifting our suitcases at baggage claim, we then headed outside to find our ride back home. When a big shuttle/limo/van appeared, we were all confused. There was enough room to fit everyone in the ILC program. It was a huge jump from a cramped airplane, and all five of us could probably even have slept comfortably across the van.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">On the way there, Lindsay and I talked to Jared on the phone and we just debated about a </span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">hypothetical world. In the end, the simplified conclusion was that Nick would be dating Mac, and I would be dating Lister.</span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkJpkTENUaJvNuYd4B9XBpUGEpV4POL6WYC59pWgMnP_pKhoQ55bePaD9cx6zMB0wQh9XBxzxe6f1jnb7Kj1nmRWcHrHRQ0sf5dy05WhMWZnZh0SPXeWxOBksOIQLOovO8-lBXeCP2_TFu/s1600/17+Chicago+Returns-341A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkJpkTENUaJvNuYd4B9XBpUGEpV4POL6WYC59pWgMnP_pKhoQ55bePaD9cx6zMB0wQh9XBxzxe6f1jnb7Kj1nmRWcHrHRQ0sf5dy05WhMWZnZh0SPXeWxOBksOIQLOovO8-lBXeCP2_TFu/s320/17+Chicago+Returns-341A-DG.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Us FaceTiming Kara</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">In the three weeks away, I had almost forgotten how bad Bay Area traffic was. I had gotten a little too accustomed to the quicker transportation in Chicago. When we finally did reach ECHS, all four of us ran out and hugged our parents. It was a beautiful and emotional moment.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">After some quick pictures, Lindsay and I decided to FaceTime Kara before we had to separate. She had reached home and it made me really sad that I would no longer be able to talk to them all like before because of the distance.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I was then quickly taken home so I could get some medicine and sleep to feel as close to normal as possible. Currently, as I write this, I am not only suffering from germs, but also from sadness at having to see this trip come to an official end. </span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: justify;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgxc6G-ASdc6qKz6h5Mq8Y8IK6NwholGyBA4J8Q0Q18eY6cZSc5oRJi8k6u40I3_iyGq72P95nx7PYbV5A-WpbVuOvr7XapFGzDL0aSB6VX7oGylwUsvmhIuJ-7sE7gUJhn6_a-YD_6K7i/s1600/17+Chicago+Returns-136A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgxc6G-ASdc6qKz6h5Mq8Y8IK6NwholGyBA4J8Q0Q18eY6cZSc5oRJi8k6u40I3_iyGq72P95nx7PYbV5A-WpbVuOvr7XapFGzDL0aSB6VX7oGylwUsvmhIuJ-7sE7gUJhn6_a-YD_6K7i/s640/17+Chicago+Returns-136A-DG.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Could not have wished for a better cohort</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
Jahnvi Doshihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01608220218453474678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-6398723000733757312017-07-30T02:10:00.002-07:002017-08-02T19:45:52.829-07:00Home At Last<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It seems like everyone woke up at 5:30 AM
today, so, surprisingly, I was the one who woke up the latest out of all of us.
I set my alarm to wake up and get out of bed at 6:00 AM, since last night, right
before I went to bed, I picked out the clothes I was going to wear today and
just wore them to sleep. I didn’t have to change in the morning, so that saved
a lot of time. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It was somewhat weird waking up to an empty
room on the other side. Michelle had left yesterday, and it was strange to see
the shelves and desk on her side bare of her things. It made me realize how
much I’ve gotten used to having her around, but luckily, I didn’t have much
time to dwell much on it as I brushed my teeth, took out the trash, and checked
for anything I might have accidentally left behind. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I struggled with my luggage all the way
down to the lobby, getting down there at exactly 6:45 AM. For a moment, I
panicked and thought I was the last one, as I didn’t see Raqueeb, Lindsay, or
Jahnvi yet, but apparently, I was the first one. Glancing at the time again and
figuring I could make it, I made a mad dash up back to the fourth floor to see
my room for the last time. I also went to Kara and Olivia’s room to say a quick
goodbye to them. Kara also came down later to see us off in the lobby.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVLWCObVJZXhyphenhypheno4Frp_EpS3pUA4uS2E6roZPFKK3u9NsitLsQsq__dkP1sQb03jQqZZE0-Jq64n4MnELw8JPav_-baclwrX3pvDRJHA_aXHRDXRgWF6JVwKHvKds1HOOgMRpCFml2f-M/s1600/IMG_20170729_064916.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmVLWCObVJZXhyphenhypheno4Frp_EpS3pUA4uS2E6roZPFKK3u9NsitLsQsq__dkP1sQb03jQqZZE0-Jq64n4MnELw8JPav_-baclwrX3pvDRJHA_aXHRDXRgWF6JVwKHvKds1HOOgMRpCFml2f-M/s640/IMG_20170729_064916.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">2nd floor lobby. I'll miss this place. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">By around 7:00 AM, all of our luggage was loaded onto the shuttle, and we were on our way to leave Chicago at last.
During the ride, I messaged Karla and said my last goodbye to her (even though
we already technically did that already last night). She wished me a safe
flight, and I thanked her for being an awesome friend the past three weeks. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The flight was fairly uneventful. We managed
to find seats in the back of the plane that allowed us to sit together, with
Lindsay, Raqueeb, and I sitting in one row, and Jahnvi and Ms. Sciacca sitting
in the row right next to us. Raqueeb basically slept the whole flight, while
Lindsay slept a little and then just started watching something for the rest of
the flight on her phone. There were babies sitting nearby us again, and whenever
I wasn’t sleeping during the flight, I was mostly making funny faces at the
babies; it was so adorable when they laughed or smiled back.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWiEpX56A8a2OCg9kz2hmLW1dpSnC-3eX0r85MVCEn270di5y_f1iO2y4dhx2xcSrcOXh4FNOev4IAKTqEUC8f-rSImPP7lrpD04EC7Vkj4gXlcPyVF3M163sxDmti9qcA1vtVrv3YS4/s1600/IMG_20170729_120827.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrWiEpX56A8a2OCg9kz2hmLW1dpSnC-3eX0r85MVCEn270di5y_f1iO2y4dhx2xcSrcOXh4FNOev4IAKTqEUC8f-rSImPP7lrpD04EC7Vkj4gXlcPyVF3M163sxDmti9qcA1vtVrv3YS4/s640/IMG_20170729_120827.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Walking to get our luggage</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">While we waited for the luggage, we noticed
Raqueeb’s messy hair and strands of blond hair on his jacket that could only be
Olivia’s. They shared the jacket so often during these past three weeks, I had
no idea the jacket was actually Raqueeb’s; I had always assumed it was Olivia’s.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We were in for a big surprised once we got
all of our luggage and took it outside to wait for our ride back to ECHS. I’m
sure we all went, “No way!” when we saw the enormous limo-bus-shuttle pulled
up. I wondered for a brief moment whether there was another cohort that Don has
kept secret from us all this time that was coming back today and that we were
supposed to pick up as well, because I could not make of sense of this
humongous vehicle. The vehicle (I still don’t know what to call it) easily fit
all of our luggage in the back and still had three rows of seats. I got the
whole back row to myself. </span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1k0EquVJlAQ-ManvpG1g3246dt_lqo669JKAm5uBgA9xZDEDw7x9A-tRFg7IqKd7EC-UKsHnB31tBZ4KpdAvKddknKVPFPAolTROYEIshHsZodCJFXSsxV27UiFbkuSOFZ5oKPpuibzU/s1600/IMG_20170729_122907.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1315" data-original-width="1600" height="524" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1k0EquVJlAQ-ManvpG1g3246dt_lqo669JKAm5uBgA9xZDEDw7x9A-tRFg7IqKd7EC-UKsHnB31tBZ4KpdAvKddknKVPFPAolTROYEIshHsZodCJFXSsxV27UiFbkuSOFZ5oKPpuibzU/s640/IMG_20170729_122907.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Limo? Bus? Shuttle? Van? What are you?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Unfortunately, I got a little carsick on
the way back. Lindsay and Jahnvi called one of their friends, and I listened to
parts of their conversation, which sounded quite entertaining, but mostly, the
whole ride was just woozy for me.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">At last, we arrived to ECHS, where I saw my
family there already. I was still a little out of it because of the
carsickness, but we all got together for some last group pictures. Hair was
flying all over the place again, and it was like déjà vu from all the previous
times we have taken group picture – except this was the last time. It was a
little sad, parting with people I’ve spent three whole weeks with and have gotten
to know for even longer, but I’m finally home, and I’m happy to be here.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbM0JFQ12NNBPUlNpv7CuiG3Ts9-XKY7W4aea_gpHURr7Pzj-zd8-pH1aPsy-7yeDvOh4QOlBwCsy4FJtCoXI98CGhuDayzlj9GUQ3K8FOIHB2QgUb4qf9y3UegBQyl0s7_E1umCByW4/s1600/17+Chicago+Returns-136A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdbM0JFQ12NNBPUlNpv7CuiG3Ts9-XKY7W4aea_gpHURr7Pzj-zd8-pH1aPsy-7yeDvOh4QOlBwCsy4FJtCoXI98CGhuDayzlj9GUQ3K8FOIHB2QgUb4qf9y3UegBQyl0s7_E1umCByW4/s640/17+Chicago+Returns-136A-DG.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Last time taking group photos</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vlxfnEaM_2N8fzfRuLZEFIoCO8FBH0d-FlgDvWqhf9X9DV8W1RID92tZ4_4jhOEYKRgAGp5Y2tmnI2xDtr9TkfPAUgm4Ppcm0CG2NKK4MQkAvSiz8CgIzRXm9eq4dRGmW_VgYAFSSBg/s1600/17+Chicago+Returns-233A-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5vlxfnEaM_2N8fzfRuLZEFIoCO8FBH0d-FlgDvWqhf9X9DV8W1RID92tZ4_4jhOEYKRgAGp5Y2tmnI2xDtr9TkfPAUgm4Ppcm0CG2NKK4MQkAvSiz8CgIzRXm9eq4dRGmW_VgYAFSSBg/s640/17+Chicago+Returns-233A-DG.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Cecilia Chakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12911336898406755045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-52655176417991949532017-07-30T01:31:00.000-07:002017-08-02T19:49:07.534-07:00Is it Really Time for Goodbyes?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Let's pretend this blog was posted 24 hours ago. That would make life a little easier.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I woke up to the sound of screeching and banging on our door at Yerkes. Lindsay and I had told Jared to wake us up at 8 AM in case we didn't. Apparently Jared tried knocking on our door, but all he heard was alarms and no sound from us. So, he sent everyone else who was up, and it pretty much sounded like mob outside our room.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Lindsay and I ran as we finished packing and made it just in time to the lobby so we could all head to the bus. Mac left early as he got picked up by his dad since he lived right nearby. This left Nick a little sad and empty as the two of them had been best friends. Lister then gave me a really cute hot pink notebook as a gift, and it's so pretty I don't even want to use it. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The bus ride back was very quiet. Everyone had stayed up as long as their body could handle so they </span><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; text-align: left;">were all knocked out asleep in the bus. I think I'll admit that Lindsay and I were both so used to staying up that we may have forced Jared to stay up with us for a little too long. Oh well, at least we spent the night having fun.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaZL9Zw1A7GhwYy8ZKLIfHP3MgMGTk2JBO6xwHHCAqeCgktl_LOAW65y3iFNCUaZsvBt1JCYfqq3g0GNysRC7iISzF1UTQNTFyIRvXDvUMiVjDn1TrEFJyeHNrXMLvS3K4qGBknOaHg1Y/s1600/LL.28.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaZL9Zw1A7GhwYy8ZKLIfHP3MgMGTk2JBO6xwHHCAqeCgktl_LOAW65y3iFNCUaZsvBt1JCYfqq3g0GNysRC7iISzF1UTQNTFyIRvXDvUMiVjDn1TrEFJyeHNrXMLvS3K4qGBknOaHg1Y/s320/LL.28.01.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Nick (left) and Jared (right)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Unfortunately though, it was that night that I began feeling a little sick. I brushed it off thinking I would be fine the next day, but when I woke up in the morning, it only got worse. I then brushed it off again thinking I should be fine if I just napped on the bus ride to UChicago. Instead, once again, it only got worse.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We were starving when we reached the dorms. Nick, Jared, Lindsay, Kara, and I decided to go to the food trucks to get something. I really didn't feel like taking out some money from my purse, but I agreed since Nick said they would be selling some vodka sauce and I really wanted to try that out. (Nick and Lindsay had been talking about vodka sauce since the day before, praising it to be the best thing in the world).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVwjuNyCV__s6sGulK5EkC5CqScCqMbEzYoKLwjSM8iT0zHhepGShT-oSLD0Hx7OhFx6FAd7KnpwkQeLa0H8PeEGPEP4EpKOsk0Hh6DvLbtAN_tjlGaR10XZ8N2_40UK5EjGC3_-_SZFDl/s1600/IMG_18121.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVwjuNyCV__s6sGulK5EkC5CqScCqMbEzYoKLwjSM8iT0zHhepGShT-oSLD0Hx7OhFx6FAd7KnpwkQeLa0H8PeEGPEP4EpKOsk0Hh6DvLbtAN_tjlGaR10XZ8N2_40UK5EjGC3_-_SZFDl/s400/IMG_18121.jpg" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Kara, Rafael (left), Hamilton (right), and I</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We didn't end up finding any vodka sauce, but we did find a really good sandwich named Mac, which I actually bought because it sounded great. We all then headed back to the dorms and ate in the lobby. I decided that I would try to grab some coffee from the cafeteria and maybe that would make me feel less sick. "I'll be back up in 5 minutes," I told them.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I ended up finding people from law class: Donna, Aaliya, Stella, and Arthur. I sat with them and somehow showed back up the lobby a good 30 minutes later and everyone was gone. Then, I somehow ended up with Lindsay, Jared, and Nick at the Museum of Science and Industry.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">MSI was actually a lot like our Exploratorium, but just had a lot of cooler exhibits that were expensive to get into. During this time, I realized something funny: Jared and Lindsay had the exact same sense of humor, and Nick and I had the exact same sense of humor. So that made the trip at MSI even more hilarious.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We made it back to the dorms just in time to say goodbye to Michelle before she left. It was really sad to see someone so close leaving, and it made the end of this trip real. I admit I may have almost started crying but instead I just gave her a long hug and later headed back into my room to finish packing.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: serif, serif;">Afterwards, Lindsay and I went
to Nick's room since that's where Jared and our new friend Juvia was.</span><span style="font-family: -webkit-standard, serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: serif, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioScTMiAHJJYw7PUEr8LQs4XoAyh_78NBIj2MYkSMvL-vJx_jppdfoxItfdYiokriT0mIjqDbAGYXscrI02w7c6tqz3YG7MvqIltuCNk81RHXW-64LStIw9QMyddP_HxCs8_fjpfVFOsFo/s1600/IMG_18341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioScTMiAHJJYw7PUEr8LQs4XoAyh_78NBIj2MYkSMvL-vJx_jppdfoxItfdYiokriT0mIjqDbAGYXscrI02w7c6tqz3YG7MvqIltuCNk81RHXW-64LStIw9QMyddP_HxCs8_fjpfVFOsFo/s320/IMG_18341.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">David and I </span></td></tr>
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<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: serif, serif;">I then
had to go back to my room to grab my phone charger, so I told them I would be
back in 10 minutes. But then, I ran into Kara, so we went to Raqeeb's room, and
then Building C to meet with Hamilton, Matus, and Rafael. We went to the third
floor to grab food, down to the ice cream social, and then to the ping pong
table. I finally then went back to Nick's room a good hour and half later. Nick
then said he had to shower so I said I'll just come back half an hour later
since Lindsay and Jared were watching comedy videos that I couldn't fully
understand. I once again found Kara and then we visited David, and then Raqeeb.
