Books n' Stuff

Over the summer (during the 4 weeks that I was home), I spent my time reading many novels and magazines. Some of the novels that I completed this past summer include Unbroken, Thinking, Fast and Slow, and The Hunger Games. In addition, I regularly read The Economist and National Geographic. 

My favorite book was Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman. This book on psychology compares to systems: System 1 and System 2. System 1 is instinctive and very spur-of-the-moment, while System 2 is deliberate and logical. These systems show the two modes of thought and gives examples to demonstrate how the two different systems are used. This book was very interesting because I had never read a book on psychology before. After reading this book, I gained new insight on the human mind and also gained a new perspective on decision-making. Whenever I make a decision now, I try not to be rash, yet not to overload my mind either by devoting an appropriate amount of time to each decision depending on the circumstances. Think, Fast and Slow also had many examples of previous studies and experiments. These studies and experiments showed me that the field of psychology has not been explored much. Many scientists are studying the human mind, but no one has gauged how amazing humans are. It made me think about studying psychology for my undergraduate degree. It was really interesting to note that the author has won a Nobel Prize for Economics. I wonder why he decided to write a book about the human mind...

In addition to reading books, I also read periodicals. I found The Economist and National Geographic to be very interesting. The Economist helped keep me up-to-date with international and national events. In addition, The National Geographic helped me keep in touch with my passion for Geography. I have always loved Geography, but I have not found a way to keep in touch with it since competing in the State Geography Bee in 7th and 8th grade. The magazine remedies most of the problem, but I still miss studying Geography (I just don't have enough time!).

Hopefully my short review of some books and periodicals will make you want to share your favorite novels/periodicals with me! Stay tuned for next week's blog. And remember- "Keep it classy, San Francisco"!

The End of the Beginning

Wow. I can't believe I'm saying it, but I'm a Senior. That's right. All my hard work in middle school and high school has led up to this: the finale of a great secondary education.

I moved to Lexington in fifth grade from a small rural town in eastern Kentucky. I attended Athens Elementary in fifth grade. Even in when I was fifth grade, I was exposed to many new opportunities that I would not have been aware of if I stayed in my old town. For example, in fifth grade, I joined Academic Team and won the OCOV Mayor's Cup and Superintendent's Cup with the rest of my team. Had I not come to Lexington, I would have never joined Academic Team and had an opportunity to win these competitions.

As middle school approached, I started branching out and making more friends. I joined new clubs that targeted my interests, such as Track & Field and Math Team. I loved all my teachers and classes. Most importantly, I made sure to enjoy my three years at this school because I knew that everything would become a lot harder when I entered high school. I would have to grow up, which was an alien idea for a twelve year old.

High school came and hit me. Hard. I never received more than half an hour of homework a day in middle school. I had time to go to as many after school activities as I wanted, and still have time to go outside for a couple of hours. The concepts of stress and time management were foreign to me. After my first week at Henry Clay High School, I knew that I had to focus. I needed to become organized and learn the art of time management. I needed to mature fast. It turns out that freshman year was going to be the easiest year of my secondary education. Little did I know..

I transferred to MSTC as a sophomore. Wow. Compared to Henry Clay, Dunbar was college. By the time I had transitioned, sophomore year was done. I was not able to hit the ground running that year. It was by far the worst year of school to date. I hadn't made many friends in my MSTC class at the end of sophomore year either. Most of the MSTC students had already made their own cliques and I felt like I was always the odd one out. I was always with the "leftover" group in labs and I didn't have any friends to call to answer my questions. Then came Junior year. Most of friends were from the MSTC class of 2014. I thought that I would continue to talk to them more than the people in my class. Unfortunately, I found that I had very few classes with the underclassmen. I was disappointed. I thought it would be a long, mundane year again. I was starting to regret that I ever transferred to Dunbar. Surprisingly, some of the groups opened up to me and allowed me to join in on the friendship. I had study buddies. I felt comfortable with my MSTC Junior-only classes. I felt invited. It was almost like I was back at Henry Clay with all my childhood friends. I decided that I could not wait for Senior year.

Senior year has arrived. College applications are going to be tedious and aggravating. My classes are going to be difficult. I am going to confined in high school for another year (compared to the freedom in college). But Senior year doesn't just come with negatives. It has a bright side too! In fact, the good side outweighs the bad side BY FAR. I'll be with my friends for another year. I have the best teachers. I get to enjoy the rewards of working hard in high school when college decisions are mailed back. I get to relax and forget standardized exams. I can drive to any place I want. And most importantly, I can sleep in when zero hour is canceled (trust me, zero hour is rarely canceled for underclassmen).

I can't believe I'm saying it, but I'm looking forward to school. I have come a long way since I first moved to Lexington. I have matured, both emotionally and physically. I feel like I'm ready to conquer the world. Why? Because I'm a Senior.