Posts tagged future
Paintings Without Fish
Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting one in a fruit salad.
On this spot stood...
This project does make you think, which was its goal. I’m not a big fan of an artist putting up signs that pretend to be sponsored by the government (it gets confusing and can distract people from the issue at hand) but it does evoke powerful emotions to do so.
I wonder what people 200 years from now will think of our society.
What is this image, you might ask? A chart, clearly. This chart compares two possible futures on where we (the USA) get our energy from. The one on the left is the year 2030 we will see if we change nothing about our current energy policies. This is the future that will see us wracked by global warming, longing for the ice caps and polar bears of old. This is, according to many people, Armageddon, with the fires of hell burning coal, oil and natural gas.
And to the right? Well the picture doesn’t look all that different does it? Coal looks like it is cut down to about 1/4-1/3 of the other projection, but oil and natural gas still make up the majority of the bar. Nuclear power has shrunk, and the biggest change is that a significant chunk in the bar is “energy reduction” rather than any sort of new, space-age fuel. And it is labelled “550 ppm”, what does that mean?
550ppm is salvation. 550ppm is one of the most stringent proposed goals for worldwide carbon levels. Currently, we are at around 390ppm, up 60ppm from the 1970s. With the rise of China and India and their enormous, industrializing populations the concentration of carbon in the atmosphere is expected to increase at a faster rate than it has, so 550ppm is a pretty lofty goal in the eyes of many.
Most politicians talk about setting goals like 550ppm as crippling our future economy, as demanding we run our grid on financially unviable technologies and throwing oil and natural gas out the window. But look at the chart again. The biggest change is simply being more efficient. Energy star toasters, sleep mode on the PC. We won’t all be driving electric cars, but some people will, and most of us will get 40mpg in your standard internal combustion engine. This future isn’t so different from one where we do nothing, and yet it has the power to save millions of lives if climate predictions are correct.
Now, I am not an eco-nazi. I don’t march on earth day or yell at people who don’t recycle. But when I see how simple, how relatively easy these changes are if we start them now, I can’t help but think we’re fools for not taking action to reach 550ppm - just in case.
Something Every American Should Read
Listen up, readers, I have an assignment for you. 15 pages of reading on what should be the most influential report to come out of the government in the past 10 years but probably won’t be.
This is the National Strategic Narrative, published by two senior members of the Joint Cheifs of Staff under the pseudonym “Mr. Y”. This narrative discusses what we as a country are doing wrong in the broadest sense - spending too much time, money and energy on Muslim extremism and military spending and not enough on Science, Education and a Sustainable future.
Sounds like new-age, leftist propaganda, right? But it isn’t. This is common-sense stuff, people, written by military experts. This isn’t about putting forth an agenda, this is making sure our country has a leg to stand on in 40 years. This is about making sound investments in our future - the kind of competitive forward thinking that made our country the great power it is today.
So whatever your political leanings may be, your stance on government spending, your priorities, I encourage you to read this. If you agree, and heck even if you disagree, go talk to your representative. Let them know that they need to be thinking about the future, now. Let them know that their job depends on it. This isn’t just a matter of preference - our survival as a country, as a people, and as a community depends on our ability to solve great problems with greater cooperation and sound thinking. The authors of this narrative, who have every incentive to keep the status quo and it’s bias toward the military, understand that things need to change. I hope you do too.
I’m on fire, and now I think I’m ready to bust a move~
Time to start seriously looking at my future opportunities. I am definitely looking for a new experience, and adventure. I want to get further out into the world and experience life through more than New England eyes.
Just gotta start with my resume and I’ll be on my way!
This is amazing. I’ve no idea whether the story is true, but it certainly amused me.
The wonderful problems of being young
I’m up late, restless, wondering where my life will go. Where will I take it?
Most people say that last line the other way around. “Where will life take me?” But that seems too passive to me. I may not believe in all that many things, but something I do have faith in is choice. I believe we can choose most of the important things in our lives, though often the path to that choice can be difficult to see. Too often, we let outside factors shape us, push us around, and never take the chance to consciously consider things…
But that isn’t what keeps me up tonight. Rather, I am awake with the thought of possibilities. I have about 8 months left here in Boston. After that time is up, I intend to move… but where I do not yet know. In the present moment, I am not sure whether I feel more settled or transient. Boston was never going to be a permanent move for me… but on reaching 4 months, 1/3 of my stay here, I question whether I could or shoot put down any “roots”. Of course, knowing me, what is on my mind is social. I can learn the streets, visit the museums, see concerts, eat food, drink beer and all the other activities of Boston and enjoy them whether I am leaving or not… but friendships, relationships, those are more difficult.
I’m learning that it is difficult to leave a place I enjoyed being behind. It may sound a little cold to say this now, rather than when I left for college, but the truth is I did not enjoy living at home when I left. I loved my family, and still do, I think even more, but to live in that house is not a pleasant experience. It is a life of strife, drama, stress… unpredictable in the worst of ways. But the life I built in Binghamton was different. There were difficulties, but I managed to overcome them. There was drama, but I got through and emerged with stronger ties to those who stood by me. There was stress, but the stress of upcoming papers, of reading and studying and exams, is not the same as others. It was unpredictable, but in such a way that each day I woke up not sure of what I would do before I went back to sleep, but knowing it would be something good, something worthwhile.
