Winter Break, Commence!

It's winter break! Time of idling at home, hoping I was doing something, almost getting out of my chair, and then sitting back down again.

And of course...

So a recent youtube video has popped up of a professor who started yelling at a student who had yawned loudly  in class. Link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuLaQoQP9oo

Now, I am all for respecting etiquette in the classroom. However, it is another thing to say the professor is completely at fault here. Too many times have I seen students who act in class as if they are entitled to act in a classroom as if they were in their own home. Sure, we students pay for lectures, but that allows us to not come to lecture, not listen, and browse on Facebook silently while in class. But that does not allow us to loudly disrupt the class atmosphere. I am severely disappointed to see that students act with such disregard for basic respect in the classroom.

Not that say that the professor is completely at fault either. His conduct, while in the correct direction, was taken to an unnecessary degree. It is important to still retain a respectable image in front of students. Nonetheless, we are still human.

I'm not a Fanboy, I'm not a Fanboy

Regardless of my interest in video games and other media forms (Harry Potter and some animes, anyone?) I do not consider myself a fanboy by any means. I can control my passionate interests around other people, and if asked to write an essay on it, I can keep it concise and excitement at a minimum for a typical audience.

First.... omg assassin's creed brotherhood looks amazing. I am slightly disappointed I won't be able to play it until next semester when I bring my PS3 to cornell. The combat system shift towards the offensive along strings of assassination kills, managing your brotherhood of assassins, using them in gameplay, and so much more that hasn't even been revealed yet. I desperately want it.

I've also been trying to find a coop video game to play with my girlfriend - so she isn't bored out of her mind when I am playing - and am rediscovering PS3 splitscreen shooters. I am deciding between CoD: WaW and Resistance 1.

Anyway, I am writing my grad essay for stanford and I am trying to hard not to sound like a fanboy when I am writing about Caroline Hoxby. But she is freaking amazing. She's advised disserations for Kirabo Jackson, Sandra Black, Bridget Long, and Leah Boustan who are awesome in their own right. I would probably give a toe just to work under her... but it's hard trying not to sound like a fanboy in my essay

Really a Zero-Sum Game

$2324.

That's how much my 25 graduate applications will cost me, including sending my GRE scores - this is kind of ridiculous. Undergraduate applications were nothing like this at all. I am applying to so many schools because it is very hard to get into grad schools and random luck plays a large role in applications since the incoming class size is often less than 30 or 40.

While writing this post, I took two schools of my list. I can afford to be more selective about schools since I am interested in labor and education economics. Most schools don't have faculty who seem to be really into it.

Go big, or go home...?

Zero-Sum Game

Assassin's Creed Brotherhood: $59.99
Killzone 3: $59.96
Final Fantasy III: $18.15
Final Fantasy IV: $21.67

Average Grad Application Fee (With GRE Score included): $80

Ridiculously Busy Procrastinating

Okay so taking 20 credits wasn't entirely in my plans... I am getting my hands into some real research. I am pulling data files from the Displaced Workers Survey Supplement to the Current Population Survey for my thesis. This involves looking at a codebook, finding the right column numbers to pull data from, and then using Stata to pull them out. Apparently it's easier with SAS but... I don't know how to use SAS. Crap.

On top of that is my original research project from the summer that I have to reconcile (aka, actually do). Although it is part of one of my classes, I definitely feel more invested in it then I would be if it were a typical class. My other classes so far don't seem like a lot of work. Oh, wait, there's the real analysis class. yeah...

On the other hand, courses for next semester - my last undergrad semester - have come out! Some out of the way classes that seem interesting so far are CS1110 with Java, and the History of Battle. Yes, the history of warfare. Hell yes.

So much to do...

and less and less time to do it. I got my thesis approved (!) which means I'm taking 20 credits now. My thesis is on the signal effect of sources of unemployment on displaced workers' re-employment wages and probabilities. The proposal only skimmed the surface of a decent working model, so I have to work on the theoretical model as well as learn how a hazard model works. The work is far from menial and should definitely be fun.

Not as fun is that I'm also trying to stamp out a decent personal statement, but I have many different things to talk about. I hope I can fit everything into the 500 word limit.

A weekend like never again...

So I didn't do anything this weekend. Why? Here are my moderately legitimate excuses:
Didn't learn enough in real analysis to do the next problem set,
Already did the industrial organization problem set,
Reading for radicals reactionaries is delayed because our last class was canceled Rosh Hashanah, and
Economic analysis of the university reading is... has always been optional.

