Day 29: FOMO

What went well?

• Had a peaceful start to the day, reading a chapter of Thich Nhat Hanh's Being Peace for my Intro Buddhism class. The compassion that emanated from the text was powerful.
• Had lunch with my friend from my Sociology of Mental Illness & Intro Buddhism classes. She generously swiped me into the 1920 Commons dining hall, so it was really nice to get a variety of food, with excellent vegan options.
• Had my first lab meeting with my fellow research assistants. It was really nice to meet them and share ideas about where we think positive psychology should go and what's going on in the field. Also, the post-doc I'm working with brought chocolate & mint cake, and it was vegan, so that was a treat.
• Finished writing my research proposal for my Intro Buddhism paper.

What did I learn? 

• Another insightful quote from a friend at Philo. This was in relation to a prospective member who said something publicly that warranted a bit of concern, to say the least...just dead silence. It was really sad and I felt compassion. And my friend said, "You can't save them, you can only love them."
• A new term: Neuroaesthetics. The intersection between neuroscience & aesthetics - why people appreciate art. A prospective member of Philo gave her 6 minute presentation on this topic, and it was really excellent.
• When time constraints exist, you make the most of your experience. People are always surprised by how "in the know" I am about what's going on on campus, or how things work around here. But I have to be! I'm only here for a semester and want to make the most of it. Massive FOMO (fear of missing out), yet of course MO is inevitable with all the stuff that's happening here. I literally get 5-10 emails a day notifying me of new events, sometimes of multiple events. It can get a bit overwhelming. But be a yes person! It's generally valuable to expose yourself to spontaneity. To give you an idea of the number of events around, here's a peek at my email inbox:

• 
  
• And here's an email I got from the Penn Abroad activities coordinator:

Dear Exchange Students,

Good morning!

As you may be aware, this weekend will be a snowy one. If you haven’t built a snow man, this might be the time to do so! Make sure to be creative and take pictures!

Last night I almost lost my phone, but fortunately with the help of many people, including officers at the Penn Police Station, I got it back. Have you gotten the help that you need from others while you are Penn? I hope so! If not, let us know- Penn Abroad if here for you.

Also, the Managing Stress and Finding Balance session is coming up on Wednesday, February 26^th, at 6-7pm. Food will be provided! For more info or RSVP, click here (or email back if you on not active on facebook).  

Happening at Penn

The Bearded Ladies

Marlene & the Machine: A German Expressionist Cabaret

Friday, February 7 @ 7:30 PM

Saturday, February 8 @ 7:30 PM

@ Annenberg Center- Harold Prince Theatre

A “wildly entertaining” (Philadelphia Inquirer) experimental group bent on inciting a cabaret revolution, The Bearded Ladies tackle the politics of popular culture, sex, gender and artistic invention with wit and sparkle, as well as over-the-top costumes, drag, pitch-perfect songs and virtuosic prop construction. Marlene & The Machine combines the music of Marlene Dietrich and Lotte Lenya with the visual language of German Expressionism to create a shadowy world that blurs the lines between human, music and machine.

One-Acts 2014

February 6th, 7th, and 8th, 2014 7:30 pm

@ Houston Hall Class of '49 Auditorium

The Theatre Arts Council presents the 2012 One Acts: There Shall Be No Bottom (a bad play for worse actors) by Mark O'Donnell, Love and How to Cure It by Thornton Wilder, Central Park West by Woody Allen, and Monologue: "A Prayer" by Paul Simms.

