Writing In & For Digital Environments

My final project for my “Writing in/for Digital Environments” class. Enjoy, and let me know what you think!

It’s time to  meet the rest of the team! You’ve met me and heard my stories of Team Reflections. I thought of different ways for you to meet the girls and learn about their individual takes on synchronized skating.

I asked each of the girls to come up with one word they could use to describe synchro and why they chose it. Not only do you get to meet the team but you also get to see what goes on during a practice: the ups, the downs, and our final program.

Enjoy!

Here is a video post to spice up the holiday season, enjoy!

Here is my final video! I hope you all enjoy it. In my final video I am trying to give an inside peek on what it’s like to be a member of Dickinson Cross Country- I show my team warming up, doing drills, working out, and cooling down. I also show some meet footage, courtesy of Dickinson Athletics- Sports Information, to show what we work towards in our workouts! I think the Regionals and Dickinson Light Up the Night Invitationals were two standout meets for us as a team, because everyone racing pulled through and raced to the best of their abilities. In addition, I show short interviews from some of my team members asking them different kinds of questions, ranging from serious questions, such as “how have you overcome injury”, to fun questions, including “whats your favorite pre race ritual”?At the end of my video, I picked some of my favorite pictures from the season.

Through this final video I hope to convey to you all what it is like to be a member of Dickinson Cross Country. I hope that through workout footage, meet footage, and interviews that you all can see how great it is to be part of a team! Being on a team is so special to me and definitely a highlight of my college experience thus far.

I hope you all enjoy my video!

This weekend I sat down with my my friend VJ to talk a little bit more on Role Playing games as a whole. VJ had previously participated in both of the homebrew  Tabletop games mentioned earlier. I asked VJ a little about her history with role-playing games, which ensued into an over 10-minute conversation about the game Call Of Cthulhu. I have not personally played Call of Cthulu (or CoC), but I have heard it can be a fun tabletop game set in the present day H.P. Lovecraft universe. VJ has both played the game and acted as a DM administrator of the game, so I found her take on CoC players especially interesting. The interview also discussed the community aspects of tabletop games as well

(Video form Youtube to follow)

I want to talk about another runner who is inspirational to my running. Her name is Kayla Montgomery. She is unique and an inspiration to all runners- including professionals. Kayla is not your “typical” high school runner, for she is battling MS. From a young age Kayla was an avid soccer player. She was a member of the traveling team and even would sometimes get “called out” by the referees in soccer matches for being too aggressive. This all came to a halt one day when she took a nasty fall during a soccer game. Later that night she started to experience a tingling sensation in her feet. Her family immediately took her to the hospital where she was diagnosed with MS.

Once Kayla regained feeling in her legs, she left soccer and took up running. With absolute determination and perseverance she began training harder than ever. She did not want her MS diagnosis to hold her back, she even told her coach, Patrick Cromwell, “I want to run fast”. As she continued to train hard and race, she realized that her legs would go completely number after the first mile. After each race her coach would have to standing on the finish line to literally “catch” her because her legs were so numb that she was unable to control them. Throughout her running career, Kayla was extremely successful. She won the North Carolina State championships in the 3200-meter race and competed in the New Balance National 5,000 meter race.

Throughout this process Kayla had to make a choice: whether to be beat by MS or to let it motivate her. Kayla said “When I was first diagnosed I was consumed with self pity, my grades where awful I was sick all the time, and I was anything but fast, but when I finally started to change my perspective on life with MS, I started to notice dramatic improvements on my health, academics, and athletics”. It is amazing to see how a simple change and attitude can turn so many negative things in your life for there better and it is evident that she has used her MS diagnosis to push her to accomplish many things.

Kayla is so inspirational to me and all people not just runners because she truly shows how it is possible to achieve great things in the face of adversity. It is so easy to stop doing the things you love when you are face hardships, like MS. Montgomery says “Once you begin to accept the negative things in your life and have the perspective  that it allows you to see your situation as your motivator instead… you will be able to find peace again…. However, this doesn’t mean that once you find the sense of peace that it will always be there”. Through this we must recognize whether we are going to let our hardships overcome us or motivate us. There are always going to be hard days, however, the next day is a new day to make to choice to be strong and overcome adversity.

Below are 2 great videos sharing Kayla’s story!

