Northwhat?...Northwestern

Did you know that Northwestern University has a 30 hour dance marathon? Neither did I, but it has raised over $16 million since 1975 when it was founded. Is there another reason needed to fall in love with this school? I’m already sold honestly.

30 hour dance marathon

Northwestern University today has become a school many dream of going to. And they do so for a good reason. It currently ranks #12 in the nation, #5 in business, is the #10 law school and #17 medical school— and has a 30 hour dance marathon.  

It spends about $650 million a year in research, and that’s money a student can use to explore a field they may not be able to in another school. In fact, one of their recent articles was on a museum director conducting research to transform the museum into a home for all forms of art and knowledge. I thought it showed clearly how all the research, and their money, was being directly implemented to benefit students. Some of their research centers include the Center for Bio-Integrated Electronics, the Center for Forced Migration Studies, and Center for Cancer Nanotechnology Excellence, just to name a few. (They have 90 in total).

A play at NU. Looks VERY grand.

NU also seems to be very engaged into arts, with many plays and concerts being held in the next few weeks. In fact (another fun fact to make your day brighter), their swim club turned into a musical production club. In the 1940s, the swim club needed to raise funds so they put up a play. After that, the club has expanded and become the nation’s largest student-run musical.

One of the things that caught my attention was an event called VentureCat. It is an annual competition where students can pitch their start-ups and earn money. There are three grand winners who can earn $30K, $15K, and $10K for their companies. It seemed to be very competitive and intensive, with the winning team being a data analytics company that uses flying robots to automatically count inventory in warehouses. 

Northwestern also has another campus in Qatar. In it’s “About” section, it prides in the fact that its location in the Middle East creates a fusion of culture and other progressive ideas that make students prepared to work anywhere in the world. I think that’s completely true because the students there could have the best, and know the worst, of both worlds. 

Meanwhile, back in Evanston’s NU, there exists a Happiness Club :) They will give out hugs and hot chocolates occasionally to keep the campus happy in its stressful times. The campus’s beautiful unity could even be seen in the Rock, a huge rock on campus that could be painted over to spread a message... or propose someone.

What more do you need if there's hugs and hot chocolate?

These activities just prove that NU could be home to anyone. You could spend your time researching, then partying to relieve stress, and finally relaxing with a concert or play. It offers everything any student would want— while still providing a good education (and a 30 hour dance marathon).

Pizza Party at Berkeley

Yesterday night was our UChicago cohort dinner with our lovely chaperone, Ms. Sciacca, at Jupiter. We agreed to meet up at the restaurant at 8 pm, but I arrived at Berkeley a little earlier. My parents drove me there, so even though we found Jupiter pretty easily, we drove around a bit first, trying to see where we can park, since they had decided they were going to hang out and shop around Berkeley while they waited for me. Unfortunately, at that point, I got slightly carsick as my parent drove through streets after streets, trying to look for parking spaces. However, it was just really busy at Berkeley at that time of the day, so, in the end, without any available space, my dad had to just drop me off, and my mom walked me to Jupiter.

On the lower floor of Jupiter

There, I saw Ms. Sciacca was already waiting in the little doorway in front of the entrance. The two of us went inside and asked for a table for five. Since there were only the two of us, we were told we would need one more person to show up before they could give the table to us. It was understandable, so we were about to continue waiting outside, but right then, our third person, Jahvi, showed up, and we were led to our table upstairs. Once we were seated, Ms. Sciacca asked about our finals, which took place on Thursday and Friday of this week for me. Jahvi told us that she did not have many tests as her finals since she has AP classes, so most of her finals were projects. Lindsay arrived soon after, and we talked more as we waited for Raqueeb. We found out that Ms. Sciacca has a twin, which is pretty cool, and for a while, our conversation took a weird turn where we all shared our experiences with people that are twins.

We took a while placing our order, and we had a few awkward interaction with our waitress, but the four of us made it through the daunting task that is ordering, and soon enough, Raqueeb arrived, telling us that he took the wrong train and so he was late. The conversation flowed, and it was amazing that we can all talk with each other so easily and comfortably. The food was really good, too (I'll admit non-meat pizzas were surprisingly good, but don't you guys start thinking you've turned me into a vegetarian!), and I think I can say for all of us that we had a great time.

Bonding time!

