Long Day And Night

I woke up extremely exhausted but ready to take on the morning ahead. We had this competition where all the groups had to sing a top 40 song to one of the proctors. The first 3 groups who did this first would be awarded house points.

The night before, our proctor planned the whole thing out; two girls would grab Allison (the proctor) once she got her breakfast and all the rest of us would come out, surprise her with a few posters and sing for her. In the end, we were the first ones to sing to her, after barely going before a group that was going to sing to her as well. I admit, it was a little embarrassing, but it was really fun.

Class today day was a little different than usual. After we finished the film from yesterday, “And the Band Played On” we had a class discussion about the social issues of the film. Once again we were put into groups to discuss one of these social aspects and our group talked about the media aspect of the film. We all decided that the media was extremely reluctant to screen anything about AIDS. AIDS was first thought to be caused by gay people, so the press ignored anything and everything with the name ‘gay’ on it.

There were also other elements in the film that I found pretty terrible about our society today. Many places, like the blood banks, were unwilling to do anything about the AIDS virus in their blood because there was not enough evidence to prove that the AIDS virus was transmitted through blood transfusions. Although you do need evidence to prove such a thing, the fact the people were dying after getting blood from the banks was good enough for proof. The only reason these facilities decided doing anything about AIDS was because they did not want to lose money. It seems that these companies only concern was money, and not human lives. All this made me realize that ALL social aspects influence drugs and science in general.

In the Seminar Room

After our discussion, we all left to the Vanderbilt Research Facility – something we haven’t done yet. We were going there to hear a seminar taught by Sean B. Seymore. He was some sort of drug patent lawyer and we spent the time there to lean about the patenting of drugs. We learned everything; from the invention process, prosecution, and enforcement. In all honesty though, this part of science does not interest me as much because it has to do a lot about the legal process of science.

The beautiful cieling of Wyatt Hall

Once class ended, we went to the Wyatt Hall, where all the Arête classes would do a presentation for everyone. All the classes were pretty entertaining to watch, with the Dance around the World class being my favorite. All the dancers were pretty good after dancing for only a week and I really enjoyed the Bollywood-style dancing going on. This really makes me excited for my next Arête class: Glee which I believe involves both singing and dancing.

Waiting for the show to begin...

Later that day, we got ready to go to the Glow-in-the-Dark Dance in the Wyatt Hall. I usually don’t dance, so I wasn’t sure if I was going to enjoy it as much. I was totally wrong though. The dance was so much fun! We danced and jumped around until our feet hurt; that ended up being around 9:45 though.

Ready for the dance!

Tomorrow will be the beginning of my first weekend at VSA and I am looking forward to what’s in store for tomorrow. I heard a baseball game is on the list! I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow then.





Dance The Night Away

My awesome proctor,  Jazmin.

I am starting to feel more at home here. At the beginning of this summer camp, I felt like I had to mask who I am so people wouldn't judge me. I feared that my time here would be dull and unmemorable. However, after being at Vanderbilt Summer  Academy for just 5 days, I realize now that this is an experience I will never forget. I cannot believe how much I am learning here, both in the classroom and on my own. I am growing as a student and as a young adult. 

As I have mentioned before in a previous blog, I have always adored mysteries. I used to read comic books and watch T.V. shows and movies that were mysteries. As I got older, however, time become scarce and I was forced to abandon and neglect my little hobby. I buried myself in science, mathematic, history, and literature books and thus completely forgot about how much I loved mysteries. Recently, however, my passion for it has rekindled, thanks to the class I am taking here. I am reading the works of some great mystery writers, like the legendary Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie. I am sharpening my logic skills by reading fictional murder cases and trying to figure out who the killer is before the detective, and I am improving my writing skills--as well as organizing my mind-by writing my own short mystery story. 

I have also learned that it is better to be a social nomad than it is to adhere to a single group of friends. By sitting with different people every day, I have met different people and discovered how to adapt in different social situations. I have made many friends and now I am comfortable enough to be myself around those friends. I no longer need to mask myself. 