I decided to interview my wonderful roommate, Mary, because she is a constant highlight to my life. She is always making my day and encouraging me to be the best I can be. She always listens to me complain about how much work I have or how tired I am, when in reality she is probably even more tired and pressed for time. Mary, even though she is not on the cross-couuntry team with me is an avid runner. She is always up bright and early, even on weekends, to go for a run. This is amazing to me because I know very few people who actually find joy in waking up in the wee hours in the morning to run

What inspires you to run? Especially when you aren’t on the team

Running is definitely a great stress relief, being a junior, a biology major, and a part of a sorority definitely keeps me busy!  Running helps me not to focus on what I have to do and focus on myself and wellbeing. “ I genially enjoy exercise” getting up early in the morning, even though it’s hard, definitely gets my day stared! It puts me in a really good mood and helps me to clear my mind for the busy day.

Whats your favorite part about running?

My favorite part is seeing the improvement I make over the weeks of consistently running. Its amazing when you can run further and faster the more you commit to running everyday!
I can completely relate to that! I love to see my times go down during workouts and especially at meets! Its such a great feeling of accomplishment.

Do you ever have any bad days while running and how do you deal with them?

Of course! Doesn’t everyone? Bad days are.. well BAD! They suck! But you just have to pick your self up because tomorrow is a new day. Sometimes I go out for a run and my legs feel like heavy blocks and I just don’t really feel “in tune” with my run. When this happens I just accept it push through my run and set my focus on the next day.

Same here, after a bad workout or bad race you can feel extremely down. There is rule called the “5 minute rule”, where you can complain for 5 minutes about your horrible run then its over and time to look at what is ahead!

That seems like a really great rule!

Ok so lets talk about something happier than bad runs. Where is your favorite part of Carlisle to run?

Hmm? So many. I really love running at Dpark but when I get bored of running there I really enjoy running through all the neighborhoods.

That’s great! My team always runs at Dpark too! We also like to run on the trails behind Dpark you should check them out!

Thanks! I totally will! I have always wondered what was back there, and now that I know what, I think it will be a great way to mix up some scenery while running.

What sneakers to you run in?

I run in the Brooks Ghost sneakers! I love them so much, they are very supportive of my foot. Sometimes, people find the Brooks Ghost to be clunky and too heavy, however, I feel that the extra support helps to stabilize my feet while running. Also, to add to one of your previous questions, I think that getting new sneaker is one of the best parts of running! I feel like I am running on a cloud when I get a new pair of sneakers.

Cool! I have had the same pair before, and I know that lots of girls on the cross-country team where Brooks Ghost and love them. 

What is your favorite post run meal?

My favorite meal to eat after running really depends on the time I run. If I do a morning run I love to have oatmeal with apples and peanut butter. If I run in the afternoon, I love having pasta with tomato sauce! I also like to drink chocolate milk. In addition, at night I love having a nice warm cup of tea, Chamomile to specific! I think that having a warm cup of tea helps me to get ready for bed and reflect on my day.

Same haha no wonder we are such good roommates, great minds think alike! 
Do you like to run by yourself or with other people?
Both are great! However, I really like to clear my head when I run and sometimes running by myself is great in the sense that I have nothing else to focus on except for my running and me! But I do get jealous sometimes of the cross-country team because they always have people to run with!

I can totally relate to that! I LOVE running with my team, in fact it’s the highlight of my day, but it is nice to sometimes run by myself to clear my head about all the pressures from school. I am so impressed with how dedicated you are to running, I mean sometimes you run more miles per day than I do and im on the cross country team! So, I have one final question for you.

If you could give anyone else advice on how to be motivated to run each day, what type of advice would you give them?
I would definitely say to set goals, similar to what you probably did in high school for sports. I think setting little goals, especially if you don’t have a team to motivate you is extremely important. I set goals like: Eating double dessert , upping my running pace, and hopefully running a half marathon or full marathon one day!

Those sound like great goals! I wish you the best of luck in those goals, hopefully I can come and cheer you on in your half marathon or marathon! Yay! Thank you so much for your time! I really appreciate getting a different perspective of running from someone who isn’t on the team. Have a good day, Mary!

Q1:

Describe your experience attending Dickinson.

Sure. Thanks for having me here. I enrolled at Dickinson during the Fall of 2008. I was eighteen years old at the time. I was totally new to this environment. I had no idea what to expect. I knew that Dickinson had a diverse international community and I was eager to learn more about other cultures. I am a first generation American (my parents are from India). I did not know that Dickinson students could speak so many other languages. It was really eye-opening.

Q2:

What was your first year here like?

