I am an observer, who enjoys spending spare time hanging out in a certain park and finding an excellent observation point to peek at others.
Trace back to a lazy afternoon during this summer, I was sitting on a bench in the People's Square. A young man with a black peaked cap was giving out real estate leaflets. A house wife took a leaflet and had a look, but then folded it into a paper plane for her little boy who happily threw it far away. A student-like volunteer, wearing a shirt saying environmental protection, began trotting to catch the plane. However, the plane flew faster blown by the wind and finally fell over a table of an outdoor café. A neatly dressed business man picked it up, opened it up, ran it over and handed it to the waitress, who then dropped the leaflet on the ground. Later, a humpbacked rag picker picked the leaflet up and put it into his scruffy bag.
I had a hidden peep from my observation point. I kept my eyes following the leaflet, imaging everyone's reaction when they looked at the real advertisement; wondering how their careers and their salaries influenced their thoughts; supposing if different ages and different genders brought them different views. All of a sudden, I had an impulse to record the numbers and facts related to the questions and explore factors deciding every choice and the proportion of each factor. I finally realized the "peep" had exposed me to a variety of social phenomena.
Therefore, I aim to major in statistics, the study of the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation and presentation of data, to help me investigate people. Those who I have observed are samples come from diverse backgrounds, and what I want to learn is how these samples imply some characteristics of the population and whether their interests, religions, families, cultures, experiences influence their choices in life. A long way as it may be, I have enough patience and natural enthusiasm to find the answers and I will put all my efforts to achieve my goal.