Tickets: $10 with Penn Card, $12 without. A portion of proceeds will go to The Pennsylvania School for the Deaf

World Culture Afternoon

Annual Celebration of African Cultures

Saturday, February 8, 1:00 - 4:00 pm

@ Penn Museum

Shake Your Sekere! African music, belly dancing in the Tunisian tradition, storytelling, arts, artifacts, games, crafts, and cuisine all come together for the Penn Museum's annual Celebration of African Cultures. Now in its 25th year, the festive event features an array of renowned local artists including the Universal African Dance and Drum Ensemble, storyteller Momma Sandi and the percussionists of the Women's Sekere Ensemble. Visitors can also explore art and artifacts from across the African Diaspora in Penn Museum's current special exhibition Black Bodies in Propaganda: The Art of the War Poster, the Imagine Africa gallery project, the African Gallery and the ancient Egypt Galleries. Free with Museum admission.

For performance schedule, check the web.

Second Sunday Family Workshop
Hieroglyphic Valentines

Sunday, February 9, 1:00 - 4:00 pm

@ Penn Museum

Valentine's Day is just around the corner. In this drop-in workshop, show your love to your mummy, daddy, sibling, or friend by creating a valentine written in Egyptian hieroglyphs. Free with Museum admission. For more information, visit the website, or call 215.898.4016.

Afternoon Performance

Relâche in Residence

Sunday, February 9, 3:00 pm

@ Penn Museum

Relâche, Philadelphia's internationally-renowned new music ensemble, continues its new three-concert series, "New Sounds and Cinema," featuring both commissioned music and live accompaniment to old silent films, at the Penn Museum. The series is part of the University of Pennsylvania's Year of Sound.

The ensemble will perform the title tracks from its new CD, "Comix Trips," commissioned from composer Paul Lansky. Loaded with quirky charm, humor, and virtuosity, with touching moments as well, Lansky's music makes the eight players in Relâche sound truly orchestral. February 9 also marks the release of the group's new CD which will be for sale at the concert.

RelacheCOMIXgraphicRelâche's silent film offering will be Buster Keaton's blockbuster comedy, "The General." The title is actually the name of a steam engine which Keaton engineers as no steam train has ever been engineered before or since. The film's two chase scenes are spectacular. Relâche cranks up its live accompaniment for the film live with music drawn from its repertoire, including selections by Philip Glass, Guy Klusevcek, Raymond Scott, Eric Satie, Fred Ho, and Tyler Capp, plus Relâche's own versions of period tunes like Ashokan Farewell and Battle Hymn of the Republic.

Relâche concert tickets are just $10 for Penn students with PennCard, in advance or at the door, while supplies last. The audience is cordially invited to an informal reception following the performance to meet the musicians of Relâche. For more information, visit the website, or call 215.898.2680.

Pre-Columbian Society Lecture

Pre-Columbian Engineering in U.S. Film

Sunday, February 8, 1:30 pm
@ Penn Museum

Prof. Richard C. Shupp, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, Lafayette College, and a group of Lafayette College students have researched the images of Pre-Columbian engineering as it has been portrayed in American film. The anticipated Maya apocalypse in 2012 spawned a number of Hollywood films that suggested a broad spectrum of possible outcomes. Some films were intensely sentimental, and others were stunningly gruesome. The group illustrates their talk with video clips from the films they have identified and analyzed, and share their observations and conclusions. Held in Anthropology Rm. 345. Free admission. Visit website for more information.

Far From Vietnam & The New Wave By Itself

Wed, February 12, 7pm – 10pm

@ International House Philadelphia,

If you're into films, you have to check out this double feature. First, the International House Philadelphia will be showing Far From Vietnam, a collaboration by many famous filmmakers in 1967. Next will be The New Wave By Itself, a movie displaying the French New Wave movement in action. It's just $7 for students to see both of these films. Check out the website for complete information.

Young Friends Valentine Event: Blurred Lines - The Secret Side of the Collections

Thu, February 13, 6pm – 8pm

@ Penn Museum, South Street, Philadelphia, PA, United States (map)

Think ancient art was always formal and serious? Think again! See a secret side of different artifacts at the Penn Museum that's too racy to show on an everyday basis. This year, Penn Museum will explore artifacts depicting racy and sexually explicit material in the Museum's permanent collection. Cash bar to follow.