When I first came to campus, I expected to do really well. Since Kindergarten to the fourth grade, I did really well. I had to adjust to the academic climate here at Dickinson. I was no longer receiving all A’s in my math courses. I also had to develop new study habits. Interacting with people outside of my hometown really encouraged me to adapt to the social environment here. I had to be more aware and cognizant of what people were comfortable with such as hugging as an expression of greeting. I learned along the way as I met more people and made new groups of friends.

Q3:

What were your grades like?

My grades? I think they were acceptable. Math here was really challenging. I was actually surprised because it was just Calculus. That class was a huge jump from my high school’s Calculus. All of a sudden, people here were getting better grades than me and doing better than me in math class. I guess some of that difference was due to the fact that I was a first year then and some of my classmates were sophomores and juniors. That math class opened my eyes to how good my peers were at Calculus.

Q4:

What clubs or activities were you involved in?

I was mainly involved with Club A.S.I.A. which is the Asian Social Interest Association. The organization focused mainly on East Asia. We talked about pop culture, the news, and different social issues. We even fund raised for Relay for Life one Spring. I also spent some time in Spectrum where I met people who identified as LGBT. My senior year, I was inducted into Kappa Delta Pi and tutored middle school students in mathematics. I was always interested in education so the honor society was nice to be a part of and to be involved with community service.

Q5:

What do you think about the way that Dickinson brands itself?

When you say that, the first thing that comes to mind is the Dickinson logo. Back then, everyone knew of the school through The Compass. Now there is a telescope, book, and liberty cap dating back to the early years of the college. But at the same time, I understand the desire to compete with other liberal arts schools. During my senior year, the school began using Times New Roman as its font for “Dickinson.” I think people that those who know colleges well understand the rigor of Dickinson and the proficiency of its students. This school has a high international students population and emphasizes a global education. I am happy to see a campus full of amazing students rich in diversity.

Q6:

Which Dickinson Dimension is the school most successful in?

I was the most involved in Global Education so I think that is what Dickinson does best. The study abroad programs here allowed me to seamlessly learn about Japan and to have the opportunity to work there. The language immersion program at Dickinson is fantastic. The exchange students that come here each here bring with them so much as far as tutoring and offering global perspectives. Sustainability is definitely a strong suit with many recycling efforts on campus and the new Greenhouse in Kaufman Hall. I have seen the school step up its green efforts immensely throughout my time here at Dickinson.

Q7:

Since this is a course about digital writing, could you weigh in on this model of learning?

I am involved in a lot of multi modal instructions right now. I am using smart boards to show mathematical concepts to the Wilson Middle School students. These lessons are prepared in advance and less time is spent drawing formulas on the whiteboard. It actually speeds up the pedagogical process in my view. In terms of blogging, I think that is an efficient way to communicate among students. Online writing is green and does not waste paper. All you need is a link and anyone can access your post.

Q8:

What are some of your thoughts about the way this school has grown.

I know that when I started [college], the trays were here. Now the napkins on the tables are gone. The showers here use less water. So I feel like since Fall of 2008, I have seen a dramatic change in sustainable practices. Single-streaming recycling efforts are salient here on campus. Dickinson is definitely going green. There is a larger enrollment than ever before and things are improving. In terms of the social atmosphere, nothing has changed much. Dickinson still maintains its identity does not forgo its core values which is to prepare students for the Twenty-First Century.

From my experience, a lot of people seem to think that skills and concepts learned in English classes aren’t of much use outside of the literary sphere. I, on the other hand think that knowing how to write is important to almost any career one would aspire to have. So I sat down with my girlfriend, Hannah, who is a Biochemistry major to find out if English plays any part in her scientific endeavors.

Have you taken any English classes at Dickinson? Can you tell me a little bit about that? i.e. the topic of the class, the types of work you were assigned

Although it’s not considered a typical English class, as a first semester, first year student here at Dickinson, I, like everyone else, was required to take a first-year seminar, and my seminar was on the topics of Marx, Nietzsche, and Freud. I consider this course an English class even though it wasn’t in the English department at Dickinson because, like English classes that I have taken at Dickinson, the aim of the seminars even though they’re topical and can be in different departments, is to prepare incoming college students to write, read, and analyse critically at the collegiate level.

Most of the assignments in my FYS included close readings of very complex texts: works by Niezsche which are very philosophical and kind of abstract and the focus of the class was taking a challenging piece of literature and kind of grappling with it and extracting what you coud from it. Additionaly, after reading those texts we would work to better ourselves as writers. We learned the difference between founded and unfounded hypotheses and conclusions. And I really look at my FYS as my first ‘English class’ experience at Dickinson.

