Week 4 Comment #2

Emily Overstreet
Wow. I have taken many computer science classes and never thought about the fact that NASA had less than me to begin with. It really puts everything into perspective. It makes you realize that with goals and a vision, life is achievable.



Original Post by Dan Kuchera(I had to reformat it)
Wk4 Reading: Art of Possibility, Ch 11
Art of Possibility chapter 11

I often relate a story to students when I teach
Computer Science in high school.   Students.  There is more computing power in one computer that sits in front of you than all that NASA had for the Apollo program some forty years ago.  As this computer science course begins, think about where you want to be by the end of the class. Will yours be the vision that takes the technology you have in front of you far beyond the moon?

Historically, I’m old enough to have lived when John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. did.  They each managed to lead change by adopting unique perspectives that people could rally around.  In Kennedy’s case, the Soviet Union of the 1950’s was far ahead of the U.S. in developing working intercontinental ballistic missiles.  So it was quite shocking at the time when Kennedy called from the Rice University microphone to, “commit to putting a man on the moon within the decade”. But by choosing a space-related goal that the U.S.S.R. had not been pursuing, Kennedy reframed the issue causing the Russian to lose the advantage of their technological ‘head-start’.  In much the same way, King reframed the dialog directing it away from, “What is best for Black OR White?” to “What is best for People?”

Week 4 Comment #1

em said...

" I just did my thing and tried to avoid disasters as much as possible. " This phrase sounds pretty familiar. That was my goal in high school too. It is very interesting how we can "people watch" on facebook now. At the same time, it is weird for me because I had a few concussions from sports and I don't really remember high school so I don't know the bad or the good from back then, I just have a view of people for who they are now. As much as most peoples first reaction is "that's horrible", it actually has a positive spin. I can't judge people for their past mistakes that I may have known about. It like cleared the slate for everyone.

Week 4 - Free Choice - Time Flies

Tigers, photo by Diane Frymire ©2009

Last summer, I went home to visit and stopped by my old high school. Not a lot had changed.  Even the door pictured above had the same sign along with the same ancient graduation photos that were there when I was in school. A feeling of entering a time warp touched me as I walked down the hall ways. Was it really that long ago?

Just a few days ago, there was a high school reunion back in Illinois. I was unable to attend. When I looked at the pictures, I thought about how everyone had changed. It wasn't appearances or getting older. I have several high school classmates as friends on Facebook now. They are funny, kind, wonderful people, but I really didn't know them back when we were teenagers.

High school for me was full of band, choir, and swing choir activities. I was not popular, but I got pretty good grades. Most of the time, I just did my thing and tried to avoid disasters as much as possible. How much has changed since then? I wonder.

Zander's book, The Art of Possibility, talks about vision. Vision is powerful and so is lack of it. My vision in high school was to live a life that would bless others. I wish I could say I've achieved it. Perhaps in some small ways, I have. One of my favorite songs then and now said that its the small things that spread wings and fly on up to the throne. Small is better than nothing. The journey is accomplished step-by-step.