I took a quick nap because I felt very sick and tired, so Jared, Lindsay, and
Nick had to come up to find me. Oops.</span></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">After taking some pictures with them, it was about 4 AM. I was feeling way too sick and knew I had to get up early. I decided to email Don, and tell him I really needed a pass. I'm still sorry about that Don, but at least I got to properly say goodbye to everyone who had made this trip unforgettable for me. </span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX4Zd8BmyaI4by-4HQB7TtvEuEmsy9LIXNbyvJU8ktwbYexG415fOySNX8XKdQOTIKB0qDUIt-f8ltbe11V1hHPGRCEdIwwsxuHV0wdoS8oGQ3-l5efnHBzvpcHUD9MN9ngdwPbEUjU-Mu/s1600/imageedit_4_8543583389.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX4Zd8BmyaI4by-4HQB7TtvEuEmsy9LIXNbyvJU8ktwbYexG415fOySNX8XKdQOTIKB0qDUIt-f8ltbe11V1hHPGRCEdIwwsxuHV0wdoS8oGQ3-l5efnHBzvpcHUD9MN9ngdwPbEUjU-Mu/s640/imageedit_4_8543583389.jpg" width="480" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">To the best class <3</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
Jahnvi Doshihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01608220218453474678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-30307630544667187172017-07-30T00:44:00.001-07:002017-07-30T00:48:27.496-07:00I'm Back!<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Well, today was the last day of our time in Chicago. I used up all my feelings yesterday, so today's departure was kind of anticlimactic. We left the dorms at 7:00 AM, way too early for me to feel emotions, and there weren’t very many hiccups in our departure.</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPgPMtcxy1UCnam7QTywMu639rmo8v9JqMpgQrml2R60rALsfrGvbqQ3qdMsfZL0jmDPbFQrCCdGfJ-Gthsjy4OlibzPFZIDn_6X11_JKArlRG9F-DymuPawz9KUrI2ba-FipsJnQi_kwJ/s1600/RC.29.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPgPMtcxy1UCnam7QTywMu639rmo8v9JqMpgQrml2R60rALsfrGvbqQ3qdMsfZL0jmDPbFQrCCdGfJ-Gthsjy4OlibzPFZIDn_6X11_JKArlRG9F-DymuPawz9KUrI2ba-FipsJnQi_kwJ/s640/RC.29.01.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQwpDSJDifh_PrtJgbhm5mgJk2BQjWqAYMF8iuQbwBswrFXkVjqjvaoru04-GAGbNirgPiy3WuwlPPxZ80xgh5nydr3axNuPDcX2vxKLx2q8mRvAlizfmJmYkydjXZ4m9yDhdLn5VZ-TZt/s1600/RC.29.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQwpDSJDifh_PrtJgbhm5mgJk2BQjWqAYMF8iuQbwBswrFXkVjqjvaoru04-GAGbNirgPiy3WuwlPPxZ80xgh5nydr3axNuPDcX2vxKLx2q8mRvAlizfmJmYkydjXZ4m9yDhdLn5VZ-TZt/s640/RC.29.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Said goodbye to the view from my room and my roommate, George.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">I had to wake up at around 5:30 AM if I were to leave the dorms on time. More or less, we all managed to be out the door and in the shuttle by around 7:00 AM. The shuttle taking us to the airport wasn't outrageously big, but it was pretty high off of the ground; getting into the seats kind of reminded me of the climb to get into bar seats. </span><br />
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The flight itself was also smooth, besides takeoff. Based on our experiences landing in and taking off from the Midway, we concluded that it must have an especially short runway that caused the steep ascent/descent. We were pretty much perpendicular to the ground the whole ascent. When we flattened out, the ride was decent, and the smooth landing pretty much confirmed our suspicion of the runway size.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Coming back to school from the airport was the most out-of-place thing that happened today. Instead of an SUV, which we have used up until now, we had this huge mini-bus/limo/shuttle come for us. The inside felt like an armored car, and when people would look at the windows it looked like they were sizing us up for the kill, when they were probably in all actuality just checking their hair in the tinted windows. </span></span> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPRQiKmsexOGOjRNkSwM9LU7iRk5OJLjcIlDAS5-GVftry2cuKZCoX757V_1imYUclAHagT4xz9a9xhWyazzSVpnxPPke85iN_22iYvqpkzFjXTslP_zH06TgE3gATAvB4UmGTpLl3FLf5/s1600/RC.29.04.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPRQiKmsexOGOjRNkSwM9LU7iRk5OJLjcIlDAS5-GVftry2cuKZCoX757V_1imYUclAHagT4xz9a9xhWyazzSVpnxPPke85iN_22iYvqpkzFjXTslP_zH06TgE3gATAvB4UmGTpLl3FLf5/s640/RC.29.04.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj36YCZ4caq95tfPot73UCRkcP3WkYMfDOjv1VqRrxv1AYppkmf4Y6jOP8TROXjz6H7ggQM3Inpt6l5ksg19pFG_xgYjCMu8Jyvf018TqmJS7_mJWXnm4UpkDdDm3gaF_SGg1bcGVmPE0R6/s1600/RC.29.05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj36YCZ4caq95tfPot73UCRkcP3WkYMfDOjv1VqRrxv1AYppkmf4Y6jOP8TROXjz6H7ggQM3Inpt6l5ksg19pFG_xgYjCMu8Jyvf018TqmJS7_mJWXnm4UpkDdDm3gaF_SGg1bcGVmPE0R6/s640/RC.29.05.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The outside (top) and inside (bottom) of our vehicle.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">Nothing really went wrong on the way home. We just showed up everywhere we were supposed to be at the scheduled time, and then were transported to where we wanted to go. The whole process was actually peaceful, and it was such a big difference from the hectic nature of life at the campus. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWEOpV2-0uMshpVXco8KFkrofAy27RKt1UQIYUP1Kh3e3DaMbvEY3MdmtxXEdB1nUpZ6AR7sfTqmaNdy_m3XXoRHICiBCS3HCPUiia1cDHG4sA890QG6ap77KNeDWAzp_3gZJaaqDcw__L/s1600/17+Chicago+Returns-136AA-DG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1018" data-original-width="1600" height="406" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWEOpV2-0uMshpVXco8KFkrofAy27RKt1UQIYUP1Kh3e3DaMbvEY3MdmtxXEdB1nUpZ6AR7sfTqmaNdy_m3XXoRHICiBCS3HCPUiia1cDHG4sA890QG6ap77KNeDWAzp_3gZJaaqDcw__L/s640/17+Chicago+Returns-136AA-DG.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Pictures with the Chicago family...</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1600" height="512" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdDkts-Pd0wDgPF_2Zq3_jSRmeAiurqWXuQK42tYyMgpEWH5u_qvhxrp1zvc1TRca5AcfGSPzGltygrLoBwzdpYZjjG0ZdsQpW0k8g9bT7E8CmOQZCdHWXoZ5Rkn8i6W_cev62DU1KNLNm/s640/17+Chicago+Returns-216A-DG.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">...and my biological one, too.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Raqeeb Changhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09676559739991109605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-72770589224708185702017-07-30T00:27:00.002-07:002017-07-30T00:27:35.403-07:00It's Weird Being Back<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I started getting ready around 5:30 AM. Though we wouldn't be leaving until after 6:45 AM, I didn't want to rush my morning and feel like there wasn't enough time for anything. I wandered around the building and it's likely that most of the elevator movement from 5:30-6:15 was me trying to see everything I could for the last time.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDUvPjnED0fiqtJ9rGwwIRMSFKN6oBrKp7H777VEDCPmOtxG6b3QjJWUBRR4FLkO55ON98ypWiyg4q9kWPhZyTm2ZxOdTKb-Wvy56bpEKqfAax14GehDiUrz-whbl3QBCmg73eWybuDgI/s1600/LL.29.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDUvPjnED0fiqtJ9rGwwIRMSFKN6oBrKp7H777VEDCPmOtxG6b3QjJWUBRR4FLkO55ON98ypWiyg4q9kWPhZyTm2ZxOdTKb-Wvy56bpEKqfAax14GehDiUrz-whbl3QBCmg73eWybuDgI/s640/LL.29.01.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The first goodbye this morning was with Jared. Jahnvi and I had said goodbye to Nick late last night, but since I ended up typing my blog about the last day on the sixth floor where Jared's dorm was and since I left my backpack in his room, he was naturally the first goodbye.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Next I said goodbye to Olivia and Kara. They had told us all to wake them up to say goodbye, so we said our goodbyes and promised to try and stay in contact before I went to grab my bag from my floor and head down to the lobby. Considering that I've spent a considerate amount of time in the last three weeks with Kara and Olivia it was hard to think about the fact that they wouldn't be around me, and that I wouldn't have my studying randomly interrupted by a bored Kara.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Once my bags were downstairs and I was officially checked out, I thought it would completely settle in that we were leaving. It didn't. I was still thinking that we would get on the plane go somewhere and come back to the dorms to see my friends again.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I had another opportunity to say goodbye to Kara when she helped Jahnvi carry her bags down, so I gave her another long hug and promised to bother her sometime later in the day.</span></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB8mDm22JIXWyT4T5BukzTPKzt1MXz7buhfHezsKiqWgChfqEgtgB8Ev-m4bT6CAhXBrdlu440ZkZujcuY76BOhOVasb-Ab182TnZRtyHTGAPDSUUFI3umjBmMAlcTIAfJHxDVpHBKqbw/s1600/LL.29.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB8mDm22JIXWyT4T5BukzTPKzt1MXz7buhfHezsKiqWgChfqEgtgB8Ev-m4bT6CAhXBrdlu440ZkZujcuY76BOhOVasb-Ab182TnZRtyHTGAPDSUUFI3umjBmMAlcTIAfJHxDVpHBKqbw/s320/LL.29.02.jpg" width="240" /></span></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After getting to the airport and to our gate, Jahnvi and I ended up calling Jared to bother him while he figured out what to do until his afternoon flight, so we talked to him until we had to line up for boarding.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Though I was most definitely sleep deprived I only managed to sleep for 2 hours of the 4 hour flight, which was annoying. I spent the rest of the time watching Netflix episodes I had downloaded on my phone and looking out the window. On the plane ride in the rows in front of us were two sweet babies, who actually didn't cry very much and were very playful, which made for adorable baby laughter throughout the flight.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Once off the plane it finally began settling in that we were in California not Illinois and that we would not be going back to UChicago, at least any time soon. That moment was terrible. Dorms in a way force social interaction and make it 20 times easier to make plans, because everyone is within the same general area. Without the connection of the dorms I started to get nervous about our friendships holding up.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgywf_MlFRUwT1gOdn3KddVx1NQOpioBk37aJJytemvZHo-MNSSFMHP5ufMHeBi1y1S0LmiEFN12pCk7hAJEQP4ZbkIbFXo5vL5cohORBDgC6TW_HUDv-HqVyFH-lt8bveFBAPl9Yo7Adw/s1600/LL.29.04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgywf_MlFRUwT1gOdn3KddVx1NQOpioBk37aJJytemvZHo-MNSSFMHP5ufMHeBi1y1S0LmiEFN12pCk7hAJEQP4ZbkIbFXo5vL5cohORBDgC6TW_HUDv-HqVyFH-lt8bveFBAPl9Yo7Adw/s640/LL.29.04.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When waiting for bags we noticed two things. One: Raqeeb's hair was all over the place. Two: Olivia's hair was on the back of his jacket. Throughout the trip Olivia and Raqeeb often borrowed each other's jackets, and until we left campus both Cecilia and I thought the jacket was Olivia's. It had her signature blonde hair on the back of it which really could come from no other source. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggIn9aBPEwFC7vabkOYJx3LGNgCx1QWluAzi-QEW2Mqa6Uhmjgj6z_g-n27Tdso0mQuQ0wTfHCt0fZWkR9XyR543Qdd9FK6ynrHdvGXupUPH-vLKivdsRFA9HSyDoDltXKylzOqIw-HMc/s1600/LL.29.05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggIn9aBPEwFC7vabkOYJx3LGNgCx1QWluAzi-QEW2Mqa6Uhmjgj6z_g-n27Tdso0mQuQ0wTfHCt0fZWkR9XyR543Qdd9FK6ynrHdvGXupUPH-vLKivdsRFA9HSyDoDltXKylzOqIw-HMc/s320/LL.29.05.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The vehicle we took on the ride to El Cerrito HS was gigantic. There was a question on whether it was a shuttle, a limo, or a bus as it most definitely had room for our luggage, us, and around 12 imaginary people. On the ride back Jared called me, because he was bored at the airport waiting for his flight to board, so Jahnvi and I talked to him about conspiracy theories and a very hypothetical situation. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When we got off the bus/shuttle/limo at El Cerrito HS we all hugged and said hello to our families before taking pictures and realizing that this was where we parted ways too. I hugged and said goodbye to everyone before Jahnvi and I realized that we wanted pictures together and wanted to Facetime Kara together one more time. We talked to Kara for 5 minutes and she showed us her room and told us about her day since getting back to Indiana. Jahnvi and I hugged again before parting ways and heading home, our experience at UChicago was over.</span></div>
