My first attempt to use the library databases on my own was let’s say, not so successful. I tried many different phrases, “school spirit” and “school pride” were among the phrases I searched in OmniFile. OmniFile presented articles relating to the “Spirit of the Jesuit” and many other religious-themed documents. Unfortunately in the end, I came up empty handed. Many of the articles that I found were associated to the religious aspect of school.

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I then tried to search for another word that was identical to “spirit” but did not have a religious connotation. I ended up searching for “school environment” with an emphasis on the positive aspects.

What I found turned out to be very useful. I found an article titled, Student Success Built on a Positive School Climate, which was written by Liz Warner and Patricia Heindel from the NJEA Review.

The article was about how the inclusion of a few minutes at the beginning of the day for students to talk about their feelings with each other helped to foster a positive atmosphere. This time was also allocated for the students to bond from anything from thoughts on the upcoming test, to how one felt about being teased last class.

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A big emphasis on the conversation the students had was to focus not on the academics or personal thoughts, but to focus on the emotions behind those thoughts.

“The bottom line: Students get a chance to talk about how they feel at school. The premise of the exercise is simple. Just as students need to learn how to read and write and solve math problems, they also need to learn how to manage their emotions” – Warner and Heindel

In the beginning of my searching process, I was not mindful in thinking of what each word could mean to a different aspect of school. SCU associates “spirit” as a religious word and no mentions of school spirit in terms of the hype students have are acknowledged. This little bit of information may have been useless at first, but then I realized that because the school is based off of the Jesuit values, it occurred to me that SCU may not report on school spirit (as in student’s enthusiasm) because there isn’t:

1. Enough student spirit/emotion
2. Too much of a religious association with the word “spirit”

Ding! Idea! – Source

Overall, discovering this article provided both things I wanted to find, and things I did not want to find. Those items I did not want to find, however, turned into items I was lucky to find. Thus, fine tuning my research process and proposing new ideas to explore.

The Star Wars Logo – Source

May The 4th Be With You. While I may be posting this a few days after this famous holiday, I still wanted to give recognition to all who have provided the thrills and inspirations that I acquire from Star Wars. Whether it be the original trilogy (Star Wars IV, V, and VI) or some of the prequels (episodes II and III, let’s not talk about episode I), I attribute many of my teachings and my knowledge of the force to the entire cast and producers.

For those who have not caught on, the saying, “may the force be with you,” is what the holiday, May 4th, is related to. The director of Star Wars, George Lucas, actually created the holiday that many enthusiasts enjoy.

George Lucas and His Personal Guards – Source

Every year, many Star Wars fans express their love for the movies, action figures, collectables, and many other aspects that Star Wars has brought to humanity. Comic-con-like events are held on May 4th for fans to dress as their favorite Jedi, Sith Lord, or the occasional Stormtrooper.

Being an avid Star Wars fan myself, I cannot recall ever missing this famous day. In the past I have spent this holiday re-watching any Star Wars movie I am in the mood for. This year, I re-watched Star Wars Rogue One which was, by far, the most impressive and awesome Star Wars movie yet.

Star Wars Rogue One Movie Poster – Source

Some, however, confuse where Rogue One comes into play in the timeline of the Star Wars universe. Also, those who have not watched Star Wars yet need to know this key information. To clarify, Rogue One is the movie that sets up the main trilogy (Episodes IV, V, VI).

The cast for Star Wars Rogue One is commendable. The movie stars Felicity Jones as the main protagonist named Jyn Erso, the daughter of an imperial scientist. With the help of Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), Chirrut Imwe (Donnie Yen, also my personal favorite), Bodhi Rook (Riz Ahmed), and many other characters, Jyn must fight her way to steal the Death Star plans, setting up the epic saga to follow.

Star Wars Rogue One Cast – Source

I have watched Star Wars Rogue One at least 8 times now, but never tire of how well-done the movie is. For those who have not watched it, I strongly recommend on doing so! Although, I guess there is no surprise at the end if you have watched the original trilogy. However, by watching Rogue One, you get the perfect film to describe the hardships the Rebel Alliance had to overcome to capture the Death Star plans. Plus, you get to see my favorite scene, which only lasted 2 minutes 30 seconds at most.

Battle of Scarif Art – Source

The end of high school signified many ends. From my classes to the feeling of having a family at school within my friend group, I have experienced the best of and will miss all that high school has given me. I also see that leaving high school will open many new potential beginnings. Sadly, service was not on the list of new beginnings. I thought after high school my involvement in community service would end. Little did I know that I would be completely wrong.