And my thesis? Still waiting for approval... other people already heard back last Thursday, so what's taking mine so long? I didn't expect so many thesis proposals to be submitted. Maybe the academic standards committee had a very controversial thesis proposal - not mine, right? - that took a lot of discussion time. The "black box" is impermeable.

The idle weekend so far has made me reconsidering bringing my ps3 or ps2 to campus. I am waiting for the work to pile up... please dissuade me from video games!

Now See How You Like It

When a small fanatical (?) church burns Qurans, the entire international Muslim community is up in arms against America. This article from Slate makes the point that we are all guilty of the same crime of being simply moronic in using the actions of a few to judge the larger population.

Not as easy as it was four years ago.

My personal statement neither states anything meaningful nor is personal.

How did I pull this off four years ago? 

Hey There, Math

Dear Intro to Analysis, also known as Math 3110.

I hate you.

With the Greatest Love, Julian

Here, There, Everywhere

It's the second week of school and Labor Day Weekend is here. I'm pretty excited to start the long weekend of reading and problem sets - no, really.

I ended up dropping the evolution class because (a) it's a freshmen class, and (b) I have to read 6 books to write three ten-page papers. Too much work for a three credit class I wanted to take just for fun. So I swapped it for an IO class - because (a) it's an economics class! (b) I kept on seeing IO as a research specialty for econ professors, and (c) because there are problem sets. Problem sets are always so straight forward compared to those convoluted readings.

The economic analysis of the university class is getting to be fun too. This afternoon I was shooting ideas for my research paper in my head and it was an absolute blast! I haven't done that since around July and the high I got out of it was amazing.

On the other hand... analysis is confusing. To make matters worse, my prof has parkinsons so whatever he wrong on the board starts normal sized and then gets smaller, smaller, and smaller. That and he always stands in front whatever he's writing so when I doze off for a bit (which happens often, it's right before lunch!) I immediately become lost.

Oh, and applications? Yeah, applications. Need to work on a good personal statement.

Not Really the Way School is Supposed to Start

My first class is Intro to Analysis. It's too bad that the professor never showed up because he was "lost somewhere" in the building. Since he is a math professor, I want to think that he was working away on some complicated, ground-breaking mathematics in the library somewhere, but most likely he forgot...

Otherwise, I forgot how much school work there is to do. Definitely a lot of reading and work to get done in the next two weeks. I forgot how I managed how to do it these past semester. One way or another, it'll get done - there will just be a few more hours spent at the library.

Bye bye, Money

My wallet has only been completely empty two times.
Both times, it happened at Cornell.
Coincidence? I think not.
Correlation = Causation? I think so!

Orientate, Orientate, Orientate!

Moved into the new place last Saturday. Only discovered that there is internet to leech off of today. It's been a busy time here. Just finished training the OLs after going through OS training.

I signed up for my fall classes okay, but am waiting for the registrar to add me to my final class. This semester should start off well!

The Scheming and Screaming was Worth It

The Scheming and Screaming...

Well, tomorrow is the day of reckoning. I've done really well on the practice tests. As an offside, it is amazing how ETS offers two free GRE practice tests as well as practice problems. I heard it is one of the most accurate predictors of your actual GRE score.

And then I'm moving onto campus on Saturday! Summer will officially be over tomorrow on Thursday after the GRE though. I haven't started packing yet so that will be done on Friday.

The video game playing has also died out because I've gotten to those really hard missions. So the marginal cost of accomplishing each mission just shot up... but I will do Mission 55 before I leave! I must.

Why How Science is Taught Today Sucks.

I found a website, Project Syndicate, which contains commentaries written by some smart people. The commentaries cover many topics, including (my two faves) economics and science.

But this (written by Leon M. Lederman) is what the titular article I am referring to. Nothing like another chance to bash the US secondary education system, right?

Blowing... [wow, that's what she said]

Recently I've been watching some music-related animes and was constantly reminded (bothered?) that I have a clarinet in my closet I haven't played in around one or two years. It's always an on-and-off relationship with my clarinet: sometimes I become really motivated to play and then the motivation slowly deteriorates.

Every time I start again, I tell myself "this time it'll be different." Eventually, maybe, I will pick it up and never put it down again. Besides, every time I pick it up again I have to do maintenance and the bore oil will take between one and two days to soak into the wood and I have to build my embouchure again.

Cornell has a room you can rent out for the semester to practice in - if I pay to use the room for the entire semester it will probably get me to practice more often than if I did not. I might just put my clarinet next to my desk at the apartment so it becomes more convenient.

This time it'll be different!

Remember that Wall? Well... surprise! It's actually a Bridge.

