At Princeton, in addition to eating, hanging with friends, participating in fantastic classes and activities—all that jazz—we also do this thing called studying. For real! So just as much as everyone needs to have places to socialize, most people have little nooks and crannies on campus where they can slip away to study or read. Let me take you for a little tour of my favorite study spots and libraries!

Since early high school, I knew that I would pursue an academic field that some would regard as useless, self-centered, or even menial. Perhaps some of you can relate; have you ever had this conversation?

Cousin: "What are you going to major in at Princeton?"

Me: "English."

Cousin: "But like, what are you going to do with that?"

Or recently, my three closest high school friends (all of whom are prospective med schoolers) were asking about Princeton. One looked at me with legitimate concern and said, "But Dylan, you were good at science, why are you doing this?"

So, why am I doing this? Yesterday, I was in class with my philosophy prof, and we were talking about the absolutely crazy stuff they're doing in the Princeton Plasma Lab. (Something involving an artificial star?) I said something along the lines of "makes you scared to go into the humanities, when the other guys are making stars." But my prof was unfazed. He said that every era with great technological advancement was coupled with great humanistic advancement. I agree, and I believe that my English degree will directly profit some faction of my future community. That being said, the reason I choose to study literature is pretty simple. 

It wasn't even much of a choice really— more of a compulsion. I've always preferred Marx to markets and Proust to petri dishes. Even with the so-called "right" fields, I couldn't seem to gravitate to the questions that had black and white answers. Any class was more interesting if it ended in the word "theory." What I've come to realize is that I don't need to support my academic path. Words fail to qualify the adoration I harbor for my favorite pieces of fiction, and often, words fail to characterize the reason why I dedicate a large portion of my life to doing just that. My latest piece of independent work was entitled, "Away Come Away: Yeats, Fairies, and Folklore." But the paper really could have been called, "Yeats is so fantastically brilliant that he'll change the way you look at your own existence in three stanzas." 

I've devoted a good chunk of my young adulthood to the practice of reading, understanding and critiquing the greatest creative works in the history of Western thought. I have many regrets, but none where literature is concerned. I know not yet what I will do with my English degree, but I do know that I refuse to apologize for it. 

This semester, I’m studying abroad through the department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, taking courses in ecology, animal behavior, and conservation.

Hello from Japan!

I am writing my blog entries now from my dorm room at Keio University, sitting by my window that overlooks the glowing city of Tokyo. Though the sun is setting here, I know that my family and friends across the world are just waking up along America's East Coast.

This is my third time going abroad as a Princeton student, so I am used to this extreme space and time difference. The summers after freshmen and sophomore year, I studied in China and worked in India, respectively, gaining exposure to the international perspective. As someone whose primary academic interest is international relations, I love to travel and experience new cultures as often as I can.

Though I am back in Asia once again, this is my first time actually spending a semester as a study-abroad student, and I will consequently be spending my longest time away from home. Four other Princeton students and I are taking part of a brand new Comparative East Asian Studies program hosted through the Woodrow Wilson School. The program includes study and internship across Japan, Korea, and Hong Kong, extending over the summer and spanning in total six months.

A lot of my friends back on campus questioned why I would devote so much of my time with Princeton living and traveling abroad. But I simply can't turn down the wonderful Princeton study abroad opportunities, especially when they are subsidized by scholarships and financial aid. More important, many of my greatest college experiences have come outside of the Orange Bubble, and outside of the United States. In my opinion, many more students should gain international experience while in college (it's one of the easiest times to do so), and I hope more departments adopt an international experience requirement similar to that of the Woodrow Wilson School.

This semester, and this new adventure abroad, has just begun. Things I instantly love about Japan are the foods, the hospitality, and the pop-culture. Though I’ve only been here two weeks, I’ve already learned so much about Japanese language and culture from classes and my new friends (from the latter, I've mostly learned fun slang terms). I’m stoked to see what Korea and Hong Kong have to offer over the next few months. You’ll continue to hear from me on this blog during my program, both about campus life and life abroad. For now, Sayonara!

An awesome tree near Tokyo, Japan.[/caption]

 

 

How does an engineer find herself in London spending a week analyzing Pre-Raphaelite photography and painting for an Art History class?

