Campus Safari #8

This week I visited the Biology department to complete campus safari #8. I had zero idea where the office was located. So I visited the arts and sciences office where I was helped, they directed me to Jennings hall room 231 A. As I made my way into the office I was side tracked by a fish inside of a fish tank. I walked up to the secretary’s desk and explained the instructions for the campus safari. The lady who was at the desk explained to me that she wasn’t the secretary she was just a substitute. However she provided me the secretary’s name which was Marshal Schultz, her extension number is 6211. She also explained to me the process which was to fill out a blue slip to sign up for an appointment. In about a week there will be a list outside the office informing you of your advisor. Once you receive this information you have to email, or visit advisor during office hours to set up a date to meet. On the day you meet your advisor you will be given your PIN number and will set up courses. Overall the visit informed me a lot about the process of obtaining an advisor.

Mcdonalds and Proffesor Erin-Carr Jordan

Have you ever been hungry and out on the highway or in a different city where you don’t know much places to eat? And you look up and you see two big yellow arcs representing McDonald’s. McDonald’s is a great place to grab a bite to eat for a cheap price. McDonald’s serves 58 million people a day to be more precise they serve 671 customers per second every day. They serve the needs of children and adults, McDonald’s goes as far as having a play scape for the children. This may sound like a great benefit to keep the children occupied for a while. But have you ever questioned the cleanliness of the area where you precious children play? I’m sure you probably said to yourself this McDonald’s needs to clean the plays cape but never took the initiative to test what the kind of things constantly lure in the area.

However one woman recently did Erin Carr-Jordan, a university professor but most importantly a mom to young children. She tested the play scape by swabbing down the area and the things she found were alarming. For example she found, meningitis, gastrointestinal disease and nausea. As alarming as this find is you would think that McDonald’s would take action in order to fix these problems. Instead McDonald’s in her area informed her that she would not be allowed back into the store. Recently the mother took video of the plays cape which went viral and she then appeared on the Anderson show.  Gaining more and more publicity, other mothers have been on her side to take action on this issue. Erin has also found these same types of bacteria in other plays capes like Chuckee Cheese, and Burger king.

In conclusion we all need to look out for our health and protect ourselves from these diseases. Erin has started to take action to form a policy for these restaurant’s to fix these issues. She needs more support in order to make this happen. So be ware and stay safe in these areas and if you see anything suspicious and alarming don’t be afraid to speak up about as Erin did.

Here is a link to her video behind what she is doing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6GOGJUiXVE

And here are your grades!

Mid-terms they are finally here! Wait I thought I was doing better than this. Mid-terms allow me to find where my grade stands. Over the past week mid-terms were issued by all my teachers. Some grades were good some descent and somewhere just horrible. My grades were all over the place from A- to D this is something that I faced in high school that I told myself I wouldn’t allow to happen to myself in college. As of now I am not where I want to be in my academics I expected my grades to be descent from B’s to A’s but I was wrong. A lot of the time I don’t put forth my greatest effort and I expect more than what I should. To see my grades it’s a slap in the face for something I worked so hard to achieve, which is to get into college and do well. I know a lot of what my grades are made of is due to procrastination.

To fix my grades and get them up to where they need to be I need to start completing my homework, and studying more efficiently. A lot of the time I forget about homework or I don’t feel like doing it and it never gets done.  This is something that I need to fix in order to better my grades. Another way of bettering my grades is to study harder, once again I procrastinate to the last minute and my study session isn’t as good as it should be because I limit myself to a little bit of time. Fixing these two problems I will be better off and I will be in great academic standing. Goals that I plan to set for myself from here on out are, stop procrastinating, do more homework, study, and follow through on these three things.

In conclusion my mid-term grades are not what I like, they need to be fixed and maintained. In order for this to happen I need to study, do more homework, follow through and, stop procrastinating. I don’t want to have anymore below average grades.

Concuering Procrastination!

