Welcome back to our regularly scheduled programming! Junior year has been downright blissful. Let me tell you about it.
Academics
I discovered two important things about scheduling this quarter:
- If you plan things right—or just get lucky and stumble into it, I’ll let you guess how I found out—you can have no finals at all. This may be the consequence of a necessarily project-focused physical major, but while we’re picking poisons I’m going to drink this one.
- Advanced courses with low unit counts are the greatest! You cover exciting and fresh material in a relaxed environment. Ideally every class would work like that—one can dream.
ME102: Foundations of Product Realization
This course was the cornerstone of my quarter. I learned heaps about rapid manufacturing, interfacing between parts, how hardware—which contextually, I have learned, basically means screws—works, and more.
Most importantly, though, it just got me making things. When Vivek and I bought a couch but couldn’t get it flush against the wall because of an inconveniently located pipe, we opened Shapr and made new legs to lift it over the obstacle and into the position we had initially imagined. When the gear guard on my bike cracked and started stabbing my pant legs, I rapidly iterated a replacement. This course helped reinforce for me how malleable the world around us can be.
Of course, the major tangible outcomes of this course were the projects: I’ve posted about both already elsewhere on this site. I’m proud of the results and how much I learned in making them. Working with my design partners, Vivek and Trun, was a joy. But I do expect the attitude change to be far more productive than any physical output in the long run.
DESIGN1: Introduction to Design
I tried to avoid this course entirely, but the bureaucracy won out and I enrolled. The first project centered on a PSA to induce impossible behavioral change rather than addressing the root issue via a relatively simple systemic change. The second project was decently fun: my lovely group and I built an escape room entitled Jank Ass Spaceship, designed at least one totally novel puzzle, and used a simple val to remote-control a laptop. The third project I commandeered to hang an unauthorized photo collage of folks in the PRL outside of AMPS as a means of community building. It’s still up! I may expand it soon.
POLISCI114D: Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law
The incomparable Professor Sallam described this course as “PoliSci Coachella.” He wasn’t kidding: we learned about nationalism from renown motorcycle enthusiast Frank Fukuyama, democracy and it’s tumult from Larry Diamond, the unique case of Latin America from Alberto Díaz-Cayeros, the international promotion of democracy from Mike McFaul, and numerous other subjects from Didi Kuo and Sallam themselves. How fortunate I am to be in a place where these are normal opportunities. The sessions I enjoyed the most were, of course, case studies, and it was generally wonderful to have an island of writing and analysis in my otherwise technical quarter. Also, with the overlap in material and the more engaging teaching style, I think this course should take the place of POLISCI1.
BIO81: Introduction to Ecology
Three good things came from this class:
- It satisfied the first third of my Domain Focus for the Design major.
- I learned that palm trees are, in fact, a grass.
- We had one awesome class where we talked about The Winds. I don’t think anyone else in class was sufficiently appreciative of the fact that the products of Hadley Cells and the Coriolis effect were the stuff of myth, discussion by pirates, and the primary drivers of the economy and globalism up until fairly recently.
My general knowledge of natural ecosystems has increased by a mild-to-notable amount, and I am now perhaps 0.5% more likely to read Braiding Sweetgrass.
DESIGN160R: Design Formation
Portfolio building class! Awesome that there’s time carved out for this in the program. It probably doesn’t need a teaching team of six. If, however, it manages to get me a job at LoveFrom I will sing its praises until the end of time.
All the Rest
I spent this quarter as the only president of JSA on-campus, which was a rewarding endeavour. The community is thriving: Grupo Benji continues to be the bane of the Coupa Cafe line, and Special Drake was not only super fun but a widely congratulated theme for our Fall Quarter party (surpassing my expectation that I would be the only person truly enthused about it). We’ve also adopted Basecamp, which I hope will help us stay organized, democratize participation even further, and leave a trail of documentation for those that come after us to help them take up the torch. The formal establishment of the Israel Studies Program this quarter has similarly helped to formalize the legacy and continued existence/stability of Jewish life on campus. I was honored to be invited to its inauguration, and I’m excited for where the program will go in the future.
I got up to plenty of shenanigens with my friends as well. Daniel’s FLiCKS was yet again a raging success, with a screening of Austin Powers followed by an evening of discussion with Jay Roach himself. Daniel also starred, along with Henry, Carter, Jack, Odin, and myself, on The Quambos intramural indoor volleyball team. I don’t know that I’ve ever had more fun than playing our first game, winning through spirit rather than skill, and designing our preposterous kits. The league will certainly fall to us next quarter. Living in French with Vivek has been awesome: it seems it’s really as simple as liking the same snacks (and perhaps videogames). And Nageena and I went on a whole host of adventures—from kayak camping in Point Reyes, to Smuggler’s Cove and the Little Red Window, to Tahoe with no snow.
Of course, many other people helped make this quarter so beautiful: my family, Dani, Tommy, Lulu, Aaron, Yoni, Miles, Omry, and perhaps you, dear reader, as well.
I love you all!