If you were to write a book, on what theme or subject matter would it be based and Why? (Stanford/93)

There are lots of different types of book. Each type of books has certain theme. Fiction has a made up story, or can be a real story. Also, there are books that are written based on the experiences of authors. Personally, I like those books that are written by authors’ experiences, especially when I am depressed, stressed and I do not what to do. Those books indicate what I should do to overcome these depressions. It is because the authors who wrote those had been in the same situation and they overcame that. In my opinion, this type of books can help teenagers a lot as they struggle and choose their ways for their future.

For this reason, if I were to write a book, I want to write a book about emotions or life when I grow and become old enough to talk about life. Recently, I read a book named Tuesday With Morrie, this book talks about life. While I was reading this book, I felt that I do neglect some really important things in my life such as regrets, family, culture, forgiveness and many other things. I always thought about myself so I felt I should get all the good things, and I realized that my thought was wrong. Because of this book, I looked back my short life and found lots of flaws that I had in my mind. This helped to make myself more grateful with I have.

 With my book, I want to make a good connection with teenagers who are lost or need advice. Since I went through that time, I needed a lot of help and advices, and people who were around me helped me lots and gave me helpful advices. Especially, my father bought me a book to read to overcome the confusion or depression. At first, I really did not want to read because I thought I would not feel anything from it except getting annoyed. However, I slowly liked the book and eventually it was a big tool to know what I was struggling with. After this, I started believing that book can be a great thing to people.  

I want to experience heaps of things in my life so that I can help them with my book. Also, I believe as I write a book I will learn more about life and keep it as I look back my life.

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Describe a risk that you have taken and discuss its impact on your life. (Kalamazoo College/93)

I go to Woodstock school in India. When I was in 6^th grade, I wanted to study at there desperately. As a normal young Korean student, I wanted to study outside of Korea. I applied and rejected. I was like okay, it was unlucky. Next year, I applied again hoping that I would get in. However, I got rejected again. Then, I concluded that this is not my school. After a year I went to Australia to study abroad.

Forgetting about Woodstock, I had studied in Australia. I was having quite nice life there. However, I slowly realized that I do not like the Australian curriculum. It was way too free for me. It was way too free for me. After realizing, I spent some hard times with that problem plus, I was confused with finding myself as all adolescents do. I came back to Korea with worries about my future school and all. One day, I met a friend, she was from Woodstock, and while we were having dinner together, she asked me “Why don’t you try once more? There is no harm to try.” I was encouraged, I felt like I can make it this time. After deciding to try for another chance, I went back to Australia. Dealing with my unpleasant work from my school, I slowly started preparing for my application to Woodstock. It was getting hard to make good balance of work between school works and preparing for the application. 

Although application might not be a big of deal, but for me I thought that I  should do my best to get what I want. I was preparing for my appellation alone and it was the first time to deal with a formal form of document. There were lots of things to prepare such as translating my reports past reports cards,  and other documents that are in Korean. I had to take some exams that the school required me to. Also, I had to keep good grades in my school because in case of another rejection, I should have good grade for my college. However, as the time went by, those are overloaded so i decided to focus on Woodstock. I was not sure that I can get and I was applying to 10th grade which is little hard. I was little worried about the grade. Still, I really wanted to go to Woodstock.I relay worked hard for it and finally I got in. If I think about it again, it might a dumb thing to do, just giving up on school work to get in better school. On the other hand, I learned something from this.

I've never done this thing before or I did not have to. I learned sometimes I have to make decisions and try my best to make my decision right. Also,I can do what I want only when I try.

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Effects of Laws and Orders

Select any issue that is of importance to you and discuss and your views (New College of University of South Florida)

Have you thought about that if law and order is disappeared? It will be big problem in society as homicide, theft and crime would happen, because the nature of humankind is sinful. If we do not have rules, our natural character is revealed as evil. We cannot do right thing by our selves, so rules are necessary for us. The play ‘Lord of flies’ proves this through the boy’s behavior on the island. Also hurricane Katrina is good example that why we need for law. 

Humans do not like it when someone becomes better than them. They crave to be greater than each other even if it means hurt other. In Lord of Flies, Ralph was nominated as leader by the boys on the island, but Jack was jealous because he wanted to be captain. He did not accept Ralph as the chief and would do his own thing.  Later, he brings his chorus and leads the hunt as they kill the pig to eat. After killing the pig, they suspend the pig’s head on a spear and paint the blood of it on their skin joyfully. They enjoy it. This could be because Jack wants to be the head, but in his inner heart, there was that did not want Ralph to become the leader as he would get being more favor than him. Jack displays a mental state of humans that does not accept being loser. This is innate of humans.