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Lindsay Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02937262396779257944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-50980750318546490362017-07-29T02:49:00.000-07:002017-07-29T02:49:25.849-07:00It's Really Ending<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">My day began when I heard knocking at the door. More accurately, Jahnvi heard knocking on our door and got up to answer it. When she opened it to reveal a group of our friends and fellow classmates outside the door, I woke up. I'm thankful for the fact that at some point during the night we told Jared to wake us up at 8 AM, otherwise our alarms would've continued to blare until Charlotte our RA, came to find us. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We had to say goodbye to Mac before we got on the bus to leave, as he lives in Wisconsin, so it wasn't logical for him to go all the way back to UChicago before leaving. This was a sad moment, though Peter J had left the night before, there wasn't such an obvious moment. In this we were all standing with our suitcases only to realize that though Mac had all of his belongings, he wouldn't be coming with us on the bus. Mac is essentially Nick's best friend from the whole UChicago experience, so he was the saddest to see Mac go.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">On the bus ride back, we had a bus that seats 40, meaning there was room for both Jahnvi and I to sleep across an entire row, so the ride back I took the opportunity to sleep. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Upon arrival back on campus MA a commuter student who actually saw his house go by as we drove back to UChicago, left. This left all of the students in the dorms to head back inside and try to get used to not seeing the same people for 16 hours of the day. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">As it turns out, we're all very bad at this. It wasn't long before Nick had contacted Jahnvi and asked what we were doing for lunch, and we decided to go down to the food trucks parked right down the street from where our class was to get food. Jared, Nick, Lister, Kara(she knew none of these people), Jahnvi, and I went down to the food trucks before eating in the second floor lounge where we could see who was leaving campus today. It's sad to see people walk down the hall with all of their belongings they brought with them, and usually an entourage to see them off. These three weeks have felt both like a lengthy and minuscule amount of time, and the friendships we've made has made it feel like we've known each other longer than less than a month.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrcZw6wyepklj3RzfKJKQ0gj-1b9T9qUvm7zW5lO5OMi8fFa4Jl97_LS0fz8Rsq8D4noIM-cMRsWm6qClzPgJ2byezDe4AabuhAIdh3x09Hw3gbw2vB3TWmtBplH0cg6nBBOZb1sNo1wM/s1600/LL.28.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrcZw6wyepklj3RzfKJKQ0gj-1b9T9qUvm7zW5lO5OMi8fFa4Jl97_LS0fz8Rsq8D4noIM-cMRsWm6qClzPgJ2byezDe4AabuhAIdh3x09Hw3gbw2vB3TWmtBplH0cg6nBBOZb1sNo1wM/s640/LL.28.01.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">(Left) Nick, (Center) Jahnvi, (Right) Jared</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jared wanted to go to Adler Planetarium, but none of us wanted to spend money both on the trip there, but also on the planetarium itself. Instead we decided to go to the Museum of Science and Industry, so I did end up getting to go after all! MSI reminded me greatly of the Exploratorium when we first went in, with interactive activities and games and interesting exhibits. We mostly wandered through the exhibits and played with the interactive games we thought were interesting. On the way back we stopped at Medici's for delicious milkshakes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Throughout the trip to MSI and back, annoyingly enough Jared and I found that we have ridiculously similar senses of humor. It's annoying in the fact that we didn't begin actually talking to each other until a few days ago, so we're finding on the last days that there's someone else with this sense of humor. The odd thing is that we never would've found out if Jahnvi and I hadn't heard Jared and his Yerkes roommate Ben talking and stroke up a conversation with them. If I were to do one thing differently during this trip, it would've been to move more around the classroom in the beginning instead of sitting in the same place, so I could socialize with more of my classmates than just those in the area directly surrounding me.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg31GSYVr61l6pA2zX18JtIl5817UQkygYG4glnuOdc2hTKaGjNC7x74stpO4p7gvhxGEKbQbT0ZfbnXHLoceXxxwOexfKlLoNT7w6XuzGgGJJrPP-ANvTvmu9MXU92Iz26aVdrZ9FGUBY/s1600/LL.28.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg31GSYVr61l6pA2zX18JtIl5817UQkygYG4glnuOdc2hTKaGjNC7x74stpO4p7gvhxGEKbQbT0ZfbnXHLoceXxxwOexfKlLoNT7w6XuzGgGJJrPP-ANvTvmu9MXU92Iz26aVdrZ9FGUBY/s320/LL.28.02.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Michelle leaving :(</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Immediately after getting back from MSI Michelle was leaving. We had a prolonged goodbye due to her not filling out a necessary form, and waiting for her mom to pick her up. It was a sad moment overall as she was the first of my immediate friend group to go, so now I was a part of an entourage saying goodbye to a friend. She lives in the Bay Area also, so unlike with most of my classmates, it's not actually impossible for me to see her again, but that fact that I can't just go up one floor or go across the building and find her is a strange concept. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I spent the rest of the evening wandering around with Jahnvi and saying bye to people before settling in Nick's room to watch John Mulaney comedy routine's with Jared, Nick, Juvia(one of Nick's friends), and occasionally Jahnvi and Kara. At one point we said goodbye to Lister as it was unlikely we would see her in the morning, which was a blue moment for us all. We went down for the ice cream social for a second before continuing our comedy show entertainment.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">A necessary picture of Jared trying to pack his bag.</span></td></tr>
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Lindsay Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02937262396779257944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-88087757135889420472017-07-29T01:00:00.002-07:002017-07-29T01:00:48.819-07:00Last Day Feels<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I don’t really know where to start this blog. Everything that I did, no matter how routine it may have seemed during the session, was weighted down with the knowledge that I might never do those things here again. There were so many people to say goodbye to and so many of those goodbyes felt more final than I’d prefer. Usually when I leave summer programs, I don’t feel the same sense of melancholy that I did today.</span></span></div>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-3582ce11-8d57-5a64-b888-724d8e645ba8" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The day started off fairly anticlimactically. My group did our presentation; it went very smoothly. We finished with exactly one second before the time limit of 20 minutes. Everyone’s part sounded so much more polished than yesterday, and we all executed so well. It was clear that we had all practiced after our rehearsal last night. There were 4 total presentations this morning, including ours, and when the last group finished, we went outside to take group photos. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoIfh56USELFa_FxQO-_nhk9j00EIi2dYw9Z-VjKZaYGOpojyWtWJYKZ1wgZdi9N5Ic8NEZHW5k7hyX8riwiZglbWeqRjgzqUCpqIGvcF4bHrIcH7yhiuDBiZ-SXo2-41nBSFrSptxghlY/s1600/RC.28.10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1440" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoIfh56USELFa_FxQO-_nhk9j00EIi2dYw9Z-VjKZaYGOpojyWtWJYKZ1wgZdi9N5Ic8NEZHW5k7hyX8riwiZglbWeqRjgzqUCpqIGvcF4bHrIcH7yhiuDBiZ-SXo2-41nBSFrSptxghlY/s640/RC.28.10.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The Metacognition group!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">During the photos, I couldn’t help but reflect on everything that we’ve done in the class this session. I remembered the first couple of days, when we were getting exposed to the ideas of spacing and interleaving and learning how to find research articles. I reflected on the seemingly countless days in between the beginning and end of the class, where I was so pleased to get a check-plus on my first response paper, which I spent hours in Mansueto working on. Even the most recent days came back to me in a wave of nostalgia; the finalizing of our procedure, the execution of our project, the collection and analyzation of data. Along the way, I became progressively close to my classmates, Kate, and Marjorie. I’m going to genuinely miss this class; not only have I learned a lot about how our brains absorb and understand information, but I also learned what it’s like to participate in a discussion-based, smaller classroom. This course was an invaluable experience, and I’m so glad I got to be part of it.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXG2wO0ovdvZvUrcQaTBouXqp_XKuEfHI2C1xdKSnrOntthYZOaoRHa9XinjO9kcmvULmhOkeOG4_yC87QsLJW7p-uopmLkwK6RWY6Zhx9Hk_qT0KQeT04SvPe9PtwX5sRGA6XpD8X29lt/s1600/RC.28.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXG2wO0ovdvZvUrcQaTBouXqp_XKuEfHI2C1xdKSnrOntthYZOaoRHa9XinjO9kcmvULmhOkeOG4_yC87QsLJW7p-uopmLkwK6RWY6Zhx9Hk_qT0KQeT04SvPe9PtwX5sRGA6XpD8X29lt/s640/RC.28.01.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Class photo.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After class, which ended at lunch break, I went to Shake Shack one last time with Olivia. The Shroom Burger, with all of its gooey goodness, will be a regrettable absence from my stomach for the foreseeable future. We went to the London House after lunch, which has a public rooftop restaurant, and looked out at downtown Chicago for the last time this summer. Although I spent most of my time on campus or near it, I also traveled to downtown fairly frequently, and it’s a really beautiful area that I won’t forget.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1qcqYELdMo_L81V51yX5z2yK2RNTyPG91NtX9vfkNR2DufDxUBQE-sruM-8lr8Sv0YtHKJ6JPNJmbndXCrs4Ww1QlG1ImG6SmgZ7i0SY3uh_wYSOx2l7hvcoKHScIYecwSXjagzbXLyQk/s1600/RC.28.04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1qcqYELdMo_L81V51yX5z2yK2RNTyPG91NtX9vfkNR2DufDxUBQE-sruM-8lr8Sv0YtHKJ6JPNJmbndXCrs4Ww1QlG1ImG6SmgZ7i0SY3uh_wYSOx2l7hvcoKHScIYecwSXjagzbXLyQk/s640/RC.28.04.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Until next tine, Shake Shack.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I spent my time after lunch packing, saying goodbye to people, and just chilling out in the dorms. During this time, I started feeling sad about leaving again, but this time I remembered all of my experiences in the dorms. All of the late nights I spent out in the common area writing papers or reading academic journals because George was in the room sleeping, the times I would randomly run into a bunch of people that I knew in the bathroom, cooking in the kitchen with friends. This place has been a really great place to live, and it’s also helped me to grow as a person.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvaqoAUlwywjnLh9Yg8VY7Qp_oQ15u7wdpjLUcq_jjEwjHjagIPDXUX_w1ISucwxkJ7WCDbLPudK3eAqbkRcmY5BgGakD4LlOTLeF1pn-RqgqyPNDTcXnzISxpR3Hd-bOYK5ozIHSKQ_G5/s1600/RC.28.07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvaqoAUlwywjnLh9Yg8VY7Qp_oQ15u7wdpjLUcq_jjEwjHjagIPDXUX_w1ISucwxkJ7WCDbLPudK3eAqbkRcmY5BgGakD4LlOTLeF1pn-RqgqyPNDTcXnzISxpR3Hd-bOYK5ozIHSKQ_G5/s640/RC.28.07.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Chicago is such a pretty city.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Kate and I before saying goodbye.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">It’s taking a while to set in that the program is actually over. This time tomorrow I’ll (hopefully) be at home in bed, but right now I can’t help but think about all of my experiences from the orientation to this point. There are so many emotions that I’m feeling, and I can’t put them all into words, but what I can say is that my participation in this class and overall trip has been so memorable, enjoyable, and (most importantly) educational. I learned about practical responsibilities, I got to talk with people from all over the world, I was able to feel what it was like to attend school away from home, and I got to explore and research a subject that I’ve had no previous exposure to.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ftCtctCFoLuQAZIPLrpSsWevD8Urg0JZjWr49AaC27sgyaHSWfmFyKUibVKlQnlPMWGgAAXGFW35kvel-VLYqcrkfM1vz3QPn9St8cI-57IFnrn4KEIJj9Aivs6eqKjCW8CGQ7Tjt04s/s1600/RC.28.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3ftCtctCFoLuQAZIPLrpSsWevD8Urg0JZjWr49AaC27sgyaHSWfmFyKUibVKlQnlPMWGgAAXGFW35kvel-VLYqcrkfM1vz3QPn9St8cI-57IFnrn4KEIJj9Aivs6eqKjCW8CGQ7Tjt04s/s640/RC.28.08.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm going to miss seeing this sunset every evening.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Raqeeb Changhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09676559739991109605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-18307447536265149472017-07-29T00:32:00.000-07:002017-07-29T00:43:43.230-07:00Winter is Coming<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Today, I participated in my last RA
activity: I woke up at 4:45 AM to watch the sunrise at Lake Michigan. I was very
surprised by the amount of people who came on the trip. I honestly did not expect a lot of people to be willing to wake up so early. Yet, there were, at the very
least, 50 of us led by one RA (Gaby), and it was quite an interesting experience walking
through Hyde Park with so many people at five in the morning. We were such a
big group, and I felt bad for the cars at the stop signs that had to wait for
our entire group to finish crossing. </span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">It was able a 20 minute walk to the lake,
but once we arrived, I could see it was well worth waking up so early; the view