Of course, there is a rosy tint to this hindsight, but while most of my time at Binghamton was difficult in many ways, the last year was the happiest of my life so far. I finally crossed a threshold I had striven toward since I was 14, since I first glimpsed who I wanted to be. I became that kind of person. And now I have taken that accomplishment, moved to Boston… and felt underwhelmed. I don’t work as hard as I could. I’m not as busy as I could be. I’m not unhappy, but I’m not actively happy either. I’m “okay”. But anyone who knows me will understand that just “ok” isn’t enough for me. I need more, to be more.
At this point I’ve come to see that it is unlikely I’ll find true fulfillment in my work here. I can do more than I am, and I will move to do so, but to make any lasting change I require others do the heavy lifting and sustain it. I can establish conditions for improvement, but I myself will be working even more indirectly than I thought.
I might start volunteering after work or on weekends. I want to do something more, without gain. I don’t want to be paid. I don’t want comp time. I don’t even really want to tell anyone here about it. I just want to do something good.
Heh, I ended up talking much more about the present than the future… but I suppose that is a Stoic way of looking at it. We can’t know the future, but we do know the present will influence it. I have innumerable possibilities ahead of me and will for as long as I can reasonably envision… but the present is something else entirely. I have been looking at opportunities for when my year is over, yet I have little lined up for this weekend. I have access to things to do, and ideas, but nothing firm in mind. I should do that instead.
I definitely need to be more active, not just physically, and not even just mentally, but on an inspired, perhaps emotional or moral level. I need to do more things that feel right to me, and uniquely me. I will be happier then in the now.
Ello moto
Woo got the tumblr app for my droid! Maybe this will help me post more haha.
Tangent: I’ve started typing “haha” rather than “lol” for a week or two now. No real reason, just being different I suppose.
Speaking of droids, my dad just got the droid 2 *jealous*. I may live in poverty for the next year but I doubt that will reduce my love for gadgets.
Also, I’ve pretty much officially decided to spend a year abroad after my vista year - hopefully in Spain but maybe Korea (south). Actually, a survey I took listed those as two of the best countries for my personality. Go figure.
Sunday
Today was a day notable for its lack of anything major, coupled with the time I’ve spent thinking and speaking to people important in my life. I woke up at around ten, did some reading on the computer, then walked to CVS to buy detergent. On my way there, I called Amber and spoke to her for a bit. On my way back, I called Dan and spoke to him. Then I went to the laundromat (my first time ever using one) and on returning played Mass Effect 2 for a bit. I beat the game today; it was enjoyable and I’m looking forward to the next one. during this time, I was also texting my Dad, as he messaged me.
Today felt comfortable. I walked around and though the area was knew, I felt like I knew where I was going. I am developing familiarity with the area and no longer feel as lost when I try to do simple things. It is nice.
I’m also getting that itch to be more productive. I plan to do some writing on my leadership guide tonight, and I imagine it will be a busy week at work. I’ve also been giving more thought to life in general and where mine is going. My current mood is definitely to serve this year then travel, but we will see if that holds. I think that this year in Boston has and will continue to be a good experience for me.
I am determining my place in the world I live in. I find the thought amusing, as I recently asked someone “who are you in your own life?” and am still waiting for the answer. I suppose I’m still answering it myself.
Listening to the shins and relaxing is a good idea right now. Pleasant.
Day 1
So, I moved to Boston today. Well, mostly anyway. I packed up just about everything in my car and made the five hour trip over. When I got here, my roommate Rob helped me bring my stuff in and I’ve unpacked most of it now. I’m waiting to do a few boxes until I get a dresser or shelves of some kind. I’m also considering getting a different desk since the one they gave me is larger than I need and the room is fairly small.
All that said, I’m pretty happy with the place, and I’m definitely happy with my overall situation right now. My roommates are friendly, the landlord is very accommodating and helpful, the location is great and the room itself isn’t bad. I think living here for a year is going to be a great experience from me, one which will shape the course of my life.
Tomorrow is the fourth of July, which has made settling in interesting - there are firecrackers every once in a while, which is kind of jarring in an unfamiliar place. Still, it is nice to come to a place and see celebrations!
Also, what really made my day is that one of my roommates, before going to bed, said “welcome home.” It doesn’t get much better than that. Home.
I’m sure I’ll have more to say tomorrow, but for now I just wanted to get those thoughts down.
Grad school…
is intimidating.
Language requirements worry me, even though they probably shouldn’t. I’m just concerned about a skill I haven’t really proven to myself I have. Ah well, I’ll just have to work on my Spanish… thankfully many schools only require one language, and if they need two I can probably do Italian without too much trouble. I’ll find a way to make them relevant.
In other news, I’m looking for a few easier programs to apply to. The schools I want to go to are the very best, the kind that get 400 applicants for 20 spots, so I should have some backups in a more middle range. I don’t feel I’m as good a candidate on paper as I am in reality, but letters can help overcome that differential.
I never really was one for breaks… at least not in the past few years. So much to do, so little time. I may appear lazy to some people (re: my family) but I am always thinking…