Lord of the Flies shows that humankind is evil. The boys on the island made rules to keep a fire burning so it would be seen by a passing ship, but Jack and his hunters broke their promise and hunted for pigs. Instead while they were hunting, the fire went out and then, an airplane flew over the island, so they missed the opportunity of being rescued. Ralph was very angry. He fights with jack and they become enemies. If the fire was kept, alight the airplane would have seen it, and they would have been rescued. This event shows us that human act as they wish and disobey the rules. Also people are violent. Through this event, we can know see the selfish nature of humankind and now we do not like to listen to other people’s opinions.

When law and order is not enforced, nature human is revealed. Hurricane Katrina is good example of this. This event occurred in September, 2005. It caused much chaos as so many people lost their families, houses, property, food, and they had nothing. Thousands of people helped to rescue them, but even then some shot at the rescue helicopter. The crime in the city increased as policemen in the city were not able to do their job. They were too busy trying to survive. Human have to be controlled by law and order, because if laws do not guide us, we will be insane like this event. When people collide with affliction, they became worried about themselves, do not feel uneasy about others. It displays that we have to be regulated by society. Law occupies a lot of rate that we do right thing. If we do not have the motivation of law compulsion, we cannot do the correct things naturally. So, we have a duty to obey the law.

As I mention before, I think that laws and orders do help us to do right things as people, and when they are banished, we tend not to care about right things

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Music as a media

Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.

-Berthold Auerbach

Every day, everywhere, music is around us. No matter we want it or not, it is there. When we walk on the street, when we exercise, when we eat, when we are sad or when we are happy, music stays with us, but we will not be fed up with it. It becomes the essential part of our lives. As it is a vital part of our lives, it affects us tremendously.

Music comes to people more emotionally and it reflects our culture along with its lyrics and melodies. Music helps people when they are exhausted emotionally. Throughout certain songs, people found relief. Also, sometimes, people get inspired because of the content of the song, well written piece of music or just because fascinating musicians. Lastly, music can reflect the culture and the people who belong to the culture. 

Music has a great effect on stimulating people’s emotion. An exciting song can make people excited with its fast beats. A dark song can make people depressed with its gloomy melody. A sad song can make people even sadder.  Also a calm song can make people calm down and relaxed.  Music makes people more alive by stimulating the emotions of people. Various genres of music let people have diverse emotions that allow the world to have many different people with countless emotions. Those emotions create active interaction among individuals as they understand and embrace other’s feeling. Moreover, as the quote in the beginning says, “Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life,” and this is true as we let our concerns and fatigue go along with music. Thus, music does stimulate our emotion.

Secondly, we get inspired from music. Music can give us ideas as the contents of songs are delivered to us as we listen to us. Some songs talk about the social issues, conflicts and things to be heard and fixed by people. This makes people to take action and try to solve the issues and conflicts. Also, when a music piece is well written by a maestro, people are captivated by it that inspires musicians to try to become one.  Furthermore, there are many famous musicians who have overcome their unpleased conditions, such as a female pianist who has only 4 fingers, another female pianist who does not have fingers on her right hand, also one of the best saxophonist Kenny G has asthma. Despite their unfortunate conditions, they overcame their weakness and inspire others with their passion and love towards music as behalf of music. 

Lastly, music is a way of reflect the culture and people of the culture. Some music contains current social issues and things that people want to change such as inequalities. For example, many black musicians especially rappers talk about inequalities. Also some musicians convey their messages about misunderstandings about themselves.

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Why does Music Make Us feel?

 Why does Music Make Us feel?

This article talks about how music affects emotions of people. It says speech does not make us cry even though we can understand what it says, but music can make us cry even though it is in different language that we cannot understand. Also, it talks about how happy music makes people happier and how sad music can exaggerate melancholy frown. 

It also talks about “Why music is nice to listen to?”. The reasons is, because we listen to music as we watching something for example the author listening to French instructional programs and he found it pleasure because people were shown with their expressions and behaviors. This is what he thinks and tells in the article about how music can stimulate our emotions.

At first, I agreed with his idea about music is more powerful than speech in stimulating people’s emotions. From my experiences, I do not like speech that is really long and it does not really make me feel anything but boredom. However, I love music that I listen to for a long time and actually feeling something from songs that I listen to. Happy song have made me feel better and encouraged, and sad song have made me think a lot, and driven me to a deep emotion. At least for me, music is influential enough to stimulate my feeling. 

As I read the article, there was a thing that I do not agree with the author that is music is effective because there is visible image with music. Visible images do have effect in making music more effective; however, without visible images music is effective enough to make people feel many emotions. Also, sometimes visible images are effective because there is music that helps to explain and make people focus on the images.