Currently, at SCU, I am happy to say that I am still involved with some types of community service activities. I found such activities through the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity that just established here at Santa Clara University.

Rebuilding Together Service – Source: Cory Gong 2017

A few of the activities that I have participated in include: helping at the Aldersgate United Methodist Church (which happens to be the church I was raised in), aiding Rebuilding Together in their purpose to renovate deserving homes, and participating in Relay for Life which occurred on SCU campus.

All of these activities have taught me an important lesson: to know that everyone loves and needs everyone that matters. I know it sounds quite obvious, but in this day and age when we have all these highly advanced objects for our pleasure, I realized we tend to forget what is an authentic, meaningful connection and what isn’t.

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These service events have opened up my mind to see how limiting my world has been with using my phone or computer. Sure these things are great and help us to progress individually, but how can we gain the true sense of what our needs and/or desires are without gaining knowledge on our communities more in-depth?

I guess the end of high school did signify the end of certain things: one in particular was the feeling of family and bond. This same idea of family was harder for me to grasp in college because one is always doing this or that, but through the service activities I endured, I gained a sense that my community is those who I serve. Those who I serve are the new beginnings I’ve been seeking.

One key value I carry and will continue to carry is “Service Above Self.” What I mean by this saying is that I prioritize others above myself.

In high school, I joined the Youth Community Service Interact Club (YCS-Interact). The club emphasized community service on new levels for me to engage in. One of these ways was through international service. These international service trips were very selective and were only offered for juniors and seniors.

Once I was a junior, I quickly applied for a service trip to Antigua, Guatemala. In Antigua, the trip’s focus was to help lay concrete for a deserving family, providing school supplies for the children at a local elementary school, and renovate that same elementary school. Luckily, I got in and had the best time of my life helping the children and family with any of their needs. Their needs are significantly lower than any of the needs we possess here in the US.

4th Grade Classroom in Antigua, Guatemala – Source: Cory Gong 2015

I found it quite shocking that some students just wanted a pencil or a notebook, where in the US we strive to earn enough money to keep up with the latest Apple merchandise. After that trip, I was so moved by how little people outside of the US had to live on that I wanted to ensure that other students were aware of the hardships people face.

So then, during my senior year, I applied and received the co-leadership position for the next international service trip. For that trip, my co-leader and I chose to take the group south to Tijuana, Mexico. In Tijuana we helped alongside a family to build a house from the ground up. What was interesting was that the family we were helping did what we were doing. In other words, the families only get a house of their own by volunteering to help build other family’s homes. I found this gesture and process interesting and brilliant.

The First House We Worked On in Tijuana – Source: Cory Gong 2016

In all, the service we did in Tijuana was even more meaningful because we had to experience what ordinary families were experiencing to receive just a roof above their heads. Compare that to here in the US, where we can just pay lots of money and get the same thing. As far as I’m concerned, Tijuana builds better houses because they have a better community; something money can’t buy.

The Hardest Day of Our Service in Tijuana – Source: Cory Gong 2016

International service, to me, has been the biggest influence on how to view others and our communities as a whole. I have a better understanding of the real differences between us and them. The only difference I see, however, is that those who are less privileged gain a better sense of gratitude for what and who they have in their life. These communities all across the world are so much further in creating the sense of community than we currently possess here.

Today, I had an epiphany. Just a couple of minutes ago, my best friend called me and cried for maybe 5 minutes, then rambled on about her life (there was much more, but too much to say in one blog post). In her opinion, her life was in such a mess, so we talked for three or four hours. So because of how personal it is, I’m not going to mention her name just for the sake of confidentiality.

Here’s a bit of what she said:

“…I just have so many regrets. I didn’t apply for the schools I should have, I feel jealous for my friend who is going to one of the best dance schools in the nation and I definitely could have gotten in. Am I just lazy? Did I just miss out on a better life?” – My Best Friend

I was quite shocked, mostly because of how random and spontaneous the moment was. I mean, you don’t expect that type of call at 5:00pm on a Saturday. The moment was so real that I didn’t know what else to think after her ramble.

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Instead, I just listened and absorbed all the material she was saying. The conversation went from her asking me what she should do, to me reassuring her that her life was set and she had nothing to worry about. If she was worried, I told her to take it in, but also think of what she could do to make it better. It took a while, but she calmed down and figure out what her next steps were. In the end, we were both happy to have talked it out.