was absolutely stunning.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsy6_PBcCHxoypmG8hbZrBWaMqSc-egGYUAdQ790uPc5ULubofQaEFree2ErmkU8NyQmKnQ6dm41GoJYX_rPW_S2Bbx6bA99ozQ3QoJc7V1b7n5HQQruZhaB33ClFqB3Kh-oqWjDDXYI/s1600/IMG_20170728_052942+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsy6_PBcCHxoypmG8hbZrBWaMqSc-egGYUAdQ790uPc5ULubofQaEFree2ErmkU8NyQmKnQ6dm41GoJYX_rPW_S2Bbx6bA99ozQ3QoJc7V1b7n5HQQruZhaB33ClFqB3Kh-oqWjDDXYI/s640/IMG_20170728_052942+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Not actually sure who these people are, but their silhouette looked cool</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDYh0lixkuRh6-XhNSZ4sZtdziATJ_f9K9nJ-_XgPqOAL6hqc8fGkYFuKb3vE9DHazjxtNqNx95MmUZFFUt0TnYh16i8EYHmdzFdaPg1ypHIRBlnke_1vcKCE6IRrU9oDm4BzZtKP3iGU/s1600/IMG_20170728_060153+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDYh0lixkuRh6-XhNSZ4sZtdziATJ_f9K9nJ-_XgPqOAL6hqc8fGkYFuKb3vE9DHazjxtNqNx95MmUZFFUt0TnYh16i8EYHmdzFdaPg1ypHIRBlnke_1vcKCE6IRrU9oDm4BzZtKP3iGU/s640/IMG_20170728_060153+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">A beautiful sunrise; a beautiful start of the day to the end of summer</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My friend Makayla and I sat down on the rocks
and watched the waves crashing, which was so soothing. The waves were actually
pretty strong today, and Gaby warned us that none of us were allowed to jump in
to swim. Luckily, everybody listened and nobody tried to do so. Mostly everyone
was like me and Makayla, choosing to simply sit and enjoy the cold breeze from
the water, which pulled us from our sleepiness.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlVnIJn-c3xDvAcoantcXfeLtp8ZpzrlSzDXy_BDiNAYF2zSsPuLYEUUvNw21o-CT792C-Z7uhyphenhyphenr62028yGtm3xmt9VRVrkjb2kpNuK1a7IOz6iJBnDOkKMBwB0_f0DTaGjjB_ZZjcOVs/s1600/IMG_20170728_055648.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlVnIJn-c3xDvAcoantcXfeLtp8ZpzrlSzDXy_BDiNAYF2zSsPuLYEUUvNw21o-CT792C-Z7uhyphenhyphenr62028yGtm3xmt9VRVrkjb2kpNuK1a7IOz6iJBnDOkKMBwB0_f0DTaGjjB_ZZjcOVs/s640/IMG_20170728_055648.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is only half of the group</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We left the lake at around 6:00 AM, which meant
that I got to sleep for another one hour after we got back to the dorms before
I had to leave for breakfast. All I’ll say is that it was some much needed
sleep; I rarely get up at such an early hour, and I was drained by the time we
came back. Breakfast came too soon, so, unfortunately, I had to drag myself
from bed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Interestingly enough, I felt a lot more awake after I ate breakfast. I
did not mention it in the previous day's blog, but Dr. Fineschi had told us that the
last day - which was today - would be a half-day, meaning we would end class at 12 PM. From 9 to 10
AM, we did some last minute assembling of our posters in the lab room, before we
brought it down to the second floor and hung our posters up the boards.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Poster presentation was extremely fun. Elaine
and I were scheduled to present in the second hour, so we spent the first
looking at posters from both our class and the biotech class. Everyone had very
interesting projects and research topics. When it was finally my turn to
present, I remembered the good parts of everyone’s presentation and tried to incorporate
as many as I can. I think it would be fair to say that I thought we did a
pretty nice job with the presentation. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Throughout the two hours, Dr. Fineschi, Dawn, and Rebecca went around
to everyone’s poster for grading. At the end, the teachers treated both classes
to ice-cream. Our class lingered behind afterwards, and we all ended up taking pictures,
exchanging contact information, and saying our goodbyes for an hour.</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmykWX0Tm2EKJWHtyJnkg8txJLvjJeD0QY8x3dMnuFvR1Hb4yCqy38rNQm54FJWOQkqMzQJYqrgu-1zTocKuMPNu_lj53p2pA4bb_LwLM5Cp7g2_Ca2NWRsLxXT0mIwdYzMo6XVrqXYwk/s1600/20476223_493339014334173_6311318178166674974_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmykWX0Tm2EKJWHtyJnkg8txJLvjJeD0QY8x3dMnuFvR1Hb4yCqy38rNQm54FJWOQkqMzQJYqrgu-1zTocKuMPNu_lj53p2pA4bb_LwLM5Cp7g2_Ca2NWRsLxXT0mIwdYzMo6XVrqXYwk/s640/20476223_493339014334173_6311318178166674974_n.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Rebecca took the picture for us.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">With my course officially over, I went to
the Smart Museum of Art in the afternoon since I didn’t have class after lunch
anymore. The museum was small, as I expected, but it was still pretty cool. There were
many nice pieces in the galleries, but I think my favorite thing about
the museum were the “welcome blankets.” Basically, the museum started a project
where people who currently live in the US would hand make a blanket to welcome
new immigrants to the country. I was able to read some of the experiences
people shared on the cards/letters that went along with the blankets, and I was very impressed by some people and all they had been through.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVYJRiNMDmFSR5vpA3nmXGMhEU4tPD2ThH7O1yU2JyoM8k08NE5CXmgs9R6zbtVG9xaQqgqZho1h9_DOo_EB-Wq5KyMnA-QhxdkgOx8XyEOPd-5sivqosgzQ1lfkWH3TDD7FkTbBEZyk/s1600/IMG_20170728_154150+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnVYJRiNMDmFSR5vpA3nmXGMhEU4tPD2ThH7O1yU2JyoM8k08NE5CXmgs9R6zbtVG9xaQqgqZho1h9_DOo_EB-Wq5KyMnA-QhxdkgOx8XyEOPd-5sivqosgzQ1lfkWH3TDD7FkTbBEZyk/s640/IMG_20170728_154150+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Welcome blankets</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I walked around Hyde Park some more after
the Smart Museum, trying to discover and explore as much as I can on my last
day. However, I rushed back to the dorms by 5 PM to say goodbye to Michelle.
A lot of Michelle’s other friends were also there. However, it was only Kara,
Lindsay, Jahnvi, and I that stayed with Michelle until she and her mom drove
away. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">After seeing Michelle off, I did some
packing before I went for a run. This time, thought, my main purpose for the
run was just to see the campus one last time before we’re gone. Later, I had my last
dinner at UChicago in the dining hall, and I felt very conflicted. I don’t
think I will ever miss the cafeteria food, but I will definitely miss all the friendly
staff in the dining hall.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Back in the dorms, I did my laundry and
participated in some last-day bonding with Karla, Makayla, and their friends.
We had a great time playing cards with each other, and we were all sad that the
program was at its end already, especially when it felt like everything had just started
yesterday. Soon, everyone still had to work on packing their things, so we all
went our separate ways.</span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC506z7Viw7yrTPZqV1YYe5FRHkcaC3m_XUzhE6yMvrV1w-mK74QRBOTLq2TNxpEcc8mdenw88ZdFRLOiT0rsF-3Bx3O-yXYo_6eyMCO70KXc3TR1XXNTBy6ZhOX_7JfYvFdCVzRPccUY/s1600/IMG_20170728_163918+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC506z7Viw7yrTPZqV1YYe5FRHkcaC3m_XUzhE6yMvrV1w-mK74QRBOTLq2TNxpEcc8mdenw88ZdFRLOiT0rsF-3Bx3O-yXYo_6eyMCO70KXc3TR1XXNTBy6ZhOX_7JfYvFdCVzRPccUY/s640/IMG_20170728_163918+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Goodbye, Chicago. I had fun exploring.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">So, our summer adventure has at last reached
its finale. Tomorrow morning, we will be flying back home to California. I have
learned so much over these past three weeks, both in class and from the awesome
people that I have gotten to know. I have made irreplaceable friends, and I
have learned to become independent. So much happened in just these three weeks –
this is one summer I will not be able to forget soon. </span></div>
Cecilia Chakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12911336898406755045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-29280734995318347842017-07-28T04:51:00.000-07:002017-07-29T01:30:30.316-07:00If You Can't Find Me, I'm on the Yerkes South Lawn<div class="MsoNormal">
Sorry for the lack of blogs as of late. With the loom of the
final project, most of everything else had moved out of my mind.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Wednesday, or the day before the presentation consisted of
almost too many twist and curves to keep track of. My and Jahnvi's project was
about binary stars, which seems simple, but we ran into a host of problems. Our
first error was in googling a number that was far too small and receiving an
incorrect solution. Once we had finally figured out that issue, our worries
once again grew.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We had different sources of information in order to get a
pixel versus millimeter count. The image, video, and printout were all
returning different results for the separation between the stars. We never
really did figure out how and why the result was different on screen versus
other orbits, but we were basically able to use the most consistent
measurement.</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZHRggmwkaESLBnM888PQNmD0tksOsNzrFbCRMWI58PXi9eAyVN9dxgV5WH7kmaVvrjIxyQlIXh9wAcmwQ2hkOFTuFpxWmYmjuVwaJzKnmmdWPhtoTvVJQmq5rn2F4m9OQwknAvGYCxmM/s1600/IMG_9744.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZHRggmwkaESLBnM888PQNmD0tksOsNzrFbCRMWI58PXi9eAyVN9dxgV5WH7kmaVvrjIxyQlIXh9wAcmwQ2hkOFTuFpxWmYmjuVwaJzKnmmdWPhtoTvVJQmq5rn2F4m9OQwknAvGYCxmM/s640/IMG_9744.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jahnvi and I worked on this aspect of our project up until
dinner, and after dinner we had the class wide bonfire. Apparently, the
tradition started a few years ago and the classes have a fire with s'mores near
the end of the week as a sort of bonding and celebration experience. We ended
up a playing long game of blob tag before Jahnvi and I took advantage of the
better WIFI at Yerkes and went back up to work.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After we got kicked out up at the observatory, we joined
many of our fellow classmates who were taking advantage of the marginally
better WIFI provided by the second floor and continued working on our project.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Today provided more of the same. Our project still needed
more information to make it complete as we had calculated our separation of
stars and nothing else, so we spent the morning trying to add as much as we
could to our calculations. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In order to have a presentation that could fit all of the
information from yesterday and the information from what we added today, we had
to work through lunch. Thankfully just as Jahnvi asked, Nikita brought up
nearly a full loaf of bread to each to keep us full until dinner. It amused our
classmates, but it got the job done.</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsDYhELTSPH5GPyEWuCwSOY6wAneOPx-JgxTcwoSBP8WYleMalB9aYUYRpUTupAFExxN-U-CH5yXJZZ2_bdFAIm95T3ebb7J6zBufboLzKPpNjgpw9gEBtRdC6D85fuvUfNPfk8aa1xhM/s1600/IMG_9753.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsDYhELTSPH5GPyEWuCwSOY6wAneOPx-JgxTcwoSBP8WYleMalB9aYUYRpUTupAFExxN-U-CH5yXJZZ2_bdFAIm95T3ebb7J6zBufboLzKPpNjgpw9gEBtRdC6D85fuvUfNPfk8aa1xhM/s320/IMG_9753.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Carly and Jahnvi</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We were the last to present. Considering that we had added
significantly to our analysis in the morning and around half of our slides
depicted our dead ends, I think we did well. Our topic relied heavily on data
being available in the past, but data like that requires a shorter period which
we did not look for. If I were to do the whole project again I would find a
binary star system with a short orbital period and many plates of recorded
data.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
After the afternoon session of class and dinner, Carly,
Jahnvi, and I decided to finally go swimming. At one point both Jahnvi and I
had jumped in and were trying to convince Carly to join us as it had been her
idea to begin with. That went on for another 10 minutes or so before Carly
finally came into the water. At that point, we were told that the lifeguard had
already left, so we got out of the water and laid out in the Sun until a big
group consisting of MA, Jared, Nick, Mac, Lister, and Will also wandered down
to the dock and we talked with them until nearly 8. <o:p></o:p></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1OL1MYwiPrflmXLVEXXlGruphjkQ4VJaJGjsRVmrXWkESbWFf-Z1nYj6XBygmvXWkBxrC1TUccCQQzrCKHWbO54jwXYPqxHSVBNyQjcVDRG0fkDxyMy3NebeC5Bd4UBrdOySV_ROFivE/s1600/IMG_9760.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1OL1MYwiPrflmXLVEXXlGruphjkQ4VJaJGjsRVmrXWkESbWFf-Z1nYj6XBygmvXWkBxrC1TUccCQQzrCKHWbO54jwXYPqxHSVBNyQjcVDRG0fkDxyMy3NebeC5Bd4UBrdOySV_ROFivE/s640/IMG_9760.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lister on the dock</td></tr>
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Just as I thought, being at Yerkes created a great space to
get to know all my classmates a lot better, which has been wonderful. <o:p></o:p></div>
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When I returned to the observatory at 9 for the last
session, I waited to use the 24” the only telescope I had yet to use. Though it
takes great images, I wasn’t really missing much, it’s considerably less fun to
get images from the 24” than it is to get information from the 40”, as the 24”
is far less hands on. Today we could use the computer ourselves, but the real
fun was lost. The 40” is definitely my favorite telescope.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The sky was all around beautiful tonight, so much that Ms.
