TOW #24- My Stroke of Insight

            We often hear people describe themselves as strictly “right-brained” or “left-brained.” Right brain thinking is non-verbal and intuitive while left brain is verbal and analytical. Although we may identify with one hemisphere of the brain more than the other, they work together in our everyday lives to process information. Chronicled in Jill Bolte Taylor’s discovery and enlightenment in My Stroke of Insight, there is great importance in having a balanced brain. When Taylor was a thirty-seven year old Harvard-trained brain scientist, she experienced a massive stroke in the left hemisphere of her brain. As she observed her mind deteriorate, Taylor alternated between the euphoria of the intuitive and kinesthetic right brain, in which she felt a sense of complete well-being and peace, and the logical, sequential left brain, which recognized she was having a stroke and enabled her to seek help before she was completely lost. Taylor’s stroke was a blessing and a revelation for her. It taught her that by "stepping to the right" of our left brains, we can uncover feelings of well-being that are often sidelined by "brain chatter."

            The right and left sides of the brain focus on different skills which, when combined, enable individuals to be rational and spontaneous, analytical and creative. It wasn’t until experiencing the stroke that Taylor’s consciousness shifted and found deep inner peace. This was an eye-opening experience for her because it was the first time that she was really able to see the power of the right hemisphere. She came to the realization that the two sides must be balanced in order to maximize our quality of life, believing that “the more time we spend running the deep inner peace circuitry of our right brain, then the more peace we will project into the world, and ultimately the more peace we will have on the planet.”

TOW #23- Political Cartoon

As our reliance on technology has continued to increase, people have put forth the assertion that technology has a negative effect on modern society. Mike Smith, an award-winning editorial cartoonist featured daily in the Las Vegas Sun, applies this notion to his work. But what Smith and others fail to consider is how much technology makes life easier for us and that there may be other correlations to student’s test scores than just our usage of technology.

Yes, the amount of time we spend using our beloved devices is a lot more than it should be, but that’s not to say that this only applies to Americans. Our dependence on technology is global and comparing test scores in China and the U.S. based on our usage of it is invalid. Even those top test scoring students in Shanghai probably use a decent amount of technology. But just because Chinese students test better, doesn’t mean they use technology any less. If anything, the correlation comes mostly from the rigor and importance stressed on academics and that technology is a tool when it comes to preparing for tests.

In my experience as a student, technology has made many aspects of learning better. Having all the files that I need for my classes in the school-issued laptop makes it much easier to stay organized. Not only am I no longer needed to lug around all of my heavy books and binders from class to class, there are so many aspects of using technology that make learning easier. I am constantly using Quizlet’s learning tools to help me prepare for tests. The repetition of flash cards and games drill the information into my brain quickly and I’m not wasting pages of paper in the process. Technology has pushed us forward more than it has set us back, we just need to know our limits with how much it should be used. 

TOW #22- Feel the Math

            As far as the 2016 presidential race goes, many have been surprised with how far the Sanders campaign has come. They expected Hillary Clinton to get an easy democratic nomination with no one else in her way. But even though Sanders gave Clinton a bit of a run for her money, the facts show that Sanders has slim chances of winning the nomination.

            Paul Krugman informs readers in his article, “Feel the Math,” that at this point it’s all about delegate counts, where Clinton has a substantial lead with the voting more than half over. Taking account of what we know about demographic factors, like that Sanders mainly does well in very white states and in caucuses, the Times’s Upshot calculator informs us about the remainder of the race and what to expect. It shows that Sanders would need to win by about a 13 point margin from here on in. Krugman’s statistics go on to say that at this point, “it’s something like a 90 percent probability that Hillary Clinton will be the Democratic nominee.” Even though Wisconsin is a demographically favorable state for him to win next week, unless it’s a huge blowout (which the polls aren’t showing), Clinton will still be very much on track for the nomination.

            Wherever we stand with our political opinions, it’s important to keep our eyes open and be more realistic about our choices. The Sanders campaign has shocked many people with how far it has gotten and with how many people have shown support for it, but as time moves closer to November, the end comes along with it.