Undergraduate / "play rubik's cube at Johns Hopkins" -Johns Hopkins Supplement [3]

Prompt:
A Typical student at Johns Hopkins spends less than 15 hours each week in a classroom, leaving lots of time for volunteer opportunities, clubs and organizations, athletics, social events, and other on- and off-campus activities. Aside from the academic interests you've already expressed, in what activities do you plan to engage as an undergraduate at Johns Hopkins? (250 words maximum)

As an undergraduate at Johns Hopkins, I want to play the Rubik's Cube on campus. Having studied on Rubik's Cube for almost 2 years, I am now a half-expert. But only playing is not the reason why I bring my cubes to Johns Hopkins. Since many regard Rubik's Cube only as a toy while in my opinion, its values are far more than only a recreation, what I want to do is to disseminate the philosophy behind this little stuff. I really want to share these with my friends.

Cube's philosophy NO.1: always be calm and you will find a solution. Most of people first see a cube waiting to be solved with mixed colors will find such a task vexed and feel annoyed. So in most cases, they give up. However, if they calm down and make some observations, they will find order in disorder and consequently find a right solution.

Cube's philosophy NO.2: be brave to give up what you have acquired. In the process to solve a cube puzzle, if you want to go further, you have to re-mix up the finished faces temporarily. Otherwise, you may finish one face of the cube, but you will never have a breakthrough and achieve the final success.

Cube's philosophy NO.3: do not always stick to formulae; be creative. We have to recite "better" formulae in order to raise our solving speeds. However, the formulae we get from others are not always the most suitable for us. Even for a same formula, when using different fingers, the effects will differ considerably. Therefore, we need to practice, correct, or even create our own formulae to find most suitable and effective methods.

These are what I have apprehended from playing Rubik's Cube and there still remains much to be learnt. After seriously taking a dive into Rubik's Cube, everyone will have his or her own deep understandings about the Rubik's Cube and these understandings will still be instructive lessons in his or her future life. That's why I want to play Cubes at Johns Hopkins.

This essay now has 343 words and I am not sure how to shorten it to 250 words, please give me some advice. thank you

Undergraduate / "the application of a theory" - Johns Hopkins - why I choose to major in engineering [7]

Write a brief essay in which you respond to the following question.
(freshman applicants only): Johns Hopkins offers 50 majors across the schools of Arts and Sciences and Engineering. On this supplement, we ask you to identify one or two that you might like to pursue here. Why did you choose the way you did? If you are undecided, why didn't you choose? (If any past courses or academic experiences influenced your decision, you may include them in your essay.)"

I believe that the significance of a theory lies on its value in the application. That why I want to major in engineering-- to apply the theory to practice, to make the things more advanced, accessible and convenient, and to make a better world.

Through the education I received in China, I have learnt numerous formulas and theories. While a large number of those learnt form books and classes are inevitably forgotten during the long time since they were firstly taught, only those I have experienced in person through experiments or modeling or application always stay fresh in my mind. Application also deepens the understanding of an abstract theory. And wandering in the history, I find out numerous cases that applications helped to discover and rectify the mistakes in theory and thus promoted the development of science and society.

If you ask me to recite a certain physics law, just like what I have to do in many school tests, in many cases I cannot recite precisely. But does it matter? As long as I understand the meanings of the law and know how to apply it in corresponding situations, I believe I needn't be restricted by those "standard answer". Yes, maybe there are some others get higher scores than mine in exams, but in the experiment or modeling classes, I'm always the best. Scores cannot objectively and accurately measure my real capability.

And that's why the Indian Bollywood movie 3 idiots is one of my favorite. As an engineering student in the Imperial College of Engineering, one of the best colleges in India, the protagonist Rancho shows not only incredible talent for engineering, but also great passion for study. While learning, he never cares about conventional obsessions; he hates the tedious definitions; his answers are always "unorthodox", but creative and effective. It is his love for engineering that later makes him the most prestigious inventor in the world. He has so many advantages which an engineering student should have that for me, Rancho is a paragon that I will learn from.

I believe anyone major in engineering should have passion and love for this discipline-- it is the most important, and he or she should always have the courage to get off the beaten track and innovate. I think I have possessed of all these spirits. So, now I am ready.

any criticisms are welcome thx