Interested in international development, I typed "poverty" in the course selection search box during enrollment period and came across Prof. Anne McCauley’s course titled "History of Photography: Pre-Raphaelite Photography and Painting" in the Art History Department. I immediately applied and became ecstatic when I heard the news that I would be joining ten other students on a journey to London over Spring Break as part of the course.

The class posing inside Windsor Castle.

After a few pre-trip assignments and layers of clothing checked through airport security, we found ourselves in London, where we were based in a comfortable Central London hotel for a week. We spent days viewing galleries in museums such as the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. We even had the chance to visit Oxford University and Windsor Castle, where we interacted with key works from Queen Victoria’s private photo collection! This was all done with the best ‘curator’ any budding art historian could ask for – Prof. McCauley.

Of course, we were also given the chance to explore London by shopping in Camden Market, walking around Big Ben, and eating some mouthwatering crème brûlée (I had seconds!).

Having some mouthwatering crème brûlée in London.

The approach to the syllabus that such a travel-oriented class provided was an unparalleled tangible learning experience.  For instance, Prof. McCauley would lead an in-depth discussion about the texture and cultural significance of each painting, aspects we would not have fully appreciated in 2D on a classroom’s projector screen.

An obligatory cheesy touristy photo.

Seeing the artworks in person inspired my final paper topic for the class. When we visited the Pitt Rivers anthropological photography collection in Oxford, I was particularly struck by the portrayal of slavery in Africa and thus decided to write my final paper on a similar note, titled “Revealing the Unseen: Depiction of the Victorian Working Class in Greenwood and Concanen’s Works.”

As an engineer interested in international development, this class was the perfect medium for understanding the various dimensions of working in the field,  and for transcending the quantitative and written components of the usual classroom. Indeed, taking the course gave me a practical foundation to step out of my comfort zone and pursue my research interests and general academic curiosity from a visual stance, in which there is need to both create and analyze media.

A Princeton education is anything you want to make of it, and in fact anywhere you want to make of it.

One of the incredible advantages of attending Princeton is being able to witness, learn about, and occasionally participate in world-class research. For example, Princeton physicists are heavily involved in diverse pursuits including the quest for the Higgs boson,  the development of quantum computing, and efforts to harness mechanisms used in the sun to bring safe, clean, and cheap energy to Earth.

I’m particularly interested in this last area, which is fusion research. Basically, fusion creates energy by putting two atomic nuclei together. Many scientists think the best way for this reaction to occur is in plasmas, which are ionized gases.

 

Research on this sort of fusion occurs at Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, located a short distance from campus. PPPL is technically a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory, but it is run by Princeton and many scientists do research there and teach at Princeton.

Last semester, I decided to use my JP (see Cricket's great post about JPs here) to get to know this laboratory and its work a little better.

I worked with Professor Nathaniel Fisch, who is an authority on how waves move in plasmas and how these waves can be used to heat plasmas and to drive currents that are necessary to control the plasmas. 

Professor Fisch gave me a project that involved looking at how altering the position from which these waves are launched can influence how good they are at achieving their goals. To do this, I had to learn a lot about the physics of plasma waves and also about the computational tools that physicists use to simulate wave propagation.

After completing my JP, I really understand how plasma physicists go about approaching this type of problem. I'm excited to learn and participate more, and I'm thus considering an internship next summer at PPPL.

Studying abroad in London the summer before my senior year was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life! I was inspired to visit London during my junior year, after taking an amazing Shakespeare course with English Professor Russ Leo (he’s fantastic). The class, which explored some of Shakespeare’s earlier works, was one of the best classes I have taken at Princeton.

My favorite lectures were about the theater culture in London during the late 1500s. I was particularly fascinated by the history of the Globe Theatre, where Shakespeare staged some of his productions. Immediately after taking this course, I researched summer programs that would give me the opportunity to finally visit the famous Globe. I decided to join The Duke in London-Drama program because it offered two courses taught by the lovely and brilliant theater Professor Sarah Beckwith.

