How important is an Embryo?

So, my topic for this research paper will be that of stem cell research, which will of course include the gargantuan controversy surrounding the topic. Doing initial readings on it, however, there are many things that confuse me about people being anti-stem cell research, and I do understand parts of the argument against embryonic stem cell research, but there are things that just boggle my mind, namely this issue:

It's just an embryo!

And embryo is not equivalent to a human life! It would be very easy to turn this into an abortion argument, but an embryo is even less of a human life than a fetus! And people don't even want to use the embryos created in in vitro fertilization for research?! Most of them are going to be destroyed anyway, why not use them to try and help people?!

One problem with the argument against embryonic stem cell research is the question of where do you draw the line of what is and is not human? I hate slippery slopes as much as the next guy, and they are indeed logical fallacies, but it is worth thinking about that embryos are not humans, they simply have the potential to turn into them. So you know what else has this potential? Sperm and eggs! By this mode of thinking, masturbation is essentially genocide, killing thousands of potential human lives, and even sex for procreation isn't 100% efficient! Many many sperm die in the process, what about those potential humans?! No one is crying for them!

I think the unfortunate fact is that the only reason not to perform embryonic stem cell research is religious in nature, and Christianity has stood up vocally against every major scientific development in recent memory. Those who would disagree with me on this would do well to remember that Christians stood up against astronomy, which is a pretty basic science. They were also against organ donation when it first started, something my Christian friends find odd only because they were raised in a society in which organ donation is not only considered okay, but encouraged.

These same people are often strongly against human cloning, and generally these views are supported by gross misinformation. A friend of mine had the detrimentally misguided idea that the way human cloning would be used, in a scenario in which someone had an organ problem and needed a new one, would be to clone an entire human, take the organ, and then kill the clone. There's no way around it; such an idea is just stupid.

I guess what I am trying to say with this long and disconnected stream of consciousness is that defining what is and is not human life is tricky, and also that religion should never stand in the way of medical developments that save lives.

It's just unfortunate that it so consistently has.

Improv Mafia

I attend a campus event every week called Improv Mafia, which is an improvisational comedy group. Think "Whose Line Is It Anyway," but far funnier. They have a variety of games that they play involving suggestions from the audience, and each member goes by a nickname, like Nick "Klahsio" Klahs, or Mike "Commodore" Norris, or Jared "The Wolf Man" Mason.

The general format is alot of fun. It starts at 8:00pm every Tuesday in the CVA. The Mafia plays short comedy games for half an hour, followed by a half-hour longform that often forms some sort of story or is linked in some way. The short games consist of things like "Shoulda Said," where two improvisers act a scene while two others watch on the sidelines. If the watchers don't like what the actors said, they say "shoulda said," and the actor has to make up a different line in place of what they just said.

The night is always opened with three short games designed to get the audience energized and involved. The two that remain constant in those opening games are "I like my men/women like I like my ," and "Sex is like ."

The longform varies in structure from week to week, and sometimes they have a special theme for it, like last month wherein they involved other performance groups on campus, or last week, in which the longform was a TV sitcom. Audience members were encouraged to bring props and costume pieces to use for the duration of the sitcom. The audience suggested the title, which was determined to be "Halloween Costume Store," and a moral for the episode, which centered around friendship.

Improv Mafia meets every Tuesday at 8:00pm in CVA 145, and it's free, and it's hilarious, so you owe it to yourself to go!

Regina Spektor

So, a friend of mine burned me a data disk of Regina Spektor's entire discography, and all I have to say is wow.  Just wow.  I mean, I knew she was incredible before, because "On the Radio" and "Samson" are awesome and very moving, but I had no idea of the extent of her awesomeness until this morning.  I say "this morning" because I have not slept since Monday, but who needs sleep when you have Regina Spektor?!

Honestly, I can't get over it.  If you haven't listened yet to Regina Spektor, stop reading, go do it, and get back to me.  She is a great musician, in terms of her skill on the piano, but she is not only that, but also is an amazing lyricist!  And when I say amazing, I really do mean it.  Her style varies alot, but almost always features piano, sometimes played in a very poppy "Not the Same" (by Ben Folds) kind of style, but other times it slows down alot, and then we get some beautiful tunes like the aforementioned Samson.  

Spektor tells amazing stories with her music, seriously.  Her lyrics can be wonderfully moving, and she is a great enough musician that it all comes together in a wonderful final product.