Turns out the GRE is moving onto a completely new system. Notable changes include:

• No antonyms and analogies,
• Individual sentence completions,
• More passages,
• An on-screen calculator,
• Multiple answers for multiple choice questions, and
• Two verbal and two quantitative sections.

So now it is basically a beefed up version of the SAT except there is no multiple choice writing section. Maybe this reflects the increased decisions to go to graduate school? Maybe. maybe.

A piece of news I am ambiguous about is that the scoring system is changing from 200-800 per section (in increments of 10) to 130-170 per section (in increments of 1): as if the 200-800 scoring was not arbitrary enough. ETS claims that the new scoring system is only to the benefit of test takers: small differences in skill can be identified, while large differences in skill are still obvious. I suspect this is probably in reaction to increasing numbers of test-takers scoring 800s, thus making it difficult to differentiate one 800 from the other 800. But does this mean grad schools will simply draw a smaller circle for test-takers to jump through?

EDIT. turns out it's changing in 2011. not 2010. reading skills hellooooo!

Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck

Fucking Fuck Fuckity-Fuck-Fuck.

I think it's going for the insensitivity argument. Hear it enough times and then you won't notice it anymore.

REPLAY REPLAY REPLAY REPLAY REPLAY

Finally, my greatest loves combine.

I'm so glad how seriously they take themselves.

A Real Goal

My Graduate School Project:
Play Final Fantasy I - IX.
Play Metal Gear Solid 1 - 4.
I might do some studying too.

Ow. Ow. Owwww.

Just cut my finger open. Not just any finger - my index finger.The only worse finger would be my thumb - but there are only five possible fingers to cut.

Okay Maybe It's Not a Wall

I forgot about how the computer-adaptive part of the GRE works. So the problem is not that bad because questions will get gradually harder as you approach the 800 score. Why did it take until I took a practice computer-adaptive test to figure this out?

Lately I got Armored Core: For Answer and I get to spend (literally) hours customizing my mech before I do a five to ten-minute long mission. The amount of customization is insane and it makes all the difference in performance. This makes me wonder whether there is a perfect combination of parts, or what a mech with every possible attribute maximized would perform like. Otherwise, there is simple a trade off between attributes across different parts.

Here's the Wall

Right now I am not making much progress in my GRE score. It feels like I have hit a ceiling and I guaranteed to get 2 questions wrong every time I take a practice test. The consistency is rather frightening - I have even made a list of rules to follow whenever I do questions:
1. Read the question!
2. I have plenty of time, so calculate instead of estimating.
3. Plug in negatives, positives, zeros, and fractions whenever possible.
These basically outline my problem: I am not a good test taker. It is frustrating to know that I cannot fully grasp all the questions. They are all written in plain English and I can do all the questions, the problem is the psychology of taking the actual test.

On a related note, remember the high school senior fanaticism with webforums (I'm looking at you, collegeconfidential.com). Well graduate schools have their own parallel for each field. (http://www.urch.com/forums/phd-economics/99553-faqs-about-graduate-school-economics-links-useful-threads.html) So there goes a lot of spare time. Surprisingly, looking at them does not generally make me feel more anxious. Maybe my anxiety has reached a ceiling as well.

Combining Great Things

There has been a lot of attention on the World Cup, Wimbledon, and the oil spill. There must be a way to combine all these things together.
I think dissatisfied businesses and shrimpers/crab fisherman should play vuvuzelas at BP executives until it becomes too dark for BP executives to recognize who is playing the vuvuzelas. Hey, maybe the BP executives might even mistake the vuvuzelas for an angry swarm of bees!

Oh, and the DroidX has been announced. Combined with the iPhone 4 coming out, it is more tempting than ever to get a smart phone. I don't think I need one though, as long as I am hanging out with someone who has a smart phone, I don't think I will need help finding my way around places. The information symmetric that can arise from having a smart phone makes for a pretty good incentive, does it necessarily result in better decisions? Maybe more indecision.

Made it... !... ... ... ?

Today I achieved my GRE math section score of 760 on a practice test. So early! I still have little less than two months left to repeat my performance on the real GRE. When I was taking the SAT, I never reached my goal score on practice tests - but was able to on the actual test. Is the SAT so different from the GRE?

