1.) Describe the two steps involved in the harvesting of bones from a human cadaver.
a. To harvest bones from a human cadaver, a number of steps must be completed. First, the skin and muscle surrounding the bones must be cut away. Then, the residual meat and sinew must be dissolved by boiling the bones in a solution for a few weeks.
2.) What is plastination? What is the German anatomist, Gunther von Hagens, best known for plastinating?
a. Plastination is the process of taking organic tissue and replacing the water in it with a liquid silicone polymer, which turns the tissue into a permanently preserved version of itself. The German anatomist, Gunther von Hagens, is best known for plastinating whole human bodies. It took him years to complete it, but after he finished plastinating all of the human bodies, he put them in a museum to be a part of a display known as “Bodyworlds”.
3.) Describe the step-by-step process of being plastinated.
a. Plastination is an intricate and lengthy step-by-step process. First the body is washed in a tub. Second, the body is placed in a stainless-steel tank of acetone. The acetone drives water from the body’s tissue. Then, the cadavers are transferred to a whole-body plastination chamber filled with liquid polymer. A vacuum is attached to this tank which lowers the internal pressure which turns the acetone into a gas, drawing it out from the body. When the acetone is drawn out from the body, it leaves a space, that space is then filled with the liquid polymer. The body is then lifted out of the chamber and posed into a certain position. Then, a catalyst is rubbed into the skin and left for two days to harden. This plastination process will keep the body preserved for about 10,000 years.
4.) What are Mary Roach’s plans for her body after she dies? Why did she make this decision?
a. After Mary Roach dies, she plans to leave what happens to her body up to her husband. She worries that if she donated her body to science, her squeamish husband would have to picture her on a lab table knowing that anything mentioned in her book could be happening to her. She thinks it should be left up to immediate family members as to what is done with a loved one’s body after death, since they are the ones that have to continue to live thinking about it. However, she said that if her husband dies before her, then she will fill out the willed body form and be donated to science.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
STIFF Chapter 11: Vocabulary
1.) Tissue Digestion (Page 252) – a method of disposing bodies through alkaline hydrolysis
2.) Lye (Page 253) – a highly concentrated, aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide.
3.) Prions (Page 253) –any of several petrels of the genus Pachyptila, located in the oceans of the Southern Hemisphere and having serrated edges on the bill.
4.) Bereaved (Page 254) –greatly saddened at being deprived by death of a loved one.
5.) Reductive Cremation (Page 254) – the reduction of a corpse to ashes as a way of disposing of it
6.) Necropsy (Page 255) –the examination of a body after death; autopsy.
7.) Taciturn (Page 255) - inclined to silence; reserved in speech; reluctant to join in conversation.
8.) Winches (Page 256) – the crank or handle of a revolving machine
9.) Emboldened (Page 256) – to make bold or bolder; hearten; encourage.
10.) Noxious (Page 258) - harmful or injurious to health or physical well-being: noxious fumes.
11.) Miasmas (Page 258) – a dangerous, foreboding, or deathlike influence or atmosphere.
12.) Pagan (Page 259) – a person who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim
13.) Tantamount (Page 262) –equivalent, as in value, force, effect, or signification
14.) Loamy (Page 262) – a rich, friable soil containing a relatively equal mixture of sand and silt and a somewhat smaller proportion of clay.
15.) Moribund (Page 266) –in a dying state; near death.
16.) Internment (Page 267) –the state of being confined.
17.) Merriment (Page 270) – cheerful or joyful gaiety; mirth; hilarity; laughter.
18.) Enigmatic (Page 271) – resembling an enigma; perplexing; mysterious.
19.) Requisite (Page 274) – required or necessary for a particular purpose, position, etc.; indispensable
20.) Metaphysical (Page 277) - concerned with abstract thought or subjects, as existence, causality, or truth.
2.) Lye (Page 253) – a highly concentrated, aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide.
3.) Prions (Page 253) –any of several petrels of the genus Pachyptila, located in the oceans of the Southern Hemisphere and having serrated edges on the bill.
4.) Bereaved (Page 254) –greatly saddened at being deprived by death of a loved one.
5.) Reductive Cremation (Page 254) – the reduction of a corpse to ashes as a way of disposing of it
6.) Necropsy (Page 255) –the examination of a body after death; autopsy.
7.) Taciturn (Page 255) - inclined to silence; reserved in speech; reluctant to join in conversation.
8.) Winches (Page 256) – the crank or handle of a revolving machine
9.) Emboldened (Page 256) – to make bold or bolder; hearten; encourage.
10.) Noxious (Page 258) - harmful or injurious to health or physical well-being: noxious fumes.
11.) Miasmas (Page 258) – a dangerous, foreboding, or deathlike influence or atmosphere.
12.) Pagan (Page 259) – a person who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim
13.) Tantamount (Page 262) –equivalent, as in value, force, effect, or signification
14.) Loamy (Page 262) – a rich, friable soil containing a relatively equal mixture of sand and silt and a somewhat smaller proportion of clay.
15.) Moribund (Page 266) –in a dying state; near death.
16.) Internment (Page 267) –the state of being confined.
17.) Merriment (Page 270) – cheerful or joyful gaiety; mirth; hilarity; laughter.
18.) Enigmatic (Page 271) – resembling an enigma; perplexing; mysterious.
19.) Requisite (Page 274) – required or necessary for a particular purpose, position, etc.; indispensable
20.) Metaphysical (Page 277) - concerned with abstract thought or subjects, as existence, causality, or truth.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
STIFF Chapters 7 & 8: Summary
In 1931, Father Armaihac held an annual gathering in France, called the Laennec Conference, in which French doctors and medical students attended. He carried with him documents and photos pertaining to the Shroud of Turin, the cloth which is believed to be wrapped around Jesus when he was taken down from the cross after crucifixion. Father Armaihac’s goal of this particular conference was to present the Shroud to France’s finest anatomists to see if the markings on the Shroud correctly responded to the realities of anatomy and physiology, to see if the story fit. A doctor by the name of Pierre Barbet nominated himself to be the one to test this. He ended up being extremely devoted to this project. To test his theories, he used a human cadaver and a homemade cross, similar to the one in Jesus’ story, and crucified the cadaver. He looked at blood flow stains on the Shroud that were said to be made when Jesus tried to keep himself from falling down while on the cross. He tested his ideas with by crucifying and entire human cadaver once, then he just used a cadaver arm to test this idea a series of twelve more times. He found that the angles the arms made on the cross corresponded to the blood stains on the Shroud.
Frederick Zugibe, a medical examiner for Rockland County, New York, spent his time researching crucifixion and disagreeing ideas made by Dr. Pierre Barbet regarding the Shroud. Instead of using human cadavers to test his theories, Zugibe used live volunteers. He strapped them onto homemade crosses in his garage and after several runs of the experiment, he found that the blood stains made on the Shroud were not a result of blood falling out of the wrists due to certain angles of the arm. He determined that the blood stain patterns were simply made as a result of the Shroud being washed after Jesus was taken down from the cross.
Not only are human cadavers used for experiments, many times they are used for organ and tissue donations. Cadaver “H” is considered to be a “beating heart cadaver”. This means she is a fully functioning human body everywhere but in her brain. She is hooked up to a respirator to keep her organs thriving, but is considered brain-dead and is therefore considered legally dead. Cadaver “H” is partaking in an organ recovery procedure where her heart, both of her kidneys, and her liver will be surgically taken out and transplanted to living human beings in need of them. Throughout history, many theories have been questioned pertaining to where in the human body does the soul live and does it actually leave the body when one dies. In 1907, Dr. Duncan MacDougall ran a series of experiments seeking to determine whether the soul could be physically weighed. He would put people that were hours away from death onto gurneys, which he would then place on a large scale. He then waited and watched for the person to die and the second they were pronounced dead, he would determine if there was any weight loss. He found a very minuscule amount of weight loss, but it was unknown whether it was due to evaporation of bodily fluids or due to the loss of the human soul.
Throughout history, the soul has been given numerous different places of residence. The earliest being behind the eyebrows, behind the Pineal Gland, then contained completely in the blood. It wasn’t until the twentieth century when Thomas Edison announced that he believed living beings were controlled by “life unit”, smaller-than-microscopic entities that inhabited each and every cell, and upon death, evacuated the human body.
It is difficult to find the exact location of the human soul, since it is not a physical entity. No one has really given an exact location, we just know that humans have souls and they reside somewhere within all of us.
Frederick Zugibe, a medical examiner for Rockland County, New York, spent his time researching crucifixion and disagreeing ideas made by Dr. Pierre Barbet regarding the Shroud. Instead of using human cadavers to test his theories, Zugibe used live volunteers. He strapped them onto homemade crosses in his garage and after several runs of the experiment, he found that the blood stains made on the Shroud were not a result of blood falling out of the wrists due to certain angles of the arm. He determined that the blood stain patterns were simply made as a result of the Shroud being washed after Jesus was taken down from the cross.
Not only are human cadavers used for experiments, many times they are used for organ and tissue donations. Cadaver “H” is considered to be a “beating heart cadaver”. This means she is a fully functioning human body everywhere but in her brain. She is hooked up to a respirator to keep her organs thriving, but is considered brain-dead and is therefore considered legally dead. Cadaver “H” is partaking in an organ recovery procedure where her heart, both of her kidneys, and her liver will be surgically taken out and transplanted to living human beings in need of them. Throughout history, many theories have been questioned pertaining to where in the human body does the soul live and does it actually leave the body when one dies. In 1907, Dr. Duncan MacDougall ran a series of experiments seeking to determine whether the soul could be physically weighed. He would put people that were hours away from death onto gurneys, which he would then place on a large scale. He then waited and watched for the person to die and the second they were pronounced dead, he would determine if there was any weight loss. He found a very minuscule amount of weight loss, but it was unknown whether it was due to evaporation of bodily fluids or due to the loss of the human soul.