In the second semester of my first year here I took an English 101 which was called ‘Jane Austen and Her World’. The topics of the class were both Austen’s works of literature as well as her life in the context of the period of history in which she lived and how historical events that she experienced in her life shaped her writing and her opinions about the world. In that class we read all six of Austen’s novels in chronological order, starting with Northanger Abbey and ending with Sense and Sensibility. Assignments in that class were two 3-page ‘response’ papers which could be written on any of the novels we had read up before they were due. For those papers we had to follow fairly liberal parameters and were allowed to write on pretty much anything that interested us that fell within those parameters. Since I had gotten used to English classes where students are given very specific topics and guidelines to write with, I was really pleased with the amount of flexibility I was afforded. In addition to the papers, were were also expected to post weekly responses to questions about our readings on our class Moodle forum which I enjoyed because of how casual they were. I also enjoyed reading other peoples’ posts because I got to read perspectives that weren’t immediately apparent to myself as I was reading through the novel.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk

What, in your opinion, were some valuable skills that you learned from that class?

I specifically chose to take an English 101 class last year because I wanted to cultivate my skills as a writer. Coming into college I felt like writing was really a skill that I hadn’t fully developed in high school and I wanted to get better at writing really early in my Dickinson career because I knew that writing would be a huge part of my academic career here and most likely also into my professional life post-Dickinson.

I would say the most valuable skill from the English class I took last semester was how to write formally and concisely. I learned how to generate a strong and well-founded hypothesis and how to use textual evidence to support the hypotheses that I had formulated. That’s an applicable skill not only in an English class and in other classes that I’ll take at Dickinson but I really see that as an applicable skill in careers that I may pursue in the future. Learning how to write and learning how to strongly and concisely state your argument and then to support that argument through other sources and other documents is a crucial skill in being able to communicate and persuade throughout the collegiate and professional world.

How have those skills helped you as a Biochemistry major?

I think that, as a Biochemistry major, a huge misconception that I get from other people is that I spend my whole day in the laboratory and that, as a science major, I just spend my days mixing solutions or pipetting and that I don’t come into contact with situations in which I need write and convey my thoughts, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, as scientists, we’re doing research and we’re making discoveries and trying to better understand the world around us but if we can’t convey our thoughts and if we can’t convey our findings then all the work we’ve done is for nothing. After I complete an experiment I enter into a very formal scientific paper-writing stage of my experiment so after I’ve concluded all my experimentations I’m then tasked with taking all of the data and the hypotheses that I’ve tested and the results that I’ve come up with and turning that into a paper which can not only thoroughly but concisely report the findings of my experiments. And these research papers, even though they are highly scientifically specialized, are very similar to papers I’ve written in my English classes. For example, we open up scientific papers with what’s called an ‘abstract’ which is a summary of what I’m studying, what I’m looking to test, the methods I’m going to be using, and the results that I got.

This is basically like the introduction of an English paper in which you creatively introduce the book that you read or the article you’re going to be talking about and then you introduce some questions that you’ve formulated from your reading that you’re working towards either supporting or rejecting. After you present your hypothesis you kind of allude to how you’re going to show that your hypothesis is accurate or it should be rejected. There are a lot of parallels between a scientific paper that I write to convey the results of my experiment and an English paper that I write to convey an idea that I formulated after reading a text.

http://www.etsy.com

Do you think that taking a course(s) in English is important even for those not pursuing a career in a particularly writing-oriented field? Why or why not?

I think that it’s crucial for college students to be exposed to at least one English course during their time in college because even if you’re not pursuing a career that’s not ‘writing oriented’, every career that you will come across in your post-Dickinson life and professional career will incorporate writing in some aspect. For myself, as a scientist, I encounter writing when I need to communicate with others the results of the experiments that I have done and when I need to persuade people that my work is relevant and that the work that I’ve done contributes to our knowledge of science as a whole. So even though I don’t plan on entering a career after Dickinson that we would consider ‘writing oriented’, I know for a fact that writing will always be a part of my professional life because I’m always going to need to communicate with fellow scientists, persuade people that my work is relevant, and to communicate with and educate the general public about science. I feel that my English classes here at Dickinson have contributed to my skills as a writer and I feel that I wouldn’t be able to effectively communicate if I hadn’t taken English courses that taught me how to formulate an argument and support that argument.