This is not the most eloquent I have been about music on here, but like I said, I haven't slept since Monday, so give me a break, please.  So, go check out Regina Spektor.  Later, internet!

"If I Had a Million Dollars" (okay, not quite)

So, this assignment asks what I would do if I had all the money required to pay tuition at ISU, and was required to go out in the world and spend it.  Before I say what I would do with it, I would have to figure out the amount of money I was being given.  The Illinois State Accounts website sets $316.40 as the per credit hour rate of tuition.  We shall assume that I would have taken fifteen credit hours per semester for a total of eight semesters.  This adds up to a grand total of $37,968.  This is not including room and board.

That's alot of money.

As has been demonstrated by the content of my free blogs earlier, my interests, and my field of study (speaking of which, I got accepted into the Arts Technology Music program!).  Therefore, if I got this kind of money, I would spend it on my music production equipment.  This includes midi keyboards (probably more than one), a new computer, Mac Pro of course, and the full versions of all the programs I have ever wanted.  This means Logic, Reason, Cubase, Sibelius, Sonar, and maybe a drum program for good measure.  I would leave enough money to support myself for a while, during which time I would write and produce music and attempt to get picked up by a record label as either an artist or a producer.

The irony, however, is that had I never gone to college, I would never have discovered my interest in writing music, or at least not until much later.  The first music program I used was one called GarageBand, one that comes with every Macintosh.  It is a basic program, not really meant for serious music production, but it is what got me interested.  The whole reason I had the Mac in the first place was because I started college as an art major.  I got it as a graduation present, and my parents talked to people at the university first to see what they should get me. 

I started writing music on GarageBand, and as I got better, I realized its limitations.  I got Logic Pro as a result of this, which is a much more powerful program.  I finally realized that I loved writing music far FAR more than making visual art.  However, were I not an art major, I never would have become a music major.

I guess what I am saying is that I know at this point what I want to do, but if I had not gone to college, I have no idea what I would have been doing at this point.  So in light of this, the question is not one I can really answer.  Our experiences make us what we are, and I cannot imagine what my life would be like if the last two years had been that different.

As an addendum, though, I would not give up my college experience for the world, and not just for the academic and artistic benefits I have received.  You see, college is where I met my boyfriend, someone I am quite confident I can spend the rest of my life with; someone I could not live without at this point.  If I changed my history, no matter how successful I may have become, I would be sacrificing the love of my life, and that is something I could never do.

Incoming Freshmen

Dear incoming freshman,

I have been given the honorable duty of giving you advice on how to handle your first year of college, a responsibility for which I have dubious credibility, being myself not a very good student.  However, I have been told I give very good advice, so here we go!

First thing is roommate selection, as it can make or break the living experience, and therefore the college experience, for many people.  Obviously, there isn't much to say about random roommate selection; it's a craps shoot without a doubt, but there isn't much you can do except hope for the best and change roommates if it doesn't work out.  However, there is much that can be said about rooming with someone you already know.  It can be a very bad idea.  Try to gauge not just how good a friend your potential roommate is, but what traits they have, and I mean ANY traits, that get on your nerves.  You have to decide if you will be able to live with those.  Unfortunately, I have seen multiple times where living together ruined friendships.  Essentially, you just have to be careful, because you don't want living together to interfere with a good friendship, but if you think you will be able to survive living with someone you know, go for it!

Second thing is, be open to socializing with your floor, assuming you live in a dorm (which, if you are a freshman, you pretty much have to).  Living in a dorm is a great opportunity to make friends, and while you will surely meet and socialize with people in classes and in whatever clubs you may choose to attend, you can never have too many!  Leave your door open if you are comfortable with it, walk around and introduce yourself to everyone!  If you live on a floor with a specific designated major, the people on your floor can be a great help with studying or projects, because they have often either already gone through it, or are going through it with you.

Finally, the most important thing is to relax!  College is indisputable a big change from high school, and for legitimate and important reasons, it can be very intimidating.  You need not be afraid of it, though, if only because you made it this far, and this proves you are ready for it.  It can be hard at first to live away from your parents, as it creates alot of personal responsibility and freedom.  But, to put it in perhaps less appropriate terms, you survived all the bullshit of high school.  You survived the teachers, the homework, the tests, and the drama.  You passed the tests and you got accepted!  You have proven to this college that you are ready to experience it, so don't be afraid of it!  Embrace it and have fun; take it as a fun new experience, and you will do great!