Throughout history, the soul has been given numerous different places of residence. The earliest being behind the eyebrows, behind the Pineal Gland, then contained completely in the blood. It wasn’t until the twentieth century when Thomas Edison announced that he believed living beings were controlled by “life unit”, smaller-than-microscopic entities that inhabited each and every cell, and upon death, evacuated the human body.
It is difficult to find the exact location of the human soul, since it is not a physical entity. No one has really given an exact location, we just know that humans have souls and they reside somewhere within all of us.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
STIFF: Chapter 6 Quiz
1.) What is the story behind the first American instance in which human cadavers were used as “human targets” in the army? Describe the experiment that was being attempted.
a. The first cadavers used as human targets in the army were in 1983. The cadavers used were suspended from the ceiling of the firing range and shot at over a dozen times. The goal was to compare the physiological effects of two different weapons upon the human body. The army determined that using human cadavers for this reason would lead to a more humanitarian way of gun fighting; which would help the army with their ultimate goal: not to kill the enemy, only render him unable to fight.
2.) Explain the significance of the animals chosen by each country to participate in the munitions trauma research. Refer to China, Australia, Britain, and the United States.
a. Before human cadavers were used in these experiments, animals were. Each country used different animals for different reasons. China used dogs primarily because they eat dogs there, meaning they don’t view them as family members as say Americans may view them. Australia preferred to use rabbits because they consider them an unwanted species that was ruining the environment. As for the U.S. and Britain, they used pigs and goats. Pigs were used because their organs most resemble human organs; particularly the heart. Goats were used because their lungs most closely resemble human lungs.
3.) What are the two theories regarding why a person collapses on the spot after being shot? Include who developed the theory and a description of the theory itself.
a. There are two theories as to why a person collapses on the spot after being shot. The first theory is from Duncan MacPherson, a ballistics expert and consultant to the LAPD, who insists that the effect is purely psychological. Whether or not a person collapses depends on their state of mind. The other theory is from a Swedish neurophysiologist names A.M. Goransson. He figured that something about the bullet’s impact on the human body caused a massive overload to the central nervous system.
4.) Describe the research that was done, using cadavers, to test armored clothing. Why were human cadavers used and what was used before the cadavers?
a. At the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology’s Ballistic missile Trauma Research lab last year, a new experiment was tested on armored clothing against modern-day ammunition. Human cadavers were dressed in newly developed body armor vests and fired at by a wide-variety of new munitions. Human cadavers were used because they represent the most accurate portrayal of actual humans that would be wearing the armored vests. Before human cadavers were used, animals were used.
a. The first cadavers used as human targets in the army were in 1983. The cadavers used were suspended from the ceiling of the firing range and shot at over a dozen times. The goal was to compare the physiological effects of two different weapons upon the human body. The army determined that using human cadavers for this reason would lead to a more humanitarian way of gun fighting; which would help the army with their ultimate goal: not to kill the enemy, only render him unable to fight.
2.) Explain the significance of the animals chosen by each country to participate in the munitions trauma research. Refer to China, Australia, Britain, and the United States.
a. Before human cadavers were used in these experiments, animals were. Each country used different animals for different reasons. China used dogs primarily because they eat dogs there, meaning they don’t view them as family members as say Americans may view them. Australia preferred to use rabbits because they consider them an unwanted species that was ruining the environment. As for the U.S. and Britain, they used pigs and goats. Pigs were used because their organs most resemble human organs; particularly the heart. Goats were used because their lungs most closely resemble human lungs.
3.) What are the two theories regarding why a person collapses on the spot after being shot? Include who developed the theory and a description of the theory itself.
a. There are two theories as to why a person collapses on the spot after being shot. The first theory is from Duncan MacPherson, a ballistics expert and consultant to the LAPD, who insists that the effect is purely psychological. Whether or not a person collapses depends on their state of mind. The other theory is from a Swedish neurophysiologist names A.M. Goransson. He figured that something about the bullet’s impact on the human body caused a massive overload to the central nervous system.
4.) Describe the research that was done, using cadavers, to test armored clothing. Why were human cadavers used and what was used before the cadavers?
a. At the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology’s Ballistic missile Trauma Research lab last year, a new experiment was tested on armored clothing against modern-day ammunition. Human cadavers were dressed in newly developed body armor vests and fired at by a wide-variety of new munitions. Human cadavers were used because they represent the most accurate portrayal of actual humans that would be wearing the armored vests. Before human cadavers were used, animals were used.
Literary Circle Journal Entry #2
Overall, I personally liked the literary circle project. I really enjoyed the book, “Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers”, that I was grouped with. The other members in my group also enjoyed this project. At first, it seemed like it was going to be way too much work with all of the job assignments and everything that each person had to do, but once we divided the readings up, it was fine. The book kept us very intrigued. Mary Roach definitely has an interesting style of writing, one of which I have never read any books like before. I liked the way she was upfront and honest about EVERYTHING. She wasn’t afraid of offending her readers; she just told it like it was. I also liked the subject the book was about. I, as well as my other group members, am interested in science or the field of medicine. I, thought going into reading her book, that I knew a fairly good amount about human cadavers and the organ donation program; but I was very wrong. I never once thought that it would be more beneficial for human cadavers to be used for things like crash test experiments and other defying experiments such as being dropped from airplanes. Our group thought that the literary circle project was worthwhile. We also like how our research topics are derived from our book. Our grouped not only enjoyed her book, but learned a lot.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
STIFF Chapter 5: Vocabulary Builder
1.) Injury Analyst (Page 113) - a career which integrates incident and injury related medical information.
2.) Cognizant (Page 114)- having cognizance; aware
3.) Fuselage (Page 114) - the complete central structure to which the wing, tail surfaces, and engines are attached on an airplane.
4.) Euphemistic (Page 117) - the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one thought to be offensive, harsh, or blunt.
5.) Fragmented (Page 117)- reduced to fragments; existing or functioning as though broken into separate parts; disorganized; disunities
6.) Tran section (Page 117) - to cut across; dissect transversely.
7.) Chemical Burns (Page 118)- Chemicals that touch skin can cause a limited skin reaction, an overall body reaction
8.) Thermal Burn (Page 118) -Tissue reaction to or injury resulting from application of heat.
9.) Propagate (Page 119) -to cause (an organism) to multiply by any process of natural reproduction from the parent stock.
10.) Aortic Tears (Page 119) - a tear in the wall of the aorta that causes blood to flow between the layers of the wall of the aorta and force the layers apart.
11.) Ethereal (Page 120)- extremely delicate or refined; light, airy, or tenuous
12.) Bomb Blast (Page 122)- the explosion of a bomb
13.) Depressurization (Page 122) -to remove the air pressure from (a pressurized compartment of an aircraft or spacecraft).
14.) Deleterious (Page 122)-injurious to health; harmful; injurious
15.) Ostensibly (Page 125)-outwardly appearing as such; professed; pretended; apparent, evident, or conspicuous
16.) Promulgate (Page 126)- to make known by open declaration; publish; proclaim formally or put into operation
2.) Cognizant (Page 114)- having cognizance; aware
3.) Fuselage (Page 114) - the complete central structure to which the wing, tail surfaces, and engines are attached on an airplane.
4.) Euphemistic (Page 117) - the substitution of a mild, indirect, or vague expression for one thought to be offensive, harsh, or blunt.
5.) Fragmented (Page 117)- reduced to fragments; existing or functioning as though broken into separate parts; disorganized; disunities
6.) Tran section (Page 117) - to cut across; dissect transversely.
7.) Chemical Burns (Page 118)- Chemicals that touch skin can cause a limited skin reaction, an overall body reaction
8.) Thermal Burn (Page 118) -Tissue reaction to or injury resulting from application of heat.
9.) Propagate (Page 119) -to cause (an organism) to multiply by any process of natural reproduction from the parent stock.
10.) Aortic Tears (Page 119) - a tear in the wall of the aorta that causes blood to flow between the layers of the wall of the aorta and force the layers apart.
11.) Ethereal (Page 120)- extremely delicate or refined; light, airy, or tenuous
12.) Bomb Blast (Page 122)- the explosion of a bomb
13.) Depressurization (Page 122) -to remove the air pressure from (a pressurized compartment of an aircraft or spacecraft).
14.) Deleterious (Page 122)-injurious to health; harmful; injurious
15.) Ostensibly (Page 125)-outwardly appearing as such; professed; pretended; apparent, evident, or conspicuous
16.) Promulgate (Page 126)- to make known by open declaration; publish; proclaim formally or put into operation
Monday, April 13, 2009
Rabbit Hole #5
Censorship In Our Society
In class on Friday, we watched a video about profanity and censorship and the effect it has on people in our society. I personally think that there isn’t a problem with profanity in our society. Even though there are plenty of people that swear or say things that other people may not agree with, who is to say that those words are wrong? I thought that it was absolutely ridiculous how the women in the video who was trying to completely abolish cursing by the way of t-shirts and her logos and different things. It’s almost as though she is fighting for a lost cause. The first amendment sets in stone the freedom of speech that we as Americans all have. If this person doesn’t like hearing curse words, she should maybe just stay locked up in her house with no radio or television. That way, she isn’t annoying the rest of society by trying to abolish cursing among everybody everywhere.
I don’t think it is even possible not to offend people anymore. Nowadays, no matter what you do, you are offending somebody in some way. In my opinion, even though I probably sound somewhat harsh, I think if people put as much work into solving world problems that actually matter; or even putting all of this effort that they put into solving problems like cursing, our world would be an amazing place to live. If someone simply doesn’t like something that somebody else does or doesn’t like something that they see on television, maybe they shouldn’t associate themselves with that person or watch the TV show that they disapproved of. I personally don’t have a problem with swearing. These words are just words. Sometimes, a strong swear word needs to be put in place of another word in a sentence to really drive a point home. And since I like making things clear when I say them to certain people in certain situations, I will continue to use these words. However, I do think that there is a certain time and place for these words. I wouldn’t find a place like church an appropriate place for myself to say these words, but if someone else wants to do the go ahead and say them, more power to them.