After we finished eating, we talked for a little longer, but it was getting late, so we prepared to leave. Before we left, however, we had to take pictures, and luckily, our photographer Raqueeb is never without his camera, so we are saved from explaining to Don why we don't have a single picture from our dinner. We went downstairs, and Ms. Sciacca took a group picture of us on the stairs, with pretty lights in the background. There was a band performing, and the whole restaurant was extremely lively, bustling with energy. I almost didn't want to go just yet. The dinner passed by so quickly; I wished we had more time with each other, but I'll get to everyone again very soon at orientation, so until then! 

Cheese!

Who Went Where? - UChicago Edition

Eckhardt Research Center

Today, the University of Chicago is well known as a university of high research activity. The university runs approximately 150 research centers on campus and is also associated with a number of other research institutions off campus. Many UChicago scholars have been pioneers in research in fields spanning from physics to sociology to medicine and the arts, advancing our understanding of all that is around us with breakthroughs that have made a lasting impact on the world.

Parker Solar Probe, named after Eguene Parker

This is demonstrated by the news that just recently, on May 31, NASA renamed its first mission to go to the sun, which will be launched in 2018, from the Solar Probe Plus to the Parker Solar Probe, honoring Professor Eugene Parker, a physicist at the University of Chicago. Parker is the first living person NASA has named a space mission after. UChicago has always had a long history of strong background in astronomy and physics: launched in 1990, the Hubble Space Telescope was named after UChicago alumnus Edwin Hubble, and the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory was named after Arthur Holly Compton, a UChicago professor – just to name a few.

Jame Watson, co-discoverer of DNA structure

However, physics and astronomy are not the only fields UChicago has a strong background in. UChicago has many other notable and reputable alumni and faculty in the almost every field as well. James Watson, another alumnus, is best known as one of the three people who discovered the double-helix structure of DNA, revolutionizing everything in biology and the study of genetics. Similarly, in the business field, there is Satya Nadella, current CEO of Microsoft. Going a bit farther back, there is also psychologist John Watson, who established the psychological school of behaviorism.

In government and politics, throughout UChicago’s history, five of University of Chicago’s alumni have become presidents or prime ministers of governments. President Barack Obama, while not an alumnus, has served on the faculty teaching the University of Chicago Law School prior to his presidency.

Former President Barack Obama speaking at the UChicago Law School

Delirium trilogy by Lauren Oliver

For some alumni that are more recent, the UChicago alumnus most widely known right now is probably Bernie Sanders, the widely favored Democratic candidate in last year’s presidential campaign. Sanders had graduated from the university with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1964. In addition, those who are into young adult literature might also recognize the name of Chicago alumnus Lauren Oliver, the author of hit novels including the Delirium trilogy and the Before I Fall, which became a major motion picture this year. (As I doing my research, she was the first name I recognized, since her Delirium trilogy is one of my favorite series, because of its amazing and beautiful prose.)

From the time it was established in 1890 to present-day, the University of Chicago has built itself a long, prestigious history of notable alumni and faculty - physicists, biologist, politicians, writers, and much more - who have all, in their own way, impacted the world with their many talents. 

Time for Casual Conversation....and for Raqeeb to be late

Last night we had our cohort meet up at Jupiter in Downtown Berkeley. I had never been to Jupiter and didn't really know what to expect. My mom told that they have good pizza, and that it's a very college student thing to be at Jupiter late, which is all I really needed to know. Our meet up was scheduled for 8, and of course before I even got inside, we got news that Raqeeb was going to be late. For the most part, we've agreed that the person who shows up last is usually Raqeeb -Jahnvi even has a theory that it's because of his hair, and that she could get ready faster. It's likely we'll be putting that to the test while in Chicago.

Our waitress was a little nervous and didn't really know how to help us when we asked for recommendations, but it worked out, and we ordered two delicious vegetarian pizzas. Cecilia and I will probably end up as vegetarians by the end of this, because Raqeeb, Jahnvi, and Ms. Sciacca are ALL vegetarians. 

Dinner chatter

We relayed some must dos while in Chicago to Ms. Sciacca, and told her what we were excited about. We talked about finals that were coming up or already happened, and about college apps and personal insight questions. Both Jahnvi and I took SAT Subject tests in the morning so we talked about how we felt we did, and how we wanted to do on them. Ms. Sciacca told us she had a fraternal twin, which is really cool, and told us about her students. The conversation was light and fun; I had a great time.