Procrastination:  the act of procrastinating; putting off or delaying or defering an action to a later time

Have you ever put something off to the last day, hour, minute, second, tenth of a second before it is due? If not Great for you, for those of use that wear this day to day this blog concerns you, better yet US! This past week has been full of projects, homework, studying, and most of all PROCRASTINATION the biggest time consumer might I add. When it comes to homework, projects, and studying, there will always be a deadline to finish these tasks. Me myself I like to wait to the very last minute and then when I receive my grade I act so surprised, then I tell myself you know what I’m going to start doing my work on time. Then the next project is posted and, you guessed it I wait until the last minute to finish it. A lot of the time I know I’m procrastinating I tell myself “your procrastinating,” and instead of getting on task I stay of task as much as possible. For example this week I had a math quiz to study for but on this day an interesting show came on. I weighed my options and the interesting show took the cake, probably because all I had to do was sit down and laugh oppose to using my brain to better my grade in math class.

In life I want to become an ophthalmologist and to become this I need to attend medical school. In order to get into medical school I need good grades. In order to get good grades I need persistence and good time management. In order to stay in good time management standing I need to use my time wisely. In order to use my time wisely I need be persistent in achieving this. These two are the core to being able to attend medical school. But I don’t see it as I should I guess I don’t want it bad enough which is contradicting to my heart because I know that I want to help people. Procrastination is something I want to work out of I don’t want to ever feel on the bottom anymore, I want to start staying on top of my work on task. If I do this I know that I will be one step close in getting into medical school and achieving my goal of becoming a doctor.

In conclusion procrastination is bad and is not a trait that no one should posses it only leads to being late, becoming stressed, and feeling depressed. From here on out procrastination is in my past I will no longer lose this battle!

WARNING! Comfort zone

So this past week I had ample opportunity to ask students and staff at southern for interviews for my INQ mid-term video project. Randomly asking someone for an interview is very nerve racking since you don’t know if the person is going to accept or reject the invitation. For me I asked over a dozen different students for interviews more than half were busy or didn’t want to participate. When I received an acceptance I felt good, just not to be rejected. When you are presented with projects like this you have to be very open to people’s opinions and you have to except and admit to yourself that there will be rejection.  Overall my video turned out in my opinion great the people I interviewed were very open and willing to participating. This made me feel comfortable which I think lead to great interviews overall.

Another example this past week where I stepped outside of my comfort zone is when I asked question in my math class. Some might be saying you should have been asking questions from the start, this is true but I guess my pride was hindering me. In class this week I finally asked questions which I wasn’t doing prior to this day in class. Math is a class that was almost always my strongest class I passed pre-calc in -high school with an A. Now I’m taking it and I received a mid-term grade of a D. I tried many things like going to the math tutorial center It helped a little bit. I tried studying myself for hours at a time this always helped but I couldn’t apply concepts, leaving me confused. So I told myself that the next day in math I was going to ask questions. I came in and my teacher asked “Any questions,” the first thought that came into my mind was “Don’t ask that question, it’s a dumb question.” But I forced myself to say I need help with problem 3. When I finally spoke I felt a relief it felt good to just get that off my chest.

In conclusion stepping out of my comfort zone helped me gain interviews and knowledge in a class that I am struggling in. Overall I plan to implement these lessons into my life from here on out, DON’T LET YOUR PRIDE GET IN THE WAY KYRE!

Mid-Term Video Project

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6B1Utesasw&feature=youtube_gdata

Time is AH-ticking !

Mid-term video UUUGGHH ! was my response when I heard we had to create a video on critical thinking. I knew in my mind that this project would be very time consuming and tedious. In a way I was correct but overall the video project turned out to be fun which makes the time feel not so long and boring. When I look back over the amount of time I spent on this project it would calculate as follows:

·         Brainstorming-                                                                                     3 days

·         Interviewing-                                                                                        4 days

·         Gathering other materials-                                                                2 hours

·         Transferring materials to the computer                                          Still in process

·         Learning to use video software                                                         2 hours

·         Making the video                                                                                 Still in process

·         Editing                                                                                                   Still in process

·         Other                                                                                                    2 hours

Creating a video takes persistence and great time management two traits that I showed when I created my video.  At the beginning of making my video I took very long in deciding what topic I wanted my video to be on. This took me 2 days to figure out my topic preceding this I got started on shooting and editing. I tried to make sure I chipped away at this project day by day so that I wouldn’t have to crunch everything into one day. Ultimately my plan worked very well I spent my time wisely. One thing that I would suggest to myself in order to have a better result is to have started the project earlier. Overall I like the project and it has taught me a lot of new thing that I plan to implement in life from now on.