If I had to generalize our conversation, I’d say it was genuine and both our minds were open to whatever we had to say. After the call, I thought that I was able to handle the situation well and I started thinking of what helped me get through it without abandoning my friend.

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I came to the conclusion—which also happens to be my epiphany—that I owe it to my Positive Psychology class for knowing how to effectively handle a situation like the conversation I went through. These conversations occur across campus rather frequently. My high school, Henry M. Gunn High School, is very competitive and rigorous with its academics. Prioritizing academics takes a tole on the mental health of the students, and that is why the Positive Psychology course was created: to help those suffering from the competitive school environment.

I learned a vast range of items in the Positive Psychology course including: calmness, gratitude, meditation, mindfulness, and how to listen the right way. These skills are specifically aimed to help foster positivity in those who are depressed, stressed, and any other mental health disorders.

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In most high schools, I realize, they may not be able to offer the same higher education I received. After all, mental health may not be the most active field to acknowledge, but luckily at Gunn High School I managed to gain an in-depth understanding into how to react and help someone who is suffering. Someone should not suffer alone, which is one of the purposes of the class. In general, the class taught me how to suffer with others, but also how to minimize the suffering.

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In all, I think a course like the positive psychology course I took should be offered to better the entire community. The whole school community would benefit from this form of higher education, and the mindful growth students would be experiencing would be like no other.

There’s more to research than just reading and copying. I know right! I bet you were thinking, “Who copies sources and calls it research?”

Well, for one, I am someone who used to copy as a form of research. I admit it. In middle school and a good portion of high school, I definitely spent time in the library “doing research.” What I didn’t know is I was doing research wrong.

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According to Michael Klein and his article, What Is It We Do When We Write Articles Like This One—and How Can we Get Students To Join Us?, something students largely overlook while researching is we do not search, analyze, evaluate, synthesize, select, and reject sources while researching.

“I knew they were writing research papers because they were not writing at all–just copying” – Michael Klein

It hit me pretty hard to think that we are doing something so fundamental to our academic years wrong. To solve these problems, Klein proposes two types of methods to get us back on the right track when researching.

• Hunting — going into the world with purpose and direction while employing strategies
• Gathering — observing fortuitously with a wide and open lens, and utilizing all aspects to their bitter foundations

Think back to the primitive times of when humans had to find their food in the environment. The use of “hunter” and “gatherer” in both primitive times and research are the same. Basically what Klein is saying, is that a researcher can be either the hunter-type, gatherer-type, or both. Ideally, however, it would be beneficial for one to be both hunter and gatherer to get the best of both worlds.

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In my own research, I find that I am a hunter. In fact, I know that I am a hunter because of the very way I conduct my research. My research consists of proposing a question(s), seeking to find the answer, and then starting the cycle over again until I am satisfied with the amount of content I have.

In my own experiences, on the other hand, I find myself still utilizing what I find after asking a question. Rather than a primarily hunter mindset, I find myself using whatever information I find through my hunter method. In other words, I identify what I need (hunter method) but utilize all the information I acquire (gatherer method). It’s an odd way to conduct my research which probably yields very select results.

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To put it in different words, I believe my research consists of me hunting for resources, stripping it of all information, and then picking at the data that I need, but I also pick up possible relevant scraps here and there. The difference between this and hunting is that a hunter looks just for what he wants, whereas I do pick up some of the smaller bits that may prove useful. On the other hand, my method is different from a gatherer because I start my research with a very select scope. If I had to categorize myself, I would say I am a hunter that transforms into a gatherer once finding the resource.

One drawback from my method is that I have a narrow scope to work within. Theoretically my scope could widen if I asked more questions, but most of the time, I just stick to what I know I need to find. I do not find any bizarre or random information that I could work with, dive deeper into, or become intrigued by. I guess it’s okay, but still I have much to learn regarding how to research.

WOW! What a game! I just found a short 4 minute video of a football game between San Jose State and Santa Clara University. This short video was like a 21st century sports highlight if I had to compare it to something. Take a look!

While I could go on all day about the fact-paced, action-packed football game you just watched, I bet you’re wondering why I even posted that video. To fill the gaps, here’s a bit of context.

Recently, I took a journey to the archives. At the archives, I found an intriguing book which I discovered to be Santa Clara University’s yearbook brand, The Redwood, from the year 1950. One main section of the book was of SCU’s football program, which I believe was quite popular.

