An Ode to Hedgehogs

My Favorite Place...Practically Perfect In Every Way

I have been flying all over the world since I was young, much in part because none of my extended family lives in the United States. As I got older, my excursions got further and futher from East/Southeast Asia and began creeping into the riches of Europe, and whan incredible joy it has been. Throughout my time in Italy, Spain, Germany, etc., I kept retuning to the United Kingdom. London is truly one of the most beautiful and energetic cities I have been to. It is rich with history and culture, making Oklahoma pale in comparison. I have always preferred large cities to the mundane country life, and there is nowhere I'd rather enjoy my years than in the United Kingdom. Image Details: London at Twilight, source: Geograph What better place to feel the pulse of the city than at Piccadilly Circus? (on one side you can see some amazing architecture, and on the other the large electronic billboards always flashing their lights to the busy patrons be...

Reading Notes : Ovid's Metamorphoses Part B

For Part B of Ovid's Metamorphoses , the stories that interested me most were the ones about Narcissus and Pyramus and Thisbe . What attracted me to these in particular was the tragic endings that befell the characters, one out of pure love and one out of vain infatuation. After reading them together, it is hard to not compare the two. In both, I could understand (but not relate) to the intesity of each person's emotions, which ultimately caused everyone's untimely death. Both stories were not afraid to use the extreme end of the dramatic spectrum to describe the depth of feelings. I like this technique; there is no wishy-washiness and the reader is very clear at where each character stands. Part of this is because the characters take out their emotions on their own bodies, and the consequence is clear. When Narcissus cannot embrace his own appearance, he beats his own chest and bruises his marble-like body. Pyramus, after finding Thisbe's bloody scarf, stabs him...

Growth Mindset

Ctrl+Alt+Delete; source: Laura Gibbs At first glance, Dr. Dweck's philosophy on the growth mindset seems to be a no-nonsense way of improving even the most lackluster students. This was my first encounter with the professor, but much of what she said in her TED Talk seemed like common sense. Encouraging children that failure isn't permenant certainly encourages them to make more attempts at a problem. Incorporating this type of participation in the classroom leads to more equality. The problem of favoritism is something I observed a lot in grade school; the brighter children are set apart at an early age and continue distancing themselves from their peers until their intelligence seems exponentially higher. I don't believe that the growth mindset is as universal as Dr. Dweck explains it, but traits of it can help student excel in specific subjects. I think the strongest tool a student can have is genuine interest in the subject they want to pursue. The growth m...

Mythology and Folklore

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