eLearning Collaborative

Well, it’s over unfortunately, and right now we’re here on
the long plane ride from Munich, Germany to Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania. There’s not much to
do, so I’m going to write pretty much a generalization of how amazing the trip
was. Obviously there is no internet service on the plane, so I am just writing
it now to pass time and put in the blog later.

Well first
there is the obvious reason as to why Meghan, Leighann, and I enjoyed this trip
so much, and that is basically going to Switzerland, and visiting the most
advanced physics experiment the world has ever seen. The things we saw, and
experiences we had both inside, and outside the experiment were unforgettable!
Seeing this experiment, and talking to the physicists involved with it in
person was truly a great way to learn about this project so that we could bring
it back home to all of you. There really isn’t any better way to do that, than
to do it yourself. Also, on the ‘Open Day’ we had the chance to talk to several
people from around the world about what they thought about this experiment, and
why there were there to experience it themselves. The consensus was pretty much
that they were very excited for this project to start in the summer, and
couldn’t wait to hear results from the data received.

Secondly,
there was the cultural aspect of this trip. I had never been to Europe before this trip, and neither had Leighann or
Meghan, so this was very new to us. To be able to visit another country, where
they don’t normally speak the same language as you (though most of them did
actually speak English), the food is different, and a lot of the values are
similar, but also very different, is very cool! It helps you to expand your
mind, and see things in a different sort of way.

One of my
favorite parts of this trip though, is the fact that we made so many new
friends who are all interested in close to the same thing as us. The teams from
Utah, Minnesota,
Florida, and Texas were all great people to be around,
and we were all very helpful to each other in working on the very frustrating
video projects we had to do for the people at FermiLab.

Finally, I
would like to mention the importance of pursuing the things that you enjoy
most. At the beginning of the year, Mr. Paradis presented his class with the opportunity
of joining his independent study group (ARG), and at first I was hesitant,
because I was afraid it would be too complicated, and I might not be able to
keep up, or stay interested. Yet, I decided that I would try it anyways, and
look where it has gotten me! I’ve discovered a huge interest in particle
physics, started an internship at the University of Rochester,
and just spent the last 4 days having the experience of a life time! So if you
are given the chance to do something that you enjoy, take it! Chances are it
will do things for you that you couldn’t have imagined. Also, if you find out
that maybe you don’t like it, then you now know that it’s not for you, and can
start pursuing new things. So whenever you can, just go for it!

Also a huge thank-you to Mr. Paradis
for this chance! I really can’t thank him enough! 

References