Personally, I’ve never put much thought in what the process of mapping a large city is like. Last spring break, I had the opportunity to go to New York City, where I stayed at an airbnb by myself. On Monday my friends and I had a discussion of how useful maps are in places like these. Since I had never been in the city by myself I relied mostly on “Google Maps” to get around. My friends have lived in New York City their whole lives and they have been relying on the mapping system since they were 10. We discussed the impact it has on many people’s lives and how we wouldn’t be able to navigate without it. Then we discussed how other countries, such as El Salvador don’t have this same system. When I visited there at the end of my Senior Year, I went to a small Island right off the cost of El Salvador and I couldn’t find it on a map. When I got there, I realized that the area was very large and a map would be able to help, in terms of finding where most of the community there was living. I realized how much we take advantage of maps and how helpful they are to us, when we do have them.
Author Archives: Natalie Bonilla
Robotics at Cornell
As a Bio major, I’ve never really been exposed to Cornell’s project teams and what they do. I knew of them, but I never knew how many people were actually a part of it. When I got the opportunity to see where the project teams worked and to learn more about them, I was ecstatic. From our guides, we learned that they were a part of CUAUV, a project team dedicated to the creation of an autonomous submarine. Each year, they create a new one from scratch and take it to compete against other schools at the end of the year. Cornell is one of the best at this because they have won 7 times since the competitions first started in 2000. I realized that it is very important to learn about all the things happening at Cornell because you never know what new things you could discover. I’m very glad I went on this trip and will definitely keep tabs on the project teams from now on.
Cornell Symphony helps students through exams
Before this day, I had not attended a performance by Cornell Symphony. Once the show began, I was instantly enamored by the effortless melodies that were produced by this group. Ever since I was little, I was always interested in music and instruments. At the age of 9 I fell in love with the flute and when I came to college I decided to focus more on my studies. Little did I know, there were people who loved it so much that they continued to play here at Cornell, through the Symphony Orchestra. It was amazing to see how much work they put into the pieces for the performance. I will definitely come see their future performances, it is a nice break from the stress that school work may bring.
12 Angry Men and Racism
I can’t believe I had never seen this film before! It was quite the experience. You learn just about everything that goes on in a courtroom and how much the jury has a say in the verdict. One of the themes in the film that I thought was really interesting and still prevalent in our society, is racism. The facts that we as a society are so biased when it comes to skin color, says a lot about us. Even before we see the details of any particular case, one already assumes the type of crime that person may or may not have done. This film really got me thinking about how we as a community can become less biased because it will help us make campus much more welcoming.
Before Night Falls: A Review
Wow, I can’t believe that I hadn’t seen that film before. It really shines a light on how hard it is to be part of the LGBTQ+ community as a Cuban citizen. Throughout the film, we learn of the tough life Reinaldo Arenas had. What really inspired me was that even though Arenas had a terrible time growing up and as a grown up, he continued to write. He continued to do the thing he loved to do, even though everything was going against it. This film teaches us a lesson of gratitude and to not take anything for granted. I’m really glad I got to this and I will recommend it to anyone.
Forrest Gump
Last Friday, I had the chance to re-watch the classic Forrest Gump. I had seen it once as a preteen and I felt very moved by the love that Forrest always had for Jenny. This time around, I saw the movie quite differently. What once was one of my favorite movies of all time, has become not quite as good in my eyes. What made me really evaluate this film was the clear love Forrest had for Jenny, but Jenny never really reciprocated. Forrest is always there for her in tough situations and he never judges her and she seems to care for him as a friend. While Forrest seems more concern for Jenny’s well being, Jenny doesn’t see Forrest as more than a friend for most of the film. Towards the end, that Jenny reveals that she had Forrest’s child and a fatal sickness, the audience begins to feel sympathy for her. Don’t get me wrong, I felt sympathy as well but I feel like she neglected Forrest for most of her life. Towards the end, although I understand that she was sick and I sympathized, I do realize that she might have been taking advantage of Forrest. She knew that he was someone that would never stop loving her and would always help her no matter what. I do enjoy the film because it proves that if you put your mind to something, you can achieve it (when Forrest ran and all of his other achievements). I was glad to see this film once again, because I was able to get a different perspective on it.
Olympics in this day and age
During last Monday’s Table Talk, we discussed the Winter Olympic Games and issues of cheating. We talked about how at the previous Winter Games, Russia was found to have used drugs to enhance their performances. It was easy for them because since the Games were hosted in Russia, it wasn’t difficult to get a helper on the inside. For this reason, the Olympic Committee let them participate this year with the condition that they would not be able to represent their flag and they would have to wear a bland uniform. The individual sports pick if they wanted Russia to participate or not. Most of us believed that this situation could have been treated differently because although they deserve a punishment, some contestants from Russia that had nothing to do with the scandal, were affected as well and we didn’t believe that was fair to them. We discovered that there are a lot of ethical dilemmas when it comes to the world of sports. We learned of something called “sports courts” that only deal with those types of issues. Personally, I gained more respect for the Olympics general because a lot of work goes into choosing participants and organizing the event to have it be fair for everyone. I hope the Olympics will continue to flourish and join millions of people around the world.