Trobleshooting?

What’s up fellow Owls this week I will be blogging about my video project and my troubleshooting. So this week I ran in to some trouble with my video as most of you may have. I’ve been pondering which topic I wanted to use and I couldn’t seem to find one. Then suddenly at work my co-worker introduced me to a poem that was very interesting and humorous. I figured that once I got the topic everything would be easy and fall into place, well that didn’t turn out as expected. I ended up second guessing myself and wasn’t sure if the poem was relevant to critical thinking. So I decided to pay our professor a visit, there I read the poem to her and she assured me that the poem was something that definitely is relevant and was a great idea! Preceding this I started my interview process which is going very smoothly. I have two interviews down thus far and just four more to go! I’ve uploaded the video of my first two interviews and hadn’t come across any technical problems nor other issues as far as uploading my video to YouTube. My video is progressing smoothly with just a little bit of bumps along the way.  In conclusion I think that the project is very fun and interesting, Just seeing other people’s opinion and responses.

Capus Safari #2

What's going on people it's me again checking in with campus safari #2, this week im writting about a book that i found in the library. Last week my INQ class visited the library for some insight on the library's resources that are available to every Southern Connecticut student. In the library we had to find a book to help us define critical thinking. The book i found was "Think" by Judith A. Boss, in the book it basically talked about what the credentials are to be considered a good critical thinker. Think also talks about what critical thinking is and what it is used for. Ultimately when i scoured the library for the book it wasnt hard to find since i wasnt looking for Think, I came across it after the book I was really looking for was already checked out.

Critical Thinking

Critical Thinking- Is the mental process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating information to reach an answer or conclusion this is how dictionary difines it. Is dictionary.com's definition of critical thinking the only definition that describes what critical thinking really is? In my opinion critical thinking most nearly means thinking creatively and intellucualy which isnt much different from the dictionary's definition. Recently my INQ class took a trip to the library to become more informed about the library's resources that are available to Southern students. Here we had to scour the librarys homepage for different things this is a prime example of critical thinking. We analyzed the site and created an answer that we thought was rational. While in the library we had to look for a book that seemed like a good resource for definig our topic "Critical Thinking" the book that i found was called "Think." In this book it explains what critical thinking is! it also defines a good thinker by listing characteristics. The book defines critical thinking as a collection of skills we use every day that are necessary for our full intellectual and personal development. Then it takes the word critical shows that it is derived from kritikos (Greek) which means discernment or the ability to judge/ decision make. Next the book shows how critical thinking and logic go hand in had since they both require good analytical skills. In an everyday situation critical thinking provides us with the tools to identify and resolve issues in our lives, the book provides this example. What makes a good thinker? is a good thinker someone who thinks long, in depth, or creatively? THINK defines a good thinker as a person who has good analytical skillz, effective communication, reseatch and inquiry skills, flexibility, tolerance for ambiguity, open-minded skepticism, creative problem solving, attention, mindfulness, curiosity, and collaborative learning.

Health Center #3

What's up fellow OWLS! im checking in again with a new post. This week i visited Granoff Health Center, On my visit i tried to answer the question " What are the most common health problems faced by college student ?"  and here is what i found. As a college student we are always on the GO! we are constantly multitasking, eating horribly, and sleeping irregularly and this isn't healthy. Some diseases that college students are most prone to are Insomnia, eating disorders, drug  addiction,  and depression.

