MacBeth

Before I start talking about what I though of the play, I would first like to talk about Macbeth. Macbeth is one of the few Shakespearean plays that I actually thoroughly enjoyed.  I think one of the reasons why I enjoyed the characters is because I didn't like them. This is really something special for me as someone who is usually apathetic to characters portrayed in books. Macbeth, his wife, and his twisted council all spurred within me a hate for their horrible antics. But it is also these same emotions that allowed me to love and care about the characters. I remember constantly wondering about what the dramatic foreshadowing at the beginning of the play meant for the characters and how their horrible plotting would result in. Now going to the play. I can't say i was disappointed, but I can't say it lived up to the hype it was given. I probably would have gone to see it myself even if it wasn't required, but I don't understand why it was. There was nothing particularly unique about it and it kinda gave the originally disturbing play with very diverse characters a feel of dramatic irony. Too much irony, so much it made it seem like a comedy.  I still like the new generation style they took to the play and I enjoyed the way they interpreted the story. One thing that really struck me was the orchestra. Although I won't be running back to the theaters to view another play, I certainly have not crossed this activity of my list of hobbies that i would consider spending more time into during the school year. Patrick stewert as Macbeth, lols.

6th Blog, An interesting day

This week was a very eventful week for me and my floor. If you couldn't guess from my picture, it is of me being put in a basket with the help of the cheerleaders and basketball players on my FSSP floor. If you weren't knowledgeable of the differences between the floors in San Nic, let me fill you in on the situation real fast. The 5th floor for San Nic in FSSP is the athletes floor. Our floor has multiple athletes that are playing basketball for the school team and San Nic was having a basketball competition. This led to fierce competition between the school players and the non-school athletes player. In the end, our floor lost to the mismatched team of basketball fanatics. This greatly lowered our spirits, but when we reflected back over it, we discovered that it was a fair and square match and we were happy to have cause such fire to spur over some of such small consequences. Fast-forwarding to this week's INT speaker, we had the pleasure of hearing the muse of Irwin Appel. I would consider is lecture more of a muse because he talked very retrospectively.  He started from his accomplishments and allowed us to to connect with him. He lived a life that seemed to be like one of a self made man. One of the more inspiring things that I remember him saying is that you sometimes have to seek your calling. Look for classes outside of your comfort zone. Maybe I will also find myself in a place that I never saw myself going.

5th blog, Critical thinking

This week's critical thinking presentation given by Dean Lubach struck a different vibe than all the other presentations we heard until this week. He began his lecture by addressing a seemingly common problem here at UCSB which is balance. He stressed the importance of learning to balance between school work and play, between work and study, and between junk food and fruits and vegi.  He was an extremely charismatic speaker and sprinkled his presentation with insights to his life, making his presentation feel more approachable and allowed me to connect with what he was saying.  One major distraction I fazed during his presentation was my fascination with the presentation tool which he used. I later found out it is called Prezi. The fluidity and dynamic movement through the slides helped me register different points he was making. Although did not completely agree with everything he had to say about critical thinking, especially what he had to say about certain religious topic, I enjoyed listening to him speak.  Regarding the library visit, I did something extremely embarrassing this week. I have INT95 at 10AM, but for some reason I showed up at 9:30AM thinking I was late, when I was actually extremely early. I still learned a lot about the way the library works, I just showed up for the wrong class. Now whenever I leave for the library, I always make sure I have my "Library Locations" sheet with me as it will come in handy when I look for that one obscure reference book.

