During a recent visit to the vault* of unshared musings, I discovered the pen-sketched framework of what I expound on here. It is common, I’m sure, when examining for the first time in years an artifact of one’s own creation, to be cognizant of a mild and sustained excitement that results from experiencing the fragments…
In 1966, the greatest Poe scholar to have ever lived, Thomas Ollive Mabbott, retired from his teaching post at Hunter College, elated to finally possess the leisure to pursue in earnest his long-held dream of compiling a definitive edition of Poe’s complete works. Two years later, at age 69, he had all but finished the…
One of my ongoing projects is to work through end-of-chapter problems in my EE textbooks. The reminiscence of this activity to late nights spent making mentally taxing progress on homework during past school years is obvious, but now the problem solving is accompanied by an ever-present sense of accomplished inconsequence. The feeling is strongest when…
It used to be that, even when procrastinating, I was never afforded the true experience of relaxation. This was because, from an academic point of view, I could be spending my time more productively. Even during previous Summer vacations, feelings of exuberance and relief were tempered by the knowledge that I’d be back in class…
Technical courses steeped in analytical problem solving offer little room for opposing views. If you question the validity of a conclusion, you need only use mathematics to see how the conclusion was derived and to verify that it is in fact correct. Alternately, soft sciences, collectively known at this university as ‘perspectives on the human…
Time management: if you want to speed up the passage of time, think of all the things you have to complete before semester’s end. If you want to slow it down, think of how much you want for the school year to be over. One of my friends likes to think of our lives as…
Tomorrow I take the Fundamentals of Engineering exam. It is comprised of 2 sections, with 4 hours allocated to each and a break in-between. The morning section is the same for everyone and has 120 multiple choice which cover the basics of many fields, Chemistry among them. The afternoon section has 60 multiple choice which…
This morning, in an attempt to avoid a repeat of what he perceived as the studentry’s tendency towards sleep last class, the business course prof played a short video of a beached sperm whale carcass being blown up by 20 cases of dynamite. The sense that my future depends on my leaving this place is…
Section Four: Regarding the classroom environment Tip #12: If you’re scheduled to give a presentation, cut sleep short the night before. Or, even better, forgo the nightly habit altogether and sap the strength of your 2nd wind by running briskly to class. Fatigue calms the nerves. When you’re fighting to stay awake, the prospect of…
If my Profs knew how little I know, they would be appalled. If I graduate this Spring, it’ll be an embarrassment to the university and a travesty to the country. It’ll be a beacon of hope for winos on the street; an affirmation that they, too, can one day walk in cap and gown if…