Just in time for Valentine's Day, this exclusive event is only $5 with Penn Card. Check out the website for complete details on the event. For additional information, call 215.898.5093 or email membership@pennmuseum.org.

Penn Bookstore Series

CHRISTINE WADE- "SEVEN LOCKS"

SAT FEB 08, 01:00pm-02:00pm

@ Penn Bookstore 2^nd floor, Study & Events Room

Debut novelist Christine Wade will be in store to discuss "Seven Locks"- a work of historical fiction set in the Pre-Revolutionary War Catskill Mountains. Read more about the it here: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/seven-locks-christine-wade/1109156398?ean=9781451674705

AUTHOR EVENT WITH BROOKE ERIN DUFFY

MON FEB 10, 06:00pm-07:00pm

@ Penn Bookstore 2^nd floor, Study & Events Room

Penn alum Brooke Erin Duffy will be in-store to discuss her latest book-"Remake and Remodel: Women's Magazines in the Digital Age"- a unique glimpse at how executives and content creators are remaking their roles, their audiences, and their products at this critical historic juncture

Under A Rest

Penn Glee Club Student Performance

Thursday, February 13 @ 8 PM

Friday, February 14 @ 7:30 PM

Saturday, February 15 @ 1 PM

Saturday, February 15 @ 8 PM

@ Annenberg Center- Zellerbach Theatre

Under A Rest presents a neo-fascist state, wherein all music has been outlawed. Anyone who sings is sent straight to Pennsylvania General Corrections and the warden of this facility wants to have all traces of music abolished from the face of the earth. On the very day the President of the World is scheduled to arrive, the prison admits four new inmates: four Penn students who had just founded a rogue a cappella group in their basement. The fate of the world and the people's happiness rest in the hands of the inmates at P.G.C., but the warden leads an oppressive regime that will be hard to overcome. Come find out what happens in Under A Rest!

Check out the Library’s WIC workshops here.

Sign up for the Outdoor Adventure trips here.

Penn also offers self-defense classes for free for female students. Check the details in the attached PDF!

Fun in Philly

Shaping Shakespeare: Hands-On Tour

Fri, February 7, 3pm – 4pm

@ Rosenbach Museum & Library, Delancey Place (map)

Learn about the beginnings of Shakespeare and how his work was created and changed with this tour. You'll get the chance to see rare, behind-the-scenes items and hear expert opinions on them. This tour is only $5 and advance registration is recommended! Check out the website for complete details on the event.

The Pigeon Presents: The Philadelphia Poetry Slam

Fri, February 7, 7:30pm – 10:00pm

@ PhilaMOCA, North 12th Street (map)

First, there will be a poetry workshop featuring Pages Matam, an award winning slam poet from Cameroon. At 8:30 people can sign up for the slam, and the slam itself starts at 9! Tickets are $10. Check out the website for complete details on the event.

I remember the poetry slam my friend took me to when I was in Columbus, Ohio, and it was quite an experience!

Transplanted Souls: Another Try at Eternal Rest

Sat, February 8, 1pm – 3pm

@ Laurel Hill Cemetery, Ridge Avenue, Philadelphia, PA, United States (map)

As Philadelphia grows and changes, sometimes history can get lost. Check out Laurel Hill Cemetery's walking tour and learn about how places that were once reserved for the dead are now being built upon. For $12, you can learn about the relocation of those seeking eternal rest and the reasons behind it. Visit thewebsite for complete event details.

14th Annual Print Love-In

Sun, February 9, 1pm – 3pm

@ Fleisher Art Memorial, Catharine Street, Philadelphia, PA, United States (map)

Celebrate Valentine's Day in a creative way! At this years Love-In, you can learn about the process of printmaking and create your own Valentine's Day cards. The session from 1 pm - 3 pm is $10 and all ages, while the later session at 5 pm - 7 pm is $20 and 21+, since wine will be served. Check out the websitefor complete details on the event.