In class on Friday, we watched a video about profanity and censorship and the effect it has on people in our society. I personally think that there isn’t a problem with profanity in our society. Even though there are plenty of people that swear or say things that other people may not agree with, who is to say that those words are wrong? I thought that it was absolutely ridiculous how the women in the video who was trying to completely abolish cursing by the way of t-shirts and her logos and different things. It’s almost as though she is fighting for a lost cause. The first amendment sets in stone the freedom of speech that we as Americans all have. If this person doesn’t like hearing curse words, she should maybe just stay locked up in her house with no radio or television. That way, she isn’t annoying the rest of society by trying to abolish cursing among everybody everywhere.
I don’t think it is even possible not to offend people anymore. Nowadays, no matter what you do, you are offending somebody in some way. In my opinion, even though I probably sound somewhat harsh, I think if people put as much work into solving world problems that actually matter; or even putting all of this effort that they put into solving problems like cursing, our world would be an amazing place to live. If someone simply doesn’t like something that somebody else does or doesn’t like something that they see on television, maybe they shouldn’t associate themselves with that person or watch the TV show that they disapproved of. I personally don’t have a problem with swearing. These words are just words. Sometimes, a strong swear word needs to be put in place of another word in a sentence to really drive a point home. And since I like making things clear when I say them to certain people in certain situations, I will continue to use these words. However, I do think that there is a certain time and place for these words. I wouldn’t find a place like church an appropriate place for myself to say these words, but if someone else wants to do the go ahead and say them, more power to them.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Altered Consciousness
Altered Consciousness
After I watched the online video “Between Worlds”, I realized that my mind wandered away to many different areas. I found the video to be somewhat disturbing and didn’t at all enjoy watching it because of that. However, I did understand that the goal was to push us to the edge or even out of our comfort zones. I hate dealing with death. I have experienced more family deaths than other people my age, partly because relatives on my dad’s side all lived to be really old. Even though most of the family deaths that I’ve experienced were of “great” relatives that I wasn’t really close to, being around family members, who did share very close bonds and whom experienced a lot of grief from the loss, was just as equally difficult. After you experience the death of someone who cared about, certain things can bring back those memories and you can all of the sudden feel like you are going through the experience all over again. Recently, I my grandpa passed away very unexpectedly at a fairly young age. It happened right before I came to college and it really affected me. Since it happened at one of the biggest transitioning times of my life, it played a huge role in the way I viewed a lot of things in my life. Not to turn anything into a huge sob story, but watching this video brought back a lot of those memories. Especially since in the video they refer to feeling a sense of relief or even joy watching someone die. I am not at all easily offended by any means, but hearing anybody say something like that hurt. Even the fact that I’ve known people who have dealt loved ones committing suicide, and then hearing this artist talk about how they wish someone would die so they themselves could feel better, upset me a little. Seeing this video just made me have a feeling where I was still “watching” the video and taking it all in, but at the same time I was thinking about all of these other things that I didn’t enjoy thinking about and that I haven’t thought about in a long time. I think it is good to get yourself to get out of your present state of mind, especially since many people get sort of wrapped up in their own daily lives and routines. However, I would have rather have had a pleasant experience and thought of happy times that I haven’t thought about in a while instead.
After I watched the online video “Between Worlds”, I realized that my mind wandered away to many different areas. I found the video to be somewhat disturbing and didn’t at all enjoy watching it because of that. However, I did understand that the goal was to push us to the edge or even out of our comfort zones. I hate dealing with death. I have experienced more family deaths than other people my age, partly because relatives on my dad’s side all lived to be really old. Even though most of the family deaths that I’ve experienced were of “great” relatives that I wasn’t really close to, being around family members, who did share very close bonds and whom experienced a lot of grief from the loss, was just as equally difficult. After you experience the death of someone who cared about, certain things can bring back those memories and you can all of the sudden feel like you are going through the experience all over again. Recently, I my grandpa passed away very unexpectedly at a fairly young age. It happened right before I came to college and it really affected me. Since it happened at one of the biggest transitioning times of my life, it played a huge role in the way I viewed a lot of things in my life. Not to turn anything into a huge sob story, but watching this video brought back a lot of those memories. Especially since in the video they refer to feeling a sense of relief or even joy watching someone die. I am not at all easily offended by any means, but hearing anybody say something like that hurt. Even the fact that I’ve known people who have dealt loved ones committing suicide, and then hearing this artist talk about how they wish someone would die so they themselves could feel better, upset me a little. Seeing this video just made me have a feeling where I was still “watching” the video and taking it all in, but at the same time I was thinking about all of these other things that I didn’t enjoy thinking about and that I haven’t thought about in a long time. I think it is good to get yourself to get out of your present state of mind, especially since many people get sort of wrapped up in their own daily lives and routines. However, I would have rather have had a pleasant experience and thought of happy times that I haven’t thought about in a while instead.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
STIFF: Chapters 1 & 2 Summary
To the average person, reading about human heads being compared to that of rotisserie chickens may be a bit uncomfortable. However, that is exactly what you would find attending a facial anatomy and face-lift refresher course. The human heads were put on display by a woman named Theresa. She was in charge of also choosing the color of the cloth sheets, lavender for this particular day, which would be placed over each cadaver head while the plastic surgeons waited to begin. Another woman, Yvonne was also helping out with this event. Her official title was the Lab Manager, which meant that it was her job to remove the heads from the cadaver bodies with the use of a saw. Through talking for a while with Theresa, we learn that by viewing these human heads as objects rather than the human heads they actually are, it is much easier to do the job. These surgical seminars are crucially helpful for surgeons looking for refreshing practice before they put the scalpel into their patients. Marilena, a reconstructive plastic surgeon, was attending the convention to learn how to better do the facelift procedure. She thought it would be a huge benefit to the patient that she brush up on her face lift techniques prior to the time of the actual surgical procedure. It is difficult however, for these conventions to even be able to take place. With priority for cadavers to be sent to anatomy labs, many surgical conventions, where cadavers are actually present, are fairly rare. Ronn Wade, the director of the Anatomical Services Division at the University Of Maryland School Of Medicine, is currently working to change this system and offer a better balance to suite both needs.
Throughout history, there have been numerous ways people, usually holding a high rank in the area of anatomy, would go about collecting bodies to study. Beginning in Egypt, not only were bodies cut open and dissected as a part of the mummification process, but the King during 300 B.C. deemed it acceptable to use executed criminals for the sole purpose of dissection. Those beliefs continued well into sixteenth century Britain. However, since the laws of that time included crimes such as stealing a pig and killing a man to be punishable by death, the government decided another severe punishment needed to be included in addition to just death. Toward the eighteenth century, it became law that for the severe crimes, like murder, the criminal would face death and his body would then be sent to an anatomy lab as a cadaver. These new practices didn’t solve the cadaver shortages anatomists were still facing though. With several anatomists not comfortable with “cutting up” their own deceased family members, many had to resort to stealing bodies. Some anatomy instructors would even encourage their students to go on late night grave-raids if they weren’t comfortable stealing the bodies themselves. This evolved into what seemed like a black market for dead bodies. People took it upon themselves, once they realized there was money to be made, to steal bodies for the purpose of using them as cadavers for the field of medicine. Realizing that the anatomy problem had “gotten quite out of hand”, the British Parliament questioned if to learn the study of anatomy, one really needed to practice on actual non-living human bodies. Clearly, coming to the conclusion that it is absolutely necessary for soon-to-be medical professionals to get a sneak peak on deceased individuals rather than seeing inside of a human for the first time on a living individual, Parliament decided something needed to be brought forth to have a larger community of available cadavers. In the 1960’s, the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act was passed. This act raised awareness of the need for organs for transplantation and of body donation as an option. Along with the passing of this new act and the increasing cost of funerals, more and more people have come around to the idea of anatomical gift giving.
Throughout history, there have been numerous ways people, usually holding a high rank in the area of anatomy, would go about collecting bodies to study. Beginning in Egypt, not only were bodies cut open and dissected as a part of the mummification process, but the King during 300 B.C. deemed it acceptable to use executed criminals for the sole purpose of dissection. Those beliefs continued well into sixteenth century Britain. However, since the laws of that time included crimes such as stealing a pig and killing a man to be punishable by death, the government decided another severe punishment needed to be included in addition to just death. Toward the eighteenth century, it became law that for the severe crimes, like murder, the criminal would face death and his body would then be sent to an anatomy lab as a cadaver. These new practices didn’t solve the cadaver shortages anatomists were still facing though. With several anatomists not comfortable with “cutting up” their own deceased family members, many had to resort to stealing bodies. Some anatomy instructors would even encourage their students to go on late night grave-raids if they weren’t comfortable stealing the bodies themselves. This evolved into what seemed like a black market for dead bodies. People took it upon themselves, once they realized there was money to be made, to steal bodies for the purpose of using them as cadavers for the field of medicine. Realizing that the anatomy problem had “gotten quite out of hand”, the British Parliament questioned if to learn the study of anatomy, one really needed to practice on actual non-living human bodies. Clearly, coming to the conclusion that it is absolutely necessary for soon-to-be medical professionals to get a sneak peak on deceased individuals rather than seeing inside of a human for the first time on a living individual, Parliament decided something needed to be brought forth to have a larger community of available cadavers. In the 1960’s, the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act was passed. This act raised awareness of the need for organs for transplantation and of body donation as an option. Along with the passing of this new act and the increasing cost of funerals, more and more people have come around to the idea of anatomical gift giving.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Music Review Essay
Notes over Coffee
Have you ever wondered how jazz music made its way from the southern areas of America, like New Orleans and Tennessee, to become popular in nearly almost every other somewhat populous American city? Jazz music is an art form which originated in the early twentieth century. The music was primarily popular in African American communities in the Southern United States. The original forms of jazz were a confluence of African and European music traditions. Throughout the years, jazz has evolved into different subgenres depending on the musical tastes of the artist. Glad Panda, the featured artists at the Eau Claire Jazz Festival on March 11, 2009, is the result of the collaborations of several local Eau Claire jazz musicians. By each bringing their own unique talents to the venue, and some synthetic mustaches, they shared their music not only consisting of your typical idea of jazz music, but some compositions swinging more towards the alternative rock side of the genre spectrum.