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http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-does-music-make-us-fe

Due to advances in medical science, situations of excruciating pain with no hope for recovery brought new ideas and debates about a peaceful death – called euthanasia. Euthanasia is an act that results in the earlier death of the patient than would otherwise occur. It is generally an alternative to reduce pain, but in regards to ethical considerations, euthanasia is just an extenuating circumstance for murder. Therefore, the question of its acceptability should be approached with caution.

Debate about euthanasia has been popular since 1975, with the issue of Quinlan. Karen Ann Quinlan was a 21 year old woman, who was in coma for 3 years because of the addiction to alcohol and drug. Quinlan’s father tried his best to save her and did not refused to pay for expensive medicine. However, as the doctor declared her as “practically dead” person, her father wanted to give her an opportunity to die peacefully. Against the demands of her father, doctor refused to disconnect the life support and legal conflict ensued. The courts decided in favor of Quinlan’s father and allowed to take off life support. Against all expectations, however, Quinlan did not die but sustained 9 years longer, as if trying to prove that she is not “practically dead.”

In another case in October 2005, Salvatore Crisafulli emerged from a 2 year coma, claiming that he had retained consciousness throughout his illness and could hear conversation around him. He said that he cried in desperation and darkness when his doctor sentenced him to death. Crisafulli’s situation exemplifies the ultimate loneliness and frustration of comatose patients who cries in darkness.

Today, decisions regarding euthanasia are left in the power of families and hospitals. Unconscious patients are suffering from the cruelty of caregivers while future patients with incurable diseases will be euthanized instead of searching for a cure. Now euthanasia is not about the right to die honorably; rather it is a reluctant burden for the unconscious patient.

An analysis of the issue of euthanasia requires a reexamination of the roles doctors and families play in making such a serious decision. First of all, one must consider whether it is proper for doctors to assist suicide, since their mission is to cure and help patients. Regardless of the patients’ will, doctors are directly or indirectly helping patients commit suicide. They should not be coerced into disconnecting life support and letting a patient die in absolute loneliness. As for patient’s family, they have no right to disregard the patient’s will. In the past, euthanasia was necessarily decided by the will of families, however, families are not equal to patients themselves. It may be easy for a family to let a patient go because of the immense financial burden and uncertainty as to the patient’s possible recovery. But on the other hand, it is not easy or acceptable for a patient to die simply to alleviate monetary problem.

Morally speaking, there is no difference between murder and euthanasia. Whether the self-destruction is committed individually or aided by others, the result is same: death. Although euthanasia is, by definition, “mercy killing”, it is still murder if the patient has no will to die and suicide if the patient shows the desire to die. Therefore, even if there is very little possibility to survival, we should not compromise with the evil desire for an easy exit.

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Community service can be a valuable part of the college experience. If you were to devote one of year of services to a volunteer project, what would it be, and what would you hope t accomplish? (Goucher)

I think volunteer work or project is good as its purpose is helping others. To be honest, I have not done volunteer work a lot. I really do not have huge and fancy plan because I do not know what to do and how to do first. However, if I have to plan and do volunteer work, I know I will do something that could help the community that I belong to. It is because I know about my community more than I do about other area of the world. 

Community service does not really have to be done in a big way such as going to Africa to help people. Rather than that, knowing and helping people and environment around us. Helping should be consistent, because helping once is easy but being consistent is tough. Also, people who need aids should be helped for a long term. It is because I think helping should make them to live independently eventually. However, spending so much money to go to other country and do some work is not idealistic at least for the point of my view. Moreover, there are heaps of organizations and people who know a lot better than us about those other areas.  Also, if we cannot know and help people around us, we will not be able to know and help what people need who are in other areas. Rather than trying to do something that is unrealistic or hard to start, we should start and do more realistic and easy to start. 

Thus, if I plan to devote one of year of services to a volunteer project, I would plan that benefits people and the environment where I live. At this moment, I live in India. It is my first country that that showed me the real world. I have always seen and lived in decent or great qualities of standard of living. Yet, I have complained so much, but after I came to India and saw so many people suffering from poverty. I have never seen people live on the street. I have never seen people drinking muddy water. I have never seen people begging because they have not eaten for a few days. Most of them were children and they should be studying but sadly they cannot afford education and they do not have time to be loved. Then I realized that I was such an unappreciative person and I felt I should work for kids who need love. For this reason, I would plan to help the kids wherever I will be. There are a lot of kids who are loved but there are also a lot of kids who need to be loved. In my old day, I used be happy when older people spent time with me doing various things. Thus, I will work in the orphanage for my volunteer work. There are orphanages almost everywhere, and the kids in orphanages need love. Also, educating them is another important thing for my project. It is because they have to go out of the orphanages when they become certain ages. In order to work or do something to survive, they need to be educated.

My goal for my project is letting children feel that they are loved and have ability to stand alone eventually. I believe if this happens, they can help others as they were helped and this will make consistent aids from more number of people with more organized way.         

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