The quality of Rice's academic life and the Residential College System are heavily influenced by the unique life experiences and cultural traditions each student brings. What perspective do you feel that you will contribute to life at Rice? (Most applicants are able to respond successfully in two to three double-spaced pages.)
About a year ago, my perspective dramatically changed. I used to seek an understanding of reality in itself. This goal took me on an intellectual adventure beginning with Plato's world of ideas, continued to religious claims of objectivity, and ended with a hodgepodge of new-age pseudo-science. My plan to study philosophy in my academic career evinced my Faustian thirst to understand. However, - even though I still read and appreciate philosophy and other related topics - because I continued to study and reflect on the significance of any form of objective understanding, I came to the personal conclusion that knowledge for the sake of understanding is not the best way to enrich my experience as a human. This progressive and mature shift broadened my passion for knowledge to include and focus on my passion for the great human disciplines (such as science, math, and modern philosophy). This shift reflects a part of my current perspective to use knowledge from many disciplines as a pragmatic tool, a way to understand and solve contemporary issues.
My nascent thirst for pragmatic knowledge immediately changed my actions and thoughts. For example, after expanding what I knew about ethics, biology, ecology, nutrition, physiology, and philosophy of the mind, my diet changed accordingly. For almost a year now - since my perspective changed - I have adopted and followed an ethical diet. This ethical diet includes not eating animal products (unless they are about to go to waste, or unless they were slaughtered humanely and out of necessity). My new perspective has changed my thoughts in that now, instead of pursuing an academic career in philosophy, my interests reside in using science to solve problems (specifically studying symbiotic relationships, especially of mychorizza, at the ecological and molecular level). My diet and intended academic pursuit reflect another part of my perspective, namely that as my knowledge continues to develop; my actions and thoughts change accordingly.
I aspire to accomplish goals in my life that are only accomplishable through my greatest efforts. However, I cannot achieve these meaningful yet difficult goals if time-consuming and selfish impulses stand in my way. Overcoming anything blockading me from my goal manifests the final part of my perspective (at least that I am describing). Self-overcoming poses a daily challenge to my life, a challenge that I have met so far when I expunged mindless entertainment from my life, such as television, video games, social gossip, unnecessary food and personal fantasies. While at Rice, I will combine my passion for pragmatic knowledge and my motivation to self-overcome in order to most efficiently use my time and energy to study and foster my interests, not to fulfill meaningless, selfish desires. I will contribute a multi-disciplined perspective to understanding and solving contemporary issues.
Any criticism is always appreciated! If you would like, I will criticize anybody's work who criticizes mine! (Constructively of course!!!)
Samuel,
You have an interesting essay here. I thought that I would pose a few comments. Whereas some of the information you present is indeed esoteric, I wanted to comment on the following sentence, from the 2nd paragraph:
However, - even though I still read and appreciate philosophy and other related topics - because I continued to study and reflect on the significance of any form of objective understanding, I came to the personal conclusion that knowledge for the sake of understanding is not the best way to enrich my experience as a human.
Is it not true, however, that "knowledge for the sake of understanding" is the most efficient and most admirable means of enriching one's life? Is it always necessary to pursue a degree, for example, in EE, only to become an engineer, or is it also "a good thing to do" so that one understands the concepts of electricity? Who is the person from the 18th century who said "education for the sake of an education? And, why are we all always geared up to capture an education just to be employed? Is that the only end result of an education, to become employed? Or is it also to understand our world?
I also found it quite interesting how you tied your becoming a vegetarian along with your change in the pursuit of an education. Did the two happen together?
Indeed, your essay can easily be expanded to include others who have expressed themselves as you have, but I also understand that one is limited here due to space (for the school). But, I ask you: do you think that you adequately appreciated the prompt for the essay? I think that in the 3rd paragraph, you did approach the meaning of the prompt, but I am not altogether sure with respect to the other paragraphs.
Just some thoughts for you. I didn't see any severe grammatical errors that need changing and certainly, there were no spelling issues.
Good essay!
Mark
This shift reflects a part of my current perspective to use knowledge from many disciplines as a pragmatic tool, a way to understand and solve contemporary issues.
Oh, so we have a pragmatist on our hands... very good. You know, the best way to appreciate a discipline is to apply it, anyway, so I think this is a solid idea.
This really is a good premise for the essay.
I see what mark means though with the prompt. It refers to culture... um... so maybe it seems like you should write about culture... but that is not necessary... you wrote all about perspective, which is very good, and you specifically wrote about how the shift of perspective is something you will bring to Rice. That is pretty solid.
I will criticize anybody's work who criticizes mine!--- it is good to go give some feedback to people on the unanswered list, and then link them to your essay.
Overcoming anything blockading me from my goal manifests the final part of my perspective (at least that I am describing). --- I think you can make this sentence clearer... or just simplify. No need to spoon feed every idea to the reader.
Self-overcoming-- how about "self-mastery" instead?