The test taker population between the two are drastically different: the SAT is for perspective undergraduate degree earners. Nowadays, undergraduate degrees have changed in two major ways. First of all, there is no longer the conscious decision to go to college: many people go to college just because it's what society tells them to, and the educational degree "arms race" dictates at least an undergraduate degree to join a (reportedly) more intellectual work force. When everyone else has an undergraduate degree, you better have one too. Second of all, undergraduate degrees have become more liberal arts orientated. Before undergraduate degrees allowed intense specialization in certain fields and provided little emphasis on other topics. Today, liberal arts undergraduate degree requirements paints a different picture for undergraduate degrees - instead of field specialization, it is just an extension of the high school education where students simply learn more about the world.
Contrasted against a graduate degrees (excluding professional degrees), undergraduate degrees are too broad. Graduate degrees are in specialized fields and their prevalence has not warranted a similar (in magnitude) educational degree "arms race." Fewer people decide to pursue graduate degrees in the academics (outside of myself, I only know two other people taking the GREs) than people who decide to pursue undergraduate degrees. Perspective graduate students are also smarter: if you are very interested enough in a topic to pursue it on a graduate level, then it is most likely reflected in your academic performance.
With these differences between perspective undergraduate and graduate students, how should the GRE compare to the SAT? Due to the diverse possibilities of graduate fields, the core knowledge between the two must be the same - many (as do I) see the GRE as a much harder version of the SAT. But how much harder? GRE test takers should be smarter than SAT test takers. For graduate schools to evaluate scores, there needs to be a larger distribution. This, of course, means the GRE should be harder. A lot harder. Does this mean I am better at analysis than I think?
Well, maybe just math. The verbal GRE section score is still in the 500s.

The Summer So Far... So Far.

It's probably the most common potential blog post, "Sorry I haven't been putting anything new here...," so most people probably don't write it at all and just... leave their blogs to die. This is probably a product of paying next to nothing (except for an impulsive, short-term desire to have a blog and write that first post) to maintain a blog.

Anyway, I am in Week Three (or Four?) of summer. So far, I have made some headway on GREs. It has made me realize how inept I am at test-taking. I know the answer, but I cannot think of it fast enough before my desire to do every question on time kicks in. I can't delay when the latter kicks in, so I have to consider all possibilities and double-check my assumptions earlier. My main concern is the quantitative section for grad school. As long as my verbal and writing scores aren't horrendous (when my command of the English language is seriously questions), I should be okay. Hopefully. The quantitative section is 28 questions in 45 minutes, and the nature of the computerized exam means getting the first questions are most important. I cannot afford to make one of my frequent careless mistakes on the GRE. Minimizing my careless mistakes means I have to change my attitude about the test and become completely focused for those 45 minutes.

Moving on, I just realized how expensive it will be to apply to grad school. I want to apply to twenty schools (complete list pending, but I am looking at the top 20 schools) and each application is $120 - $160. That's... a hefty amount of money. Just when I thought I was being smart by saving most of my summer income, I will feel pretty poor just sending out my applications. What a way to start the path to grad school, huh?

Onto slightly happier things, I've been playing FFXIII way too much. A lot of people criticize FFXIII is overly linear and this restricts the gameplay. Personally, I enjoy when FFXIII differentiates between linear and non-linear parts. While playing other FF games, I was always worried about missing out on side quests so I was always online reading walkthroughs to make sure I wasn't missing anything. FFXIII is different: it tells me "Here is where you should just focus on the story," and "Here is where you should tap into your inner explorer!" It keeps things simple so I know when I can have fun pursuing the side quests or the story. Before the age of the online video game guide - I would never pay money for a guide - this would have never been a problem. Maybe information asymmetry can be a good thing? Or like they say, ignorance is bliss?

My excessive FFXIII time also means there is less time for Assassin's Creed II. I bought the downloadable content when I got home too. But I am bringing the PS3 to campus next semester, so I will have time to play then. And watch my gpa drop.

Who cares about their gpa during the summer though? On that note, I am going to phili this weekend and I am seeing the World Cup there too. Bring on the good times.

Finals are just like that.

I've been studying for finals. I have three cumulative finals (Linear, Behavioral Econ, and Econ Public Sector) and one regular final (CB). On top of the exam finals, I have a take-home final (Labor Relations in Hospitality). I've never had more than one cumulative final before, so I am not sure how I will deal with the workload. Some classes call for cumulative finals: for Linear, it is hard not to have a cumulative final because all concepts are based on previous learned concepts. 

Behavioral Econ is annoying - the concepts take me some time to understand but it feels like my inability (or poor ability) to take tests is mostly responsible for my less than satisfactory scores. I really have to take a few minutes to look over the questions before answering them. I think less about the characteristics of the model than the actual model itself, I have to keep the qualitative characteristics in mind. That said, I really like how these models can (at least partially) explain human behavior.