While reading the football material, however, I felt as if the information I was reading could be enhanced somehow. I thought to myself, “a video clip of a SCU football game would be able to portray exactly what football was like back then…” So then, I turned to Youtube to find such clips. And that’s how I found this clip.

The above ~4 minute clip I found is of the game, San Jose State versus Santa Clara University and basically summarizes everything about SCU football-related I read about in the yearbook. The yearbook and the film are published within two years of each other, which I found to be remarkable and lucky of me to find (the yearbook was published in 1950 and the film is from 1951).

While the video quality is not as clear as it is today, I was still able to relate some things I read from the yearbook to what was in the film. For instance, the yearbook speaks of a vast amount of people attending football games; Stanford versus SCU in particular had 35,000 people attend the game. The game SJ State versus SCU was quite similar. In the background of the video I saw many blurry faces that filled the stands, leaving no seat empty. Clearly, football was mandatory for SCU students. These students’ passion for football are echoed both in the yearbook and film. Each student had the responsibility to support their fellow Bronco football players.

Source – In the faded background, you can see the many fans and literally no open seats

I also noticed adjectives in the yearbook that I could see the Broncos possess during the football game clip. I was shocked at how honest and accurate the details were between the two.

In my own high school’s yearbook, I found multiple occasions in which the misuse of words occurred. I believe our school was trying to give more praise than what actually existed in reality. For SCU, however, that was not the case. All of the praise SCU gave for its football program actually did happen.

By finding an actual clip of a football game, I could trust the yearbook source more. The consistency and similarity between the two encouraged me to further pursue learning about the football team and all athletics at SCU. I want to know just how great we used to be, and maybe even figure out why the football program is not around today.

The burning question: What were humans like back then? More specifically, what were our cultural minds like back then?

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Something I want to focus on that intrigues me is how our past human behavior compares to the current norms or cultural ideas we possess today. Of course, I also hope to discover why these ideas were present. For instance, I want to break beyond the known ideas such as propaganda against Japanese-Americans during WWII, for this idea is already known and obvious.

I do not mean to undermine the value of the thoughts of those who were pro-internment camps and such, and each person who is pro-internment should be entitled to it because of the situations.

Instead, I hope to find the small quirks of college life. What was it like to date? Did the man always offer his coat to the girl? Were fraternities and sororities popular back then? The list of questions goes on and on. Unfortunately as of right now, I do not have any idea how to narrow it down.

If I cannot pick a definite topic, I may get lost in my research not knowing how or when to conclude.

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Researching, for me, has accelerated. I would dread the thought of having to read books or online articles to know what happened historically, but I could read to learn how people act all over the world. Us humans are interesting beings who create order out of chaos. I also see our societies as every growing and thus, the amount of research I can do is probably close to infinite.

Here’s the problem. After reading an article by Katherine E. Tirabassi, Journeying Into The Archives: Exploring The Pragmatics Of Archival Research, I found one daunting situation I don’t want to fall into.

Tirabassi’s article conveys that there are four key principles to research:

• Principle of Selectivity
• Principle of Cross-Referencing
• Principle of Categorization
• Principle of Closure

The primary principle I find quite interesting is of closure. I never thought of when or even how I finish researching. I never even bothered to ask, “is there an end?” Each wonderful tangent I may find could lead to more fruitful endings. But those same tangents could also lead to dead ends, waste my time and energy, and slowly persuade me to believe my research is getting no where. I also find that if I were to continue to research, I could end up not publishing any work, only to find that the relevance of the topic I am researching is out-dated.

Basically, because of my investment and love for our cultural beliefs. I can see how I may become lost in the infinite pool of past cultural artifacts. I could find stories and articles that give precious memories and fuel me to discover more about whatever their context is.

I never stopped to think that researching cultural items could be so endless. There are so many diverse topics to focus on and I for one, may try to take on too many or dive too deeply into one.

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The plan now: have the discipline to have some shallower parts in my research, but allocate the appropriate time for the deeper subjects I find.

This Blew My Mind. Take a look at the headline below and you’ll know what I’m talking about.

Source & Article

Head transplant. Like…er…what?!

This article is not fake. I have cross checked through ABC and CBS news as well as The Atlantic and have found the idea is true. I had to take a moment just to think logically: make sure my head was on straight.I really couldn’t believe my mind when someone proposed a head transplant operation, let alone I wouldn’t imagine a single person volunteer to do it.

