Archive for the 'Breaks' Category

Bubbles, Bubbles, Bubbles

May 30, 2008

Unfortunately for you, I once again have no graphics to adequately convey what I am researching. This week was another flood of terms such as Gaussian curvatures, osculating circles, helices, tangential vectors, level curves, line of foci, and other fun mathematical concepts. I won’t go into much more detail since we’re basically still learning the needed concepts, but we did have one big change. We are completely altering our area of research. Our group is no longer researching the curvature of blood vessels. Now we are the “double bubble” group. Our adviser had done some research on this area in the past and we are now exploring new realms of it. As simple background, a circle is the absolute best way to contain a given area with the smallest possible perimeter. Likewise, a sphere is the most efficient way to contain a given volume with the smallest surface area. However, we are looking at the efficiency of what happens when two bubbles (spheres) bump into each other and combine. We are looking at how we can contain the most volume with the least surface area. Our whole group is pretty excited about this and we’re looking forwards to new adventures. Our group is really working well together. We’re joking around with Ole and Lena jokes (which only a few of us get) yet moving forwards as fast as we can (which means as fast as I can). We added another member who arrived back from Hong Kong study abroad which brings our total for Oldham Scholars in the group to three, which is really funny to me. Anyways, more updates and better pictures to come soon.

The other major event of the week was moving into the on-campus apartments on Sunday. It’s a much longer walk to get to my research building and dining centers, but it has more room and a kitchen. I’m rooming with one of my friends and two of his friends. Hopefully, we all continue to get along. I somehow got everything moved, including my futon. It took most of the day, but I’m all settled now.

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My friends who helped me move in

Now that I have a lot more free time, I have undertaken the task of getting myself back into as good of shape as possible. Every day, either during lunch or after work, I go to the gym for about an hour and run, bike, row, or swim. Additionally, I’m trying to eat healthier and make other small adjustments. The desserts at our dining center are incredible, but I’m trying my best to resist them more often. I’m rather sore from the gym, but I’ll keep up my new life as long as possible.

Some of the rest of my free time is spent hanging out with other research participants. Every Thursday, our math research group goes out to eat at a local restaurant together. We also have one event planned each week just for us. This week’s activity was going to Coldstone for ice cream. It’s nice to be able to see each other and our professors without talking about math or work at all. Future events include movie nights and game nights.

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Some of the math researchers at Coldstone

However, I don’t need someone to plan a night for movies and games. I got together with some science researchers on Thursday night for Catchphrase and Taboo. It got a bit out of control and some of us had tears in our eyes from laughing so hard, but you have to realize what you’re getting yourself into when you start a game night with me.

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Elizabeth was on the floor crying because she was
laughing so hard during game night

Finally, I’ve been working hard to bring a disc golf course to the University of Richmond. This has taken a lot of my time with communicating with local disc golfers as well as administration and potential designers. However, if it all works out, I’ll be really excited.

Quote of the Week: “If people do not believe that mathematics is simple, it is only because they do not realize how complicate life is” - John Louis von Neumann
Thought to Ponder: Why are some blackboards green?
Shout Outs: Anyone who’s ever braved a game night with me
YouTube Video of the Week:

I saw this on TV and was amazed that a human body can do that

What To Do?

It’s been three weeks since I finished school. What a crazy thought! It feels like I haven’t done anything. This past week was spent working in the Admissions Office for twenty hours giving tours. Besides that, I had nothing to do with no one here on campus yet and no way to get off-campus. Needless to say, I haven’t done much this week. I’ve adjusted to my new dorm room on-campus and watched lots of TV, even Discovery Channel, Food Network, and Game Show Network. Besides that, I finally got around to reading some books I’ve been meaning to get to. Our main dining center has been closed due to the lack of students on-campus, so I’ve had to deal with limited food options in addition to the boredom. In short, I’ve been eating PB&J, popcorn, granola bars, Ramen, and Pop-Tarts for a good share of the week.

With such few things to do, I don’t have much to report. However, I did attend a baseball game here on-campus. We lost, but it was still a beautiful day for a baseball game.

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The baseball game I went to on-campus

I also went to a yard sale that the University hosts. They collect all of the clothes, sofas, lamps, and everything that is left after the students leave. They sell it at very cheap prices to staff, students, and the public. I went and managed to buy a nice futon, stool, and lamp for my room next year. Finally, I’ve been in touch with some of my organizations regarding our plans for the fall. I’ve proposed a few ideas for events to get freshmen involved with InterVarsity that I’m very excited about.