Walking across the main street of downtown Eau Claire, I could already hear the vibrant clashing of the symbols and the thump that would soon make my heart vibrate in my chest due to the heavy bass of the drum. I had no idea what to expect out of Glad Panda as I continued my pace toward the loud sound, but was anxious to locate Eau Claire’s next big music craving. I opened the door of my destination where the sounds I had been hearing from the sidewalk across the street where amplified by numerous degrees. The espresso smelling restaurant, a well-known place in Eau Claire to meet for coffee or enjoy a hoagie, was packed to capacity with people. From students, to younger couples, to groups of retired-aged friends, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves in the dimly lit Acoustic Café with Glad Panda.
My eyes immediately were drawn to the drummer, Karl Markgraf, wearing a plain T-shirt to go along with his synthetic mustache and long, shaggy hair. He had an essence about him that drew attention to him out of the one other band member sharing the stage. The unpronounced band member, Patrick Kuehn, whom sat on a tall, wooden stool, had curly, tangled blonde hair, almost resembling that of a mop. Following their first song, parts of which reminded me of a familiar main-stream band, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, they jokingly told the audience that their black, bushy mustaches were indeed synthetic. Their first impression on me led me to believe that they were down to Earth, not to mention that when a portion of their drum set fell off of the stage towards the end of their first song, they kept playing their song, just like that particular instrument had no right to continue its presence on that stage. Once their first song came to an end, the musicians just up and left the stage to go sit at the long-rectangular table of friends, and once they felt like playing again, they jumped back up onto the stage only to ask their friends and the rest of the audience what they should play next.
For the following song, two new faces came onto the stage, bringing with them two new instruments. A saxophone player, someone whom you would originally think of when the thought of traditional jazz music came to mind and the other new jazz musician to the stage brought with him a bass, the largest stringed instrument of the violin family. This next song was a more “jazzy” type of composition. The artists gathered around a music stand this time, leading me to believe that this second song was a more traditional jazz song, one of which wasn’t made up in a garage during a teenaged band practice. The song, although traditional, was relaxing, yet upbeat. A song you could casually sip your hot coffee to on the cold Thursday Eau Claire night.
For the next song at this particular jazz festival, a clean-cut, college-aged singer was added. He had strawberry blonde hair and housed black, thick rimmed glasses around his eyes. He had a voice which reminded me of being on a cruise ship, listening to Frank Sinatra sing over the speakers in the formal dining room. This song, unsure if the comfort level was reached or the song just held a specific meaning, but the musicians’ body language seemed to begin to match their relaxing song. The drummer had his eyes shut while still hitting the drums, the bassist plucked the strings while swaying his shoulders side to side, the guitarist had his head hung over his lap while tapping his foot to the beat of the drum across the stage, and the saxophonist swayed back and forth while his fingers glided over the keys precisely at the right moment.
As a college freshman in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, I don’t consider myself to have had much introduction to music other than the songs I’ve heard on the radio throughout my life. By attending this specific night of the Eau Claire Jazz Festival, I feel I was able to broaden my horizons in the area of music genres and share the passion the artists have for it. By experiencing new forms of music, one is able to connect with people and really “get into” the music as well as the musician’s frame of mind, which offers you an insight into their life as an artist.
Have you ever wondered how jazz music made its way from the southern areas of America, like New Orleans and Tennessee, to become popular in nearly almost every other somewhat populous American city? Jazz music is an art form which originated in the early twentieth century. The music was primarily popular in African American communities in the Southern United States. The original forms of jazz were a confluence of African and European music traditions. Throughout the years, jazz has evolved into different subgenres depending on the musical tastes of the artist. Glad Panda, the featured artists at the Eau Claire Jazz Festival on March 11, 2009, is the result of the collaborations of several local Eau Claire jazz musicians. By each bringing their own unique talents to the venue, and some synthetic mustaches, they shared their music not only consisting of your typical idea of jazz music, but some compositions swinging more towards the alternative rock side of the genre spectrum.
Walking across the main street of downtown Eau Claire, I could already hear the vibrant clashing of the symbols and the thump that would soon make my heart vibrate in my chest due to the heavy bass of the drum. I had no idea what to expect out of Glad Panda as I continued my pace toward the loud sound, but was anxious to locate Eau Claire’s next big music craving. I opened the door of my destination where the sounds I had been hearing from the sidewalk across the street where amplified by numerous degrees. The espresso smelling restaurant, a well-known place in Eau Claire to meet for coffee or enjoy a hoagie, was packed to capacity with people. From students, to younger couples, to groups of retired-aged friends, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves in the dimly lit Acoustic Café with Glad Panda.
My eyes immediately were drawn to the drummer, Karl Markgraf, wearing a plain T-shirt to go along with his synthetic mustache and long, shaggy hair. He had an essence about him that drew attention to him out of the one other band member sharing the stage. The unpronounced band member, Patrick Kuehn, whom sat on a tall, wooden stool, had curly, tangled blonde hair, almost resembling that of a mop. Following their first song, parts of which reminded me of a familiar main-stream band, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, they jokingly told the audience that their black, bushy mustaches were indeed synthetic. Their first impression on me led me to believe that they were down to Earth, not to mention that when a portion of their drum set fell off of the stage towards the end of their first song, they kept playing their song, just like that particular instrument had no right to continue its presence on that stage. Once their first song came to an end, the musicians just up and left the stage to go sit at the long-rectangular table of friends, and once they felt like playing again, they jumped back up onto the stage only to ask their friends and the rest of the audience what they should play next.
For the following song, two new faces came onto the stage, bringing with them two new instruments. A saxophone player, someone whom you would originally think of when the thought of traditional jazz music came to mind and the other new jazz musician to the stage brought with him a bass, the largest stringed instrument of the violin family. This next song was a more “jazzy” type of composition. The artists gathered around a music stand this time, leading me to believe that this second song was a more traditional jazz song, one of which wasn’t made up in a garage during a teenaged band practice. The song, although traditional, was relaxing, yet upbeat. A song you could casually sip your hot coffee to on the cold Thursday Eau Claire night.
For the next song at this particular jazz festival, a clean-cut, college-aged singer was added. He had strawberry blonde hair and housed black, thick rimmed glasses around his eyes. He had a voice which reminded me of being on a cruise ship, listening to Frank Sinatra sing over the speakers in the formal dining room. This song, unsure if the comfort level was reached or the song just held a specific meaning, but the musicians’ body language seemed to begin to match their relaxing song. The drummer had his eyes shut while still hitting the drums, the bassist plucked the strings while swaying his shoulders side to side, the guitarist had his head hung over his lap while tapping his foot to the beat of the drum across the stage, and the saxophonist swayed back and forth while his fingers glided over the keys precisely at the right moment.
As a college freshman in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, I don’t consider myself to have had much introduction to music other than the songs I’ve heard on the radio throughout my life. By attending this specific night of the Eau Claire Jazz Festival, I feel I was able to broaden my horizons in the area of music genres and share the passion the artists have for it. By experiencing new forms of music, one is able to connect with people and really “get into” the music as well as the musician’s frame of mind, which offers you an insight into their life as an artist.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
My Playlist
The Soundtrack of Excitement:
1.) "Live Your Life" by Rihanna and T.I.2.) "Hustler's Music" by Lil Wayne
3.) "Landslide" by Stevie Nicks
4.) "Johnny and June" by Heidi Newfield
5.) "Snow" by The Red Hot Chili Peppers
6.) " Circus" by Britney Spears
7.) "Settlin" by Sugarland
8.) "Halo" by Beyonce
9.) "I Love College" by Asher Roth
10.) "Wasted" by Carrie Underwood (Theme Song)
I think that my classmate did a pretty good job at making inferences about my playlist. At first, I was really worried about what kind of responses I would see when I got my playlist handed back to me. But, I was relieved that the person didn’t think I some kind of huge weirdo after seeing what kind of music I liked. I listen to a very wide variety of music. By looking at my iPod, I think it would be very hard for someone to make any interpretations of my personality. So I knew it would not only be difficult for me to come up with only ten songs to describe me as a person, but also for someone to make inferences of me based solely off of those ten songs.
The songs that I picked for my personal playlist almost all have some kind of meaning to me and my life. Some of the songs represent more of a fun side. Being in college, it is fun to go out on the weekends and hang out with friends and have a good time. But some of my other songs represent where I want to go in life. I don’t want to have regrets or ever have to say “coulda, shoulda, woulda”. I want to live my life the way I want to live it and dream big and accomplish everything that I set my mind to. Just make the most of the life I have. I get introduced to almost all the music I listen to through the radio. I never just go searching online or on iTunes for new types of music. To me, when you listen to music via the radio, you are able to put that particular song into a time period. Then, if you listen to older songs that you haven’t listened to in a while, you are able to recollect on memories that you had that that song reminds you of from that specific time in your life.
Ethnography
1.) Shanna: prefers to study in her dorm room where it’s relaxing. She usually reads over her notes and occasionally makes flashcards/ note cards.
Aubrey: prefers to study in the library (on the 5th floor where it’s very quiet). She studies by making diagrams, flashcards, concept maps, anything to write things repetitively.
Mel: prefers to study in either the library (on the 4th floor) or in her dorm room. She studies by re-writing her notes and making charts and flashcards.
Josh: prefers to study in his dorm room. He reads over his notes to study.