Linear is pretty straightforward with learning how to compute stuff. It sort of reminds me of calc back in high school. All the other finals are just "muscle memory" (just have to repeat when the given situation - question - comes up on the exam) exams so that is just some simple work involved.

Then after exams, I plan on sticking around for a few days before going home!

The "Right" Path?

There is no such thing as a "right" path when it comes to a field of study. But you can definitely say you prefer one over the other when the differences between them are great enough.

With more exposure to my major, industrial and labor relations, as well as mathematics in preparation for econ grad school, I'm beginning to see the divergence between the "soft" and "hard" sciences. The more "hard" sciences are more related to finding out the absolute Truths while the "soft" sciences are more concerned with the relative truths. I am not concerned with the relative truths because they are constantly changing and are of no consequence to anyone. Sure, union negotiations are important to the rest of us, but the results are not based off of any absolute truths and are not the least bit predictable because people do stupid things.

Onto studying people who do stupid things, economics appeals to me because although people do stupid things, the same people do the same stupid things. However, all rules can be broken down into exceptions and generalities. These rules are the absolute truths. Finding these rules are always subject to scrutiny on the basis of evaluation and analysis (econometrics, anyone?). But in the purely "hard" sciences, there are just absolute truths.

That is why I have always considered being an engineer. And I get to make stuff to test out. It's like making an econometric model to test on data. Some people combine engineering with soft studies like management and act as a middleman between engineering and management. Because management probably doesn't know how to do any calculations outside of excel - which they probably haven't done since they were lower-level management. But I've always liked to build and design things. Right now, I am daydreaming about a design for the "hidden blade" from the video game Assassin's Creed.

But seriously, I have thought about the mathematics behind engineering and I can't help but find it very exciting. The equations that represent the absolute truths in the world. It's too late to completely change my academic path towards engineering, but maybe I can do a lot of math...

Smart Phones: the Smarter Option?

I saw someone rocking a Droid, and well, first of all, I really want to post a picture of it so...

there. Okay, and then I started to think about why I don't have a smart phone. I certainly have the option, but it helps to list some pros and cons. While they are expensive, they are damn cool and are integrated with an mp3 player which would be a huge convenience. Right now I've had a Sansa e280 for more than four years, and it's a model Sandisk no longer makes since they started a new production line.You can also do all sorts of things with a smart phone like make your schedules, download apps to play around with, and surf the Internet.
Which brings me to my one big con when it comes to smart phones. Internet access. I already do not bring my laptop around with me to classes because I know I will stop paying attention to class, and the idea of being attached to my email everywhere I go seems like a huge inconvenience. Or is it? I have become more addicted to my email as of late because I am always waiting to hear back from people on things. Maybe I will get a smart phone next time. But they are always improving and a new models come out all the time. I feel like I am in a stopped car waiting to merge into a 80mph freeway: the moment I get in (buy a smart phone), I will be left behind. But it's better to go than not go.
Now if only they were cheaper....

Oh and here's the new Droid incredible. Incredible.

Motivation...

Here I am, writing a post about how I want to be more motivated. So I'm going to keep it simple this time with a very brusque message I found from a very cursory Google image search.

Enough said. Peace out!

Is this it?

I just registered for Fall 2010 courses this morning, and a little while later I realized I just signed up for my last year of college. Real college. Graduate school, no matter how it may seem, is not college version 2. This freedom I have now, that I've had these past three years, will only last one more year.

On a related note, I just got a dabbling about "projection bias" in my behavioral econ class. It says although people can see how their preferences will change in the future, they will underestimate the magnitude of that change. Maybe right now I am underestimating how I will miss college after it's over. So have fun now!

In related terms, I am taking Intertemporal Econ next semester, and I found the textbook for the class in the mathematics library. Its a pretty tough read, and I think the professor already thinks I leaning towards wimping out and not rising to the challenge. Well, I can work through that book, so I accept your challenge! concede and now I am taking Causual Reasoning and Policy Evaluation instead.

Sunshine, Sunlight

The weather is amazing today. There were so many people lounging around on campus doing various sunshine-related activities such as throwing frisbees around, lounging around, reading books, and (a lot of) rocking the sunglasses.So here I am writing a blog post...?

Well, despite there being people outside enjoying the sun, there are a lot of us who are too busy with classes and other commitments. I also did not have a book to enjoy by myself.

Excuses, excuses?

