Just fyi, my computer has been refusing to start up and hence I was unable to post recently. Now that I’m online again, I hope to make up for the lack of posts. Perhaps I’ll have a chance to do some writing tomorrow!

The Creative Zen Vision:M 30GB mp3 player has been given back fm radio recording capability. This is good news, as I am hoping to get one, maybe for Christmas! The Creative Zen Vision:M is my top pick over the Microsoft Zune or Apple iPod because of its fm radio recording and voice recording capabilities. It also has better video output resolution.

My two hardest finals, Physics 400, Intermediate Electricity and Magnetism, and Math 403, Classical Analysis I, where both today, and and therefore both over! Also, I didn’t feel like I did bad on either of them (although I didn’t feel particularly good about them either), despite the fact that I felt my preparation was very rushed and hardly complete. Regardless of the correctness of my answers, I was able to come up with ways to answer the problems posed to me, even if these ways might have been somewhat unconventional. Hooray for only having two finals to go!

I was given my first “Best Answer” on Yahoo! Answers! The question I responded to is If God does not exist, how is musics music? I found this an interesting topic, especially since I have been taking an acoustics class this semester, and so I responded by explaining the basics of beats and dissonance. In a sense it is a very simple topic, though it is amazing that it works as nicely as it does. Dissonance is based on relative wavelength or frequency. The way sound waves interfere is the key to music.

Arts education is crucial to enjoyment of life. It opens up new ways of looking at the world around you. It teaches you to appreciate beauty and nature.

Personally, I am more musical than graphical as far as the arts go. Music teaches patterns and comparison, observation (listening), teamwork (though it can certainly be done alone), consistency, leading and following (in a band with a conductor), design, attention to what is appealing, and the relation between music and art and emotion.

Graphic art (which I know little about) teaches structure, how things are made, design, patience, attention to what is appealing, contrast, strength and quiet, and expression.

All forms of arts teach expression, how to express ones feelings and understand those around you. They give an appreciation for design. They foster creativity in all areas of life. They inspire.

My life without music would be missing one of the most wonderful forms of beauty that I have ever encountered, and happiness would be much harder to find. Without the creativity that comes only from the human mind, life has little meaning, but the ability to think for oneself in ways unique to you is the way the world changes, and the method by which great events come to pass.

Engineering might pay more, but the arts are the key that unlocks the wonder of humanity, the wonder of life!

(I am a Penn State University student presently studying Physics and Math, but thinking about changing to Meteorology, Aerospace Engineering, Computer Science, or Geosciences. I have grown up listening to almost all kinds of music and playing the trumpet and guitar.)

I had my Geography 121 exam today, Mapping Our Changing World. The building it was in has some relly cool stuff! There are a bunch of displays about various geography-related things, including a PowerPoint-like presentation projected onto the wall. The coolest thing about the presentation was the 3D imagery. They had a bunch of 3D glasses sitting there for you to wear, and when you look at the screen, it looked like the glaciers were more than just simply pictures!

The way they seemed to do it was with two projectors, situated one above the other, pointing to the same location with slightly different images. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get close enough to figure out how the images were different, but the 3D projection was very cool. It reminded me of how often I find myself interested in 3D modelling and wanting to develop 3D computer worlds. Could this be my future career path?

Also associated with Geography 121, I completed my third project today. The topic is Seafloor Mapping with Sonar, a topic that I found rather interesting and caused me to wish taht I had more time to study it. Three areas of sonar were addressed: normal sonar, both passive and active; multibeam sonar; and side scan sonar. Learn more about it here: Seafloor Mapping with Sonar

Yahoo! Answers is a fun community that Yahoo! has set up where you ask and answer questions that people have. Responses are very quick (usually several within a minute or two). It’s fun to think of answers, and to try to answer before anybody else. The website stays up to date with a list of the most recently posted questions. You can also vote on responses with a thumbs up or thumbs down. Overall, Yahoo! Answers is a very fun experience!