Science on Tap

Mon, February 10, 6pm – 7pm

@ National Mechanics Philadelphia Bar and Restaurant, South 3rd Street, Philadelphia (map)

Are you a science geek? Join the Academy of Natural Sciences as they meet at National Mechanics to hang out with the experts and talk about science. This month features a presentation on emerging technology in paleontology followed by discussion. This event is free to attend! Check out the website for complete details on the event.

Jazz is: Now! Featuring Jon Batiste

Tue, February 11, 6:30pm – 8:30pm

@ Kimmel Center, South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA, United States (map)

Do you like jazz? This event is for you! Part of the Free at the Kimmel series, Jon Batiste brings an exciting and interactive event where the audience members get to join in on the fun by singing, dancing, and even playing some music. The event is free, but tickets are required. Check out the website for complete details on the event.

Night Skies in the Observatory

Thu, February 13, 6pm – 9pm

@ The Franklin Institute, North 20th Street, Philadelphia, PA, United States (map)

Come out to the Franklin Institute for a night with the stars -- literally! Visit the Joel N Bloom Observatory where you can view stars and planets from five different telescopes. Tickets are just $5 and also include a planetarium show! Check out the website for complete details on the event.

Day 28: Library resources

What went well? 

1. Set up an appointment to see a subject specialist librarian next week for guidance on tools that will help with my research paper (I need to be able to track down every occurrence of the word "mindfulness" in books & journal articles, how often it's occurred, how it's been used, in what subject areas, etc. It is wonderful to be living in the digital age). They have so many librarians here!! (did I mention that Penn is well-resourced?!?!)
2. Got a free ticket to see the Penn Glee Club show next Friday night, generously funded by Stouffer (again!!).
3. Had lunch with a friend and started talking about Spring Break. We're going to start making plans on Monday for a road trip, probably along the East coast...hopefully it'll happen!
4. Went to a Duckworth lab meeting and Dr Duckworth was really friendly and welcoming.

What did I learn? 

• Don't judge a course by its syllabus.
• At the same time, interest in a subject is enough to keep me sticking with it...#grit
• Some initial findings relating to the history of the word mindfulness:
• The word “mindful” has been around in the English language since the late 1300s, but its use only started to relate to Buddhism in the late 1800s.
• Early uses of mindfulness often included ideas of memory, intention, awareness.
• I got 4616 hits searching "mindfulness" on the PsycInfo database. Here's the trend for the publications:
 
• I suspect that 99% of these publications will have used "mindfulness" in the sense of "Buddhist mindfulness meditation", or at least referred to Buddhist roots. So far, only the very earliest article in 1916 used mindfulness in the sense of "urges mindfulness of the distinction between the ideal of maximum scientific accuracy and practical usefulness".

Day 27: It helps to be social

What went well?

1. I felt like I made a difference today in my research assisting work. Together, we managed to push past a roadblock and just get a lot of stuff done on this other project that was being perceived as overwhelming and nightmarish. Sometimes, all you need is someone to talk things through and bounce ideas over and to help motivate you - all I said was, "Sounds like you already know what you want to write, why don't we just do it now?" and we did! Though flippant, this blog post really captures what happened back there: "If you add a social element to the work that you do, you will become more productive." Hey, "synergy" is sometimes actually a thing!
2. Finished all my readings for my mindfulness class tomorrow. They were all on the evidence base for mindfulness interventions in schools. At present, it's limited but promising and growing.
3. More laughter and interest in my intro Buddhism lecture. We discussed Buddhist concepts of time. I don't know how the professor manages to make obscure philosophical ideas funny, but he does, and it's awesome.

What did I learn?