Rutgers, and Laying Off the Burgers

I visited Rutgers for all of Thursday and half of the day on Friday. It was a lot of fun: on Thursday I was seeing people from 9 in the morning to 2 the next morning. And I didn't have a drop of liquor. How's that for an impressive day at college? It really felt comfortable to see people I hadn't seen in months - most of the before I left for Geneva. My friends at RU are unlike my friends are Cornell: Cornell friends are always out to be studying and have less time than Rutgers friends do to hang out. I feel a rush to add value to "hanging out" at Cornell. Do we have an objective to hanging out? Should we even have an objective? I am friends with people who I just have a good time to be around. Whether we get anything important done is besides the point. Fun is fun!


I am going to be more open to meeting new people, friends of friends, and just trying to have fun. What is this nonsense of having to deal with these overly stringent rules? Can't I just kick back and have fun without harming others? I want to say 'do crazy shit,' but it seems to include activities I wouldn't have fun doing. People are friends because they have fun doing the same things!


When I was at Rutgers (Friday afternoon, actually), I saw the verity of something my dad told me before I left for college. He told me to have fun, because college would be the most fun I would ever have in my life. When I first heard it, I thought it was a very bold statement. I was more concerned about taking classes and doing well than having "fun." But now I understand. I have virtually no responsibilities at college. No obligations to work a certain amount of time or to hold others' priorities above your own. Sure, there are classes, but we can decide how important they are to us. When we are stripped of responsibilities independent of our own, we can really tell what our priorities are.


Anyway...
Ever since this semester has started, I have had a few bad run-ins with commercial cheeseburgers. They've sent me on stomachaches and make me want to hurl all the time. The same with french fries. What does this mean? Could it mean I can no longer enjoy the staple of American cuisine: the burger and fries? I think it is the heavy amount of grease and other things in the burger that have been upsetting me. It is too dissimilar to the foods I am accustomed to. I do not mean I have been eating especially healthy. I just have not been eating junk food or foods with particularly high-concentrations of grease and fat.

So I have resolved not to eat cheeseburgers and french fries unless I know how they are specifically made. If I know how they are specifically made, I will decide whether to eat them based on how much expected grease is in them. I don't want to send my stomach on these roller coasters anymore. Nor do I want to accustom myself to eating food I currently find disgusting.

Let the Good Times Roll

1.   Cornell (12) beat Wisconsin (4) and Temple (5) to make it to the Sweet Sixteen where it will meet Kentucky (1). Shooting 61.1 percent of the game against Wisconsin, the Ivy League hasn't done this well since 1979. However, this only pales in comparison to other major upsets: KU (1) losing to ... heck anyone, Villanova (2) to St. Mary's (10), Vanderbilt (4) to Oakland (14), Georgetown (3) to Ohio (14). Knock yourself (and your bracket) out for more by looking at the actual bracket.

2.   I have actually been doing homework over break, studying for linear algebra. This event was aided by the fact I have an exam next week - April 1st of all days - so I am expecting a tough exam.

3.   Assassin's Creed II is ridiculously addicting.

4.   Healthcare Reform bill has passed the House. "This is what change looks like." - Obama. So hello to a few more years of health coverage for me.

5.   Fall 2010 Course Roster is up today! And as a rising senior, I get to select first. Three years of oppression is finally reversed!

6. Have not made any headway on Harmless Econometrics. I think reading books for leisure is something best left to the big vacations...

Pi Day Celebration!

First, I have a gripe about today. It is March 14, 3/14, Pi Day: where we celebrate the wonders from this great number. It is also Daylights Savings Time, when we "spring forward" one hour. Why this specific number? Because of... Pi? Yes, without Pi we would have Daylights Savings Time, but an inaccurate one at that. We would spend years of trial and error trying to calibrate our time systems without our dear Pi. The gripe? I demand an extra hour today so I can study for my exam (midterm, prelim, whatever) tomorrow.

Next, there have been an increasing number of student deaths at Cornell via the bridges. It is difficult to properly address the irrational activity of such students but... no, I can't talk about this. It just doesn't jive well for me.

Anyway, my spring break (unofficially starts) this Thursday! I am going to be taking the bus back early Friday morning to get home in the late morning. I did the same thing last summer and I remember not being able to sleep on the bus as I originally planned. Maybe I should buy some sleeping pills? Or I might just sneak some liquor on board and pass out after the bus drives by Binghamton. I will probably do neither and just force myself to sleep by eating a lot of food. That's a pretty safe way to go about doing it.

Here are my spring break goals!