Katie: prefers to study in her dorm room or in the study lounge next door to her dorm room. She studies by reading the textbook chapters and looking over her notes.
2.) I talked to Paulina, who is attending UW-Eau Claire from Spain. She said college life in the United States is way different than the typical college life in Spain. First of all, many students attending colleges in Spain don’t live in dorms. Instead, they continue to live with their parents after high school is over until you are able to afford to buy your own home. She said that the degree programs were also very different. In Spain, you end up going to school a couple years longer to get a bachelor’s degree than you have to go to school here in the United States.
3.) An “XF” is an X-Factor. By definition, an x-factor is a hard-to-describe influence or quality; an important element with unknown consequences. An X-Factor can affect anyone, but is hard to describe since it is not something concrete. Many people often assume an X-Factor to being negative. However, in some situations, it can be assumed that the X-Factor is something positive. Basically, when anything goes wrong or if something unexpectedly goes right, people often feel that there was some kind of uncontrollable force that had an influence in the outcome.
4.) I talked with two professors here at UW-Eau Claire about their history as college educators. My math professor from last semester, mentioned a lot about the level of technology available compared to twenty years ago when he starting teaching. Not only the technology in the classroom, but also the technology that students have available to them. I also quickly talked with my anatomy/physiology lab professor. She has been teaching at the college level for four years. She said that she hasn’t really noticed much of a change from her first year students to her students she has today. Since, she usually is working with freshman, sophomores, and juniors, they typically act similar when comparing them in only about a four year span.
5.) The popular bronze sculpture located on lower campus, known as “Sprites”, was built by Paul Granlund in 1979. It was originally kept in the Haas Fine Arts Center, but was later moved to the campus mall, where it remains today. To me, this sculpture represents a meaning of unity. Three people from different backgrounds and different walks of life, attending UW-Eau Claire to reside and learn as one.
6.) The UW-Eau Claire mascot has had many misinterpretations. The term “blugold” can simply refer to the school colors. But when trying to come up with an actual mascot, there is really no animal or familiar figure to represent the term “blugold”. One student has even gone to great lengths to get a blugold mascot costume made. His interpretation resembles a bird but everyone is entitled to their own idea of what a blugold is to them.
7.) On Wednesday, March 11, 2009, at Eau Claire’s Acoustic Café, there will be an Eau Claire Jazz Festival. This particular jazz festival is known as Glad Panda. Glad Panda is a collaboration of several local Eau Claire Jazz musicians. They will be playing some of their own original compositions as well as some of the more familiar jazz ensembles, all taking place in the calming, Acoustic Café.
Aubrey: prefers to study in the library (on the 5th floor where it’s very quiet). She studies by making diagrams, flashcards, concept maps, anything to write things repetitively.
Mel: prefers to study in either the library (on the 4th floor) or in her dorm room. She studies by re-writing her notes and making charts and flashcards.
Josh: prefers to study in his dorm room. He reads over his notes to study.
Katie: prefers to study in her dorm room or in the study lounge next door to her dorm room. She studies by reading the textbook chapters and looking over her notes.
2.) I talked to Paulina, who is attending UW-Eau Claire from Spain. She said college life in the United States is way different than the typical college life in Spain. First of all, many students attending colleges in Spain don’t live in dorms. Instead, they continue to live with their parents after high school is over until you are able to afford to buy your own home. She said that the degree programs were also very different. In Spain, you end up going to school a couple years longer to get a bachelor’s degree than you have to go to school here in the United States.
3.) An “XF” is an X-Factor. By definition, an x-factor is a hard-to-describe influence or quality; an important element with unknown consequences. An X-Factor can affect anyone, but is hard to describe since it is not something concrete. Many people often assume an X-Factor to being negative. However, in some situations, it can be assumed that the X-Factor is something positive. Basically, when anything goes wrong or if something unexpectedly goes right, people often feel that there was some kind of uncontrollable force that had an influence in the outcome.
4.) I talked with two professors here at UW-Eau Claire about their history as college educators. My math professor from last semester, mentioned a lot about the level of technology available compared to twenty years ago when he starting teaching. Not only the technology in the classroom, but also the technology that students have available to them. I also quickly talked with my anatomy/physiology lab professor. She has been teaching at the college level for four years. She said that she hasn’t really noticed much of a change from her first year students to her students she has today. Since, she usually is working with freshman, sophomores, and juniors, they typically act similar when comparing them in only about a four year span.
5.) The popular bronze sculpture located on lower campus, known as “Sprites”, was built by Paul Granlund in 1979. It was originally kept in the Haas Fine Arts Center, but was later moved to the campus mall, where it remains today. To me, this sculpture represents a meaning of unity. Three people from different backgrounds and different walks of life, attending UW-Eau Claire to reside and learn as one.
6.) The UW-Eau Claire mascot has had many misinterpretations. The term “blugold” can simply refer to the school colors. But when trying to come up with an actual mascot, there is really no animal or familiar figure to represent the term “blugold”. One student has even gone to great lengths to get a blugold mascot costume made. His interpretation resembles a bird but everyone is entitled to their own idea of what a blugold is to them.
7.) On Wednesday, March 11, 2009, at Eau Claire’s Acoustic Café, there will be an Eau Claire Jazz Festival. This particular jazz festival is known as Glad Panda. Glad Panda is a collaboration of several local Eau Claire Jazz musicians. They will be playing some of their own original compositions as well as some of the more familiar jazz ensembles, all taking place in the calming, Acoustic Café.
Monday, March 2, 2009
Food Review Essay
Indulging In Simplicity
Walking up to Mancino’s, the end-cap of a band of businesses, all connected by the cement foundation erected from the pavement, it was beyond evening dining hours. The familiarity of what I was seeing immediately brought back memories of my first weekend in Eau Claire; the day after move-in for freshman college students, the memory of when my friend and I ventured off campus, in search of something as close to a ‘real meal’ as we could find without departing for back home. At about 7:00, a couple hours after sunset, I was about to embark on my Sunday dining experience. I walked into the cement-colored building, through a corner shaved entranceway, to smell an aroma of Italian sauces, mozzarella cheese, and the fresh grains baked deep inside the bread. Eager to begin my meal, I strolled over to the wall to the right of me, where the menu cropped the wall with numerous appetizing options. Once realizing which meal would satisfy my Italian craving, I stepped toward the man in a blue employee t-shirt and a white Mancino’s team-member visor, to relay what I was craving for dinner. He looked at me genuinely then replayed what I said onto a yellow padded paper. He raised his head up to make eye contact once again, wondering if I was going to be eating in the restaurant or taking my dinner elsewhere. I confirmed that I would be dining in and with that he tore the written on piece of paper away from the rest of the pad and handed it to his fellow Mancino’s teammate, whom had the duty to construct the food order. The original employee, who took my order, wandered back to the cash register where he proceeded to punch a few keys, eventually coming up with a monetary total for my request. An undersized $4.13 deemed appropriate for the small pizza grinder, a Mancino’s specialty, in which I ordered.
I seated myself, walking past an oversized mirror, weaving among the wide variety of booths and tables, and found a long table to accompany the group I was with. We sat among the picture covered white walls in black metal chairs on top of a vivid red, rubber cushion. Cleverly, the two colors psychologically associated most with hunger. Looking at the different pictures hung snug to the walls in an evenly, organized pattern, reminded me of presently residing in the Midwestern portion of the country. Numerous species of native ducks and birds, in vivid color, rested on the walls, halfway up the wall, superior to the maple-wooded chair rail. The unmatched décor looked as though it should belong in a red meat, beer filled sports bar rather than an Italian inspired “mom n’ pop” business. We sat amid the quiet under-filled restaurant, with a popular local radio station humming softly among the background of our conversations. After enjoying the company of each other for two handfuls of minutes, until the familiar face of the order-taking team member, wallowed over to our table of six with an oversized tray resting on his hand, parallel to his head. He gracefully set the tray of dinners to rest on the table nearest to ours, where he began to unload them in pairs. I looked in front of me, downward at the dark green plastic meal holder at a halt on the table. The screen-printed wax paper was colorless except for the Mancino’s logo and slogan. “For the best hot sandwich in town…grab a grinder!” I read with expression in my voice, anxiously awaiting that first bite.
Walking up to Mancino’s, the end-cap of a band of businesses, all connected by the cement foundation erected from the pavement, it was beyond evening dining hours. The familiarity of what I was seeing immediately brought back memories of my first weekend in Eau Claire; the day after move-in for freshman college students, the memory of when my friend and I ventured off campus, in search of something as close to a ‘real meal’ as we could find without departing for back home. At about 7:00, a couple hours after sunset, I was about to embark on my Sunday dining experience. I walked into the cement-colored building, through a corner shaved entranceway, to smell an aroma of Italian sauces, mozzarella cheese, and the fresh grains baked deep inside the bread. Eager to begin my meal, I strolled over to the wall to the right of me, where the menu cropped the wall with numerous appetizing options. Once realizing which meal would satisfy my Italian craving, I stepped toward the man in a blue employee t-shirt and a white Mancino’s team-member visor, to relay what I was craving for dinner. He looked at me genuinely then replayed what I said onto a yellow padded paper. He raised his head up to make eye contact once again, wondering if I was going to be eating in the restaurant or taking my dinner elsewhere. I confirmed that I would be dining in and with that he tore the written on piece of paper away from the rest of the pad and handed it to his fellow Mancino’s teammate, whom had the duty to construct the food order. The original employee, who took my order, wandered back to the cash register where he proceeded to punch a few keys, eventually coming up with a monetary total for my request. An undersized $4.13 deemed appropriate for the small pizza grinder, a Mancino’s specialty, in which I ordered.