Tonight, after dinner, we had our first major social event of the camp: a dance. It was usual, and I mostly stayed in my own little circle with my friends. I wandered through the throng every once in a while, but eventually the crowd of people got too thick to penetrate. Anyway, they played songs that were unfamiliar to me, but I danced anyway. I must have looked like an utter fool because I don't know how to dance, but I had a lot of fun. It was a good way to relax after classes and get to know people better. 

 It was preceded by a showcase of all the Arete classes we have here. It was interesting to see my fellow camp members go up on stage and reluctantly share what they learned in their Arete classes this week. Although I could tell some of my peers were cursing themselves inwardly for having to preform such awkward tasks, everyone's acts were received warmly with a round of applause. 

The lovely girls in my proctor group. 

Vandy Cohort at the dance party. 

From Pharmaceutical Drugs To Fun Dancing!

This morning my proctor group and I started off the day on a bright note. We woke up a little earlier than usual and headed to breakfast early. In order to rack up some S-House points, we needed to be the first three groups to serenade one of the faculty members of VSA. We were the first to serenade her, singing and dancing to the chorus of Call Me Maybe, even with S-House signs, and a picture of her face. We felt so accomplished and our whole plan was successful. We had a little competition with another proctor group, but once she came out of the breakfast line we started singing. Let’s bring it to the top, S-House!

 It was another rainy day as we headed to class. We started promptly, finishing And The Band Played On. It was a pretty interesting, educational movie, and I learned a lot from it. It shows how society shapes what scientists research. For example, since the unknown disease of AIDS broke out, finding out what it is and how to prevent it, was in demand. I, along with two other students, was assigned to focus on the values that the main characters had. Many were very kind, and eager to find out what the disease was, and others were just self-centered. Up till now, there is still a controversy on who actually discovered the AIDS virus.

Our Pharmacology class didn’t eat lunch at the dining commons, but rather headed to Vanderbilt’s research center, and had a seminar with graduate students. While eating pizza, we listened to a speaker talking about Chemical Patents. Our speaker discussed a lot about law and chemistry mixed together. It didn’t really interest me since it involved a lot of law passing and such. I’m more of a science type of girl.

In the seminar room!

Finishing up my powerpoint!

We then headed to the computer lab to finish creating our Public Service Announcement projects that will be presented tomorrow. I’m not that creative, so I ended up making a power point presentation with a poem included in it. I hope everything goes well tomorrow, and I’m not too nervous!

My roommate and I!

After some free time, I went to my dance class, to go over the two dances before our performance. We decided to dance Bollywood and the Paso Doble, and I had a lot of fun up there on the stage. Although I messed up, it was awesome to learn dances around the world. Every other Arête class did well, and I’m kind of scared, but at the same time looking forward to fencing next week.

Our proctor group ready for the glow dance!

We all went to dinner, and then got ready for the glow dance. It was actually really fun, and I could tell everyone had a great time. With glow bracelets, necklaces, hats, and even a backlight, everyone looked great glowing. We all threw fist pumps in the air and danced our night away.

After a long day, our proctor group decided to have a little fun before lights out, with a facemask party. I am exhausted from a long week, and I know there is still much more in store for us.

Slow Yet Fast Week

Today was probably the fastest day out of all the VSA days I've had this week. I'm not sure where the time went, but now it's already time to go to sleep soon. I'm really getting used to this place, and I think everyone else in this program are too. VSA and the city of Nashville have become my home--and for two more weeks still! It's amazing how tomorrow is already Friday. It felt like the week went by so fast, yet it went by super slow. Does that make sense? Everyday has been very productive, and my stay here has only started to feel fast when I realized today the weekend is coming up soon. It does, however, feel like it's been ages since I woke up at 3 AM on a Monday morning and took off from that plane at Oakland International Airport.

"Chilling" during an hour of free time in my room

The weather was even crazier today, and I'm getting really sick of the rain. I miss the sun, even if that means it's going to get more humid. I don't know if I've ever experienced such a downpour of rain like today. If it wasn't the most rain I've ever experienced outside, it sure was in my Top 10 "Rainy Experiences". However, I'll be honest. I didn't sweat at all when it rained, which was nice. Still, I managed to sweat today at night when it didn't rain. I know that I'm complaining about the weather a lot in this paragraph but just know, I really am getting used to it. It's not that bad here.