Sadly, that’s all I have to report for this week. At least the weather has been amazing this week, usually 70s and sunny. However, without anything to do outside, that makes it not as enjoyable. I start my math research on Tuesday and will let you know how that goes.

Quote of the Week: “In order to live free and happily, you must sacrifice boredom.” -Richard Bach
Thought to Ponder: Should vegetarians eat animal crackers?
YouTube Video of the Week:

One of the top viral videos of the year (40 million views!!!)

Rockbridge

Well, summer’s here and I spent the first week at a retreat for InterVarsity called Rockbridge. I left Tuesday and returned on Sunday. It was held in Western Virginia and it was held at an amazing place. It had a giant zipline over the lake, a blob, giant slides, volleyball courts, disc golf, a high ropes course, climbing wall, and lots of other great things. Naturally, I took advantage of them all.

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The awesome water slides and blob
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The great lawn in front of the dining center
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Playing volleyball with some friends
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Playing cabbageball with friends (It’s basically softball without gloves)p5084784-1.jpg
Being dropped from the giant swing
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I climbed this pole…
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Stood on the top…
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And then jumped off
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Another friend doing the daredevil leap
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Fellow Richmonders on the high ropes course
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Having fun on the ropes course
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Our group that did the ropes course together

However, the whole purpose was to train members of InterVaristy on leadership and general tracks for living a Christian life. I took a tract called Kingdom Living and we dealt with issues of multiethnicity, sexuality, social justice, the environment, and Christians in politics within our group. In addition, we studied the Sermon on the Mount and broke off into small groups where I made some good friends from the University of North Carolina. There were about 350 students there from about ten different schools in the Virginia and Carolinas region. Each night, we held a worship service and the week was a great experience overall.

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A beautiful stream at the retreat where I did my Retreat of Silence

One of my favorite things about Rockbridge was the volleyball. I hadn’t been able to play in a while, so it was great to get in hours of playing, both with friends from UR and complete strangers. I spent four hours playing volleyball in the hot sun on the first day. I got a little sunburnt, but it was worth it. At the end of the week, there was a tournament between schools and, even though our team lost in the semifinals, we still had a great time. Richmond won the Spirit Award with our overwhelming fan section, school spirit, and amazing cheerleading, beating UNC, Duke, and other schools that were much larger in the process (which we took great pride in doing).

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Getting serious with the facepaint
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This is how we arrived to the volleyball tournament
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Look at that intensity
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Playing in the tournament

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Some of our fantastic cheerleaders
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I’m ready to battle on the volleyball courts
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Cheering for the judges of the Spirit Award (which we won)
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Our final pose

Along the way, I made many new friends. I am the only freshman male on leadership for the Richmond chapter, but I made a new friend from North Carolina State who is also a freshman. His school was coming the next week, but he couldn’t come with them, so we adopted him as an honorary Spider and we became fairly close. Maybe we’ll go visit him sometime. Of course, I also developed relationships with other Richmond people. I only knew some of them vaguely before the trip, but now we are much closer. As a chapter, we set some goals and also played some games, such as Catchphrase and Connection. During Connection, I was on the edge of a bench and got so excited that I fell off backwards onto the floor. It was pretty embarrassing.

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Hanging out on the porch of one of the cabins
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Playing Catchphrase as a chapter
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Me and my fellow freshman friend. We decided to make
fun of the poses the girls were making

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The guys I hung out with for the week
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Our University of Richmond InterVarsity Leadership Team
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CONNECTION!!!

Now that I’m back, I’m working in the Admissions Office giving tours for a week before starting my research for the summer. I’m moving between residence halls and apartments often, so I feel like a homeless person at times, wandering around with my luggage that I need for the next few days and week. Anyways, I get some quiet time and lots of free time this week and I’ll see what else life has in store for me. This blog used a lot of pictures since that’s the easiest way to show what this week was about, so I hope you liked them.

Quote of the Week: “Purity is not the absence of something bad, but rather the presence of something good” -A teacher of my tract at Rockbridge
Thought to Ponder: Why does an “X” stand for a kiss?
Shout Outs: Anyone who has ever been to Rockbridge
YouTube Video of the Week:

Some fun optical illusions for you