Ramseyer turned off the lights in the library so they wouldn’t interfere with
the view on the south lawn. The sky was beautifully clear and you could see
more stars than I could see on Monday. The Milky Way was very clearly visible
and there were more stars visible than are typically visible.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7rhhhlC1oz_p56CpYe9wVsOhbPFhxCsDsApwo9n1wHm3XrOLc6Kc9KrfENaDat8PdDPk4S-W0Lih2lrhSQEDLKxBsYgsfpqR9XIIr52FBm-gQkE3sICcG4WYgQgnE7M20nnrNrSuQcM/s1600/IMG_9787.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7rhhhlC1oz_p56CpYe9wVsOhbPFhxCsDsApwo9n1wHm3XrOLc6Kc9KrfENaDat8PdDPk4S-W0Lih2lrhSQEDLKxBsYgsfpqR9XIIr52FBm-gQkE3sICcG4WYgQgnE7M20nnrNrSuQcM/s320/IMG_9787.JPG" style="cursor: move;" width="240" /></a>At the 40” we looked at M17 which looked like a cloud patch,
and a few binary star systems. Before I knew it, class was over. We took photos
with our instructors and Jahnvi and I waited so we could individually and in
person say goodbye to each instructor before heading back down the hill to our
dorms.</div>
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It feels like I’ve been in this class so much longer than 3
weeks, and it feels so strange to no longer be seeing the people in my class
five days a week. </div>
<o:p></o:p>Lindsay Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02937262396779257944noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-73325071162219151362017-07-28T04:04:00.001-07:002017-07-28T04:04:25.987-07:00Not Enough Complicated? HAHAHA<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Once again, I sadly have to write a blog that covers the past two days. Our project was due today at 2 PM, and things were a mess. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Remember how I wrote that I wished our project could have been a little more complicated? That has<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRO3boEOFnMJUkYpnB48zWEkKwaOk88P8-UnsJGyMUK9HmMup0HJ09lzK0H2lr-CEszr1NHMURe7xgYN6BqZVu64r5IpQTnEj1MEKgLHczxkmpqLLJ7VDCmKg35r1eKSatWFUs-DA8eCLK/s1600/20170726_192821.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRO3boEOFnMJUkYpnB48zWEkKwaOk88P8-UnsJGyMUK9HmMup0HJ09lzK0H2lr-CEszr1NHMURe7xgYN6BqZVu64r5IpQTnEj1MEKgLHczxkmpqLLJ7VDCmKg35r1eKSatWFUs-DA8eCLK/s320/20170726_192821.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Campfiiire</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
to be the funniest thing I've ever written. Our project was so hard, that no data could be found to prove what we needed even after an almost all-nighter of searching. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">But before we go into that, let's go back to yesterday afternoon. Our first problem involved finding the number of pixels in a video's screenshot to help us find the distance between the binary stars. The two other pairs in our group also had the same problem even though they were working on slightly different topics. Once Prof. Kron gave us an idea on how to figure this out, we had much more hope. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">But then, somehow, we messed up on that too. Lindsay and I used the wrong number for distance on Google since we hadn't read what exactly that number was for. We then spent an hour trying to figure out what was wrong in our calculations, but there wasn't anything wrong. The only thing wrong was the number from Google, which could easily be changed to the right value. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDQn94fVMorsKuT3viGbEanF-H4nEzGYeAArzcBEqLzk-xOmysQ9hfNxb7tJBaNpRE6x6T0Ti61TNzMOnfSjnZ48SK8fva5N47q5bTYC3uFTqFFuIK_YL0OJP5R0BO_52MjG4I5X6Gjfgf/s1600/20170727_202346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDQn94fVMorsKuT3viGbEanF-H4nEzGYeAArzcBEqLzk-xOmysQ9hfNxb7tJBaNpRE6x6T0Ti61TNzMOnfSjnZ48SK8fva5N47q5bTYC3uFTqFFuIK_YL0OJP5R0BO_52MjG4I5X6Gjfgf/s320/20170727_202346.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Lake at Yerkes</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Now that we had the current distance for both star systems, we spent ages trying to find the old distance between the stars to compare them. One of the stars we had looked up in the telescope had a period of 5000 years, so there was no way we could find data from that old, or even half, the age. The other had a period of 700 years, so finding data for that seemed much more reasonable. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">In between hours of me trying to find data and Lindsay trying to fix all our calculations, our class hosted a campfire after dinner. During this time, all of us bonded more than before. We played Blob Tag, from which I am still sore, and a weird version of Ninja. It can obviously be seen that this trip has brought our class a lot closer than before. Personally, I didn't even know most people's names and I never saw them out of class, so there wasn't much time to bond. I had only gotten close to the people in the area where I sat in class, like Carly and Nikita. Now, I can say that I am closer to Nick, Lister, Jared, MA, Mac, Ben, and have talked a lot to everyone else in class. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We all were working in the lounge, and after a while everyone left except me. I ended up falling<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTv4CE4Pj6nYdEk2BSCenKVem_aKuTgZW0I7s0xiYsIXqpT-_MqaP_hki5ptu-o965vVFMlnY3jwBRjnpxc6lAKIXVxH-pWQmxAv6SwdQAt5vIsO1XrgXbAuk0jCkS5UTJmD0P0z5dOcW/s1600/IMG_9781.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1334" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqTv4CE4Pj6nYdEk2BSCenKVem_aKuTgZW0I7s0xiYsIXqpT-_MqaP_hki5ptu-o965vVFMlnY3jwBRjnpxc6lAKIXVxH-pWQmxAv6SwdQAt5vIsO1XrgXbAuk0jCkS5UTJmD0P0z5dOcW/s320/IMG_9781.PNG" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picture of a redgiant from 40"</td></tr>
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asleep there on the floor, and later realized I should probably go to my room. I managed to finish my part of the write-up before class started, which was a miracle to me because I had spent so much of my night trying to find data that I didn't even know if I could wake up. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When we got to class, Ms.Ramseyer told Lindsay and I that we hadn't analyzed the image enough so maybe we should add something. With this, we went to Prof. Kron for help and out of all his intelligent and practical suggestions, we decided to find the mass of our two binary systems and calculate if one of our stars match up to it's predicted orbit. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Keep in mind, this all happened in the span of 1.5 hours, because we had a deadline to meet in 2.5 hours. Lindsay and I ran back and somehow just automatically ended up splitting the work. She found the masses while I checked our calculated distance to the predicted orbit. After some math, our project was left on a high note. We found that the distance we had calculated from using the data collected from the 40" were correct. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">These presentations marked the end of class. Even more dramatic for me, Lindsay and I were presenting last. This relieved all of us with so much pressure, but also piled on sadness and disbelief that it was all over. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXALDo3IFH0NUHG2_ii4axYTN29ahhkjKS0uu4-GZxp3xlI7QxTHM2bmPziggXTketuTHT4Wwggp1mxxrXV7iebxTUXNtMWI2l35oEuigHLaE4CNN9dfkLfMoxur7da_IMwsI7HIE2V7SR/s1600/20170727_193221.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXALDo3IFH0NUHG2_ii4axYTN29ahhkjKS0uu4-GZxp3xlI7QxTHM2bmPziggXTketuTHT4Wwggp1mxxrXV7iebxTUXNtMWI2l35oEuigHLaE4CNN9dfkLfMoxur7da_IMwsI7HIE2V7SR/s320/20170727_193221.jpg" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Lindsay, MA, and Nick making a sandcastle</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I went with Lindsay and Carly to dip into the lake, then hung out with others in our class, and then went back with Carly to grab more food and relax on the shore. Before I knew it, it was time to head back to the Observatory so that we could look through the telescopes one last time for fun. The sky was extremely clear tonight too, so it was a stunning, beautiful way to end the trip. Lindsay and I also used our favorite 40" one more time. This time Jon and Lori were with us, both who are tall and decently buff, so we really didn't need to do much of the pushing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Around midnight, we all got in a line and took pictures with the professor. Lindsay and I got our pictures taken with a camera and phone, so I apologized for being "extra." This started a whole conversation with all three professors asking what that means. Somehow that then led to Lindsay and I also explaining what "lowkey" means. Apparently both of these words are really mostly just used in the Bay Area. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">After saying all our final goodbyes to all three professors, we headed back to our rooms. To be completely honest, Lindsay and I spent the next four hours socializing with people from our class to make up for the sadness of having to leave soon. I still can't believe we're nearing the end, but as the time creeps nearer the morning, it's beginning to hit me more that the trip is nearing its end.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQn_nowNve3cThLB4iL84Rr5tr1hQr8qmkXU4z8lOypMjFBKQq76dJBV-9jtpfAof9rAt5Zg4dhPKNmqy1N4RjDyAg2Kb2NhAxdwxoUa0RvNruOqYQ2hwurJiq4v0bnJTTWHAYjMnASVn/s1600/170F2A1B-59BF-4A41-99F3-C61B882C71C1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQn_nowNve3cThLB4iL84Rr5tr1hQr8qmkXU4z8lOypMjFBKQq76dJBV-9jtpfAof9rAt5Zg4dhPKNmqy1N4RjDyAg2Kb2NhAxdwxoUa0RvNruOqYQ2hwurJiq4v0bnJTTWHAYjMnASVn/s640/170F2A1B-59BF-4A41-99F3-C61B882C71C1.JPG" width="480" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">"What is this word 'extra'?"</span></td></tr>
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Jahnvi Doshihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01608220218453474678noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-5998071297380678722017-07-27T23:06:00.002-07:002017-07-27T23:06:41.811-07:00Last Lecture of the Summer<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We had our last lecture of the session today. It was about learning environments and the impact they can have on students. There haven’t really been many significant research studies on this topic, so we got most of our information from videos produced by the architects of these spaces as well as self-reported data from students and teachers. A lot of the rooms we saw that were targeted for younger children had couches and lofts and pillows all over the place so the students could pretty much sit wherever. Honestly, it looked really messy and I think that I would find it hard to learn in that type of situation. However, several students self-reported saying that they felt like they learned more easily lounging on the couch with their friends. To me, it seemed like they liked it more on the couch, so they felt like they were learning better, when they might not have been. The whole thing feels like a “learning style” situation; students prefer to be taught in a certain way, and sometimes that way is best for a certain topic, but that doesn’t mean it should be used for everything. When students are collaborating, then maybe having a room with soft furniture all over the place would be beneficial, but there are so many things that could potentially distract kids in that kind of setup that I can’t see it being helpful for standard learning. There is a lack of strong data for this topic, so I could be wrong, but that’s just how I see these environments. </span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-16b61f31-87cb-05ef-0e73-031f17cfdc14" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Tomorrow is our final presentation, and our final papers are also due, so we didn’t have class after lunch. Instead, we worked on our presentations within our groups. As usual, my group went down to the A level of the library. We had started assigning roles and lines for the presentation yesterday, so there wasn’t much for us to do but practice and finalize the information. We finished at around 2:00 PM, and I spent the time from 2:00 PM until around 6:00 PM finishing up the discussion section of my research paper; everything else was already completed. At around 6:00 PM, I went to go play soccer to give my brain a break, and consequently I almost missed dinner. