Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize

Barack Obama recently won the Nobel Peace Prize, marking yet another historic day and accomplishment in the life of our 44th president. With the award, Obama became the first sitting president in 90 years and the first president in history to earn the honor during his first term. In essence, Obama was awarded for "his work to improve international diplomacy and rid the world of nuclear weapons" in addition to other efforts. When I initially read the news on my iPhone (shameless plug) I was not only shocked but also slightly uncomfortable with the notion of him being awarded one of the world's highest honors. I shared his sentiments when he said "To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who've been honored by this prize." However, after giving it some careful thought, I realized that although his tangible accomplishments may not necessarily merit the award, he captured it perfectly when he said (of the Prize) "It's also been used as a means to give momentum to a set of causes." Obama's election gave legitimacy to his cause, the Nobel Peace Prize will provide the necessary impetus to transform his ideas into the palpable, corporeal change that we need. Oh, and to all those who are upset that Obama won the award: remember, you don't apply for the Nobel Peace Prize. Don't be mad at him, be mad at the committee!

The Importance of Fall Semester

School is back session and Penn has a newfound energy - atleast until midterms arrive. Nonetheless, its exciting to be back at school, especially as a junior. My first two years at Penn have been tremendous and have definitely taught me a lot of bout myself and life in general. That being said, I wanted to make a quick plug about the importance of the first semester. In general, I think first semester is more important than second semester. I say this for a few reasons; First, when applying to summer opportunities, potential employers will most likely only see your grades from fall semester. Needless to say, its important to have strong grades and demonstrate that you are focused and off to a great start academically. Second, its easier for your grades to go down than to go up. I think of it this way, each additional class you take has a decreasing marginal impact on your overall GPA. Therefore, the classes you take second semester have less of an impact than those you take first semester. Lastly, (and this is a serious thought) if you're like me, there's an inverse relationship between my ability to do work and the quality of the weather; the better the weather, the harder it is for me to be productive (good weather = more distractions). Gameplan for good weather by giving yourself a cushion via your fall grades. That's just my two cents; good luck everyone.

Forum of Huntsman Hall