I seated myself, walking past an oversized mirror, weaving among the wide variety of booths and tables, and found a long table to accompany the group I was with. We sat among the picture covered white walls in black metal chairs on top of a vivid red, rubber cushion. Cleverly, the two colors psychologically associated most with hunger. Looking at the different pictures hung snug to the walls in an evenly, organized pattern, reminded me of presently residing in the Midwestern portion of the country. Numerous species of native ducks and birds, in vivid color, rested on the walls, halfway up the wall, superior to the maple-wooded chair rail. The unmatched décor looked as though it should belong in a red meat, beer filled sports bar rather than an Italian inspired “mom n’ pop” business. We sat amid the quiet under-filled restaurant, with a popular local radio station humming softly among the background of our conversations. After enjoying the company of each other for two handfuls of minutes, until the familiar face of the order-taking team member, wallowed over to our table of six with an oversized tray resting on his hand, parallel to his head. He gracefully set the tray of dinners to rest on the table nearest to ours, where he began to unload them in pairs. I looked in front of me, downward at the dark green plastic meal holder at a halt on the table. The screen-printed wax paper was colorless except for the Mancino’s logo and slogan. “For the best hot sandwich in town…grab a grinder!” I read with expression in my voice, anxiously awaiting that first bite.
The pizza grinder lay perfectly in the middle, the aroma of Italian cuisine arising from it; the scents ranging from the whole grains of the freshly baked bread, to the garlic seasoning in each pepperoni on the very inside of the sandwich. The spiciness mixed with the tanginess upon the subtle essence of the bread was a match made in Italian heaven. On the far left side of the small plastic basket laid a stemmed pickle spear, contradicting the Italian flavor of the restaurant. I picked up the famous grinder, droplets of grease spilling out from the inferior end of the specialty sandwich and splattering onto the wax paper beneath it. The first bite tasted as true to life as the business owners hoped their slogan to be. I processed the food back and forth in my mouth, moving it across the sensory receptors on my tongue, and taking in every last tasteful moment. The taste delivered just what the smell had promised. I set the flavorsome grinder back to its original position within the basket. With everyone seeming to be having a commonly pleasant experience with their food orders, our conversations were able to mimic the strings of clear lights bordering the trim of the windows, and freely flow. It became easy to see why Mancino’s is one of the best kept secrets, unique to the Eau Claire community.
Monday, February 23, 2009
False Letter To The Editor
Dear Rule-Breakers,
Marriage in the United States shall consist of a union between one man and one woman, (Gen 29:17-28; II Sam 3:2-5). Our society has been trying to change the definition of a marriage to consist of a union between anyone in love. Just because two friends of the same gender have a strong friendship doesn’t mean they should go and get married. I agree with the Bible and think that marriage should only consist of a union between a man and a woman, and anything else should not be considered a marriage or any type of legal union. A major argument that has arisen from the arguments existing about same-sex marriage is the fact that through allowing same-sex marriage, we are weakening the true meaning of a marriage between a man and a woman. If anyone is allowed to just marry whomever they please, we are saying that a marriage is no longer a sacred vow. It is a huge deal when a man and woman marry. It is something that is most often planned down to a T and an event that a lot of money goes into. Through allowing same-sex marriage, our society is not only de-valuing the idea of a wedding but implying that the vows recited during the wedding ceremony do not hold the strength that they were meant to. If a homosexual couple is anticipating marriage, they should strongly consider the harm it may cause to our society and simply not take their relationship to the next level. They should simply be content with the fact that they are in a relationship, who ever said it needed to be legalized on paper to be real? Through allowing same-sex couples to marry, we are saying that it is okay to make amendments in the laws of marriage all together. For example, if our society allows anyone to marry whomever they please, who’s to say that it is wrong for polygamous relationships to be legalized. If we say that the definition of a marriage is no longer a union of a man and a woman, then we are also saying that a marriage could consist of a union of a man and multiple women or a union of a woman and multiple men. I think we should just leave the subject of marriage alone all together. The laws we have regarding the legality of a marriage and what it should and should not consist of have been working for our country for hundreds of years, why change now.
Marriage in the United States shall consist of a union between one man and one woman, (Gen 29:17-28; II Sam 3:2-5). Our society has been trying to change the definition of a marriage to consist of a union between anyone in love. Just because two friends of the same gender have a strong friendship doesn’t mean they should go and get married. I agree with the Bible and think that marriage should only consist of a union between a man and a woman, and anything else should not be considered a marriage or any type of legal union. A major argument that has arisen from the arguments existing about same-sex marriage is the fact that through allowing same-sex marriage, we are weakening the true meaning of a marriage between a man and a woman. If anyone is allowed to just marry whomever they please, we are saying that a marriage is no longer a sacred vow. It is a huge deal when a man and woman marry. It is something that is most often planned down to a T and an event that a lot of money goes into. Through allowing same-sex marriage, our society is not only de-valuing the idea of a wedding but implying that the vows recited during the wedding ceremony do not hold the strength that they were meant to. If a homosexual couple is anticipating marriage, they should strongly consider the harm it may cause to our society and simply not take their relationship to the next level. They should simply be content with the fact that they are in a relationship, who ever said it needed to be legalized on paper to be real? Through allowing same-sex couples to marry, we are saying that it is okay to make amendments in the laws of marriage all together. For example, if our society allows anyone to marry whomever they please, who’s to say that it is wrong for polygamous relationships to be legalized. If we say that the definition of a marriage is no longer a union of a man and a woman, then we are also saying that a marriage could consist of a union of a man and multiple women or a union of a woman and multiple men. I think we should just leave the subject of marriage alone all together. The laws we have regarding the legality of a marriage and what it should and should not consist of have been working for our country for hundreds of years, why change now.
True Letter To The Editor
Dear Ignorance,
Andy Warhol once said, “They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” I believe that as a society, we are doing just that. People have been gathering and supporting one another for years to make a change in the way our society views a civil union. Many people believe that a marriage should stay what it has been since the time before our founding fathers: between a man and a woman. As our society becomes more open to new ideas and ways of life, many have proposed that a marriage is not defined only as a legal link between a man and a woman, but a legal link simply between two people, regardless of gender. I strongly believe that anyone should be able to marry and live happily ever after with whomever they please. The Federal Marriage Amendment, FMA, is an amendment that has been proposed to the United States Constitution regarding this exact argument. This constitutional amendment would limit marriage to one man and one woman. The FMA would also prevent marriage rights to same-sex or other unmarried couples. This amendment would basically put an end to what millions of Americans have been arguing about for years. If this amendment is passed and becomes law, it will be proof that our society is stuck in the past and expose our ignorance. Who honestly has that right to tell a person who they are and are not supposed to love and spend the rest of their life with? If people think that by having a constitutional amendment, the people of our society will all switch over to being heterosexual, they are sadly misguided. Our country has fought throughout history protecting the freedoms and rights of everyone. Thousands and thousands of men and women have lost their lives in order for the people of our country to live how they please; that not only includes not discriminating a person because of the color of her skin, but includes their personal relationships. Discriminating against a homosexual couple is no different than discriminating against a person of a different racial background. Now, our founding fathers may have not known anyone who was openly gay or a same-sex couple who was riding a horse down to the town church to wed, but nowadays, homosexuality is an accepted lifestyle. Being accepting of and allowing same-sex marriage will not hurt our society or anyone individually. Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, a homosexual couple, have recently wed within that past year, and guess what, the world didn’t stop turning. Marriage is simply a union between two people who love each other and nobody should have the power to take that from anyone.
Andy Warhol once said, “They say that time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” I believe that as a society, we are doing just that. People have been gathering and supporting one another for years to make a change in the way our society views a civil union. Many people believe that a marriage should stay what it has been since the time before our founding fathers: between a man and a woman. As our society becomes more open to new ideas and ways of life, many have proposed that a marriage is not defined only as a legal link between a man and a woman, but a legal link simply between two people, regardless of gender. I strongly believe that anyone should be able to marry and live happily ever after with whomever they please. The Federal Marriage Amendment, FMA, is an amendment that has been proposed to the United States Constitution regarding this exact argument. This constitutional amendment would limit marriage to one man and one woman. The FMA would also prevent marriage rights to same-sex or other unmarried couples. This amendment would basically put an end to what millions of Americans have been arguing about for years. If this amendment is passed and becomes law, it will be proof that our society is stuck in the past and expose our ignorance. Who honestly has that right to tell a person who they are and are not supposed to love and spend the rest of their life with? If people think that by having a constitutional amendment, the people of our society will all switch over to being heterosexual, they are sadly misguided. Our country has fought throughout history protecting the freedoms and rights of everyone. Thousands and thousands of men and women have lost their lives in order for the people of our country to live how they please; that not only includes not discriminating a person because of the color of her skin, but includes their personal relationships. Discriminating against a homosexual couple is no different than discriminating against a person of a different racial background. Now, our founding fathers may have not known anyone who was openly gay or a same-sex couple who was riding a horse down to the town church to wed, but nowadays, homosexuality is an accepted lifestyle. Being accepting of and allowing same-sex marriage will not hurt our society or anyone individually. Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, a homosexual couple, have recently wed within that past year, and guess what, the world didn’t stop turning. Marriage is simply a union between two people who love each other and nobody should have the power to take that from anyone.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Rocky Horror Picture Show
I am very unsure about the Rocky Horrow Picture Show on Friday night. I don't know too much about it going into it, but from seeing the pictures Ryan brought into class on Tuesday, it looks like it will be very interesting and definetly a learning experience. I don't know a lot about transvestism but I am hoping to learn more about it from attending the RHPS. I think there are a lot of misconceptions about different cultures or beliefs and that includes transvestism. I don't even know what kind of people to expect to see at the show after seeing Ryan's pictures. I'm guessing there will be a lot of people that are dressed up (like in the pictures) as well as people who are dressed like 'everyday people' just going to see the show. I am getting more and more excited about attending the RHPS. I keep hearing people talking about it on campus and it sounds like it is a pretty big event at UWEC.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Hilltop Food Review
After a stressful day of classes on Friday, I returned to my room with an ache in my stomach and a palate waiting to be used. I decided to make a trip over to the hilltop cafeteria for some fine dining. My roommate and I made the trip in the windy Eau Claire weather, across the parking lot and followed the arrangement of tangled sidewalks until we reached our Oz, The Hilltop Center. We bypassed the first set of stairs that would only lead us to the food court and went to the second stairway which led us to the famous campus cafeteria. To first be allowed in, we were required to pay, like a buffet-style restaurant. We then grabbed our freshly washed maroon trays, picked out our finely polished silverware and made our way to observe the endless possibilities of cuisine. I bypassed the greasy pizza and cereal bar and glided towards the salad bar. I got to choose from the finest of vegetables and salad toppings and was able to mold my dream salad in the matter of a few minutes. Sliding my tray down the metal bars, I found the dressing the quenched my craving and headed for the drink station. I chose from the bin of the aqua colored scratched glasses and filled my glass with orange juice. As I turned around, I noticed a Blugold Dining Worker replenishing the cookie desert tray and decided to give a chocolate chip cookie a try. From that point I proceeded to make my way to the seating area of the cafeteria and chose a high table next to a window which overlooked the treacherous hill. I immediately dug into my salad creation and a ranch flavor flooded over my taste buds. The broccoli mixed with the shredded cheddar cheese and lettuce tasted amazing. I washed it down with the citricy orange juice and felt it make its way down my esophagus. I quickly ate the rest of my salad as teh anticpation of eating the chocolate chip cookie was building. I was surprised to find the cookie to be warm and soft. Must have been luck that I caught them being freshly put out on the shelf when I did. As my roommate and I finished our decadent meal at the Hilltop Food Cafeteria, we were full and re-energized. We made our way down the long, tile stretch to the double doors where a revolving tray return was waiting for us to turn in our maroon trays and dishes from our meal. We slid the trays in the appropriate metal slot and we were officially done with dinner.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Pushing The Comfort Zone
On Monday, we were supposed to add something to our oufit that would push us out of our comfort level. I decided to wear an "Ugly Christmas Sweater". I actually bought this sweater at a Goodwill in Green Bay during Winter Break when my friends and I were going to an "Ugly Christmas Sweater Party". I brought it back with me to Eau Claire for who knows what reason and thought it would be perfect for this activity!