When we were done with most of our delicious meal, we realized that we hadn't taken any pictures, thankfully, Raqeeb always has his camera, so we wouldn't have to worry about having only grainy cell phone pictures. After a few quick pics over our dinner conversation, we finished our meal and started alerting parents that soon enough we'd be ready to head home. Jahnvi wanted pictures near the pretty string lights that they had up at Jupiter and the rest of us agreed, so we ended up seeing what was going on in the patio area. We took some photos on the steps in front of the patio level, and then went to see what the fuss was about. It turned out to be some live music, and there was even a little boy all dancing around in front of the band, which was completely adorable.

Post dinner pics

We parted ways out front, but had some good Chicago squad bonding time.

Late to the Party, but Just in Time for Pizza

Catching golden hour in the city--
the cause of my tardiness.

Last night, I got to see the rest of the UChicago cohort again, this time in a more casual setting. We had dinner at a restaurant in Berkeley called Jupiter. I was taking pictures in San Francisco and had decided to take BART to Berkeley. However, I accidentally boarded a Dublin/Pleasanton train, so I had to get off at the West Oakland station and wait for a Pittsburg/Bay Pt. train to come, which delayed my arrival to Berkeley by around 20 minutes (we had agreed to meet at 8 PM).

When I got to the restaurant, it was a little after 8:20 PM. I had walked by it several times in previous trips to Berkeley, so it wasn’t that hard to find. Despite my tardiness, everything was going smoothly, until I tried to actually get inside the restaurant. As I was stepping over the threshold, a bouncer stopped me and told me that the restaurant only allowed individuals above the age of 18 after 8 PM. I don’t even have a driver’s license, so there was no way of trying to trick my way in. I asked if I could contact a member of my party to retrieve me, and the bouncer obliged. At this point, I stepped away from the doorway and texted Ms. Sciacca. After around 5 minutes, she still hadn’t responded, and both the bouncer and I were still standing kind of awkwardly near the entrance as people entered and exited the restaurant. I guess he either felt bad for me or wanted to get away from me, so eventually he relented and told me I could go inside as long as I didn’t order any alcohol, which I wasn’t planning on doing anyway.

I went upstairs, which was where Ms. Sciacca had said earlier the group was sitting. I said hi to everyone, and the food arrived probably no later than 3 or 4 minutes after I sat down. They had ordered 2 pizzas (before I came); I didn’t get to see the menu, so I don’t know their official titles, but one of the pizzas had a pesto base and the other one had a more traditional tomato sauce base. Both pies were thin crust and delicious, but I typically enjoy tomato sauce-based pizzas more because they usually have a lighter, fresher taste than heavier varieties like pesto or white pies. I only remembered to take photos for the blog after the pizzas were pretty much finished up, which is regretful because they were very visually pleasing.

The scene at the table, post-food.

After we ate, we went to the large outdoor area downstairs and took a group photo. There was live music, and in front of the band there was this little kid dancing. He was pretty cute, and the band playing loved his enthusiasm. We watched him for a while, then left the restaurant.

Cohort picture, taken in the outdoors area behind the restaurant.

After we exited the restaurant, we chatted for awhile in front of it as we waited for parents to come. I was going to take BART home, but didn’t want to leave before everyone else, so I stayed for a while. Lindsay and Jahnvi were picked up fairly promptly, which left Cecilia, Ms. Sciacca, and I. We talked about the benefits and drawbacks of khan academy and then a little about the stressful nature of the ACT’s time limits. After around 10 minutes, Cecilia’s parents came, and the three of us parted ways.

Even though I was a little late, the dinner as a whole was fun. I got to talk to the rest of my cohort, which is always a good experience, and I feel like the four of us grew a lot closer to Ms. Sciacca. July is approaching, and it’s going to be great.

So, About Northwestern

One of the schools our cohort is hoping to visit is Northwestern. Honestly, I hadn't heard anything about Northwestern until this year when ILCers at my school mentioned they had visited Northwestern and really wanted to attend school there. This of course made me thoroughly excited to find out that we would have a site visit there! And here I go sharing some of what I know about this University.

