Author Archives: Lily

About Lily

Born and raised in Miami, Florida Sophomore in CALS Trained dancer since I was 3 years old

Do we think with our minds or our stomachs?

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Last week the Rose Scholars was visited by a panel of experts from the Cornell Food and Brand Lab to talk about the reasoning behind our food choices. It was interesting to learn that through various studies, producers have found ways to influence the consumers choice when laying out a buffet line to a grocery store. It so happens that no matter what the first three items in a buffet line are, the consumer’s plate will typically contain 60% of those items. It’s small tricks like this that can assist in implementing slightly healthier eating habits for ones friends and family and community as a whole. The dinning halls in Cornell always have the fruit stands at eye level so it is the first thing one looks at. Also the salad bars are positioned so that people can have easy access to either side of it. This way, students may have a greater chance of choosing these items over too much meat and dessert options.

A tip that can be implemented in one’s own home is to leave a bowl of salad or fruit on the table and keep the meat on the stove. That way, one is forced to have to get up if one wants more food and will probably opt for serving themselves more salad to compensate. Putting the high sugar and sodium items out of reach assists with temptation as well.

Important tip: if one is hungry, one should avoid going to a grocery store of fast food restaurant. When being in a state of hunger, the mind goes for the option that would not necessarily be most filling but the one that will be most pleasing. Thus, one’s decisions about the food they will buy are likely to not be as nutritious as if they were in a content mind set. This is definitely something I have begun to implement in my daily life and it has helped greatly.

Overall, this talk was extremely informative and it sparked many questions regarding what must be going on in the minds of large food producers or store owners.

Finding A Level Playing Field

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“What do you know about self-defense?” This was the question that 40-year Karate instructor Kathleen Garrity opened the workshop with. It was interesting to hear that most of the students that answered did not know much about self-defense, but that was about to change after an hour with this wonderful instructor and her assistant.

It first started with our posture; there is so much that can be said when one has a strong, tall, and confident stance. By simply standing up straight and planting our feet firmly into the ground, we were already on our way to preparing ourselves for anything that was going to get thrown at us.

After grounding our bodies, be worked on blocking and striking with the heel of our palm and our knee. There were specific instructions given about every movement, the main one being engaging one’s core and using all of one’s body when striking. Another element that helped a lot with striking was using our voice to say commands. We would say “No!” or “Stop!” or “I don’t want to.” The power behind incorporating one’s voice made the movements more powerful, nearly three fold, and it encouraged us to try harder and put more emphasis in our movements.

At the end of our session, we recalled what we had learned and simply breathed in the powerful, positive energy that was surrounding each of us. It is important that self-defense is only to be used when necessary. Its purpose is to defend yourself, your rights, and get away as quickly as possible. Of course no one hopes to be in a situation where self-defense is necessary, but it doesn’t hurt to know of methods on how to protect oneself if something were to occur.

I feel prepared, and more informed about a couple tactics that I could use if I ever find myself being attacked. It is a matter of controlling my mind as much as I can and thinking of the quickest was to get away from my attacker. Although I may not be trained to fight back in these situations, I understand that I can prevent myself from getting into these confrontations and use self-defense if need be.

 

 

 

Why Can’t We Be Friends

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This week, we had the pleasure of listening to Professor Holy Case, an associate professor in the History Department at Cornell. Her presentation regarded the refugee crisis that is occurring in Hungary today and the trends that have led to its movement overtime. What was most interesting was the way in which she presented the information to us. Throughout most of her first hand accounts, many of the story’s were told so sarcastically that it was hard to believe that these events were even occurring. But that was the point, the European government was addressing the issue in such an incredulous way that the country could only make sense of it through mockery. Professor Case informed us about one of Hungary’s joke political party called the Two-Tailed Dog Party, which solely exists to ridicule the government and its efforts to control the refugee crisis. Many billboards had messages on them with statements laughing at the government’s inability to control their party’s messages from getting out to the public; one billboard said “It is in vain that you tear down this message, for underneath you will find the same one”.