When I first put on the sweater in the morning, my room mate, who was actually at the Ugly Christmas Sweater party back home, and has her own Ugly Christmas Sweater, was looked at me like I was crazy and immediately questioned my outfit for the day. I of course explained the reason to her but it didn't stop her from laughing everytime she looked at me. It only got better as I got down onto lower campus.
That day was the first day I was meeting with a tutor in the Skills Center for my anatomy class. It was the first time I ever wished to be cold so I didn't have to take my jacket off and have her look at me like she was studying with a crazy person; but of course it wasn't cold but I kept my jacket on regardless. However, when I went to my actual anatomy/physiology class that morning, which is in Hibbard 100, the hottest lecture hall on campus, the amount of warmness I felt sitting in the chair was proving to be too much of a distraction and I did the unthinkable, I took my jacket off to expose the Ugly Christmas Sweater!
My friend who sits next to me literally laughed out loud and I had to explain yet again the reason for such holiday cheer. Apparently wearing a green button-down sweater with little bells and reindeer on the front, in February, is cause for staring. For as embarrassing as wearing that outfit during a school day instead of at a themed party where it's a big joke that everybody looks ridiculous, I'll admit it did teach me something.
I've always tried to do things that don't make me stick out. I hate when people stare or when I feel embarrassed about something and everybody knows it. I have never been the type of person to just go along with whatever the "cool" thing to do is, but I don't like drawing attention to myself or being put on the spot. This activity definetly pushed my comfort zone, and I survived! Nobody ever died from being pushed out of their comfort zone or embarrassed. I actually think that pushing someone out of their comfort zone can be positive. It only makes you realize that you have to do what makes you happy and you can't always worry about what other people are thinking of you, especially people who only see the 'outside' of you on a daily basis. It is much more important to do what makes you happy and only worry about the people know who you are on the inside as well.
When I first put on the sweater in the morning, my room mate, who was actually at the Ugly Christmas Sweater party back home, and has her own Ugly Christmas Sweater, was looked at me like I was crazy and immediately questioned my outfit for the day. I of course explained the reason to her but it didn't stop her from laughing everytime she looked at me. It only got better as I got down onto lower campus.
That day was the first day I was meeting with a tutor in the Skills Center for my anatomy class. It was the first time I ever wished to be cold so I didn't have to take my jacket off and have her look at me like she was studying with a crazy person; but of course it wasn't cold but I kept my jacket on regardless. However, when I went to my actual anatomy/physiology class that morning, which is in Hibbard 100, the hottest lecture hall on campus, the amount of warmness I felt sitting in the chair was proving to be too much of a distraction and I did the unthinkable, I took my jacket off to expose the Ugly Christmas Sweater!
My friend who sits next to me literally laughed out loud and I had to explain yet again the reason for such holiday cheer. Apparently wearing a green button-down sweater with little bells and reindeer on the front, in February, is cause for staring. For as embarrassing as wearing that outfit during a school day instead of at a themed party where it's a big joke that everybody looks ridiculous, I'll admit it did teach me something.
I've always tried to do things that don't make me stick out. I hate when people stare or when I feel embarrassed about something and everybody knows it. I have never been the type of person to just go along with whatever the "cool" thing to do is, but I don't like drawing attention to myself or being put on the spot. This activity definetly pushed my comfort zone, and I survived! Nobody ever died from being pushed out of their comfort zone or embarrassed. I actually think that pushing someone out of their comfort zone can be positive. It only makes you realize that you have to do what makes you happy and you can't always worry about what other people are thinking of you, especially people who only see the 'outside' of you on a daily basis. It is much more important to do what makes you happy and only worry about the people know who you are on the inside as well.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Our Fairy Tale
One Night In Harlem
Once upon a time in the heart of Harlem, there lived Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael; the Jackson Five. It was the mid 1970’s and the disco and drug scenes grew in paralleled unison. Snow, an oblivious, dimwitted simpleton from Iowa, caught a dramatic break in her Motown-soul music career and packed her bags for Harlem with high hopes of creating a large impact on the inner-city music scene. Feeling compelled to discover what her new city was like, Snow grabbed her evening coat and locked the door to her Harlem studio apartment before hitting the streets.
In a dark alley side street, The Jackson Five quickly caught sight of Snow; they sensed her uneasiness and realized they would easily be able to take advantage of her. Quickly approaching Snow, they immediately threw on a friendly vibe and convinced the vulnerable Snow to allow them to take her under their wing. The Jackson Five walked with Snow back to their Harlem penthouse for “business”, which needed immediate attention. On the way, Snow told them about her rising music career, which happened to be in the same competitive genre as the Five. The mood of the Jackson Five rapidly changed as they realized their number one seat on the Billboard Hot 100 maybe in serious danger.
Once back at the Harlem penthouse, Michael and Jermaine were in charge of distracting Snow by showing her their golden albums on the walls while the other three made phone calls to their “people”. They quickly collaborated a seamless plan to secure their top spot on the Billboard chart and ensure that the public would have never even smelled the over-night craze that would have been Snow. With the plan in place, the Jackson Five, in their all-matching disco sequined outfits accompanied by five shiny-domed afros, hit the streets with Snow en route to Studio 54; Snow, having no idea what deception or trickery could have looked like, happily jaunted along with her new posse.
Upon arriving at the door of Studio 54, the bouncer apprehensively examined the out of place Snow, in her floral-print summer dress and high heals. The bouncer pointed a finger at Snow with an open mouth, but just after he began to speak, the Five sang in harmony, “Oh no, it’s cool, she’s with us”, and made a quick pose. The bouncer, perplexed but convinced, lifted the velvet rope and the party began.
Once in the club, the Jackson Five sent Snow to their personal VIP section while they began scanning the room for their main man, Deep Throat. (He wasn’t very reliable for picking up after himself, but they thought he deserved another chance.) Once they found him, they all returned to Snow in the VIP section of Studio 54 with drinks; only the drink for Snow contained roofies! As they all casually talked and danced, Snow drank her rather colorful beverage with delight; “Wow! I’ve never tasted any so peculiar in my life! Especially not in Iow-.” Drowning off, her eyes began to cross and fell into a deep sleepy-state on a couch away from the busiest parts of the raging nightclub. The Jackson 5 celebrated by buying a round of drinks for the entire crowd; Deep Throat showed a group of friends the Polaroids he took of him smiling with a thumbs-up while pouring the poison into Snow’s drink (there were at least five).
Barry White, a common guest at Studio 54, was making his way around the club, mingling with all of the ladies, when someone accidentally bumped him through a curtain and into a side room. Just before he was about to go teach someone a lesson, he noticed an unconscious Snow lying on a couch. Thinking it was impossible for anyone to be sleeping at a hotspot like Studio 54, he went over to see what was wrong. He was hit with the realization that it was out of his power, so he immediately called 9-1-1 and an ambulance rushed to Studio 54. Though the paramedics insisted on him not going on the ambulance, Barry would not have had it any other way. He sang to comfort Snow, though also entertained the crew in the ambulance. Upon arriving at the hospital, Barry waited anxiously for any sort of news about his new acquaintance. He read outdated Cosmopolitan magazines, drank heated, old coffee, and eventually curled into a fetal-form and fell into a light sleep.
After hours of helping Snow, the doctors came out and gave Barry the news…it wasn’t good. Snow had suffered mild brain damage, and she would never be the same person she was before. She was never the same again…her music was even better! Barry fell in love with her voice and married her that week. Snow became Snow White and they created unreleased albums that are said to possess the greatest music known to man. The End.
