Archive for the 'Tufts' Category

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A Major Decision

Hello world!

If you see me in my daily life, you know this by now. However, this blog community is neglected, and it’s time for some loving.

I’m about 90% sure that I’m going to attempt a double major of Computer Science and Political Science at Tufts. I think those two majors pretty much sum up the intersection of my interests in this world. Sure, there’s no cohesive element between them, and I’m fairly certain that a focus on one diminishes my focus on the other, but thinking about this double major makes me happy. That’s what matters, right?

I’ll likely be declaring this soon, but there are a few details to work out. We’ll see what happens.

The Sky Calls to Us

This has been inspiring me for days…

President-elect Obama Calls on Us

It appears we may have elected an actual leader to lead this nation…

From Newspapers to Newsreaders: The Quest for Contemporary Eclecticism

Here’s my final exam (blog post) for my favorite class this semester at Tufts. Just so you don’t get confused, Alex is the name of the instructor for the class. You’ll be able to figure everything else out. I like this post a lot, so maybe you will, too.

Much of our classroom discussion over the last semester was premised on the future of “old media”, especially newspapers, which are currently hemorrhaging funds. We came to a general consensus that they may transform into something resembling an online content portal/filter, coasting off of their huge brand for readership. Many speculate that this will generate enough income to sustain pieces of “traditional journalism” into the future. As we speculate, we wait for something big to happen – a giant to fall. For better or worse, it may happen sooner than you think.

Throughout the semester, we analyzed a handful of trends like these – from the supersonic two-hour news cycle of this last election to Clay Shirky‘s tagline, “the power of organizing without organizations”. We observed how blogs were pushing stories to the forefront of traditional media and how investigations from these traditional sources trickled down to the partisan blogs as evidence that fit into their distinct frame.

Although we covered so much in our lectures, readings, posts, and discussions, looking back, I feel that we took an important aspect of our changing media world for granted. That is, how does an individual consumer of information fit into all of this? How does this changing landscape affect our responsibility to ourselves and each other as consumers?

On the first day of class, Alex had us take the Gladwell Test, to see whether we were “connectors” – people with a certain threshold of connections to others, vital for networking. A related topic is that of the thought leader, someone who has a substantial intellectual influence on the people in his or her life. Some of us were dubbed “connectors”, but many of us weren’t. However, due to our shared interest in politics and world affairs, I’m willing to bet we all influence (read: we’re thought leaders) for our friends and family on a day to day basis.

Similar to how many of us see the future of the newspaper as a filter, we are information filters to many of the people in our lives. It’s an enormous responsibility for citizens of a democracy – one we should take seriously. In addition to talk over dinner, much of the technology we discussed all semester enables us to pass stories, comments, and opinions on to others. Although many of us will cease blogging after the semester ends, it’s trivial to continue. Microblogging sites like Twitter or features like the status message of Facebook make it effortless, perhaps even addicting.

In one of my favorite books, The Assault on Reason, former Vice-President Al Gore argues that democracy is only sustainable in a nation with a healthy marketplace of ideas, where information flows freely and the citizenry can discern the media’s intent. Clearly, information flows more freely than ever. The two traditional barriers to the consumption of information in our democracy, money and time, have been diminished. The financial barrier has collapsed as ads take the place of subscriptions, and as cellphones get smarter, we’re more connected than ever.

However, as Kevin begins to ask in his final post, are we better off? With content slanted to specific viewpoints, you can get any story framed exactly the way you want it. The potential for niche blogs to contribute to extreme political polarization is frightening, and therefore, we must be vigilant in our individual efforts to avoid this pitfall.

As a result, I propose that each of us forms our own media and information consumption strategy. Throughout our lives, we’ve been taught study, fitness, and organizational strategies. Yet, I’m confident that I’m not the only person who was never formally educated on achieving contemporary eclecticism.

My advice on this subject is in no way profound or original, but circumstances make it worthy of writing here:

Read. Read a lot. Read a lot from many sources.

Sure, you can read sites that share your personal political views. And yes, it’s great to read elite media or non-partisan blogs for analysis of complicated situations. But, why not try subscribing to a feed whose content you normally disagree with? Assuming it doesn’t inspire you to violence, you will learn more about yourself and the world than you could by solely reading what you want to read.

Today, you’re the media outlet. Remember, you’re more important to your friends and family than most newspapers and TV shows. Develop and challenge your worldview by reading dissenting opinion. Subsequently, go out and be the filter you want to see in the world. Perhaps you’ll accumulate some followers who trust you to help shape the person they’re becoming; enjoy the power, but use it wisely.

Feeling Fantastic

As you can see, I haven’t written on the blog in a long time. That’s okay. I’ve given myself permission to slip, to fall, and get back up again. Let’s not dwell on it, because really, I write when I need to write and never for the sake of writing. My life doesn’t start or end on this blog; there’s always Twitter, Facebook, and Last.fm, if you’re wondering what I’m up to.

Now that I’m back home in my bedroom in Dover, life has slowed down for me significantly. Let’s catch up!

Academically

I’m doing well at Tufts academically. After my first set of midterms, I had a huge panic that involved the expectations I was setting for myself in a more challenging environment than I was accustomed to at Dover High School. After some work in managing my expectation and tightening my studying skills, I’m growing happier with how I’m doing.

My classes are challenging, and I’m learning so much, both “inside and outside the classroom”. Although I find that phrase very cliché, it’s cliché because it’s true! Always being surrounded by highly motivated people was initially terrifying, but now that I’ve gotten more accustomed to it, I thrive off of it. I’m only just beginning to grok the plethora of opportunities I have at Tufts, and the most exciting of those opportunities are my peers.

On a more serious note, over the last 13 or so weeks, I’ve been studying in Tufts’ School of Engineering. For better or worse, although I tend to think better, I’ve decided to transfer to the School of Arts and Sciences. I’ve decided that I have so much more to study, so much more to learn in so many different areas, than the focused course disciplines in Engineering can ever give me.

Personally

I’ve been having a wonderful time in the backyard of Boston, as I like to call Medford. In the last three months, I’ve seen more and done more than I ever could have back in Dover. The list of people and groups I’ve seen includes Jonathan Coulton (with the wonderful Paul and Storm), Death Cab for Cutie, Nicholas Negroponte, and Barack Obama.

The new friends I’ve made at Tufts are delightful and charming people, and although I already miss them all, it’s great to be back home. I’m overjoyed to be spending time with my family (and dog!), and I’ve been catching up with my hometown friends, which is always a pleasure.

Giving Thanks

It’s no coincidence this post is going up on Thanksgiving in the United States. In a funny way, this is my way of giving thanks to all of the people and circumstances that have made my life amazing over the last three months.

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and that the people and circumstances in your life are healthy and pleasant, as well.

November

Let’s talk about November, briefly.

Election day is here; please vote for change.

My Resolution Experiment continues. In October I said I would cut down on meat consumption, which was a huge success. I’m much happier and will likely continue down this path of moderation – which leads me to my goal for November.

At Tufts so far, I’ve had the habit of dividing my life into big chunks of work and play. I’ll spend an entire day doing nothing productive, and then suffer the next day because of it. In November, I’d like to moderate my work and play time to be easier on myself – smaller chunks of work, smaller chunks of play.

Join me, won’t you?