Was there a rubric for Exam 2? It seems to me like you expected either (1) certain things to be talked about or (2) answers to be explained in ways, which weren’t actually noted in the question. In other words, it seems you expected more than that for which the questions were asking. Also, if you could explain how you came up with the grades you did, I would really appreciate it (i.e. a rubric, if one exists).

Unrelated, I got my reaction paper back for Arable Farming, etc. by Andrew Patterson with the response “This needs to be redone. There’s no discussion of agriculture.” I was a bit perplexed by this… I had assumed that the only requirement for the reaction paper was to be my reaction to the article (which this was). If there were further requirements I was unaware of, it would have been nice to have been told of them at the beginning of the semester rather than a month from the final. Can you shed any light on this?

Thanks,

b

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b,

If you feel you have answered the questions on the exam well and have put forth a good effort, we can discuss your exam.  You can make an appointment or come to my office hour.

Regarding reaction papers, I did discuss reaction paper expectations in the beginning of the semester.  I informed students that there was much freedom in writing these papers but they would be returned if unacceptable.  I did said in class that it had to be about the assigned reading.

For the future.  Do not send passive aggressive correspondence to me.  I will be happy to address any of your complaints and concerns, but all of our discussions will be respectful.

Neil

~~~

Let me be frank, then.

Why am I doing all of this? Why am I going to school? Why am I stressing myself out?

Why don’t I just major in music? Honestly, it would be easier. It would be a hell of a lot easier. But I have to remind myself of The Goal. The Reason I’m Doing This.

To please my family? Perhaps, partly. To make a decent income after I graduate? Perhaps, partly. But if those were the only reasons, I would have quit long ago. There’s more to it than just me.

See, our world has issues. Wars, poverty, starvation, disease. Economy crumbling. And what’s the cause of all these issues? Is there a single if-I-had-to-choose-one-I-would-choose-this-one cause? Is there a single most-of-the-world’s-problems-could-potentially-be-encapsulated-in-this-lone-phrase cause? Answer: Yes. And what is this cause? Lack of communication.

But not communication in the ordinary sense of the word. The mundane sense. Political party talks. UN meetings. Scientific conferences. There’s much of that going around already (maybe not enough, but There’s Much). What I’m talking about is not communication in the mundane sense, but communication in the personal sense. In the heartfelt sense. We can put together statistics of people dying of AIDS in Africa, but that doesn’t show you the magnitude of the situation. How can we, as external observers, ever understand the magnitude of the situation? How can we understand the life of a Chicago street beggar? What do they feel, what do they think? Should we stop and ask them?

Not to discount the value of statistics (I’m a mathematician after all… then again, statisticians aren’t really mathematicians), but they never tell you the whole story. How can they? It’s easy to know some things are true. The Euler phi function of a prime p is equal to p-1. The Laplace transform of 1 is 1/s. The Ideal Gas Law? Easy… PV=nRT. But how can we know if someone else is really hurting inside? That the bearded man sitting on the bench at Adams was lonely?

How can we know who needs help the most? And how can we know how to reward those who do the most to help others? How can we ever be sure of Us, of The Way We Are? Are we heading in The Right Direction? How will we ever know if our misstep made tragedy for someone on the other side of the world? Not all of the algorithms of Life are stable; sometimes a small change of input can lead to disaster. And with the earth’s population continually growing, we are bound to step on each other’s toes now more than ever.

Most of all, though, how do we know where to go from here? We can’t listen to everyone’s thoughts at once, not yet. We go forward in certainty unless we’re all aware and we all are certain, unless we all understand and we all contribute. And while technology improves, almost anyone can realize that we are only growing farther apart, like the stars in our cold universe.

We have the power, we have the skill, we have the knowledge, but we need The Direction. And so it becomes not a technological problem, not a physical problem, not an academic problem, but a social problem. THE Social Problem.

I don’t have much time to elaborate now (homework to do, surprise), but I’ll remind you of a related post, from nearly a year ago.

It’s called Wireless Internet Capabilities. http://blacknixdreaming.com/archives/128

This is why I’m here. I’d like to bring us closer together. How, I’m not quite sure. But if I can help, then the world has my mind, my eyes and my hands.

Carnegie Hall is premiering a new vocal work by Nico Muhly, called The Adulteress, on the Friday before spring break. This means I could skip two classes on that Friday, take a morning flight to NY and get there in time to eat and settle down before the concert.

Also, it would be spring break, of course. Meaning I could spend time being a tourist while I was there.

It would be expensive, yes. But, otherwise, I’m just going to be bored here… playing Guild Wars or something. Would anyone care to join me? Maybe I should ask my parents if they want to meet me there… hrm…

Also. Here’s a link for you.

Don’t you hate the fact that every “gay website” (or even Facebook since they found out I’m gay) finds it necessary to barrage me with photos of half-naked men? Not that I necessarily mind, but it’s really kind of distracting and not very professional.

Get with it, gentlemen.