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Oct 6, 2009
Undergraduate / "My most profound interests; the universe" - UIUC Essay (#1 of 2) [16]
I'm back after almost two months. I've been busy but have found some time to work on my UF essay. Would someone please read it and let me know what you think?
Only a handful of my memories are vivid enough for me to place any great importance on. Though I didn't realize its significance at the time, there is one specific event that sparked my profound interest in physics and science. While in elementary school, I was afforded the pleasure of a presentation by a few representatives from Fermilab, an internationally recognized physics laboratory in suburban Chicago, Illinois. The presentation was part of a science outreach program funded by a local university. My class walked in a single-file line to the gymnasium where we were promptly told by the friendly presenters to remove our shoes. We were then ushered into an inflatable dome that was set up in the center of the hardwood court. This seemed odd at the time but we were promised that we'd enjoy it.
Once inside, my peers and I sat in a circle along the perimeter of the dome. A man in a polo shirt adorned with his university's logo presented to us various pictures of galaxies, stars, planets, and moons. As the photographs circulated around the dome I could hear various "ooh"s and "ahh"s from the fascinated students. The pictures were unlike any I had seen before. They showed far off galaxies suspended in a purplish hue and stars that I was told were nearly two thousand times as big as the Sun. One picture in particular taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft showed the Earth from a vantage point on the outskirts of the Solar System. The Earth appeared as just a speck on the screen, a pale blue dot. Never before had I fathomed the extreme vastness of the universe.
After about thirty minutes it was finally time to find out why we were ushered into the vinyl monstrosity we were sitting in. The man told us to close our eyes for twenty seconds. My class counted down in unison as if it were new years' eve. My eyes opened to find the dome had become darker, and various celestial were floating along the interior surface of the dome. As the virtual night sky sailed by, the man used a laser to point out items on the dome's dark ceiling. I asked him where I could see the planet Jupiter and within a few seconds my eyes followed the red glow of the laser to land upon the gas giant. I was in awe. Never before had I seen the sky so void of light that I could make out specific constellations and planets.
My experience in the dome and the time since then has instilled a passion in me that will greatly influence my college experience. I see my potential stay at the University of Florida as a medium on which I can further my passion for physics and grow both socially and academically, which is why I wish to one day be sitting in an University of Florida classroom experiencing the same wonder and interest that I felt that day in grade school.
Thank you!
I'm back after almost two months. I've been busy but have found some time to work on my UF essay. Would someone please read it and let me know what you think?
Only a handful of my memories are vivid enough for me to place any great importance on. Though I didn't realize its significance at the time, there is one specific event that sparked my profound interest in physics and science. While in elementary school, I was afforded the pleasure of a presentation by a few representatives from Fermilab, an internationally recognized physics laboratory in suburban Chicago, Illinois. The presentation was part of a science outreach program funded by a local university. My class walked in a single-file line to the gymnasium where we were promptly told by the friendly presenters to remove our shoes. We were then ushered into an inflatable dome that was set up in the center of the hardwood court. This seemed odd at the time but we were promised that we'd enjoy it.
Once inside, my peers and I sat in a circle along the perimeter of the dome. A man in a polo shirt adorned with his university's logo presented to us various pictures of galaxies, stars, planets, and moons. As the photographs circulated around the dome I could hear various "ooh"s and "ahh"s from the fascinated students. The pictures were unlike any I had seen before. They showed far off galaxies suspended in a purplish hue and stars that I was told were nearly two thousand times as big as the Sun. One picture in particular taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft showed the Earth from a vantage point on the outskirts of the Solar System. The Earth appeared as just a speck on the screen, a pale blue dot. Never before had I fathomed the extreme vastness of the universe.
After about thirty minutes it was finally time to find out why we were ushered into the vinyl monstrosity we were sitting in. The man told us to close our eyes for twenty seconds. My class counted down in unison as if it were new years' eve. My eyes opened to find the dome had become darker, and various celestial were floating along the interior surface of the dome. As the virtual night sky sailed by, the man used a laser to point out items on the dome's dark ceiling. I asked him where I could see the planet Jupiter and within a few seconds my eyes followed the red glow of the laser to land upon the gas giant. I was in awe. Never before had I seen the sky so void of light that I could make out specific constellations and planets.
My experience in the dome and the time since then has instilled a passion in me that will greatly influence my college experience. I see my potential stay at the University of Florida as a medium on which I can further my passion for physics and grow both socially and academically, which is why I wish to one day be sitting in an University of Florida classroom experiencing the same wonder and interest that I felt that day in grade school.
Thank you!
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