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjypXINzrNslmVsSNBIfKCk95U7furKaEFvqOaCLAHZkizob09V4S-O0g7tjnEnQPatYJBOshS0l9t-Po8_WP-Q9GhuZgdePCg56lmIrZ43aaQ8de9dUhKv3Bn7s4B5S6AW6W-IBCBkg-tI/s1600/RC.27.0-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjypXINzrNslmVsSNBIfKCk95U7furKaEFvqOaCLAHZkizob09V4S-O0g7tjnEnQPatYJBOshS0l9t-Po8_WP-Q9GhuZgdePCg56lmIrZ43aaQ8de9dUhKv3Bn7s4B5S6AW6W-IBCBkg-tI/s640/RC.27.0-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMUgOrkzv_G6bjMwA1bfNT5N1V08qy4UweHMOVbJcdU62DgVT2Lyxk-KijxQu8Bbm5Pfq3MtvhviC5WpNOFYvm1hyWtVZQxO5GYwpt8nvNvPOURLvrnVaMXVUJI9LIpaPO_8L5WNZ5whMT/s1600/RC.27.0-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMUgOrkzv_G6bjMwA1bfNT5N1V08qy4UweHMOVbJcdU62DgVT2Lyxk-KijxQu8Bbm5Pfq3MtvhviC5WpNOFYvm1hyWtVZQxO5GYwpt8nvNvPOURLvrnVaMXVUJI9LIpaPO_8L5WNZ5whMT/s640/RC.27.0-3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Before I started cleaning.</span></td></tr>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I didn’t do much after dinner but proofread my paper, do laundry, and pack my stuff up. While I was packing, I remember going through the same motions before the trip, and it reminded of how much I’ve changed as a person over these three weeks. This is the longest I’ve spent away from my family, and also my first time living with a roommate for an extended period of time. I’ve had to adopt new habits, such as coming into the room quietly late at night in case George is sleeping, as well as remembering to take my laundry out of the washing machine and put it into the dryer. There are people from all across the country and world that I’ve met, and I’ve experienced so many different perspectives on the same topics. It’s reminded me that the political and social climate where I live isn’t the same as it is in other countries, states, or even cities. </span></span></div>
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Raqeeb Changhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09676559739991109605noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-70579524460136421292017-07-27T22:52:00.000-07:002017-07-27T22:52:15.124-07:00We Watch the Movie My Class Was Named For<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I almost started crying today when we
watched Contagion in class. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">To be honest, Contagion is a weird movie to
cry for, considering it is a medical-thriller film that tells the story of the
spread of a pandemic cause by a novel virus, as society began to crumble due to
fear and scientists raced to develop a vaccine. There were no romance in the
film, but there were still very emotional scenes in the film – for me, at
least; I noticed that I don’t think anyone else got teary-eyed – with the families
of those who succumbed to the disease and the personal struggles of the researchers.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The first emotional moment for me was when
a man lost both his wife and stepson to the novel virus, but he himself was
unharmed because as he found out later after quarantine, he had natural
immunity. His daughter came back from boarding school to visit him during his
quarantine, and the guilt both remaining family members felt was tragic in the
sense that neither of them had anything to be guilty for, but just the act of living
and surviving a disease that took your family members because of pure chance of
genetic immunity is so unfair.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJjTUt-qsj7DvemNsekM7bULnjHCGgDF345F19Jim8osjfB3EgrHmwZ7i6mp7V4y6UyWuZzH3GiHiKUPwVw6rtY4WGAwkMMpX2ZO8cOsn1uz6Iag6LIG3V9n7YQjlrVa3CCrDHqOSx91Q/s1600/Contagion-2011-Free-Full-Movie-Download-HD.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="680" height="332" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJjTUt-qsj7DvemNsekM7bULnjHCGgDF345F19Jim8osjfB3EgrHmwZ7i6mp7V4y6UyWuZzH3GiHiKUPwVw6rtY4WGAwkMMpX2ZO8cOsn1uz6Iag6LIG3V9n7YQjlrVa3CCrDHqOSx91Q/s640/Contagion-2011-Free-Full-Movie-Download-HD.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Not a picture taken by me. Movie poster for Contagion. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">My eyes got watery once again in another
scene when Dr. Meers, played by Kate Winslet, got infected. She was an officer from
the CDC dispatched to investigate the disease. She was able to trace the
disease back to patient zero, and she worked tirelessly to control the situation
at Minneapolis. However, unfortunately, she contracted the disease. Even then,
she only regretted she could not finish her work. She was taken to an emergency
medical camp that she had oversaw herself previously, where her condition
worsened. Her cognitive abilities began to fail, but when she heard the patient
next to her begging a nurse for a blanket and the nurse regrettably informing
him that supplies were scarce, Dr. Meers used her faltering strength to drag
her own blanket to give to that patient. Tragically, she died that moment, and
the blanket fell the two cots. This was an extremely powerful moment. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Basically, all the actors and actresses in
this film were superb. The directing of the film was also excellent; even
though the plot takes place in multiple countries at the same time all over the
globe, it was never confusing and really enhances for the audience the whole
world’s urgency and desperation to contain the disease and create vaccination. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Contagion was very realistic in every
regard. Beyond its scientific accuracy, the film also accurately portrayed how
fear shapes society and that how, in a pandemic, the ones suffering are only
the infected – the ones left behind are just as, if not more, miserable.
However, the film did give humanity a silver lining; Contagion showed the
doctors and medical researchers that all put their lives at stake every day to
try to understand the disease and find a cure for the good of the public. They
never gave up or faltered, even though for them, getting infected on the job
and dying before they could find a cure is a very real possibility, as we saw
what happened to Dr. Meers in the movie. Even so, even when she was sick herself, Dr.
Meers spent her last moments trying to help patients, and I think that is an
extremely touching reminder that no matter how bad things are, how hopeless
things get, we should never forget the good in humanity. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh011bx-J-p0RWZ8Dpv4-s9YN0v0nU-I65rsY2DM61uCSB9goyRrArT-dI_8MC-wO-e-arei-iic0BljATPolXLkj-XDiES1sk5gh_GvN33cIOtseyV1RgbIdWFrSBU1O5ScwNMZZH0Auc/s1600/IMG_20170727_174851.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh011bx-J-p0RWZ8Dpv4-s9YN0v0nU-I65rsY2DM61uCSB9goyRrArT-dI_8MC-wO-e-arei-iic0BljATPolXLkj-XDiES1sk5gh_GvN33cIOtseyV1RgbIdWFrSBU1O5ScwNMZZH0Auc/s320/IMG_20170727_174851.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Working on poster</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Woah. That was deeper than I intended for
it to be, but I just extremely liked this movie. I feel like I was able to
really enjoy and appreciate this movie on a deeper level because of everything that
I learned in this course. However, I would 10/10 recommend for everyone else to
watch it, even without prior knowledges of infectious diseases.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"></span></span><br /><span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Now, I’m done with the most exciting part
of my day, because for the rest of class today, we just worked on our poster
research project. I used the next few hours in class to finish typing up my
parts and printed out the papers to glue onto the poster. Elaine and I went
back to the dorms to finish gluing and cutting everything. We worked outside in
the lounge, where we also listened to somebody else’s music that they were
blasting on the fifth floor. </span></span><span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsPmmHAn4YGEK5PJLKrc6nJhqkqRxZaxV1jVTLnH6Nthv_QxNqGMw0Ul9TWL6vSF0-EuBrWSGXkqFsKDYM3YutbS3xa66gXgIO1O9MGawE4JpX6pJh4UIUJ_r_r__d54zEMmctrbMzJQE/s1600/IMG_20170727_182602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsPmmHAn4YGEK5PJLKrc6nJhqkqRxZaxV1jVTLnH6Nthv_QxNqGMw0Ul9TWL6vSF0-EuBrWSGXkqFsKDYM3YutbS3xa66gXgIO1O9MGawE4JpX6pJh4UIUJ_r_r__d54zEMmctrbMzJQE/s320/IMG_20170727_182602.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A scroll around campus</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Before dinner, I went for another stroll on
a campus. I feel like an old, retired person doing it, but for me, just walking
around campus is fun. Karla had plans tonight, so after my walk, I went to the dining
hall alone. It was a pleasant and welcoming surprise when two girls from my
class, Maria and Icey, decided to sit with me at my table when they saw me by
myself. I haven’t actually talked much to Maria and, particularly, Icey before,
and it’s such a shame because now I wish I had gotten to know them sooner.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Tomorrow, we will be presenting our posters
to the whole class as well as the biotech class (like I said, our class
interacts a lot with the biotech one). I feel nervous and excited at the same
time. I hope my last day of class will be a wonderful one! I will surely miss
everyone in the course. </span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil50YROfRxjZWD25sViUfJnChNBqo1YFdadNNlXY9fx0EDEr6_SQMJ_S0uOFjqzo374MBSAkFxZXK6ltX9k1Q43zPYfNuG03dadnAFAWcSSOJUack9EvC-h2lXh9QQ3-pKvhm-3Zlz-tM/s1600/IMG_20170727_230036.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil50YROfRxjZWD25sViUfJnChNBqo1YFdadNNlXY9fx0EDEr6_SQMJ_S0uOFjqzo374MBSAkFxZXK6ltX9k1Q43zPYfNuG03dadnAFAWcSSOJUack9EvC-h2lXh9QQ3-pKvhm-3Zlz-tM/s640/IMG_20170727_230036.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Worked on the project again after dinner. I drew a mosquito haha.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Cecilia Chakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12911336898406755045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-23880994271247140922017-07-26T22:37:00.001-07:002017-07-26T22:37:41.447-07:00Update: CRISPR Was Successful <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This morning started off with extremely
exciting news for everyone in our class – our CRISPR lab yesterday was
extremely successful! We had been worried yesterday, since Dr. Fineschi told us
yesterday that CRISP did not work for the Session I class, and they saw no
growth on the antibiotics plates. Dr. Fineschi theorized that either their
CRISPR did not work – the antibiotic resistance was never inserted into the
genome, and therefore, the E. coli were susceptible to succumbing to the antibiotics
– or the bacteria were already killed in the procedure prior to CRISPR.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">However, our class successfully performed
CRISPR to introduce a mutation that coded antibiotic resistance, we were able
to see E. coli growth on the antibiotics-coated plates. Out of all the groups
in our class, my group had the most growth on both of our plates. Yesterday, we
did serial dilutions to filter out bacteria to countable levels. When we
counted bacteria plated from those dilutions today, most group got within the
tens or the twenties for their colony counts for each of their 10<sup>-7</sup>
and 10<sup>-8</sup> plates, but Elaine and I got 41 and 69 colonies, way above
the class average. Dr. Fineschi said it was very interesting, as all of our E.
