Undergraduate / 'Student's freedom to own curriculum' - Duke Supplement: Why Trinity College? [6]

If you are applying to Trinity College of Arts and Sciences, please discuss why you consider Duke a good match for you. Is there something in particular at Duke that attracts you? Please limit your response to one or two paragraphs.

o be honest, when my uncle first mentioned Duke University to me in my sophomore year, I had not given it much thought then. An Exploring College Options conference changed all that. I was invited in email to the program in downtown Los Angeles in October of my junior year, and I have been interested in Duke since. U Penn, "a Benjamin Franklin themed park (the admission officer's words, not mine)" did not appeal to me; Duke alone captured most of my interest. As I sipped my complimentary Starbucks coffee and assessed my competition, the representative admission officer introduced his presentation: "Last year, Duke fully funded an undergraduate to the World Cup in Africa because he wanted 'to study the effect the world soccer championship had on international relations.' True Story." To me, this conveyed a lot. The degree of intellectual freedom and encouragement for creativity supported by Duke is remarkable, and exactly what I am seeking: a chance for young minds to design their own education and study the matters important to them. I'm excited to jump into the myriad of opportunities available to me at Duke's Trinity College of Arts and Science and take advantage of its double major and minor programs (Psychology, Neuroscience, Economics and perhaps French Studies). The problem at Duke is not the lack of research programs, fields of studies or award-winning faculties, but too many options for one to hope to absorb them all.

I'm interested in Duke not only because of its prestigious national ranking, its stunning Gothic architecture, or its low faculty-to-student ratio, although those are a given. I'm interested in Duke because of the freedom it gives students to design their own curriculum, exemplified by the fact that at Trinity College of Arts and Science, the only requirement for freshmen is a Writing 20 course and a First-Year Seminar. Finally! A chance to learn what I want and everything I want. I can't wait to join the InCubers and start on my entrepreneurship as well as take advantage of the DukeEngage program to expose myself to the outside world and learn new languages and cultures alongside my education. Not to mention that the general education requirements is both definitive and liberal, with broad guidelines set up for five areas of knowledge, but ultimately leaves the students to decide the courses they want to pursue. I love that the Trinity College do not simply feed its students textbook material but challenges students to approach and analyze life from a global perspective with its Modes of Inquiry. Duke fosters a curious breed of intellectuals and what attracts me most at Duke's Trinity College of Arts and Science is a chance to explore, everything.

Any suggestions , ANY is welcome and greatly appreciated.

Undergraduate / "Have you dissected any sheep eyeballs before?"; Indicate a Person of Influence [5]

Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence.

"Have you dissected any sheep eyeballs before?"
"Not lately."
This strange dialogue is a snippet of what was a common occurrence in my AP Psychology class. Our teacher Mr. Acker, with his short-boxed beard, slightly high-pitched voice and a wry humor that could be easily missed, taught us a most interesting subject in the most unconventional ways. I was lucky to be placed in the first year of AP Psychology class at our school as demands were high and seniors had first priority. The class -the highlight of my junior year- and more importantly Mr. Acker, introduced me to a new dimension of learning and led me to discover my latent passion for psychology.

As I walked into the first day of class, I noticed with piqued interest a duct-tape square marked out on the carpeted floor in front of the classroom. Mr. Acker began with a brief introduction and without any instructions, asked for five volunteers from the class. They were ushered out of the classroom and while they waited, Mr. Acker predicted the ways that the students would arrange themselves inside the box drawn on the ground. He was so sure of his prognostication we were so dubious that the class watched in awe as the volunteers, without fail, arranged themselves exactly as Mr. Acker had predicted. One by one, the students were brought back and instructed to stand anywhere the box; the first chose to stand in the middle while the rest each occupied a corner. I was instantly captivated by Mr. Acker's ability to understand and anticipate the unspoken rules that govern even the simplest group behavior. I wanted to learn more about those rules that are not only specific to group behavior but are also principal to the human mind.

Mr. Acker further challenged our understanding of psychology by finding new ways to reinforce our learning by provoking all of our senses. We listened to relaxation tapes, conditioned our salivary glands with lemon powder, and upset our occipital lobes with disorienting goggles. His easygoing Type B personality directly contrasted with my heart-disease-prone Type A personality and impelled his memorable teaching methods. We never knew what to expect each day as we walked into class. Someday we would be watching a video (such as one of a giraffe on the stages of loss) while others we worked in group on activities (such as counting different colors of M&Ms to experience statistics). At school I soaked up the lectures while at home I devoured the textbook, reading ahead chapters in advance.

Before long, I knew that psychology was going to be my major in college. The class, and especially Mr. Acker, led me to want to seek a deeper understanding of the motivations behind human behavior, and to examine to what extent the biological functions of the brain control thought and actions. Realizing how much I miss the class this year, I started a psychology club at my school with Mr. Acker as the adviser. I continue to research psychology, and I try to introduce new ideas and stimulate engaging conversations as part of the psychology club.

Any suggestions on a concluding sentence? Thank you!