Once upon a time in the heart of Harlem, there lived Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael; the Jackson Five. It was the mid 1970’s and the disco and drug scenes grew in paralleled unison. Snow, an oblivious, dimwitted simpleton from Iowa, caught a dramatic break in her Motown-soul music career and packed her bags for Harlem with high hopes of creating a large impact on the inner-city music scene. Feeling compelled to discover what her new city was like, Snow grabbed her evening coat and locked the door to her Harlem studio apartment before hitting the streets.
In a dark alley side street, The Jackson Five quickly caught sight of Snow; they sensed her uneasiness and realized they would easily be able to take advantage of her. Quickly approaching Snow, they immediately threw on a friendly vibe and convinced the vulnerable Snow to allow them to take her under their wing. The Jackson Five walked with Snow back to their Harlem penthouse for “business”, which needed immediate attention. On the way, Snow told them about her rising music career, which happened to be in the same competitive genre as the Five. The mood of the Jackson Five rapidly changed as they realized their number one seat on the Billboard Hot 100 maybe in serious danger.
Once back at the Harlem penthouse, Michael and Jermaine were in charge of distracting Snow by showing her their golden albums on the walls while the other three made phone calls to their “people”. They quickly collaborated a seamless plan to secure their top spot on the Billboard chart and ensure that the public would have never even smelled the over-night craze that would have been Snow. With the plan in place, the Jackson Five, in their all-matching disco sequined outfits accompanied by five shiny-domed afros, hit the streets with Snow en route to Studio 54; Snow, having no idea what deception or trickery could have looked like, happily jaunted along with her new posse.
Upon arriving at the door of Studio 54, the bouncer apprehensively examined the out of place Snow, in her floral-print summer dress and high heals. The bouncer pointed a finger at Snow with an open mouth, but just after he began to speak, the Five sang in harmony, “Oh no, it’s cool, she’s with us”, and made a quick pose. The bouncer, perplexed but convinced, lifted the velvet rope and the party began.
Once in the club, the Jackson Five sent Snow to their personal VIP section while they began scanning the room for their main man, Deep Throat. (He wasn’t very reliable for picking up after himself, but they thought he deserved another chance.) Once they found him, they all returned to Snow in the VIP section of Studio 54 with drinks; only the drink for Snow contained roofies! As they all casually talked and danced, Snow drank her rather colorful beverage with delight; “Wow! I’ve never tasted any so peculiar in my life! Especially not in Iow-.” Drowning off, her eyes began to cross and fell into a deep sleepy-state on a couch away from the busiest parts of the raging nightclub. The Jackson 5 celebrated by buying a round of drinks for the entire crowd; Deep Throat showed a group of friends the Polaroids he took of him smiling with a thumbs-up while pouring the poison into Snow’s drink (there were at least five).
Barry White, a common guest at Studio 54, was making his way around the club, mingling with all of the ladies, when someone accidentally bumped him through a curtain and into a side room. Just before he was about to go teach someone a lesson, he noticed an unconscious Snow lying on a couch. Thinking it was impossible for anyone to be sleeping at a hotspot like Studio 54, he went over to see what was wrong. He was hit with the realization that it was out of his power, so he immediately called 9-1-1 and an ambulance rushed to Studio 54. Though the paramedics insisted on him not going on the ambulance, Barry would not have had it any other way. He sang to comfort Snow, though also entertained the crew in the ambulance. Upon arriving at the hospital, Barry waited anxiously for any sort of news about his new acquaintance. He read outdated Cosmopolitan magazines, drank heated, old coffee, and eventually curled into a fetal-form and fell into a light sleep.
After hours of helping Snow, the doctors came out and gave Barry the news…it wasn’t good. Snow had suffered mild brain damage, and she would never be the same person she was before. She was never the same again…her music was even better! Barry fell in love with her voice and married her that week. Snow became Snow White and they created unreleased albums that are said to possess the greatest music known to man. The End.
Friday, February 6, 2009
CPQ > / < / = / ? IQ
PQ: 90
CQ: 14
IQ: 153
According to Friedman, my levels of curiosity and passion put together are less than my intelligence. The way I understood Friedman’s thoughts on the subject of curiosity is that it is more important in life to have high levels of curiosity and passion than to actually be intelligent. I would have to disagree with him. I think that they are equally important qualities of a person, and it would be most desirable to have an equality of all three. If someone was insanely intelligent and was able to recall any fact you asked them, but didn’t have any yearning in life, what’s the point of having all of that intelligence? Along with the idea that if someone was very curious about learning new things and had a high level of passion for a given subject, what use would it be if they couldn’t retain any of the information. To me, society puts intelligence on a pedestal with hopes that everyone will strive to be more intelligent than their neighbor. While Friedman focuses on the fact that intelligence is a waste of time and that it is more important to be curious and passionate in life. I think they are both wrong; or both right, depending on how you look at it. One’s personality and yearning in life should be split equally three ways containing intelligence, curiosity, and passion.
As a liberal arts student, I have an opportunity to try to satisfy my curiosity. During my first semester, when I first looked at my degree audit I thought to myself, “Wow this is going to take foreverrrrr to complete all of these general education credits!” But as I thought about it more, I realized that it is a great opportunity for me to learn about a lot of things that I will probably never have another chance to learn about. Once my nursing degree is met and I graduate from college, I will be out in the real world working. I won’t be concerned with Native American Indian Studies or The Great Religions of the World or The Nazi Era. Instead I’ll be worrying about my job, my family, and things that greatly influence my own life in that specific time. I do think of myself as a curious person. Things that happen to me on a day-to-day basis often make my mind wander and wonder about random things. For example, if I was watching the history channel about Germany in WWII, after its long over and I’m going about my daily routine, I think about things that I would like to further learn about in that given area. That’s why being a liberal arts student, I have an awesome opportunity to think about things that I am interested in that I would be able to learn about now so I don’t stop and think ten years down the road I wish I could have learned about that.
I have always been very interested in history. For some reason, Nazi Germany has always intrigued me. I have already learned about The Holocaust numerous times in numerous high school history classes but I would love to learn more details about it. I also think of myself as a very passionate person. I am a huge science geek. I love everything and anything about medicine and health. Through my education as a nursing major, I will be able to implement my passion for science and helping people, and I can't wait until that happens! :)
If I have an assignment that I am niether curious nor passionate about, I usually just deal with it and complete the assignment. However, sometimes when we are not "all about" a particular subject, we don't put forth our passion. Instead we just produce a product that was required of us and move on to the next assignment. I like when I have to complete an assignment that I am excited about. I usually don't put off doing it and I also usually put a lot more emphasis of myself into the assignment. For example, I am in an anatomy and physiology class right now, and although this sounds really nerdy, I actually get excited to go to it every day because I am so interested in it. I think the fact that I have a high level of passion for that class will also help me do well in it because I am very engaged in it. I also think that the passion and curiosity a student has for a specific class or assignment can be manipulated to a certain degree by the instructor. If the instructor has a high level of passion about their work, that passion can rub off onto their students and therefore also produce better results.
CQ: 14
IQ: 153
According to Friedman, my levels of curiosity and passion put together are less than my intelligence. The way I understood Friedman’s thoughts on the subject of curiosity is that it is more important in life to have high levels of curiosity and passion than to actually be intelligent. I would have to disagree with him. I think that they are equally important qualities of a person, and it would be most desirable to have an equality of all three. If someone was insanely intelligent and was able to recall any fact you asked them, but didn’t have any yearning in life, what’s the point of having all of that intelligence? Along with the idea that if someone was very curious about learning new things and had a high level of passion for a given subject, what use would it be if they couldn’t retain any of the information. To me, society puts intelligence on a pedestal with hopes that everyone will strive to be more intelligent than their neighbor. While Friedman focuses on the fact that intelligence is a waste of time and that it is more important to be curious and passionate in life. I think they are both wrong; or both right, depending on how you look at it. One’s personality and yearning in life should be split equally three ways containing intelligence, curiosity, and passion.
As a liberal arts student, I have an opportunity to try to satisfy my curiosity. During my first semester, when I first looked at my degree audit I thought to myself, “Wow this is going to take foreverrrrr to complete all of these general education credits!” But as I thought about it more, I realized that it is a great opportunity for me to learn about a lot of things that I will probably never have another chance to learn about. Once my nursing degree is met and I graduate from college, I will be out in the real world working. I won’t be concerned with Native American Indian Studies or The Great Religions of the World or The Nazi Era. Instead I’ll be worrying about my job, my family, and things that greatly influence my own life in that specific time. I do think of myself as a curious person. Things that happen to me on a day-to-day basis often make my mind wander and wonder about random things. For example, if I was watching the history channel about Germany in WWII, after its long over and I’m going about my daily routine, I think about things that I would like to further learn about in that given area. That’s why being a liberal arts student, I have an awesome opportunity to think about things that I am interested in that I would be able to learn about now so I don’t stop and think ten years down the road I wish I could have learned about that.
I have always been very interested in history. For some reason, Nazi Germany has always intrigued me. I have already learned about The Holocaust numerous times in numerous high school history classes but I would love to learn more details about it. I also think of myself as a very passionate person. I am a huge science geek. I love everything and anything about medicine and health. Through my education as a nursing major, I will be able to implement my passion for science and helping people, and I can't wait until that happens! :)
If I have an assignment that I am niether curious nor passionate about, I usually just deal with it and complete the assignment. However, sometimes when we are not "all about" a particular subject, we don't put forth our passion. Instead we just produce a product that was required of us and move on to the next assignment. I like when I have to complete an assignment that I am excited about. I usually don't put off doing it and I also usually put a lot more emphasis of myself into the assignment. For example, I am in an anatomy and physiology class right now, and although this sounds really nerdy, I actually get excited to go to it every day because I am so interested in it. I think the fact that I have a high level of passion for that class will also help me do well in it because I am very engaged in it. I also think that the passion and curiosity a student has for a specific class or assignment can be manipulated to a certain degree by the instructor. If the instructor has a high level of passion about their work, that passion can rub off onto their students and therefore also produce better results.
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