• The importance of being selective about who you collaborate with in research. I was discussing this with the post-doc I'm assisting, and sometimes collaborators can be a huge source of ill-being.
• Some other behind-the-scenes insights into what researchers do. One of which is manually generating graphs for participants' individual reports (which we're sending to them as a thank-you for participation) on Word documents linked to Excel because neither of us have figured out how to automate the process. Minimising the work by making the only personalised part of the document their graph, with a very general description of what was measured for everyone. And then, adding a couple of institutional logos to make the document look more "official". Lol.
• We need a lot more (and better) research on school-based mindfulness interventions, especially research that's very rigorously done with appropriate active control groups, across diverse demographics, and with long-term follow-up.
• Buddhists are one of the only religions without a "creation story", because they basically believe that it doesn't matter at all, that it's not going to change the way we lead our lives or suddenly take away our suffering even if we find out the true facts about how the world was created. In fact, thinking about these things distracts you from things that matter right now.
• Another somewhat radical idea that some Buddhists believe, is that time is endless, so we have lived forever, and have experienced all types of existence. This leads to radical empathy, a fundamental connection with everyone, because we have all been where they are, and they have all been where we are.
• A much better way of reading scientific journal articles. I audited a positive psychology lecture again today, and the professor said we should read like graduate students and professors, like so:
1. Title
2. Abstract
3. Discussion
4. Abstract, title, abstract
5. Then go back to introduction, results
6. Don't read it in sequence!!
• I don't know why I haven't been doing this already!!!
• Social relationships, along with health, are basically the top predictors of wellbeing. Since people our age (college students) are generally very healthy, then, this means that social relationships are likely the key factor that will most strongly influence our wellbeing.
• According to Dan Gilbert's research, people aren't very good at predicting how certain things are going to make them feel ("affective forecasting"). In this study, participants estimated how happy they would feel a year later if they were assigned a good or bad dormitory. They estimated that they would be much happier if assigned the good dorm, compared to the bad dorm. Then a year later, they measured their actual happiness in the dorms, and there was actually no difference between those in the good dorm and those in the bad dorm. The students had overestimated their happiness in the good dorm and underestimated their happiness in the bad dorm. 



From Wilson & Gilbert (2005)

• 
  
• Why? Gilbert suggests that we have a psychological "immune system" that operates at a largely unconscious level. It helps us cope by making sense of our circumstances and finding benefits...i.e. rationalising away the situation "it's not that bad, I met my best friend in this dorm, I'm getting extra exercise because it's so far away from everything on campus".

Day 26: Monkey mind

Today was a bit of a mindless day, where I just wasn't entirely present. It happens to everyone from time to time though; some more than others, and I think in general, I've become a lot more present over the past couple of years. Despite this scattered-ness, a lot of good things still came out of the day.


What went well?

1. Got started on the next project for  positive psychology research, and managed to get some coherent thoughts down on the study design. While at the positive psychology center, I hung out with a couple of guys there on their lunch break and really enjoyed talking to them.
2. Finally got my bank card...3 weeks later.
3. Went and saw my Intro Buddhism professor for more guidance on my research paper, and now I actually have a solid direction, thanks to his helpful suggestions. Basically, I'm going to trace the history of the word "mindfulness" - how often it's been used in different years and how the meaning has changed across time, and therefore when it started being used in relation to Buddhist ideas. Apparently noone's actually done this before, so it'll actually be a unique scholarly contribution, hopefully. I also managed to write my research proposal straight afterwards, so feel like I actually got something done today and that I finally know where I'm going with this.
4. My phone fell out of my pocket in the library onto seat, but I realised 5 mins into my walk back and it was still there when I went back. Maybe there is a benefit to mindless email-checking after all??

What did I learn?

• Fresh Grocer does indeed sell tofu! I think I finally know my way around it now, so it shouldn't take as long to do a grocery shop in the future.
• Putting on gym clothes gets you in the gym mode. I changed into some gym clothes to do my laundry, and suddenly I felt like going to the gym (I had been planning to go tomorrow). So I did - even though I never go at night. Lesson: if you ever feel too tired or unmotivated to go, just put your gym clothes on. Seriously. You can decide to not go after you've gotten changed, but you probably will - what you wear is a powerful cue (unless you're one of those people who just wears gym clothes everywhere) and it'll feel silly to have to get changed back without going.
• The paper size is different here. I should have caught on when I noticed that the paper at the library was different when I was photocopying stuff, but I thought that it was a quirk of the photocopiers there. Nope! US Letter seems to be the standard here, and I realised when I printed something off and the top got cut off (US letter is shorter).

