I had not attended a symphony since elementary school, so I was excited to have the opportunity to attend one through Rose scholars. The symphony was more than just musical performance, it was an experience! My favorite piece was called Montuno, which the conductor said would be “especially colorful”. Initially I was confused by his use of the word “colorful” to describe music, but it became clear what he meant when the ensemble started playing. The music was upbeat and exciting, with numerous transitions that kept the listener on their toes. I felt that this piece in particular belonged in a drama or a play due to its ability to evoke exhilarating and suspenseful emotions. By the end of the symphony, I found myself regretting not taking orchestra in middle school.
Author Archives: amh337
A Night of Dreams
I was first acquainted with Latin dance in middle school, when my 7th grade dance teacher taught us how to dance Bachata. Since then, I have not really had the opportunity to attend events to see latin dance.
When I saw the Rose Scholars event for the Suenos dance concert I was so excited! The day of I was not sure that I would attend, but I am so glad that I did! Amazing would be an understatement, as the dances literally had me at the edge of my seat. Seeing the mix of other dances from other dance teams was great as well! It really added to the energy of the night. My favorite piece was “Afro-beats” as it was based off of dances created by the African diaspora in various Latin American countries. I think that it is important to recognize the existence of Afro-Latinx peoples, which is exactly what the choreographer did not just by making the piece, but by explaining the history of the dances before they performed.
Overall, this event was the highlight of my night, and was actually inspiring! Who knows, I may take another class on Latin dance soon!
Election Night – The power of political participation
Having not been able to procure my absentee ballot, and subsequently having to vote here in Ithaca, my demeanor towards election night was off to a grim start. It was really interesting watching the results come in, and being far from home and the race being so close between Dem. Dan McCready vs Rep. Mike Harris for the 9th congressional district spot I was pretty anxious. My friends and I discussed how critical these midterms were, and I even had the opportunity to persuade one of my friends the value of political participation. Overall, it was a night filled with tension, but in the end the gains made justified the struggles. I am glad that Rose House displayed the results and political commentary as it provided an interesting break from academics after my prelim.
Birds of Prey
Saturday I attended the raptor exhibition in which various kinds of birds of prey were shown and we heard some cool facts about them which I will include here:
- Hawks
- use feathers from their prey to keep their babies warm, talk about sustainable use!
- Live into their 20s.
- Peregrine Falcon
- I thought they were nearly extinct due to the DTD epidemic of the 70s but luckily they’re still some around!
- Wind dive at 3x speed of cheetah!!
- Owl
- “The owls are not what they seem” – Actually not that wise, since there’s not a lot of room for a brain
- Less friendly as well
My favorite of the birds was a tiny owl named Odin, who was actually pretty mature. I never get sick of seeing the raptors being exhibited!
Writer’s Workshop
I attended the writing workshop with GRF Sam hoping to just gain some insight into how to effectively write a cover letter; however, I walked out of the lesson with a variety of useful writing tips. Writing has been a hobby that I have held dear since I was in elementary school, so I always seek out opportunities to make my writing better. Some of the advice Sam gave us included writing in a journal everyday at the same time, and not starting an essay with the introduction, but rather the section that is easiest to write . I liked how interactive the session was, as I had the opportunity to both answer and ask questions pertaining to other kinds of writing, such as personal statements. At the moment I am trying to decide whether I should pursue graduate or professional study, so it was interesting to see what a sample essay might look like for graduate admissions. Overall, I gained a lot of insight into how I can improve my writing and make things a little easier for myself in the process.
Words of Wisdom
Tonight we had the opportunity to sit down and have a candid and open conversation with VP of Student and Campus life, Ryan Lombardi. While I was expecting for the talk to focus around Mr. Lombardi’s experiences at Cornell and his background, the hot topic centered around the various pressures that we face as college students and Cornellians especially in this day and age. The discussions around the campus’ often intense atmosphere and pre-professional alignment reminded me of thoughts that I had, but did not know that other students shared. One student discussed how she was shocked to come to Cornell and discover just how career oriented everyone was. What especially resonated with me was VP Lombardi’s warning against being a part of the rampant comparison culture that I will admit I partake in. Whenever I hear someone discussing the internships they have had, or the positions they hold in certain selective student organizations it makes me so anxious. It makes me feel as if I need to be doing more, trying harder. Unfortunately, this mentality had led me to over commit myself time and time again. This talk was a much needed wake up call. Mr. Lombardi ended the talk by urging us to enjoy our lives now, and to really take advantage of the unique resources and people that Cornell had to offer. This made me reflect on my time at Cornell so far. Although I am a sophomore, I often find myself in not a good mood concerning the combined job of balancing academics, student organization obligations, and seeking out professional opportunities. However, I will try to change my perspective of life on the Hill, and work towards making my experience here more enjoyable!
Studying for Prelims > Going to Apple Fest
With papers and prelims piling up in my planner, I decided to what any responsible student would when faced with mounting deadlines and multiple tasks to complete: I went to Apple Fest. This year was my first time attending the event, and I really just went to see what all the hype was about. Being brought up in the South, but born and having lived in the North/Midwest for a large chunk of my life, I missed the real changing of seasons and the warm, tasty, and interesting motifs of the fall. I’d give the festival a 8/10, knocking 2 stars because it was so crowded, I waited in line for the apple cider donuts for 15 minutes only to realize there was a $10 minimum for using a card, so I had to buy apple cider as well. However, it was well worth it!
I was also very surprised to hear that people from as far as 2 hours away were willing to make the trek all the way to Ithaca just to partake in the festivities. But with products like maple cotton candy, kettle corn, apple crisps, etc. combined with the fact that there’s not much to do here or in the surrounding towns, it makes sense why people show up. I recommend Apple Fest as a must do. If not to splurge on apple products, to get to know the greater Ithaca area better and get off the Hill.
Man and the Things he Creates
What happens when AI finally grasps humanity? What happens when you lock a narcissist and an empath in a house in the middle of nowhere? The answer is Ex Machina. The title of the movie is more than fitting as it alludes to the double entendre of the phrase “Deus Ex Machina” both definitions of the phrase can be used to describe aspects of the film. Classically, Deux Ex Machina is Latin for “god from the machine” referring to the concept of machines bringing out actors who are playing Gods on stage in Ancient Greek theater. In the film this concept is illustrated by the narcissistic antagonist, Nathan who believes that he has achieved a God-like status after creating his nearly sentient AI, Ava. Deus Ex Machina is also a plot device in which a story that seems unsolvable is suddenly resolved by due to some unlikely occurrence, and I would like to argue that this device was used in the film.
Throughout the movie, in the interactions between the protagonist, Caleb, and Ava both Caleb and the audience are forced to evaluate whether sentience can be fabricated and the implications of this. With every “session” Ava undergoes with Caleb, we begin to peel back the layers of not Ava, but both Caleb and Nathan. Their thoughts and behaviors towards a non-human really show us who they are, all the while we are lead to believe that we are investigating the inner workings of Ava.
While there are a lot of comparisons to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, I think that Ex Machina stands in its own right, on account of its characters. Unlike, Dr. Frankenstein, Nathan was not worried about the idea of his creation having or triggering an adverse reaction in the world such as technological singularity, he viewed it as an inevitability. What then does this say about our role in our own demise? The movie is about man, just as much as it is about the things we create.