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December 5, 2004Due to the complete psychosis of this term, Mr. Jack and I made a little deal: we would both significantly reduce our academic loads for next term. It seems like such an easy and wonderful thing to do. We'd get to see more of each other and our friends. We'd get more sleep, less stress, more time to do what we love to do and need to do. He'd get more time for the gym, I'd get more time for dance...My proposed Academic Plan for the spring term did not receive the seal of approval from Mr. Jack. It is easy to see why. I'll probably forget the 14.01, due to review of the class from several friends. I'll probably, ACHINGLY, let go of the music class at Harvard. Despite knowing that my life would be better with less class, the thought of graduating without taking a class in music or art just pains me, because I just assumed I would do that here. In the end, I shouldn't complain. I picked the humanities classes I took here. I got more writing classes than I could have dared to hope for my freshman year. I got a cool film class, a cool dance class, a cool photo class. I resurrected my Spanish skills and am even (!) taking Russian at Harvard with a professor who is just amazing. That is just awesome. (AND, I had to look at my undergraduate degree audit page on websis because I didn't even remember all the classes I've taken here.) I'll stick with the environmental policy class because it just sounds so cool. I might even pick a different Russian class at Harvard that is held on Tuesday afternoons, giving me Thursday and Friday off. Oh my Lord how sweet would that be. 4-day weekends. Totally McSweet. I have never been particularly interested in the environment. In 5th grade, we had a Trash Day. Or was it Recycling Day? I think it was called Trash Day but held in honor of recycling. I remember taping to my shirt a circle of green paper with a trash can drawn on it. I spent the afternoon cleaning up around the school with my classmates and romping around with my friend Becky and her younger sister Laura. For some reason, 12.102: Environmental Earth Science is a really cool class. The lectures are so interesting that I forget to take notes. I just want to sit and listen. Right now I'm working on my final paper/presentation. I'm writing about how the Environmental Protection Agency creates regulations and about how scientific data can be interepreted many different ways and (surprise, surprise) politicized. I'm reading a book called Science Under Siege by Michael Fumento. I know I know, the title sounds a tad dramatic for a book about enviromental policy in the US. But let me tell you: hypocrisy, intrigue, scandal... it's all there ;) It's a collection of case studies that expose the role of the media, politicians, and even actors (can you say Meryl Streep?) in sounding a false alarm over certain chemicals. I'm not sure who to believe yet, as there are three opinions for every piece of data out there, but it's an interesting skim so far :) *** Ring-a-ling, It feels the winter air, Hear them ring, You hear it everywhere, Soon it will be Christmas day... |
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