coli should have been subjected to the same CRISPR mutation, but for some
reason, our mutants were very strong.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNiSo52q43alM9UD3DwBitfILdgemiq55rK9suaqfSigJiWoVGE2K9zFQ9iTSUSDHI-odVmaPkU2jiqmt6QIPetjzCuoYvCsDOqJeVaQ16mBzZKEhXYLkyNavI5wx1khYDY0w3-aHo-qM/s1600/IMG_20170726_092732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNiSo52q43alM9UD3DwBitfILdgemiq55rK9suaqfSigJiWoVGE2K9zFQ9iTSUSDHI-odVmaPkU2jiqmt6QIPetjzCuoYvCsDOqJeVaQ16mBzZKEhXYLkyNavI5wx1khYDY0w3-aHo-qM/s640/IMG_20170726_092732.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;"> Other people only had twenty or below colonies, but our mutants grew like crazy!!!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">After everyone was done examine their
plates, it was time to clear our lab station, as we won’t be doing any more
labs after today. We returned the boxes of pipet tips, the racks for micro-tubes,
our PBS solution, and threw out the mat we had working on for the past two and
a half weeks. The stations seemed tragically empty once we were done, bare of
everything except the computers now. I couldn’t help but feel a little sad at
the sight of our barren workspace, a stark and clear reminder of the little time
we have left in this course.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Afterwards, we stayed in the lab room to
work on the computer on our HIV evolution assignment. It was extremely interesting,
being able to study the DNA sequences of actual HIV virus from real patients. It
was also cool to see differences of the changes and mutation in HIV strains
between progressors and nonprogessor, or people who succumb to the disease over
time and people who can keep the disease at bay, like the elite controllers I
mentioned yesterday. I loved the activity, and Elaine and I finished answering
the questions in no time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXPWnN_3c1ewLQlyT4UEDOS4LknGBaaHwq-y723MlI9tQ4S7Xpx1IJrCu96ktQ4aSclvqxF-_ngBOi-_V7M5y8YHWejetfltJh86OSy93QSCg7ggvUjt_URcKtAYk5P09Re91NN1eG1EA/s1600/IMG_20170726_093743.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXPWnN_3c1ewLQlyT4UEDOS4LknGBaaHwq-y723MlI9tQ4S7Xpx1IJrCu96ktQ4aSclvqxF-_ngBOi-_V7M5y8YHWejetfltJh86OSy93QSCg7ggvUjt_URcKtAYk5P09Re91NN1eG1EA/s640/IMG_20170726_093743.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">Our tragically empty lab station; I took so many picture of it during these past few weeks, I'm going to miss it a lot</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Once we finished with the HIV evolution
assignment questions, we were free to work on our research project for a little
bit before we left for lunch. After we had lunch, we went back to the classroom
to have a brief lecture on the routes of disease control first, before we
headed back to lab to work on another activity on the computer. This activity
dealt with a fictional outbreak in a rural Brazilian village (don’t ask me why
so specific; I’m just repeating what the game said), and we were part of the
CDC tasked with containing this mysterious outspread using our knowledge and
deciding which is the best method. It was not hard, but like the HIV evolution activity,
it was extremely fun and enjoyable. (We named this mysterious disease bubalus
plague, with bubalus meaning “buffalo” in Latin, since the disease originated from
buffalos.)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We were presented with the choice to stay
longer in the lab to work on our project or to leave for the day and work
somewhere else once we had finished the infectious outbreak activity. Most
people chose to go; a group of them went to Target to buy poster and
construction paper, so I stayed behind and continued navigating my way through
a really complex scientific paper.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I left the lab room around 3:45 PM to go
work in my dorm room for a change of scenery. I continued working until around
6:00 PM, which was when I went to the gym for 30 minutes before grabbing dinner
with Karla afterwards.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaCnYUZ7MVcNH10fmNxjCKuw3FcFSGFKvam64J0wA_ossML1sZDtpS_p4If4ohI_j_OgisuTBtBliFjmzadfZtLmmyHPDVlR2zt71BGiBQmVRJ1o7Ug-QnXj_K8H1Pj36fVIdoNDYvLpI/s1600/IMG_20170719_183950.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaCnYUZ7MVcNH10fmNxjCKuw3FcFSGFKvam64J0wA_ossML1sZDtpS_p4If4ohI_j_OgisuTBtBliFjmzadfZtLmmyHPDVlR2zt71BGiBQmVRJ1o7Ug-QnXj_K8H1Pj36fVIdoNDYvLpI/s640/IMG_20170719_183950.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: small;">I'm getting so sentimental already that I think I will miss the cafeteria. Food was so-so, but the staff is so nice. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Tomorrow we will watching the movie Contagion for class in the morning. I promise that in these last two days, I will do my best to make the most of and treasure the increasingly limited time I have left with all the wonderful friends and people I have met on this journey. </span></div>
Cecilia Chakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12911336898406755045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-50642371939286581742017-07-26T22:26:00.006-07:002017-07-26T22:26:59.802-07:00Legally and Productively Defacing School Property<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Today was the halfway point of the last week of class, but it really doesn’t feel like it’s been that long since we’ve gotten here. We learned about inherent learning conditions, specifically dyslexia and giftedness. Dyslexia is well-known as a condition that affects the ability of the afflicted to read and interpret written words. Dyslexic people can become up to 7 years behind the general population by age 13 when it comes to recognition of pseudowords, which are words that don’t actually exist, but can be easily sounded out (like the word “parding,” or "spet," for example). However, it is a disability that comes with its own set of advantages; dyslexic people typically have better peripheral vision and can solve big-picture problems more naturally than those who don’t. That being said, I can’t imagine living without being able to read as easily as I can now. School would be so much harder, and it would be disheartening to know that reading, which is something that so many can do, would remain a struggle for the rest of my life. </span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<b id="docs-internal-guid-9dc349c3-827d-8857-d4c0-bbbf9c225792" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">On the other hand, we also learned about those who were dealt the other side of the genetic stick, known as the “gifted.” There are several different ways to identify giftedness in children, because the concept of intelligence is not easily defined, but it’s generally accepted that the WISC is the most commonly used. Short for Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, it tests verbal comprehension, spatial ability, fluid reasoning, working memory, and processing speed. In order to be considered gifted, someone typically should be in the top 1% of IQ scores of the population. Because IQ is based on ability relative to age, scores don’t really fluctuate much after the age of 5. Those who are identified as gifted get placed into programs designed for students of their caliber, and they generally accelerate through their learning and have high chances of being successful at a young age. I feel like if I knew that my IQ score was above 99% of the general population, I would become obsessed with improving it and making sure that it never dropped below the top 1%. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Yesterday’s and today’s learning has kind of gone against the initial teachings of the course; in the beginning, we learned that intelligence can be raised through hard work, and that studying correctly and understanding your limitations were more useful to academic success than a high IQ. However, we’ve now been exposed to the facts that a lot of who we are today as students have been predisposed by not only our genetics, but our race and upbringing as well. The recent lessons have left me feeling kind of unsatisfied with my current academic level; they’ve made me question whether I’m successful because of my own hard work and dedication, or whether it’s because so many things were laid out for me and all I had to do was show up to school and do my homework.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTwMThaaGs3zouYSKGr-rkVgyjuyS56w1LbG1hVn2Cp64_UyY8f1gserZ-kybwSK4Wy9WF4oYoioL10Zpxtcq4lIsVsPst5HVApowizsAtJ9eSDK-oFv82NJnH01wCBW_BRAIxKV4L8Nr/s1600/RC.26.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsTwMThaaGs3zouYSKGr-rkVgyjuyS56w1LbG1hVn2Cp64_UyY8f1gserZ-kybwSK4Wy9WF4oYoioL10Zpxtcq4lIsVsPst5HVApowizsAtJ9eSDK-oFv82NJnH01wCBW_BRAIxKV4L8Nr/s640/RC.26.01.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Writing on walls has never been so productive.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAfrD_lUdj_-6QDjD7nsDxbm70MNivOiqo9bJ3O2ORICTianPYbDTpu2TfYdiv0LEg8TR4HwlXh4WdmYWC66rO5r-O1QULkvbZyXL-fgcpWsSOYTnQcxu-c0ceOjS4yNYk_t23zoh5KEHs/s1600/RC.26.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAfrD_lUdj_-6QDjD7nsDxbm70MNivOiqo9bJ3O2ORICTianPYbDTpu2TfYdiv0LEg8TR4HwlXh4WdmYWC66rO5r-O1QULkvbZyXL-fgcpWsSOYTnQcxu-c0ceOjS4yNYk_t23zoh5KEHs/s640/RC.26.02.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">From left: Alex, Lucy, and Sophie, discussing the presentation (but really just posing for me).</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; white-space: pre-wrap;">After class, my group and I went to the library to work on our upcoming presentation and research papers. Lucy bought a $3 Expo marker from one of the vending machines on the A level of Regenstein, so we got to write on the walls. Most of the walls on the A level have whiteboard material on their surface, which I think is a really useful thing to have in a collaborative work space. We had fun writing on the walls, but after a while the novelty wore off and we just worked. The whiteboard was used, especially for organizing the presentation, but a lot of stuff was also done on our computers. This session was more productive than they have been recently, probably because the last day is in the horizon and coming up fast.</span></div>
Raqeeb Changhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09676559739991109605noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-45302138445126367842017-07-26T08:08:00.004-07:002017-07-26T08:08:41.770-07:00The Flamin' Hot 40"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">My first thought: "There's no proper Wi-Fi." HA...just kidding. My first thought actually was "Where's the telescopes." Trust me, that was my first thought, because all I could see were trees, more trees, trees, and brown buildings. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The physics class had finally arrived in Yerkes and we were about to have what our instructors call a life-changing experience. Personally, I think this whole program is life-changing, so I thought that was maybe a little redundant. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">To be honest, nothing exciting happened yesterday, except the tour of the observatory and using the telescopes. They have a room called "The Vault," which sounds cool but is actually just a room full of cabinets, and glass plates with pictures of stars. It's actually quite ordinary. I thought it would be very Harry Potter-like, but I guess not. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Last night, when we toured the telescopes and used them, I instantly fell in love with the 40" because</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfBycLPhKnxi0smXfadx3yPAoPAXM98k1-7YWRb4HSXkMZ_JDglmjaSpg4dOnZBKINeBVlZB57WvYgGrscbGYAjw4R-t6mblcdntAEW5DGFIYBsJi1paEVF3xf03Nnk83VcuchqxgbPnNn/s1600/JD.24.01+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="749" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfBycLPhKnxi0smXfadx3yPAoPAXM98k1-7YWRb4HSXkMZ_JDglmjaSpg4dOnZBKINeBVlZB57WvYgGrscbGYAjw4R-t6mblcdntAEW5DGFIYBsJi1paEVF3xf03Nnk83VcuchqxgbPnNn/s320/JD.24.01+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">A picture of Saturn I took from the 40"</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> of how old it was. You had to push it around by hand and everything it had was still from the 1800s and 1900s. It is huge and was the world's biggest telescope at the time it was built. The 41" on the other hand was much more modern and didn't require pushing physically: motors did ALL the work. Also, somehow, the 41" became dysfunctional while my group and I visited it, which I thought was a little funny. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Fast-forward to the next day, we had to decide what our projects would be on and I had no idea. As in absolutely no idea. It was beginning to seem like last time, except it couldn't be like last time. It was Tuesday night, we had to use the telescope that night, and the project was due Thursday at 2 PM. I couldn't just pick my project 24 hours before the due date and get away with it. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcpD2FWUbnce8_N3nkw0_rO1Nnfb9ojhIWvAg43xFNa_hV9Xf9ObGq-QSZffSaHeuH6UZLyNTSEODplfMzNyfa_shOnVd3VGyAEX0jjpFUhYARDYuv0CraRW1xxKGJKQ0YyzS8GPwNkfoP/s1600/LL.24.06+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcpD2FWUbnce8_N3nkw0_rO1Nnfb9ojhIWvAg43xFNa_hV9Xf9ObGq-QSZffSaHeuH6UZLyNTSEODplfMzNyfa_shOnVd3VGyAEX0jjpFUhYARDYuv0CraRW1xxKGJKQ0YyzS8GPwNkfoP/s400/LL.24.06+%25281%2529.jpg" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The flamin' hot 40"</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Luckily, all the instructors are very understanding of this and had a schedule planned out to help people like me. They made us complete a survey so we could slightly narrow down our interests and be grouped together with others who have around the same interests. I ended up in a group with Lindsay and four other guys, with Professor Kron leading us, which I thought was perfect since Prof. Kron was the one who mostly helped me through my last project. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Apparently some of the people on our group hated the 40" and were mad that they got placed into this. That made Lindsay and I very mad because we both love the 40" very much. There's a whole different experience when you physically get to work with the telescope rather than have a computer do all the work for you. Where else can you see and use a telescope like this today, anyway? Hearing them complain made me feel as if they were being a little ungrateful for this opportunity, but I had to walk away because I had to decide what my project would be ASAP. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">An hour after dinner, while one group was using the telescopes, I got the idea that maybe I could compare the rate at which binary stars get closer to the masses of the binary stars. I could do this by finding the distance between the stars from today and comparing it from the distance from years before. Somehow, I even found a equation later for this, so after collecting data from multiple stars and their masses, I could just plug them into the equation to see if I collected data right. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I wish it could have been a little more complicated, but we really don't have time for that. We pretty much have a day and a half to work on this, so I think this project will do. Lindsay, who was sitting next to me, still couldn't find something that interested her and time was running out very fast. In the end, we decided to just work together, because why not. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Lindsay and I will also be buff by the end of tomorrow. Do you know how much of a workout it was</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl17o_HqyZqImvBjMLNdfpOH0I2vwtxq83XuB71IohVp0QHgeMiQGzt8QW0nPUaLoHVd52B1bK6rwVm-WM91l7GnuP4ab24fYu5-ptL2u-CTKRcnCYizr7Vj3uFdkc9hT91rH9rQBVKXC3/s1600/20170725_140601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl17o_HqyZqImvBjMLNdfpOH0I2vwtxq83XuB71IohVp0QHgeMiQGzt8QW0nPUaLoHVd52B1bK6rwVm-WM91l7GnuP4ab24fYu5-ptL2u-CTKRcnCYizr7Vj3uFdkc9hT91rH9rQBVKXC3/s400/20170725_140601.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Prof. Kron in The Vault</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"> to move that telescope? Not to mention, I could literally just hang on it, and it won't even budge because I'm that light. But, Lindsay and I managed, and we got the data we needed by the end of the hour. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Also fun fact: Prof. Kron's dad helped VERA RUBIN with her research. I remembered while reading through one of her papers that she thanked someone named Dr.Kron for providing her with the right data, and then I remembered that Prof. Kron and her were friends. So, I asked Prof. Kron about it that night and he said that the "Dr. Kron" was probability his dad. And then, apparently, Prof. Kron's mom and Vera Rubin's mom were good friends. I'M STILL SO MINDBLOWN.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Now, as I am writing this blog, I realized that it would probably be very helpful if Lindsay and I did a quick room description of our room. We could have been a lot more prepared, especially since they have a mini-fridge in the room. I mean, we could have grabbed Raqeeb's Tupperware so we could grab extra food from the cafeteria and store it! Oh well, that'll be something next year's kids will have to do instead for us. </span></div>