Over the course of six weeks, I saw more than 30 professional shows in London including dramas, comedies, musicals, and an opera! One of my favorites was, of course, the Globe’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” production. I also had a lot of free time, which allowed me to explore many parts of the city. I checked out several museums, had a ton of tea, and took plenty of pictures. One of the best parts about being in London was meeting up with other Princetonians. One of my friends, Dinora ’12, currently lives in London, and when she found out I was there, we quickly made plans to meet. One sunny morning (yes, London can be sunny, and it was surprisingly warm while I was there...), I met her and a few of her Princeton friends over a delicious English breakfast. 

 

They met through the Princeton Association UK, which hosts social events for young Princeton alumni in London. They each had nothing but positive things to say about their experience with the Princeton network while abroad. They emphasized that being able to hang out with other Princetonians made their time in London even better. I found this to be true after meeting up with a couple other Princeton undergraduates who were also working or studying at London that summer. Knowing I have a Princeton family in the theater capital of the world makes me all the more eager to return! 

 

Think about what you think you want to be when you grow up!

JP (junior paper). Never have these two letters been the source of so much anxiety, stress, and worry.

Coming to Princeton, I knew I would eventually have to face independent work. As a freshman, the very idea of a thesis was terrifying to me. How could I possibly say anything of any importance to anyone in the world, especially when I could barely manage to find my way around campus?

To be honest, the idea working one-on-one with a faculty adviser on independent research was part of the reason I chose to come to Princeton over larger schools of the same caliber, where it would be more difficult (or impossible) to have that kind of opportunity. Yet, when I found the reality of independent work looming over me this year, I was beginning to wonder why I thought this was such a good idea after all.

Typically, Princeton students in the Bachelor of Arts program will write two small independent papers in their junior year. Generally, one of these papers is closely related to the independent research they will focus on for their senior thesis. (Engineering students also have a requirement for a senior thesis or independent project, but typically aren’t required to participate in junior independent work.)

When the year started, I was so scared. I needed to write a short fall JP and also choose an adviser for my spring JP and senior thesis by December 2. Who should my adviser be? What should my topic be? What question should I ask? Where do I even begin? Most of my friends had similar fears. We felt overwhelmed and unprepared and thought we could never do it.

And it has been hard. But it’s completely manageable, and I have found overwhelming support from my department and certificate representatives, potential advisers, former professors, and students in the program. And now, as the semester is nearing an end, I have seen something more important than our complaints and worries over deadlines and meetings. When my friends tell me about their work, I sense their pride in what they have accomplished. When they tell me about their topics for their senior thesis, I sense their excitement in what they’ll be doing. There’s something incredibly fulfilling about saying you have worked on something that no one else has worked on, and about having the ability to focus on what is important to you. I know that I, personally, have had a lot of fun thinking about the evolutionary basis for human moral systems.

JP. Never have two letters been the source of such inspiration, reflection, and excitement.

If you are thinking about coming to the United States for college, congratulations! The liberal arts education in the U.S. is truly world class. Yet if you are worried about whether your non-native English ability can handle the rigorous course load, you are not alone. The academic writing at Princeton calls for such high caliber research and critical thinking that it makes things especially difficult for internationals who are not used to writing papers in American style.

Fortunately, the Princeton writing seminar, a required course for first-year students, comes to the rescue. Although not designed specifically for internationals, it serves the crucial purpose as an introduction to writing well. In the writing seminar, we learned about thesis, motive, transition, outline/reverse outline and so on. We critiqued each other’s papers and learned to navigate Firestone Library to write a research paper. My writing seminar professor was everything one could ask for: She did not lower her expectation even a bit for me just because I'm international, yet she was extremely patient and provided me with helpful feedback in every stage of writing.

I should also mention the writing center located in the basement of Whitman College. From brainstorming to finding a working thesis, and from writing papers to lab reports, writing center fellows were able to assist me in numerous ways. Whether I encountered writer's block, could not articulate a confusing concept, or simply wanted someone to read over my draft, in this hour-long, one-on-one session, the fellows helped address my specific questions. The writing center is open seven days a week and accepts both online appointments and drop-ins.

Bottom line is it takes a while to get used to American academic writing, yet resources to help us abound.