18.8.09

Blogger Application-Tastic!

Hey guys, it's my first post since coming back from Ecuador. I guess when my year ended, that was the end of the blog. But now I have another reason to post! I'm applying to be an Admissions Blogger at MIT!

Here's my application:

Biographical stuff

1. Tell us your major, or (for freshmen) possibilities of your major.


I plan to dual-major in Biology and Chemistry.

2. Tell us what activities hope to become involved with at MIT, or (for upperclassmen) what you're currently involved with on campus.


I hope to do a UROP at the Broad Institute, and do (non-invasive, non-destructive, non-illegal) hacking. I also will be part of the Freshman Arts Seminar Advising Program, or FASAP.

3. Let us know your living group. For freshmen, tell us which dorm you've been temped in. For upperclassmen, tell us where you live, and, if applicable, any FSILG affiliations.

I've been temped in East Campus.

Short Answer Essays

Short answer #1 - In a paragraph or two, describe why you want to be an admissions blogger and what unique things you feel you'll contribute to the program.


When I was in a year-long foreign exchange program in Ecuador, I did many exciting activities, like volunteering at a home for children and attending an art school. Along each step of my path, I wrote about these things in this very blog, and I felt a sense of wonder at the way I could explain strange and different customs to my friends and family. I want to be an admissions blogger because I want to share my joy in math, science, and everything that is MIT with everyone. I think that my experience in trying to make the sometimes odd actions of Ecuadorians understandable to other Americans would translate well to making the sometimes odd life of an MIT student understandable to prospective applicants.

Short answer #2 - In either a video or a written post with photos, introduce us to a part of your life, house, town, etc. that you find wildly interesting.

Perhaps my most interesting experience in Ecuador was attending an art school. One day, I went to a show of some of my teachers' work.



This is my Drawing teacher, one Sr. López. He's a nice guy, really soft-spoken. He had some interesting stuff, as you can see here in this really dark picture.



This is my 2-D Composition teacher, la Sra. María Elena. She's one of the two teachers I have who teaches art the way I think it should be done, focusing on conveying information about techniques and different thought processes rather than making a painting you can sell in Otavalo for $50. She's also the only teacher who has shown an awareness of the existence of abstract art, though she does like Jackson Pollock, which is a strike against her. I like this painting the best out of all of them, though I think I may be alone. When I showed a friend of mine, Diego (who didn't go to the show, but went with me on Saturday for another reason), he said, "You like this?" I asked Sra. Elena about the painting, and she said that it's figurative of the idealism of femininity. She told me she's reading now a book about how all the leaders of the ancient past were women, and then men used their sexual powers and tricks and stuff like that to gain control.



This is my sculpture teacher's painting. His name is Carlos Torres. I didn't realize that he painted, but apparently, he does! And, he also paints naked women, unsurprisingly. Nice guy.



This is my painting teacher, Rivadellera or something like that. I think I've complained enough about my painting teacher in other posts that I don't need to do it here. But the painting's nice, if a bit typical of the paintings with the subject matter and exaggerated hands.

Other prestigious figures who showed up include:



My Social Studies teacher, the second from the left.



My school's principal, the guy in the center there.



My Literature teacher.




The school Inspector, the guy in the middle.



This man, who I think was a retired teacher, who can only be correctly described as Eyebrow Man. I didn't notice why my Weirdar was going off until I took a closer look.



OMG HIS EYEBROWS.



MaiTe, Mishel, Valeria and I were the only people who went to the show from our class. It was shameful. Speaking of shameful, I just learned the word for shameful! Vergonzoso! I was tired of saying "It's a shame."



That's, from the right, Mishel, MaiTé, Valeria and some girl I don't know.

Additional Blog Posts:


Why I'm Online at 10AM
Art and Some Things that Annoy Me
I Make Art
The Ecuadorian Adventure

A Video I Made with Some Friends:



And I think that's everything. Thank you for reading my application.