Undergraduate / 'Announcing the program for us' - Common App Short Answer [9]

"Will you announce the program for us?" I asked the librarian. "Alright," she switched on the intercom and spoke "Patrons, the Story Time and Arts and Crafts program hosted by the Chino Hills High School Key Club will start now in the children section of the Library." So it began. Little kids from toddlers to first-graders sat impatiently on the carpet as I started to read The Pigeon Wants a Puppy in an abnormally animated voice. Two books went by and I couldn't help but chuckle as little heads start to loll even when they fought to focus their attention. However, as soon as I shut the book and announced that it's crafts time, everyone snapped up from their trance and rushed to the table already set up by my fellow key clubbers. This week is Tissue Paper Flowers; the five of us immediately set to work with requests of "can I have some purple" and "how do I tie this together". The flurry of bright colored tissue paper and fuzzy sticks must have attracted the other kids as they stopped in their reading to join the commotion. Finally, the crowd started to thin and I slowed down for a drink of water. A blond boy of four years I was helping was the last to leave, and before he left, he gave me a resounding "thank you" and a bitty high-five and I smiled big. The clock now points to five and a mess was waiting to be cleaned. Today had been a success and I couldn't wait to come back next Thursday.

Does this make sense? I'm trying to describe one instance of volunteering at my local library with the Story-time and Crafts program.
I have a bit of condensing to do.

Thank you for your feedback!

Undergraduate / 'Indoor Plumbing' - Stanford: What matters to you? [NEW]

As I wiped down the porcelain bowl (a chore I'm sure no other than my mom would delegate), I couldn't help but appreciate the ingenuity of modern indoor plumbing. I'm not trivializing the importance of happiness, time, knowledge, or freedom; those all matter to me. However, as I recall my childhood days, I found myself acknowledging the value of indoor plumbing.

I was born in a small town in China; my parents both worked in Singapore as manual laborers to support our family, so I lived mostly with my grandparents. Before we moved to an apartment equipped with proper piping, our house had no bathroom. The only water source came from a faucet in what would be considered a kitchen. Until I was seven, my family, neighbors, and I all had to use the public restroom across the street (a brick building with holes in the ground) and public bathhouses. Now my childhood neighborhood is replaced with sky scrappers; however, I still cringe at the thought of the stench from the public restroom. Just the summer before last, I went back to China to visit my grandparents. The many bathrooms I encountered all confounded me; water drained straight from the shower-head to the opening on the tiled-floor, but a bath tub or a cubicle didn't exist. Nothing separated the shower from the toilet or the sink, in other words, shower only when necessary. So when I returned to America, I secretly thanked my bathroom facilities. I could no longer fathom nor readjust to life without indoor plumbing. Although I grew accustomed to the convenience of modern day life, I still have quiet moments of gratitude towards the relative comfort of my life now.

This is a little personal, but please give me your honest opinion. Do you think this topic works? And do you have any questions I didn't address?

I really appreciate the feedback, and I'll return the favor.

Undergraduate / 'acceptance of others matters' - Stanford: What matters to you, and why? [NEW]

Thousands of people milled around me, many adorning flashy shades of red. We were gathered on the broad street of Los Angeles for the annual Aids Walk. This is an event that I attended for three consecutive years, the first year in 2009 had been the most memorable. Excitement filled the air as the opening ceremony officially began the walk. Right when I rounded the first corner, I saw three middle-aged men on the sidewalk holding cardboard signs that read "Jesus hates gays" and "You will go to hell". They received no shortage of boos, but that was because the mentality of the people at Aids Walk was more liberal than that of the average American. While I admire their bravery for boldly protesting at such an adversarial audience, I contemplated the homophobic mindset of the three men. To me, acceptance of others matters for both individual and society, and among proponents of gender and racial equality, I advocate for gay rights. I have heard of many arguments against gay marriage on the basis of religion, education, etc. Although I believe everyone is entitled to their own opinion, I don't understand the great extent some people go to make those different from them feel miserable and alienated. I despise the negative connotation the word "homosexuality" holds. It upsets me to know that loving someone of the same gender could elicit such strong reactions of disgust. Even though I do not expect everyone to share the same views as me, I do hope that one day society can embrace interpersonal difference and abandon prejudices.

Any criticism is greatly appreciated!

Undergraduate / The Little Prince is more than my favorite book, it is an experience I treasure [NEW]

Stanford students possess an intellectual vitality. Reflect on an idea or experience that has been important to your intellectual development.

It didn't happen in a day or a moment, but a span of seven years. The Little Prince is more than my favorite book, it is an experience I treasure. I adore the classic because it doesn't pretend with its effortless prose and enchanting view of life. The Little Prince also marks my intellectual development from being monolingual to more than bilingual. When I first picked up the book- an edition that had three languages- at age ten and read through it in Chinese, I fell in love with the Little Prince. Quite literally, I sat on the toilet and sobbed through the last chapter (I have an unhealthy habit of reading in the bathroom). The novella made me appreciate the minute details of life and freed my mind from mundane concerns.Three years later, I revisited the Little Prince, in English this time. I realized the difference it made to read in another language; I had taken on a new perspective of the book. I still loved the Little Prince, but I began to discover the nuance of language, the subtle differences that accompanied each translation. This summer, I have started to read the original in French, slowly working through each chapter, paying attention not only to unfamiliar words but the grammatical structure as well. The satisfaction of being able to comprehend my favorite book in its original is unparalleled. I noticed that the original is brimming with the subjunctive mood that the Chinese and English versions struggled to convey. The Little Prince is vital to my linguistic development. It inspired me to challenge myself with learning new languages and to re-examine life from a child's perspective.

All comments are greatly appreciated!