Insomina-

As students we are overwhelmed with part time jobs, school work, family, and personal issues on a day to day basis. A lot goes on in one day and if the end of the day isn’t met with the proper amount of sleep that can lead to health problems. Health problems like insomnia, insomnia comes from lack of sleep, or inconsistent sleep patterns. Insomnia can cause student to have trouble falling asleep, staying sleep or trouble with both.

Eating disorders- Eating disorders are becoming more of a trending topic in college students. There are many eating disorders that are present the most common for example are, anorexia, bulimia, obesity, binging and purging. Eating disorders are most commonly found in college students. Appearance, food addiction, or depression can lead to anyone of these disorders.

Drug addiction- College parties are very common and at those parties you can find drugs or alcohol. Drug addiction can come from multiple channels. Peer pressure can lead to a person trying drugs and ultimately becoming addicted to that drug. The most common drugs that are being abused today in most college students are prescription drugs which are dangerous, marijuana, and alcohol. Drug addiction can lead to many health problems, sometimes fatal.

Depression- Many students can feel depressed from school work (anxiety) since the work load is much greater than high school. Depression can also come about through an unhealthy relationship, being away from family, or from an experience in your childhood that was traumatic. Since hormones are constantly fluctuating college students are at a greater risk of becoming depressed.

In conclusion the Granoff Center is a great place to get help or advice on health problems or issues. So stop by to take advantage of the services that they provide.

Fitness Center #7

For this week’s campus safari I visited the fitness center located in the Adanti student center. I passed the fitness center plenty of times in order to access the computer lounge one flight up from the fitness center but I never stopped to check it out. Until a couple days ago, the fitness center is decked out with all type of machines from treadmills to free weights. The gym also contains a variety of work out classes like cycling, yoga, zooma, boot-camp, kick-boxing, and a few others.  I was planning on signing up for the gym but the price from a semester really discouraged my decision. It was 60 dollars to join for a semester but now they have a new special offer for the fall semester, they are charging $35 to join starting October 17. Stop by to check things out for yourself, the fitness centers hours are:

 Monday-Thursday   7am-10pm

 Friday                    7am-8pm

 Saturday                9:30am-4:30pm

 Sunday                   2pm-7pm

Here is a link to the website http://www.southernct.edu/fitnesscenter/ __

Got technology ?

In this week’s blog post I will be discussing a question that I asked 10 of my fellow peers based on the articles I have been reading and from in class discussions. One article that really interested me was the technology article and its effects on our brains. I decided to ask everyone “Do you find that your computer, cell phone, or any other form of technology distracts you from your school work? And if so “which one distracts you the most?” The answers that I received weren’t anything that I didn’t expect, Here Is what I found!

Person #1: yes I do find that I get easily distracted by electronics especially when I am bored in class. I find my cell phone to be most distracting since it’s always by my side.

Person #2: I personally find myself distracted by technology I love video games they are my biggest distraction.

Person #3: I try not to let any of these things distract me too much yea I find myself venturing off to Facebook and twitter but I make sure I have my work done.

Person  #4: my cell phone is my biggest distraction I’m always texting because people are always texting or calling me I usually have my cell phone next to me when I’m doing homework which is bad but without it I feel on edge.

Person #5: I don’t allow these things to side track me I keep my iPod on but I think that helps me become productive.

Person #6:  I’m never on the internet but I do use my cell phone to keep in touch but it doesn’t really affect my school work.

Person #7:  video games are my biggest I play them in the morning during the day and at night its definitely a distraction I can’t help it almost.

Person #8: none of these distract me I’m always buisy with sports or other after school programs,  no I’m not distracted from my school work.

Person #9: I have a job and I always need to stay in contact with people so the computer and cell phone are definitely my biggest distractions when it comes to getting work done.

Person #10: I always found myself not so technologically advanced and all the new things coming out now a day tend to overwhelm me so I try and stay away from any electronics.

In conclusion to my findings technology plays a part in almost everyone’s everyday life may it be just making a phone, checking the time, or listening to music etc. i found that for some people techonology is more distracting than for others and i think that it depends on how resilient you are to things.