• Play Assassin's Creed 2: I did not buy FFXIII. While I could finish it in the one week of time I have, I would also neglect other freedoms on my spring break - such as eating and sleeping - so I am going to wait until the summer to sign away my life on it. AC2 is a substitute, and I won't miss it as much when I come back to campus.
• Visit RU: This is pretty self-explanatory. The only problem is how to get there. The RUPD is pretty stringent about parking so I will have to bum a ride from someone. I think I will spend two days and a night there, I am not completely sure yet. There are a lot of people I want to see and party with, so it will be fun!
• Read Harmless Econometrics: I borrowed it, need to finish it.
• Try not to think about my research project: I have been thinking about instead of daydreaming, and I used to daydream a lot. Even though I am doing it for my personal gratification, it feels more and more like work than play.

Pre-Gaming

If you want to do something for a long time, you should try it out first to see if you like it.
Let's define "try it out." For most people this is an internship or research position at an organization or with a professor where they (let's face it) do bitch work. Things in the intern market have gotten better since the "get me coffee and make copies of this" phase." (I'm not even sure if that was the previous state of the intern market: any studies out there on intern conditions?) But it's still pretty monotonous stuff.
It's also pretty important monotonous stuff. I've been doing some thinking about my research project and where I am going to get my data from. I'm pretty sure I will have to go down to the SAS Registrar's office, get on both knees, and beg for data like my (academic) life depended on it. Then proceed to the Institutional Research and Planning Office, get on both knees, and beg for some more data. Did I mention they may not even have the data I am begging for?

"Have you no humility?"
In short, no. When it comes to getting a proper "try it out," I want to expose myself to every inkling of experience there is to offer. Down the road, I would rather not have to do these things when I could get it more easily at an equal or lower cost. But for now, this is going to be pretty cool! I'm excited.

Snow and Me, A Bad Love Story. Part II

Yesterday, a lot of snow fell in Ithaca. When I woke up yesterday morning, there was at least six inches of snow waiting for me to step/fall/slip on when I walked outside. Given the steep inclines throughout campus and the surrounding areas, the snow caused people to fall, cars to spin out of control (even my housemate's four-wheel drive truck), and people to do insane things in the name of stability (such as grabbing trees and plant stems with thorns on them).

Last night, even more snow well, and I can see from my window at least one and a half feet of snow waiting for me.
Cornell opted to go for a delayed opening.




Wait, what?
Turns out Cornell decided to keep going on. Many professors have canceled classes, and more students (such as myself) are not going to class. The last time Cornell had a snow day was 2007. Despite Ithaca almost shutting down and various other inclement-weather emergencies, Cornell has not decided to cancel classes. I'm not sure what the algorithm is for canceling class, but I'd like to see a study or some research on this...

Goal in Sight

Right now I aspire to do an Honors Thesis about the effects of class distribution over various times on changes in majors for different departments at Cornell. I have already discussed doing it with a few professors and it sounds pretty certain I can do the Honors Thesis. It's a two-semester long stint and requires intensive background research and thinking before submitting an application with a faculty supervisor.

There are alternatives such as an independent study which provides assisted research over one semester with a faculty member. But an Honors Thesis takes much longer, includes a thesis defense, and allows me to pursue a research topic from start to finish! Unfortunately, not anyone can do an Honors Thesis. It requires an academic standing in the 20th percentile.

Admittedly, I am a nerd, but I am not the brightest crayon in the box. But it means I have a goal to work towards. Although having a higher GPA increases my chance of entering grad school, having a higher GPA pretty much guarantees getting to do an Honors Thesis because of a definite cut-off level. It is unlike high school when I was applying to college because I was not guaranteed admission based solely on my class rank or GPA.

Fortunately, now I have a greater incentive to do better. I have not been giving it my all recently and I have prelims coming up. I recently had a nightmare I had completely forgotten a class and did not realize it until the final had already passed. But here is the motivation!

Productivity of Diversity

Yesterday I went to Bing to hang out with a friend in the library.
That's right - a day long study date. Bring it on. I haven't done one since freshman year second semester at Rutgers. I had a ridiculously productive time: I finished up my paper, did my problem set, and finished my article for The Visible Hand. I am only so productive when I am studying with someone who is not in the same school I am. Unfortunately I've never been in such an ideal situation since I got to Cornell: everyone I have studied with has been in ILR with me.

I find it better to study with someone else in a different school because none of the idle conversations in between has to do with class. If anyone mentions anything about what they are studying, the other person cannot contribute much - the conversation stays short. Since we both study different things, we get a little 'break' from what we're studying to listen to a short blurb about another topic.
Or maybe I just don't like what I am studying and the offering of alternatives is amazing.

In other news, I plan on making dumplings for a friends' dinner party next week. I have never made them with beef before, so I am going to do a trial run this weekend or later this week.

