The Roommate Debate
College is a life altering experience. It is a place where you leave anything and everything you have ever known, to come to a place where nothing is familiar. The summer before your freshman year of college can be a nerve racking experience. You anxiously wait for the day when the mailman will bring you that envelope that holds your fate. Enclosed in this envelope is the name of your roommate. Your roommate can have the biggest influence on your freshmen year. They can turn into your best friend or your worst enemy. You anticipate the day when you actually get to meet the person you will be living with for the whole year. At Penn State there are no guarantees that you will have anything in common with your roommate at all, and that is a scary thing.
As the Housing Administration of Penn State, I ask you to put yourself in the shoes of the incoming freshmen. As a freshman, you hope for a roommate you can relate to and spend your time with. But at Penn State the chances of you getting along with your roommate are slim to none. I know so many people who cannot stand living with their roommates. Two of my friends actually switched at the semester because they could not deal with their living situation. At Penn State we are placed together by major. Two people with the same major are not guaranteed to have any of the same habits, interests, or goals. I feel that this is not an effective way of matching people up.
I researched other colleges to see how roommates were paired. The colleges I researched were: Albright, Bucknell, Virginia Tech, Saint Joseph’s University, Millersville, and University of Pittsburgh. At Albright, Bucknell, and University of Pittsburgh the housing administration requires incoming freshmen to fill out a survey that asks about their sleep patterns (early bird/ night owl), taste in music, if they smoke, their qualities of an ideal roommate, pet peeves, and major. This enables the housing administration to effectively match up freshmen that would be compatible with each other. My friend Maureen, who attends Bucknell, said, “My roommate and I have become best friends and I am so thankful that we were matched together. I think that all colleges should use surveys to match up freshmen. The summer before my freshmen year, I was less nervous about meeting my roommate, because I knew that even if we were not the best of friends, I knew we would be compatible enough to live together.
In 2013, Penn State saw a 1.6% increase in student enrollment. This year, Penn State’s University Park gained 46,184 new incoming students. Our research looks into the incoming freshmen class and the options they are given in order to choose a roommate.
Athletic events at this time were also closely related to the religious beliefs and practices of the Greek citizens. Each competition was devoted to a specific pagan god. For example, the patron of the Olympics was Zeus. The Greeks believed that the physical strength and ability of athletes was a direct gift from the gods (http://www.meiaconcerto.com/olympic/olympia/ideal_o.php, September 27, 2004). Therefore, each athlete competed not only in honor of his city-state, but also in honor of the gods.
Colombo explains that “Beginning college can be disconcerting experience” (Colombo, p.1). That there will be more peer pressure from your peers and an increase expectations that you have never faced during your high school days. “In the dorms you may find yourself among people whose backgrounds make them seem foreign and unapproachable” (Colombo, p.1). Colombo also states “If you commute, you may be struggling against a feeling of isolation that you’ve never faced before” (Colombo, p. 1).
As the base of this essay is on how the Olympics have been used in the
Mary Shelley brings about both the positive and negative aspects of knowledge through her characters in Frankenstein. The use of knowledge usually has many benefits, but here Shelley illustrates how seeking knowledge beyond its limits takes away from the natural pleasures of known knowledge. She suggests that knowledge without mortality and uncontrolled passions will lead to destruction. Victor and his monster experience this destruction following their desires and losing self control. Walton, on the other hand, becomes of aware of the consequences and is able to turn back before it’s too late. Shelley also suggests that without enjoying the natural pleasures of life, pursuing knowledge is limited, but how can knowledge be limited if it is infinite?
Victor Frankenstein is originally a happy character that loves to learn and read a large variety of books. He was a fiery individual who sought to understand all knowledge; regardless of how practical the information was. Evidence of this is when his father tells him not to worry about fictional writers like Cornelius Agrippa. Yet, Frankenstein states, “But here were books, and here were men who had penetrated deeper and knew more. I took their word for all that they averred, and I became their disciple” (21). Frankenstein embodies the movement in science to understand everything, and that is not necessarily a good thing (Storment 2). Frankenstein only understands that this train of thought is bad when he reaches the pinnacle of knowledge and produces the creature. The fruits of Frankenstein’s labor end up costing him the lives of his friends and family, as well as his own sanity. The feeling of guilt thrives in Frankenstein because he knows his work was the direct cause of the chaos in his life. In Frankenstein’s case, his goal of total enlightenment led to his pitiful demise. Frankenstein’s creature was not originally a monster. He is born with good intentions and is a gentle- although atrocious looking- being until he learns of the sins of the human race. The ultimate factor in the creature’s progression from harmless to
For as much as college is studying, test, and learning about diverse environments, it is also a good time for the student to establish who they are. Analysis of everything from personality, to learning style, to how to properly prepare for classes are all very useful to the new college student.