A lot of fear was attached to this crisis, to the point where walls and fences were constructed to prevent the refugees from entering Hungary entirely. Luckily, some groups did go out of their way to assist these families by providing them food and treating them as humans. It just seems so unrealistic for a government not to be interested in helping innocent, scared civilians find asylum in their country when they have nothing left to return to. Although there are various precautions that need to take place, I still feel as though is it our human responsibility to assist others when they most need it.

It was a pleasure listening to such a humble, incredibly intelligent, and compassionate professor explain her life work to us. I can only imagine how difficult it must be at times to have to witness the injustice that may be occurring in East Central and Southwestern Europe. Its relevance to today and the immigration issues that the United States faces each year has caused me to wonder how any government decides on who to take in, for what period of time, and for what reasons.

 

 

 

A Collection of Biodivesity Frozen in Time

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When it comes to understanding the history of the earth’s marine ecosystem, many people assume that the ocean, being as vast as it is, has remained the same for hundreds of years. Thanks to Dr. Drew Harvell, as well as the team that assisted her, the Blaschka family’s marine glass models were found, conserved, and restored to get a better sense of what the ocean contained over a century ago. Stuck at sea for two weeks, Blaschka saw all sorts of marine creatures swim along the edges of his boat, drew them, and later created them using glass to capture their luminescent detail. During the Rose Scholars Cafe this past week, we had the privilege of viewing Fragile Legacy:The Blaschka Glass Project directed by David O. Brian and featuring Dr. Harvell as she describes her career long research on invertebrates in the ocean. To see the incredible distinction of details that each glass model holds allows it to be tied to a particular species, class, and family, providing scientists greater knowledge as to what life forms the ocean once held.

It is clear that with the Industrial and Technological Revolutions over the past century, the earth’s biosphere has been greatly affected by global warming, which has lead to the disappearance of many species of marine life. Having grown up in South Florida my entire life, I have also noticed a change in the amount of marine wildlife that can be found in the oceans. There are fewer sea turtles each year that lay their eggs  on Florida’s shores, and more and more species are finding themselves in danger of extinction because of changing environmental factors. All across the nation, there are areas that once abounded with starfish, mollusks, and large fish that no longer see these animals at all. Factory plants, the excess use of fossil fuels, and the deterioration of the ocean floor is increasing as the years go on, and these glass models allow for scientists to gather data as to what creatures are no longer around and what others have had to adapt to stay alive. Hopefully, the work of biologist such as Dr. Harvell will reach the ears, eyes, and minds of more individuals to bring about a change in the efforts to conserve our oceans and all the creatures we have yet to even discover residing in it.

Change Needs to be Now

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As human beings, one of our greatest flaws is selfishness. We tend to make decisions that ultimately benefit us or we make decisions to feel better about ourselves. Now a days, it appears that nothing is taken for granted more than the environment, for it is just an aspect of everyone’s life that never changes. Yet, it goes without saying that we are the greatest threat to the environment, for we have the choice of conserving it or destroying it. At the Rose Café this past Wednesday, it was interesting to hear about the various issues that occur globally such as fracking and extreme climates. Although I was aware of what both concepts were, I realized that it hardly was of a concern to me because it is not something that I am constantly worried about, nor seems to be a prevalent issue when in fact it is. That is not to say that it should be an issue to cause paranoia, but it would not hurt anyone to become more educated about the threats that our planet is facing as time progresses.

There has been great improvement regarding the sustainability in our environment over the past few years. I recall that as a child recycling and reusing were never a big issue that schools and neighborhoods worried about. But now there are various recycling, composting, and landfill options for where to place one’s trash. Also, more reminders are being communicated regarding conserving water and saving electricity whenever possible. The environmental concerns are being addressed by certain government policies; for instance, there are restrictions on fishing in particular areas, more nature reservations are being created, and construction regulations are being reinforced with more consequences. We only have one Earth as far as we now, so it is critical to preserve and appreciate the various resources that are available to us currently because once they are used, it will take a long time before we get them back again.

