Plagiarism

For this week's assignment, the int 95 class was supposed to read two articles on plagiarism, "What Is Plagiarism?" and "How to Avoid Plagiarism." Each article for the most part repeated and summarized the same idea. The idea that most people's ideas are not original thoughts produced solely on one's own rather a paraphrasing of other's idea. And by writing others thoughts and crediting oneself for them is wrong because then credit is being stolen from some one who actually deserves praise for their idea.
How to avoid plagiarism you may ask? Cite you sources! There are many different ways to cite sources such as apa, mla, or even foot notes. I think foot notes are a fun way to cite sources because they are by far the most descriptive in detail, but are also the most difficult way to cite papers. Another helpful tip... if you think it sounds familiar than check to see if you heard it before and if so cite it.
The way I feel about plagiarism is it is a form of cheating either way you spin it. Plus plagiarizing is an insult to the writer of the original piece and insult to one's own brain because plagiarize emphasizes how lazy people are. In my opinion it feels better to be graded off one own merit and receives a lower grade than someone else's. Anyone who plagiarizes is asking to be caught and should be punished. However, I know sometimes that it is unclear whether or not one is plagiarizing, but it is better to be sure and just cite the source than have to talk to one of the professors or T.A.s about a cheating scandal.

Lions, and Tigers, and Libraries... oh my!

Another exciting week finished at the fine institution we call now home. For last week's Int 95 seminar, one of the librarians presented her life and the importance of research to us. There were several objectives I learned from the Librarian such as which items we should utilize for a paper. An example she suggested was books written after the event because they are satiated with adequate research and offer a more accurate depiction of what happened. Another point the librarian made, was that students need to cite their sources or else professors will think we plagiarized our papers. So friendly advice... CITE YOUR PAPERS!
What else did I learn? Hmm, well I realized the librarian lived a fairly privileged life due to her family's ability to travel over seas every other year. I felt sad to hear that, because I also realized how difficult and cut throat society has become. Back in the day people could travel and attend college easily and now competition has become so fierce that most people do not encounter the opportunity to travel or attend any university. I hope one day society calms down and  students are not inundated with pressure it just seems unjust and as if youth is being taken away from the next generation.
Moving on, on Friday our Int 95 group explored the career center. I discovered the career center offers a multitude of resources for students who are searching for jobs, internships, and information about grad school. One important thing I learned was that student can come in during the day time and there are people waiting to help with resumes and cover letters. I also grabbed a ton of brochures about my major and the road it leads down as in career wise or even graduate school. I can see myself visiting the career center often actually, so I found this to be a productive activity!

Academic FUN.

Today was the mandatory academic fair, where different department situated themselves on the San Nic lawn and offered students some interesting information about the possibilities of each field. For me in particular, found the most pertaining information at the Environmental Studies table and the Anthropology table.
First, I encountered the Environmental Studies table. I felt eager to gain more knowledge about this course because lately I have been debating changing my major to Environmental Science. From what I gathered, there are several different course I can take at UCSB. And!!! UCSB is one of the leading schools in Environmental Studies. But the best piece of advice the Environmental representative suggested was taking a course offered by the school which is a one unit seminar on the introduction to Environmental Studies. The seminar would not only serve as an introduction, but would also assist in possible internships and guide through what it is like to be in field restoration projects.
For Anthropology, I learned that I could minor in Anthropology if I would like. I also learned UCSB offers two different Anthropology specialties the first, Physical/Biological Anthropology, which focuses more on the scientific aspect and second, Cultural Anthropology, which emphasizes the knowledge acquired about a certain culture.
To conclude my blog I will list the five helpful aspects I found at the Student Resource Building. What I discovered while exploring was the Women's Center, a small library within the Women's Center, EOP program which offers guidance, a coupon for Woodstock's pizza, and a peculiar magazine called Bitch. The most important thing I learned about SRB was if I need help with a problem or I need to report something that is the place to go.

The Beginning...

Well my name is Bianca, originally from Santa Cruz County, I am 18 years old and now taking the next big step in my life by attending the beautiful UCSB. I am excited to live on my own and to face what new challenges are headed my way.
A little bit about myself... well I'm currently a pre-major in Sociology and I hope to take classes in this field of study as well as classes that broaden my knowledge about life on earth and how as human we impact the environment in which we live on and how our relationships with other people influence one's mental state. I would like to one day work with at-risk youth and assist them to voice their opinion's on life matters. I aspire to live life in a big city and become a social worker to kids after college.
At the moment, I am taking 13 units which includes Philosophy 4; Intro to Ethics, Astronomy 1, Environmental Studies 2, and of course the Freshman Seminar. Out of all the classes on my schedule, I enjoy Astronomy 1 the most because the concepts involved are fairly difficult to wrap my mind around. Also, it helps me realize how infinitely large the universe is. Lately, I have been having difficulty immersing myself in Philosophy 4 not because the subject material is challenging rather because it is simple, so in class I tend to drift off... plus the students in class seem to repeat the professor's speech back to him which becomes tediously redundant. But before I get ahead of myself, I did write my first college paper for Philosophy 4, and I am fairly certain I did not do too well. Because everything I was taught i.e. never write with first person voice we were supposed to toss out the window. Old habits die hard I guess...
Dorm living has been an interesting experience with some good moments and bad. I do enjoy my seventh floor comrades, but sometimes their personalities can be a little too strong for me. Plus, the way people show that he/she likes you as friend anyways is by mocking or poking fun at each other which more times than not rubs me the wrong way since I usually assume it as a personal attack against my character. Also, I question the seventh floor's genuineness for instance do these people actually like each other and feel some sort of connection or is the seventh floor bond merely a matter of convenience which will come to a halt when falls rolls around and everyone meets new friends and joins their activities? Only time will tell!