Northwestern is home to three campuses(Evanston, Chicago, and Doha, Qatar), and serves 21,000 total students. It all began in late May 1850 when nine men came together to plan a university to serve the Northwest. Though they had little money to work with, through creativity and hard work, the fantasy became a reality.

The campus was established 12 miles north of Chicago and the land around it was developed named Evanston after one the founders, John Evans. After the first building was completed in 1855, classes began with 2 faculty members and 10 students.

Chicago skyline from the Evanston campus

Since its inception, a dozen colleges of Northwestern University have been created, starting first with the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences(1851). It educates all of Northwestern's undergrads and has 4,300 undergraduate students. The most recent addition to the Northwestern University family is Northwestern University in Qatar(2008).

Now that we've gotten through some history and general information about Northwestern, let's get into something more fun -like some key spots on campus that I want to see.

Weber Arch
I'm a sucker for interesting, fun, or sweet college traditions, and Weber Arch fulfills that criteria. It was named after Northwestern's 14th president serves as the entrance to campus. This arch also serves as a ceremonious entrance for freshman in the fall, with the marching band leading them under the arch with upperclassmen cheering them on. When the seniors graduate in the spring, they march out through the arch to begin their next chapter.

The Rock

The Rock
This is another tradition and is particularly quirky. It first became a tradition to paint the rock in the 1940s as a prank, but has since become a form of self expression and club and activity advertisement. Nearly every night, different groups guard the rock to paint messages or symbols on it in the dark of night. 

Deering Library
Deering Library was modeled after King's College Chapel -the architectural inspiration for Hogwarts, so when we say in our blogs after visiting that it looked just like Hogwarts, at least there will be some truth to that statement. 

Deering Library aka Hogwarts

Shakespeare Garden

Shakespeare Garden

This garden is apparently a great oasis right in the middle of campus. It's over 100 years old and has a few dozen different flowers and shrubs that were mentioned in Shakespeare's works.

Through finding this information about Northwestern University, I'm even more excited about the prospect of touring the University on a site visit, and I hope I really enjoy the college and consider applying.

UChicago: A School Rooted in History

J.D Rockefeller.

UChicago wasn’t always the university we see it as today. There was initially a school of the same name that was affiliated with the Baptist church in Chicago, but this school went bankrupt in 1886, and the name was changed to “Old University of Chicago” so it wouldn’t be confused with the new university J.D Rockefeller planned to invest in. Rockefeller pledged $600,000 toward the founding of today’s UChicago in 1889, provided that $400,000 more could be found elsewhere. The money was raised, and in 1890, the University was officially founded by Rockefeller and the American Baptist Education Society on a donation of land by Marshall Field.

The Old UChicago, after it went bankrupt.

The University of Chicago’s first president was William Rainey Harper, who established a high academic level early on. The faculty that worked with him had come from colleges all over the country, with the shared mindset of wanting to foster an environment of academic success. This early attitude among the faculty is evident in today’s UChicago and has shown itself through the successes of the UChicago alumni.

William Rainey Harper,
the University's first president.

UChicago aimed for a diverse atmosphere from its onset, despite the involvement of the American Baptist Education Society in its birth. William Rainey Harper wanted the University to maintain gender equality and religious freedom among its students. Not all schools were as accepting of different races at the time, so the University gained a lot of minority and foreign applicants.

In addition to a mindset of academic excellence and diversity, Harper encouraged inquiry among the students. He wanted them to ask difficult questions and challenge what was accepted as the standard by professors. This policy of inquiry has persisted to the present and the research that spawned off of this attitude has resulted in close to 90 Nobel Prizes and almost 50 MacArthur “genius grants” earned by scholars, professors, and researchers related to the University.

Robert Hutchins,
the University's fifth president.

If Harper is held as the force that laid out the foundations for the ideals of the school, then the fifth president, Robert Hutchins, can be recognized as the person who first introduced the type of class experience that can be found in the University today. He implemented a curriculum that involved a focus on interdisciplinary education, study of original documents, and discussion-based classes. These traits form the backbone of today’s UChicago academic approach.  

You can trace back several of UChicago’s defining features to its formative years. The diversity of the student body, the encouragement of inquiry and challenge, the discussion-based classes, and the commitment to academic success are all rooted in decisions made early in the school’s history that went against the norm at the time. When looking at its development, it’s clear that the University of Chicago is a school that excels not despite its tendency to go against the grain, but because of it.