4th blog, Plagiarism articles

If people were to ask me how common the problem of plagiarism is, I would respond, "In my old high school, about once a week, there would be some kid who got busted for plagiarism." Be it intentional or not, plagiarism is a easy felon to commit.  These articles were very helpful in refreshing my stagnant mind about what exactly entails as plagiarism.  I cannot fathom how serious an offense plagiarism is  in college.  Being knowledgeable of how to avoid being accused of plagiarism, citing your sources, yes even the one you paraphrased from, and how to defend yourself if such an incident where to arise are important so you can maintain your integrity as a scholar. I learned many new things from the first article What is Plagiarism, it states that almost everyone uses ideas that originate from themselves. Whether they are conscience of it or not, it is easy to quote something from somewhere else thinking that you thought of it yourself, but if you don't site the source where you derived that idea, it would be considered plagiarism.  I am extremely glad that I took time to read both articles as they also provided many insights as to what professors expect to see out of our papers. I will definitely take advantage of the sources that UCSB has to offer to avoid plagiarism, asking for help from professors or using online plagiarism checks. That way I will be able to keep my papers plagiarism free.

3rd Blog, Library and Career Counseling

Some may find it surprising that i found the librarian’s lecture to be more interesting than the Egyptologist or Archaeologist person’s, Stuart, lecture from last week. It is not that the mysteries of Egypt and the method of his scientific research seemed dull to me, rather it is the plethora of information that this lecture provided. I learned many new things today that not only tickle my fancy but also have an immediate effect on how I will be using the library in the future. I completely agree with what she had to say about what made students great and the advice that she gave was most helpful. Being a graduate of UCSB herself, she seemed to be able to offer more insight to how important it was to live a balanced life. However you choose to pass your time or relax, be it parties, sports, or even more studies. There is a limit to how much one should do and a limit to their concentration. I look forward to the school year because not only is that when the rest of the freshman class come onto campus, it is also when my part time jobs begin. Career counseling services helped me decide how much I should look to work each week given my busy school schedule. They also gave me many specific advice as to how to balance work and play. This is only of the reasons I truly love UCSB, everyone is so considerate and looks out for you.

SRB and academic fair

Today is Monday. After going to my two morning classes, I made my way to the career fair talking place right outside the halls of San Nic. I made my way to the EOP which is the Education Opportunity Program. taking to the lady who ran the booth I listened to all the things the career office. There are plenty of internships both domestic and abroad. As a mechanical engineer and a person who takes great interest in Japanese culture I was glad to hear of the education abroad program. This information also coincides with what I learned on the day we went to the SRB, or Student Resource Building, as a class. At the SRB I learned of the Asian resource room as well as the other ethnic study rooms. Although I am not completely certain I know what they are used for,  it is nice to know that there are places like these that I can go and utilize to study. One thing that I learned from the visit that I will defiantly be taking advantage of is the small library they offer in the center. When the main Davis library begins to fill up during the school it is nice to know that there is this relatively  obscure place to go and study. On another note, asking the advisors there about things to look out for as a mechanical engineer, I learned more about the computer facilities located on compass. I originally only knew of the computer lab located in the middle of the Engi 2 building quad, but now I also know of the one tucked into the corner behind Frank Hall. 

Introduction

Hello my name is Kevin Weia. Many of my old friends often refer to me by my last name because there are a ridiculous amount of Kevins at my old school. I really enjoy going out and exercising my freedom but having the occasional down time is not bad either. One thing I really value is my friends and my surrounding peers, but I understand the importance of a good education. I have always striven to find that perfect balance between the things do. Whether it be hanging out with friends, studying with friends, studying alone, or just having some time to rest. I am currently a in the engineering field as a mechanical engineer, but one of my favorite subjects physics and the study of flight and lift. I hope to someday achieve a higher education in aerospace engineering or astrophysics. If I had the choice to change my major to aerospace though, (not a major that UCSB currently offers), I wouldn't do so because I am still a young boy and I know that as I learn more about the way things work and gain a better grasp of the scientific world I will definitely have new sparks of interest. As  a mechanical engineer, I can build myself a solid foundation on which I can base my future upon. I really look forward to my next four years here in UCSB. I have only been here for less than two weeks, and I have met so many wonderful people. I cannot even fathom how school life will be when the fall quarter starts.