The World’s Greatest Jazz Soul

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On July 11, 2004, one of the world’s greatest artists died on account of alcohol poisoning that caused her heart to stop. It is sad that when most people hear the name Amy Winehouse, they think of some artist that threw away their gift by allowing drugs and alcohol to consume their life. Early on, Amy had a difficult upbringing; her mother, Janis Winehouse, never took on a parental role and raised Amy and her siblings all on her own. Her father, Mitchell Winehouse, left their family when Amy was young; her parents divorce and the lack of her father’s presence would impact Amy’s future relationships in ways that ultimately consumed her life. She moved out of her home at age sixteen as soon as she got offered a deal to perform at various bars and night venues throughout London. Basically, this extremely talented young jazz singer had the potential to be great, but without a mature adult figure in her life to keep her on the straight path it was short lived. She had to define various elements of her life on her own and was always influenced by the people she loved, which was everyone, even if they did not benefit her in any way.

After watching the movie AMY at Cornell Cinema this past Thursday, it really caused me to reflect on the life one leads when they are considered famous. From the very beginning, not only did Amy say that she did not see herself being sucked into the pop culture of the time, but she also said that her passion and greatest talent was “doing the music” and no other aspect of her life came close to being as important as that. It seemed like all of a sudden, Amy was an extremely popular figure – especially after her song Rehab came out – and every second of her life needed to be recorded and shared with the world. The amount of pressure that fell on this incredibly talented, humble, love seeking girl was just unbelievable.

She fell in love with a man named Blake Fielder and their love was toxic, passionate, and harmful. They met at a night club that he ran and to her he became the world; she would have done anything for this man. After meeting him, Amy feel into hard drugs such as cocaine, crack cocaine, and heroine, on top of being an alcoholic, and because of her petite body and lifestyle choices, these items all had detrimental affects on her career and loved ones. It is sad that this girl was looking for love and affection from anyone who would give it to her, and ultimately gave up on the idea of happiness and the hope that she would one day escape all the pressures that were put on her. Never before have I listened to a truer, unique vocalist perform her own jazz songs with the amount of emotion to her work as Amy Winehouse did. She will always be remembered and her story will serve as a warning to fame seekers for a very long time.

The Face of Food

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When it comes to food, research has shown that inhabitants of rural areas will give different responses when asked where their food comes from. Most children living in urban areas believe that their food comes from stores and super markets, where children who grow up in rural zones would respond that food comes from farms or crops instead. Justine Vanden Heuvel and Mary Jo Dudley were kind enough to educate the Rose Scholars on what an integral part agriculture plays in the state of New York. I never knew that around three quarters of all of New York’s land is cultivated, nor that most of the workers are immigrants. On another note, it so happens that fewer and fewer families are continuing to grow crops and cultivate land because they want their children to go to college and work in different sectors of society.

Especially during this time, the issues of immigration are becoming more and more critical. It so happens that sending all illegal immigrants home would consist of around seventy percent of all farm workers in New York state alone, which makes sense if the farmers children are not the one’s working the land. Immigrant workers arrive to the United States in search of any job opportunity that they can find if it means being able to support their families and loved ones from their home country. It makes no sense to send these hard working individuals in our society back to where they originated from when they are only contributing to the manual labor that most citizens do not wish to take part in for the country.

Personally, I have never worked on a farm; the closest I have been to cultivating land was planting flowers with my mom in our garden when I was fourteen. My grandmother who lives in Peru works and owns various vegetable crops in Coyo, a small pueblo in the mountainous region of the country. She always teaches me about how she grows the fruits of the earth and reminds me that it is important to care for the land and know how to grow one’s own food even if it is difficult at times. Because most of my family has grown their own crops, I have seen first hand the strenuous effort that comes with working in agriculture. Yet, there is no doubt that food production is a necessity, and with that comes educating the public about its importance as well as supporting those that work in the industry.