Today we studied Islamic food restrictions. I found out what a halal diet should be. Halal is similar to the Jewish diet, kosher. A Muslim can't consume pig's meat, carrion, blood, alcohol, or intoxicated drugs. I found it very interesting that food can be prepared not only by a Muslim but also by people who are Jews or Christians.

We also watched a video called 30 Days. It is about a dedicated Christian man who visits and assimilates himself into the most densely populated Muslim community in the U.S., Dearborn, Michigan. It amazed me how judgemental people are of Muslims--that the first thing they think of when someone says "Muslim" is "terrorist". This is what the video taught me the most, and I hope America changes its views about Muslims soon.

Islam, if translated, means submission. I thought this was very true of Muslims, and I honestly think they're one of the most, if not the most, dedicated religious people the world has ever had. It doesn't matter what a Muslim is doing; they must pray when it is time (must pray five times a day) to.  I found it very interesting that praying that much could break up conflict and help one to re-focus on what is important--and that is God. This is what I found the most important today, and I give Muslims props for what they do.

After making bracelets

After class, I made some very amateur friendship bracelets for people (and one for myself). When I say amateur, I mean take two strings and twist them. Well, it's the effort and the thought that counts, right?

Anyway, tomorrow we're having a glow dance, and I'm visiting a synagogue for the first time! It should be an exciting day tomorrow. Good night.

Routines..Plus Zumba!

Everything has become a routine for me. I am fully adjusted to the time change, and schedules, but I miss sleeping in during the summer. It didn’t really feel like summer today, because of the frequent showers of rain.

Nevertheless, we began our Pharmacology class with heated discussions and challenged debates. Our class was split into four groups and we each discussed a controversial topic. One group discussed genetic engineering, another abortion, another physician-assisted suicide, and my group discussed the topic of legalizing marijuana. We went back and forth on why or why not it should become legal. Being a Christian, I base my values and morals on my beliefs, which take a big part on my stance of issues like abortion and marijuana. On the pro side, one may say that the drug is not physically addictive, and the government can regulate it more and tax it. On the contrary, on may say that it still encourages additional use, increases accessibility, and it even has proven negative effects. Many subjects like this; especially abortion can get really touchy and full of arguments. Each person has their on values on choice, economics, politics, morality, and religion, so we could have gone on and on debating each subject.

I found our morning session quite enjoyable with this type of activity, but then we dove into another lecture on the FDA drug regulations on drugs. I’m not a big fan of lectures, but I do like learning new interesting facts.  Today I learned that it has been only 40 years since regulations on drugs have been intact. Before then, drugs didn’t require any efficiency, and there was no regulatory authority. Additionally, did you know that 15%-20% of all drugs in the United States are counterfeit? It’s really easy to counterfeit drugs, so everyone should be careful when ordering medicine, especially online.

Hanging out during free time!

For lunch, I had two steak fajitas and a giant chocolate chip cookie. It was delicious, and I was very satisfied. For our afternoon session of Pharmacology, we began watching a movie about the AIDs epidemic called, And The Band Played On. It was quite interesting to see how the gay community was greatly affected when scientists were in the beginning stages of discovering the illness. After watching an hour of the movie, we headed down to the computer lab to begin research on our Public Service Announcement project. I chose the drug, Motrin, also known as Ibuprofen, and discovered many facts on the commonly used drug. The computer lab was filled with nice desktop Macs, and after much research I now need to think of a short, but fun way to present the drug to my class.

After two hours of research, I walked in the rain to my dance class. We learned an Americanized Bollywood dance, a Western line dance, and a military shuffle. Tomorrow we will be showcasing one of our dances to everyone at VSA. I am nervous, but also excited. I was kind of sweating from a session of dancing, so I decided to relax in my room with my roommate.

We had a nice dinner, and I was really full. After I digested, I headed to do zumba!  I didn’t really know what to expect, but it was very, very fun. We exercised through different dance moves, from moving our hips to doing the salsa. It was awesome to see a room full of girls all dancing and just having a great time. I hope I can get a zumba video when I get back home, so I can get in shape!