My experience so far at William Penn University has been a roller coaster ride. It has had its ups and downs similar to any other new experience to a person. As a freshman it takes some adjusting to get used to the style, especially when I have had the support from my parents for a long time. I have had moments here that I have enjoyed, and other ones that I would rather not have to deal with. It has been a full 7 weeks, but it definitely has been an experience I will need in the future and it is better to learn it now than later on down the road.
Victor Frankenstein’s scientific endeavor, Robert Walton’s search for the North Pole, and the creature’s kind heart but scary features creates this whole theme of dangerous knowledge. The search for knowledge is encouraged and at times pushed by others. In Frankenstein is shows quest can lead to too much knowledge and drive him or her to his fate.
The college life certainly has its share of fears, cheers, and jeers, but it really can be a worthwhile endeavor. The most important task is to find the college niche, that little place that just feels right, and not just the first time. Once I found clubs, organizations, jobs, and social circles in which I felt like a valued participant, I really seemed to be at home, and that's not something I could have found just by being matched with good roommates or schmoozing at a toga party.
The Olympic Games, hosted in Olympia, Greece, reflected and represented many of Greece 's traditional values in their culture, politics, and social institutions. With the Olympics being the biggest event in Greece at the time, the occasion brought many new ideas and showed what the traditions and customs of Greece were really about. Through this big spectacle people learned about their own culture and went through many experiences ranging from listening to poets and praying at the Temple of Zeus to spectating the sport of “Pankration”, a combination of boxing and wrestling. They would even compete in the nude as a time-honored tradition. “...the practice [competing in the nude] also symbolically stripped away social rank, an extraordinary gesture toward a democratic sporting ideal in the status-obsessed ancient world.”(pg. 7) The Olympics
Is your passion worth hurting your friends or family? In the article Niagara by Tightrope, Blondin puts his manager’s life on the line just for entertainment. Blondin tells Harry while he is on the rope, "Look up, Harry... You are no longer Colcord you are Blondin... be a part of me, mind, body, and soul. If I sway, sway with me. Do not attempt to do any balancing by yourself. If you do we will both go to our death (Roger Hudson, page 1)". Blondin thought his passion would only be better if he performed stunts that no other tightrope walker would attempt by putting someone else’s life on the line. This takes me to the...
...ing and honorable events in world history. There were four crucial parts in the Olympic history that change the games forever. Meaning it changed in all equality from the origin in 766 B.C.E all the way to modern day today which is the latest games in 2012. These games always kept running because it gave people a new way of living by seeing all the different types of countries competing and showing off the skill. This was what most athletes worked for. These games set honorable meaning as the modern day games begun they would light a torch that would symbolize the games had begun. These games weren't just games to some people these games were ways to get a worldwide message across no matter if it was about race, gender, or even life. These games shifted in a way that no one could really explain but it gave everyone a sense of what's really out there in this world.
You have to take into consideration of what kind of food you are eating because you need to remember everyone has different likes and dislikes. Especially if you are both home at the same time for meal times. Cleaning actually gets mom or else your roommate does not think you are a cleanly person. When you are living with someone you cannot have gross habits, most of the time if that happens no one wants to be your roommate. When you are combining two peoples skills, you can work together to get things done in a professionally amount of time.
The biggest piece of advice I would give to an incoming student is “You get what you put in”. Now I say this because my first semester of college was an experience that I disliked. Something that I did wrong was, I only went to class then went home. At the time I felt it was best to give my education all of my attention. It was like this for five days a week from August to December. I began to question if college was for me, and if I even belonged anywhere. I felt alone, clueless, and unimportant to the campus. I wasn’t use to feeling like this I was always in extracurricular activities, meeting new people, having close relationships, and being employed. After my first semester, I had enough of feeling this way and knew I had to be the person