Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the use of another person’s ideas or materials without giving credit to the original source. Plagiarism does no good to anybody and only serves to hinder progression.

In today’s world people exist in a network of information; by not citing sources or by duplicating existing information plagiarism doesn’t contribute anything to the total network of ideas. Instead, it clutters the network and produces unneeded redundancies. But when sources are cited and new ideas or analysis is provided alongside the existing information new connections are made in the network and progress is made. Plagiarism may be unfair to the original developer of an idea, or plagiarism may be seen as immoral, but most importantly plagiarism is just a waste of time and effort for the person committing it.

Being resourceful

Leaving home and going to college is large change for everybody. Some people are able to adjust quickly, but others have difficulties with the transition. At UCSB there are programs in place to help people from all backgrounds. Many of these programs are located in the student resource building.

The student resource building is a structure for helping students who may be facing some form of discrimination or hardship due to specific, personal attributes that are out of their control. There are offices to help people who are GLBT, racial minorities, mentally disadvantaged, or from different countries.

Besides school programs there are also many tips and tricks for making a college experience more enjoyable and fulfilling. One of the most important factors besides getting an education is making connections with other people in college. Making friends can greatly add to the feelings of belonging and purpose while in college, and making plenty of acquaintances can be of great value for present and future endeavors, and it’s simple to do. Breaking bread, forming study groups, and being generally friendly in short encounters are great ways to get to know new people. No matter what the occasion is there’s always a way to make the best of it and come out with new connections and resources for the future.

Knowing what is available and capitalizing of opportunities is also vital to making the most of college. At the recent career fair I gathered information on what path to take to achieve my personal goals.  This included talking to staff from the biology and chemistry departments, the college of creative studies, and the study abroad program. I found that it would be advisable to apply for the college of creative studies for the fall semester because of the perks that accompany it (it takes approximately six weeks to get a response, so the sooner I apply the better). Also, I should spend my semester abroad sooner rather than later because it would be a lot easier to find more basic classes in foreign countries than it would be to find advanced science classes.

INT 95 - About me

Written by Mitchell Raab

I’m Mitchell. I like a wide variety of things and consider myself to be very open minded. I enjoy meditation and talking about trippy things like space, physics, and new/theoretical technologies, but most of all I enjoy learning new things. I sort of operate by a philosophy that it’s impossible to truly know something if you’ve never personally experienced it. I always try to remove my bias from my decisions so that I can explore many different viewpoints. I have an overall goal in my life to do the greatest good I can with the resources that are available to me. This goal has led me to peruse a deep knowledge of biochemistry and nano-technologies, because I hope to help develop cheap, organic medicines. To elaborate, I want to create a drug capsule that replicates itself like life by doesn’t undergo evolution. This way drugs could be manufactured within the cells of a human, and one dose would last indefinitely; it could eliminate addiction, overdoses, and the high cost of constantly buying more medicine. I know my plans are possibly impossible for me to do, but if I shoot for the stars and don’t make it at least I’ll be flying high. I also enjoy playing sports, but I don’t follow any professional sports. I don’t watch much TV, but when I do it’s usually news or documentary style programs. I have done well academically, but my academics are just a portion of my life; I also like to have fun.