My proctor, Tessa!

We ended our night with an amazing proctor group meeting! We planned many things, and I can't wait for tomorrow!

Week One Is Almost Done

My first week at the Vanderbilt Summer Academy is almost over. There are many things happening tomorrow: a mystery movie in class, a showcase, and a dance are all on the schedule. I expect the dance to be rather awkward. I can already see the imaginary line segregating the girls from the boys. It should be a very interesting evening. 

I somehow managed to get out of singing in front of the entire academy. Although I was brave enough to sing in front of the class, I don't think I could muster enough courage to do it in front of the entire summer camp. Luckily, another group was chosen to represent my Arete songwriting class tomorrow, so I don't have to worry about it anymore. 

Arete class is just a one hour class we have everyday for an hour after our normal class. It is more of a fun class that is usually something artistic or athletic. Every Friday, one group from each Arete class has to preform in front of everyone here at the academy. I am still not completely comfortable here, so you can imagine my despair when I was told I had to do something in front of the entire summer academy. However, my class voted for another group to be the representatives, so I don't have to worry anymore. 

I am getting closer with the girls on my floor. Each of them are very unique and fun in their own little distinct way. They all make me feel very comfortable; I feel like I can be myself around them and not get judged. 

Black And White

Debate has never really been one of my strong points. I personally find it difficult to argue with someone in an organized, serious way. But we did this today anyway; however it went pretty well.

In class, all of us got into groups and debated over seriously controversial issues in science today. All of the issues were extremely difficult to place since neither one was completely black or completely white. In my opinion, most are pretty much gray since there is no solid approval or denial for it.  There were different choices like: abortion, genetic engineering, marijuana, and Physician-Assisted Suicide. Our group, which consisted of my classmates, Paula, Hunter, and David, chose the suicide one. A Physician-Assisted Suicide is a suicide by a terminally-ill patient who has anywhere from a couple months to a year to live. If two doctors approve of the suicide of the patient, then the patient goes through a process to be euthanized. As I started on my case against this issue with Paula, I found out how difficult this issue is on both sides.  Personally, I am mostly against this issue; I strongly believe that killing yourself in almost any circumstance is wrong; I believe that God has a plan for everyone, and he wants everyone to learn from the life that they have. After all, life is a learning experience, no matter how someone looks at it. However, debating like this requires strong points, and this reason alone isn’t sufficient enough. So, we also made other points, like hasty decisions made by the patients during this stressful time and changes in the patients’ health, which can also make a huge impact in this decision.

The whole debate situation was overall a great experience. Everyone was completely involved in the discussions, argued, and asked a lot of questions, which is definitely a sign that everyone is listening. I love a classroom environment like this and I wish there were more of these types of surroundings back in high school.

After the debates, we got started on an AIDS movie called “And the Band Plays On.” We only got through a little bit (we will continue tomorrow), but so far, it is about the AIDS epidemic, how it started, and what people were doing about it back then. It is really interesting to see people so involved while others could care less. It really shows two opposing sides, also arguing against a controversial issue at the time.

On my way to my Arête class, I finally noticed how nice the weather was the whole day. I mean, it was raining, but the temperature never exceeded anything above 80 degrees. This is such a relief from the 100 degree weather I experienced last week. I swear, I’d choose this weather over a blazing hot day any time.

Anyway, fencing was such a blast today. We got into two teams and played this game called ‘Castle’ where two sides fought each other like a real, medieval war. By the end of it, I was pretty sweaty in that asphyxiating helmet but glad that we won. I really hope we play that tomorrow!

YUM.

For dinner, I had the most delicious and cheesy penne ever. I also had seasoned potatoes and strawberry shortcake for dessert – which was sweet and creamy. The dinner was so good, I just had to take a picture of it.

After such a quick day, I am really excited about the action-packed day tomorrow. We will be giving everyone a taste of all our Arête classes and showcasing our new skills in the activities. Also, there is a dance tomorrow; apparently some sort of glow-in-the-dark theme. Well, I guess I’ll see what this dance is all about tomorrow!