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To Summarize, Italian neuroscientist Dr. Sergio Canavero has recruited Chinese surgeon, Dr. Xiaoping Ren, to serve as 1 of 80 surgeons to perform a lengthy and costly surgery. Their patient, a Russian man named Valery Spiridonov, suffers from Werdnig-Hoffmann Disease. They plan to severe all connections (arteries, spinal cord, etc.) and transplant Spiridonov’s head onto a donor body of a brain dead subject.

The surgeons are planning to spend millions of dollars on a diamond blade (so thing it’s claimed to be transparent), a custom-made crane to transfer the heads, and formulating a chemical called polyethylene glycol (PEG).

When I first heard of this surgery, I thought, “Man this sounds like a sci-fi movie! Something like Star Wars.” I guess this speaks to just how far and how ambitious the human race has progressed.

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Speaking of Progressing, I found it hard to believe we had developed a technology capable of delicately severing arteries, veins, spinal cord, the list is endless really. But I guess anything is possible. We have robots that drive our cars around autonomously and people named Siri who talk to us when no one’s around. But if you think in the simplest ways, we are building another type of humanity and I claim that we can only do so without controlling them.

Sooner or later, we will be dependent on these items for uses in schools too. I’m even using a computer to type this very blog, and maybe someday down the line, I will just need to think and the machine will process everything; turning my thoughts into a grade A paper. Ah the possibilities…

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However, despite all this ease, I think as we continue to develop the latest technologies, we are ridding ourselves of the processes that make us human: how we write, how we read. Everything is altered.

While sure the possibilities for all goods are likely so are the chances for wrong to come forth. In the grand picture, if we somehow target our way of learning, which I believe is processed by how we read and write, we may very well be able to control people down to the smallest things we treasure: education. It may be far fetched, but if one can control the very process of reading and writing with technologies, that said person can also select exactly who/what gets the privileges. In a way, it’s kind of like limiting someone’s access to a library. Without it, one is uneducated and has fewer opportunities.

I had never thought to ask this question and I always trusted my friend, the internet, for my facts and figures when researching. But then again, that’s just my way to research.

We all have different methods when researching. Back in high-school, I would go on Google and immediately click on the Wikipedia link. I know I am not the only one who would regularly do this just to get a decent grade on a project. It’s hard to get yourself out of the cycle of easily obtainable knowledge that Wikipedia provides.

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Another research method I used in high school was just to ask questions. Basically, I would ask Google a question. I just type a question that I need to know the answer for, and that answer will probably lead to more questions. My favorite resources were Yahoo Answers and ask.com. It’s so easy to type questions into a search field knowing someone has probably answered it perfectly for you.

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Even with the vast amount of resources I never thought of exploring further into such topics I would research and because of this laziness I never earned the grade I wanted. But now, in college, I discovered I had the processes all along: I just needed to facts with ideas.

In my Critical Thinking and Writing class I read an article titled, BEAM: A Rhetorical Vocabulary for Teaching Research-Based Writing, which has changed my method of research for the better.

BEAM stands for:

Background – Facts

Exhibits – Analysis or interpretation formed into examples

Arguments – Conversation where the author affirms, disputes, refines, or extends ideas

Methods – Manner of working

Essentially we are provided with examples or an argument, or possibly both. But when we only have one or the other, we must seek out the example/argument that is missing.

“If you start with an exhibit, look for argument sources to engage; if you start with argument sources, look for exhibits to interpret.”

– Joseph Bizup

Basically, when we have both examples and an argument working in conjunction with each other, while also tending to a clean presentation style, we form the best interpretation we can from the knowledge we possess. So now, our audience receives the best perspective we can offer.

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Nowadays, I still use Wikipedia, but just for the facts (even then I cross check Wikipedia with another trusted source) and work those facts hand-in-hand with an argument to help shape my own opinion. Still, this is not enough, I still need an exhibit. By including BEAM, I now know that, with given facts, I must form my own argument using a given example and seek an example that fits my argument.

My research could be improved by finding those exhibits and those arguments through facts. So I guess I wasn’t necessarily doing anything wrong by just using Wikipedia and just using Yahoo Answers. I just needed to dive further into those resources to find examples and/or arguments. Wikipedia does cite all of its sources so maybe there are some great arguments or more in-depth examples that would help me. Maybe that’s a good place to start looking…