Is This Land Really Our Land?

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This past Wednesday, Eric Cheyfitz, a former director of the Indian Studies Program at Cornell, came to speak to the Rose Scholars about the many ways in which the indigenous Haudenosaunee people are incredible undermined today. Technically Cornell was created on Native American land, land that was cultivated and protected by various tribes for years before civilization decided to overtake it. I find it interesting that even though there is an entire history that was devoted to maintaining the land millions now live on, much of this information has been lost or simply left out of textbooks and records. Professor Cheyfitz was very passionate in explaining the importance of the Six Nations tribes and how efforts continue to be made in order to give these people more recognition for the sacrifices and hard work they made.

Last semester, I took a course called Indigenous Ingenuities in the American Indian Studies Program and it brought in native speakers each week who spoke about the history behind the Haudenosaunee tribes. My favorite lecture was when one of the Chiefs of the Six nations came and spoke to us about the stories that were shared during meetings with the other nations. The tone of voice he used throughout his talk was engaging and almost enchanting, for I could picture myself sitting in a longhouse – a building where the leaders usually have their meetings – and attending a reunion to talk about issues concerning the land and the people. It is truly a beautiful society, one in which loyalty and respect for one’s elders and nature is held to a very high regard. It was also amazing that one of the speakers actually acknowledged me because I reminded him of one of his daughters, and so I was considered an adopted child of his for the rest of the semester.

Something Cheyfitz mentioned was that most people have no idea who the Iroquois people are or what they did for our nation. As I am taking a course titled Immigration in U.S. History this semester, it seems like there is a trend in literature choosing what elements of history to ignore whether it be out of convenience or ignorance. Although I am not a historian, I feel as though there should not be a restriction as to what information is released to students or society all together, because if we chose to leave out the people who practically created all that we as citizens have available to ourselves, then we have failed to consider one another as equal members of humanity.

 

The College Rundown

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Tonight, the Rose Scholars had the privileged of listening to Dan Schwarz speak about the basic outlook any student should have in regards to their college journey. As a freshman, there is a type of free-pass one is given during their first semester; basically, it is a chance to mess up, try new things both good and bad, and experience life in a completely different manner. As a sophomore, there is more pressure in relation to declaring a major, finding internships and jobs, and maintaining a solid network with friends, family, and teachers. As a junior, the end of one’s college experience is almost at its end and realization of careers or furthering one’s education are balanced amongst more specialized courses. Finally, as a senior, the choice of whether to continue forward as a student or enter the working world is decided. But, there is no doubt that all students should take advantage of their four years as a college student, because aside from an education, the experience, relationships, and growth that is obtained is priceless.

Reflecting on my freshman year, I can attest to the fact that the transition from high school to college is life changing. I grew up thirty minutes from the city of Miami in Florida and only dreamed of studying in Cornell, knowing the level of competition and prestige the school held. One of the most difficult obstacles for me to overcome was being separated from my family and friends who I have grown up with my entire life. It is curious that even though I was never physically alone – I made friends on my floor, in classes, and in various organizations – it was difficult to remind myself of who I was and not get swallowed up in the crowd. There is a certain powerful emotion that overcomes any student that is on their own for the first time, and that is independence. The fact that any action or decision taken or made respectively depends only on oneself and not whether “my friends said this”, or “my teacher told me that”, or “my parents said no”.

That is not to say the privilege of independence should be taken advantage of, nor that it affects all students negatively. Being on your own in a school where everyone is talented, intelligent, and “has their own space” as professor Schwarz puts it, it can be intimidating and exciting trying to find where it is one belongs. This talk reminded me that being a student comes first, and getting an education should, for the most part, be a joyous experience, because it is the transition into reality. Focusing on good grades and the future is inevitable, but taking part in fun activities, traveling, and meeting others is also a part of being a college student. Thus, with “resilience, resourcefulness, and resolve” as Professor Schwarz, one can be sure to optimize the years spent completing a major and ultimately figuring out the next step after graduation.