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Jahnvi Doshihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01608220218453474678noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-69393691417482946832017-07-25T23:52:00.000-07:002017-07-25T23:52:39.790-07:00I Pushed a Telescope Until My Arms Hurt<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Most of today went by with a blur. The morning and afternoon portions of class were spent simply working on a lab about image processing and determining what we needed for our projects. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Right before dinner we split off into groups based on either what we said we wanted to do and what we wanted to use. All I knew was that I wanted to work with the 40” telescope. The correlating project topic was binary star systems. Jahnvi also wanted to use the 40” so we both ended up on the same main project. As we walked outside during our break for dinner we heard the other people in our group complain about using the 40” scope as they wanted the 41” as their choice scope. They spoke about it being old and less cool than the newer 41” scope. I can get where they’re coming from, they didn’t get their first choice and the 40” makes it a bit harder to image, but it’s far more of a hands-on scope, and we get to move and operate it ourselves. The 41” though it takes better images, must be operated by computer leaving little for you to do but sit, while the experts move it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The best part of today was the evening. Since we picked our groups in the afternoon and what we would be working with, it was finally time to get started on our projects. Only I had no clue what to do, and the assignment is due Thursday night. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkdubBoAFhmLddBsQpJyGNEs79nB4iJR5ah2L6_fdgeVyQleOrbORUQVJZE2iNUv_bhCzOToKt-HCOi-S3EjhKlWUm9_53Cq0YhGpejDufwg8J_cw_fQivUx_N2jWNhCMpXh8_gDNlEn0/s1600/LL.25.01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkdubBoAFhmLddBsQpJyGNEs79nB4iJR5ah2L6_fdgeVyQleOrbORUQVJZE2iNUv_bhCzOToKt-HCOi-S3EjhKlWUm9_53Cq0YhGpejDufwg8J_cw_fQivUx_N2jWNhCMpXh8_gDNlEn0/s640/LL.25.01.jpg" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">South Lawn as the Sun goes down</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Professor Kron took us up to the telescope first, showing us how to operate the dome and floor. He also showed us how to make the telescope move and what we should be looking for. We quickly discussed projects to realize that out of the six of us, only two knew what they would look for right away. The rest of us including Jahnvi and I didn’t know exactly what we wanted to tackle. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I researched binary stars for a better part of an hour, but couldn’t find a topic that was both doable and relatively difficult. Most ideas I looked up already had a step by step process available which isn’t really what I wanted. When Professor Kron came down and Jahnvi shared her idea with him, he asked if I wanted to work with her. Honestly, I wasn’t sure. Jahnvi’s project idea initially sounded like there wouldn’t be enough for me to do that I would actually enjoy doing. As we began to work on it, I liked it more and more.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwHCAembby1MqQf9Tjz7NaJ0MscFinAxoEaxvemlffwK18ujebwgmkyjwr6TyxkDHMcl_kS9fPZ15Wy4FkYUuSIc1btZp1QFOe8XKaXCQHwfRo1FxYxB1fBUukLML2U4HSMHuaEpAVTQ/s1600/LL.25.02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbwHCAembby1MqQf9Tjz7NaJ0MscFinAxoEaxvemlffwK18ujebwgmkyjwr6TyxkDHMcl_kS9fPZ15Wy4FkYUuSIc1btZp1QFOe8XKaXCQHwfRo1FxYxB1fBUukLML2U4HSMHuaEpAVTQ/s320/LL.25.02.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The 40"</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Jahnvi and I went up the telescope with Professor Kron and our first task was imaging our first target. Luckily, the group before us had chosen the same one. Our second job was a lot harder. To get the telescope to point to a different spot on the opposite side of the dome, we had to push the telescope and get it essentially flip to the other side of its mount. It was really a process, even yesterday with a group of seven it was difficult to push the telescope, today with only three the task was even more daunting. It worked out well, we managed to get the scope in position after 30 or so minutes of pushing, adjusting, and driving the telescope. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">When the telescope was finally aligned we looked though the eyepiece to see absolutely nothing. There were clouds in the way. In order to see how bad the clouds were, Professor Kron led us over the railing of the platform and onto the nearby stairs, where we then walked on the roof of the observatory. In reality, you aren’t supposed to get off of the platform unless it’s on the ground, and the roof is supposed to be accessible for emergencies, but we were able to see that clouds were thin and that our work wasn’t for nothing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We imaged our second system then returned downstairs to get to work on our binary star project.</span></div>
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Lindsay Longhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02937262396779257944noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-30440781323879591822017-07-25T23:16:00.000-07:002017-07-26T21:55:00.414-07:00Let's Talk About Designer Babies<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">We
started off our day with lecture in the classroom this morning. Today, our
topic revolved around CRISPR, which stands for clustered regularly interspaced
short palindromic repeats (yes, I just really wanted to try writing it all out
at least once, but don’t worry, for the rest of the blog, I will be referring
to it as CRISPR, like a normal person). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">To
give a simplified explanation of CRISPR, it is a genome editing technique based
off of the bacterial immune defense system. AS Dr. Fineschi told us, CRISPR is an
invaluable technology not because it allows scientists to do things that were
not possible before, but rather because it allows scientists to do these things
in a much cheaper, faster, and more efficient way. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Mid-lecture,
Dr. Fineschi introduced us to designer babies, which are genetically modified human
beings. These humans are different from people receiving gene therapy, as these
are humans developed from embryos that are modified by CRISPR. Unlike people
undergoing gene therapy, an individual grown from a modified embryo <i>will</i> pass on its genes to the next
generation and to the next and so forth. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTU1FOxmjYcKhaYg8cmGR-guKLCKDRJ0YCX3yDzymN5dgnhWFAGAryq3fCABM5vtxKGe3Xct9Fb2hvtssq3T8dbqGz1IhmqYoaYntKohQjxQepoDXNlVjOBsHrXxOJ7DcP7iD7QzFPDhA/s1600/IMG_20170718_085407.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTU1FOxmjYcKhaYg8cmGR-guKLCKDRJ0YCX3yDzymN5dgnhWFAGAryq3fCABM5vtxKGe3Xct9Fb2hvtssq3T8dbqGz1IhmqYoaYntKohQjxQepoDXNlVjOBsHrXxOJ7DcP7iD7QzFPDhA/s320/IMG_20170718_085407.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">Pre-debate</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Dr.
Fineschi then began the class activity, dividing and sorting our class into
either the “pro designer babies” or “against designer babies” side. We didn’t
get to choose which side we would be on, so everyone had to make do with the
side they were given. Basically, it turned into a debate within the class, and
we each had about 15 minutes to come up with and prepare arguments along with counterarguments.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I
feel like this is an appropriate time to mention right now that I was in my
school’s debate club freshman year for all of one week before I quit and never
went back again. However, it turned out I really enjoyed this debate within the
class about designer babies. It did take me a while to warm up into the
discussion; I didn’t talk much in the 15 minutes we had to prepare or during
the beginning of the debate, but eventually, I discovered that while I’m not that
good at coming up with arguments of my own, I’m really good at finding the holes
in the opposing side’s arguments. I also discovered it was even more satisfying
to point out those holes out to them. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Obviously,
we could not come to a conclusion to settle a debate that is still ongoing and
will continue to grow as the technology develops. Nevertheless, it gave us a
taste of what we should expect from a topic that would increasingly affect us in
the future – for if CRISPR were to become successfully refined for human
safety, which is very plausible, it could become humanity’s best tool against
genetic diseases and other diseases that could be eradicated either directly or
indirectly through genome editing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbb8IwOvrQbW-YnFnrRxuWMJJyNsghIHmGOPub_QSkitMP5gOSTwtYu1jA65M0yNbSR5DiV4I9WFdJ97_hR8METVCXE1VfpV2m8XiBsapixNTtNMGbPB43Sw4-dVlJKxTCYUwwMokHyjk/s1600/IMG_20170725_114916.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbb8IwOvrQbW-YnFnrRxuWMJJyNsghIHmGOPub_QSkitMP5gOSTwtYu1jA65M0yNbSR5DiV4I9WFdJ97_hR8METVCXE1VfpV2m8XiBsapixNTtNMGbPB43Sw4-dVlJKxTCYUwwMokHyjk/s640/IMG_20170725_114916.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: small;">The 85th picture I've taken of our lab station; probably not, but I know I've taken a lot</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Afterwards,
we went to the lab to perform actual CRISPR, though it’s on a much smaller
scale because as students, we could only work with bacteria. We dealt with
E.coli once more. We finished the first part of CRISPR before we headed out for
lunch, leaving off at the part of the procedure where we had to leave our
samples in the heat for one to two hours. We returned after lunch to plate the
samples onto plates with different dosage of antibiotics, and tomorrow we will see if we successfully inserted a gene through CRISPR that allowed for antibiotic resistance.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">For
the remainder of the afternoon, we continued lecture from the previous days
about HIV. We discussed some more about the mechanism of HIV and were also introduced
to a group of people called “elite controllers” who get infected by HIV but never
progress beyond that. Though scientist are unsure how they do it, these people
never develop more than the minimal amount of HIV viral particles in their
bodies, so they never become sick. This is simply so very fascinating to me,
and one day I want to particular in research to discover the reason behind these
rarities.</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQfIqNp483KJtFlmaYAefljZPdvASxKw5EBGuZ6dRuaIYDrMt9w8tkr2K5ilZ4EEp5qynbKEVWPgtwYiRNuxJ4F_VuYNm_Oh4aonMyG4gvFsQMpOZc4x8EjdoDFAfVZDkIDs8pxfn-zY0/s1600/IMG_20170725_193916.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQfIqNp483KJtFlmaYAefljZPdvASxKw5EBGuZ6dRuaIYDrMt9w8tkr2K5ilZ4EEp5qynbKEVWPgtwYiRNuxJ4F_VuYNm_Oh4aonMyG4gvFsQMpOZc4x8EjdoDFAfVZDkIDs8pxfn-zY0/s640/IMG_20170725_193916.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">One of the sciences buildings</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">After
class, it was basically doing homework and working on the research project
until dinnertime. I allowed myself a 20 minute walk around the campus after
dinner, and the weather was extremely nice and cool. I just sauntered around,
relaxing a bit before I returned to my dorm to continue my work. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">My
time in Chicago is coming to an end very soon, and all these big assignments
due are just reminding me ever more about it. </span></div>
Cecilia Chakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12911336898406755045noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7044205151519923372.post-54837752731630636272017-07-25T21:40:00.002-07:002017-07-25T21:40:52.172-07:00No More Soccer<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We finished the results section of our research paper today. Sadly to say, our hypothesis was not confirmed by the data that we collected. My group had hypothesized that students would perform better in both reading comprehension and recall after being subjected to a brief intervention focused on metacognitive strategies. While the students who received the intervention did perform at a slightly higher level, the difference between them and the other students was negligible. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting there to be a huge difference, especially considering that we only tested 34 people, but I guess some part of me subconsciously wanted the data to outright justify our hypothesis, so to see that the two groups were so close was kind of disappointing. Doing all of the data collection (which mostly involved testing people) was pretty satisfying, however, and being able to put the data into charts and analyzing it was really fun. </span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlZOjExEXG3qMNpj4XA7tPUkA_Vv1DjegtVO5VdfbMvJHLvUkcg213hcGqdEVgkXlMz8rGJo87xNqz4XA3hsNyJweHTbB7y6n8Q2kOk4SZZKnJRmvmgrimc-vQCE55nqYHw8lpTHSh3r_3/s1600/RC.25.0-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlZOjExEXG3qMNpj4XA7tPUkA_Vv1DjegtVO5VdfbMvJHLvUkcg213hcGqdEVgkXlMz8rGJo87xNqz4XA3hsNyJweHTbB7y6n8Q2kOk4SZZKnJRmvmgrimc-vQCE55nqYHw8lpTHSh3r_3/s640/RC.25.0-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The A floor of the Regenstein, where we do most of our group work.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Before we worked on the results section as a group, we had class as usual. Today, we were lectured about how poverty and, consequently, stress can affect the learning ability and achievement potential of young students. The concept that the lesson was based off was that kids in poverty are exposed to a lot more stress and Adverse Childhood Events (ACEs). There have been many studies that indicate that stress is negatively correlated with learning, and it’s also just a fact that stress negatively affects the prefrontal cortex, which is the area that operates executive function. Executive function is basically the self-control, ability to plan, and problem-solving skills someone has. High exposure to stress as a child can lead to achievement gaps that widen over time. I don’t think it’s fair that those who are exposed to a lot of stress early on suffer academically, because most of the time they’re not the ones in control of their situation. Life itself is a very unfair experience; some people get lucky with their assets and traits, and others don’t. Learning about how uncontrollable factors can affect one’s learning throughout their lifetime has really made me appreciate my childhood and what I have.</span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnv_3O9gA7qJGlRHhCQaKQgPxSjkNBls49GyjiJlLIVNBdQaplitTmXXV7wtmd7dnOKIxbr3ioqW7KRnNOes7bNd1_xu5MdpbdYXXuclUNDMIYUofqXhWkIEDqBdUW1OgIYtV0rjbHsRSC/s1600/RC.25.0-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnv_3O9gA7qJGlRHhCQaKQgPxSjkNBls49GyjiJlLIVNBdQaplitTmXXV7wtmd7dnOKIxbr3ioqW7KRnNOes7bNd1_xu5MdpbdYXXuclUNDMIYUofqXhWkIEDqBdUW1OgIYtV0rjbHsRSC/s640/RC.25.0-2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">The last session of late-night soccer.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Today was also the last late-night soccer session. We didn’t get to use the turf this week, which was regrettable, but there were a lot less people this week, which opened up the field and made the game more fun. The quality of the play was also higher than it has been, because most of the people who were just dragged along by a friend or didn’t really want to play weren’t there. Late-night soccer here has been something that I’ve looked forward to every week, and I’m sad that there won’t be any more of it. It was always a good opportunity to forget about all of the coursework on my mind and just get a sweat (and a couple of goals) in.</span></span></div>
Raqeeb Changhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09676559739991109605noreply@blogger.com0