Snow and Me, A Bad Love Story

Recently this week there was a huge snowstorm on the eastern coast. Dear RU got classes canceled for one day and most classes were canceled the subsequent day. All Jersey schools, Pre-K and upwards, followed suit, some canceling classes for more than one day. Kids made giant snowmen, huge phallic structures, had legendary snowball fights, and an all around great time being in college on a snow day.

I was sitting in class thinking, damn I shouldn't have transferred.

Ithaca had gotten some snow, but (a) Ithaca has a higher standard for what constitutes "a lot of snow," and (b) Cornell kids have been toughing it out climbing slopes, so what's a little loss of friction going to do? Binghamton was close by and had not canceled any classes, so it felt fair.

Until Bing canceled their afternoon classes. Cue the melodramatic "life isn't fair" exaltation.

But it makes sense doesn't it? The distribution of possible snowfall levels is skew right (I am never sure which is which, but there is a larger concentration on the left side). So we are more likely to get a little bit of snow than enough snow to make ten-foot tall gargantuan snowmen.
Then there are the infrastructural resources of the municipality to deal with snow. For areas which see a higher average snowfall, they have more resources such as snowplows. Having more resources increases the ability to cope with higher levels of snow, which means there is a higher threshold for snow to reach the heavily desired "canceled classes." (And it doesn't help Ithaca got less snow than NJ did.)

Nerdilicious

I am a nerd.

It's something I would not have admitted to a few years ago. But here I am, a self-respecting nerd. I was always on the look out for something to make me happy - something mature. Since I left high school, I believed having no major or direction would be better than having the "incorrect" major or direction. I tried to a few different things, but found all of them unsatisfying. I wanted to pursue many different fields and did not commit to any specific one. I was unintentionally waiting for something else to come along that was even more attractive. Bit by bit, I figured out what I liked to do and what I didn't like to do.

What did I like to do? It turns out I had known all along: I love to be creative and experiment with the world around me to see what happens and why it will happen. It was something I had known since I was a kid playing around with Legos, learning about the world through the TV, and wondering what would happen if I messed around with the circumstances and introduced animals to different places. People are (only) slightly different from animals and collecting data from people is far easier than collecting data from animals. I want to study the data patterns and trends - something economics lets me do.

Unfortunately, it took a while for me to understand this about myself. I started with wanting to do "important" and "relevant" government things to gain recognition from others. When I wanted to do something more in that area, it turned out I needed a graduate degree. To pursue a graduate degree, I did research for one summer in economics because it is something I am above-average at. Left to my own devices over the summer and struck with a near-terminal case of boredom I found myself thinking of ideas to research... and loving it.

I do not believe in destiny, but if you look around for long enough, you will find something you like to do!

Cooking in College

I know I am supposed to be studying, reading textbooks, attentively taking notes in class, etc. but it is also an excellent opportunity to be independent. Independence from the many endemic restrictions at home, as well as the opportunity to purchase ingredients (from Wegmans)!

I do not know too many dishes other than the usual "throw stuff into a pan/pot and wish for the best." So I am looking for recipes for some interesting things! I want to try my hand at Hushpuppies and Scalloped potatoes. Not sure what else to try, so I am always open to suggestions. Something with fish would be really cool though! Although seafood tends to be expensive. Maybe I can make some nice meat sauce for pasta. Or a hamburger so I don't have to keep on buying them.

All this writing about food makes me hungry. I will have to endure to tomorrow's breakfast of cereal. Just cereal - nothing special about it. Okay, I mix some granola into it, big deal.

First Things First!

This is my new blog! My previous blog was tarobum27.blogspot.com
This blog (you're reading now) is attached to my new Google account, and I could not wait for the geniuses at Google to allow me to transfer blog accounts from one Google account to another. Ah, the wonders of technology.

My first semester back at school has gone pretty well. It's great to see familiar faces again - it is almost like when you come home from college to see friends from high school, but the time spend between them is far longer - and there is a significant time difference. And international phone calls are not cheap.
Classes-wise there has only been one significant bump. Professor Ehrenberg, who teaches the economics of education class I was taking this semester, took a nasty fall last week so he will not be able to teach the class. Unfortunately, I had to scramble to make a new schedule. I ended up taking two new classes to compensate for the one class I dropped. It made plenty of sense at the time, but I hope to be able to take the workload this semester. The last time I tried to take 18 credits at Cornell, I dropped a class. I do not want to drop any of my classes this semester, particularly with my fiasco with linear algebra last spring.

Well, here's to a smooth running rest of the semester!