Miscellaneous thoughts

• There is so much free food around here. Where there are dorms or clubs and societies there are events, and where there are events there is food (seemingly a huge incentive for people to go!). So it's quite possible to spend negligible amounts of money on food if you are super skint and don't care about what you ingest :P Case in point:

The events board in my dorm. There are at least 5 events involving free food on here.

• Another difference that I don't think I mentioned is their approach to research papers over here. The reason that I was in such a kerfuffle about where I should go with my research is that they give you basically no restrictions (or guidelines, for that matter) on what topic to write on. Whereas in Australia it's normal to be given an entire 1-2 page assignment brief including a list of topics to choose from, here you just get told how many pages (not word count) the research paper should be...everything else is up to you! As long as it's related to the course somehow (and it doesn't even have to be closely related, unlike in Australia where in my experience, your assignments are often supposed to be grounded in the course material). The flip side is that professors are therefore much more accessible as advisors for your research paper, and it's normal to check in regularly with them for guidance during the process of researching and writing the paper.

Day 25: Semi-Snow Day!

Today, it started snowing again...

So my new singing teacher couldn't come in, and neither could one of my professors. Which meant I suddenly had an unexpected 4 hours (the whole afternoon) freed up!

What went well? 

1. Went to the Platt Performing Arts House to practice (in the room where my singing lesson was meant to be) and the acoustics are so much better than the music building practice rooms. Seriously, it is demoralising when practicing in an acoustically dead room. Anyway, it looks like anyone can just kinda use the rooms when they haven't been booked, so I will check the printed bookings each week to see when they're technically free.
2. Finished all my readings for sociology of mental illness for the week. It was quite interesting to learn about how stigma can be conceptualised, and the effects of stigma.

What did I learn? 

• Buddhists sure came up with some seriously creative (and messed up) hells. Including one where mothers are swimming in pools of menstrual blood. Just...what. There are 16 hells, related to what you did, and the professor reckons he's definitely going to the one for people who verbally abuse their students :P.
• Stigma consists of the processes of labelling, stereotyping, separation, and discrimination, and must involve the exercise of power.

Miscellaneous thoughts 

• I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but security is high in all aspects of campus. You can't even get into the library without swiping your PennCard, and when you leave the library, you have to show them your open bag and hand them your books to make sure they've been checked out.

Day 24: Found a gem of a park

What went well?

1. Got off campus today! (kinda a big deal; you can do practically everything in University City) Walked to 16th Street from 37th Street along Chestnut, and appreciated some new sights. It was a very mindful walk, and I was just trying to be open and receptive to everything on the way. Here are some scenes from the walk:



This is the river I took a photo of about 3 weeks ago. It's now frozen!! (slowly unfreezing)










This is the gem of a park I found. It's on Chestnut Street, between 16th & 17th Streets. Highly recommended!



So much peace.

2. Saw a couple of super cute dogs in that park, and patted them :)
3. It was actually warm today, and the sun was shining brightly. Let's not rejoice tooo quickly though since it looks like it's back to snow tomorrow!!
4. Am getting somewhere with my Buddhism x Mindfulness research paper. At least, I'm no longer completely lost as to what direction to take. Just mildly lost, but the ideas are coming along, I can kinda see what the critical issues are, and I'm going to talk through them with the professor next week.



So, the research matrix was overkill for this very early exploratory stage of research (since I haven't really defined the scope/direction of my paper yet). What I really needed was to be able to map out some of the key ideas in the field and how they relate to each other, to strengthen the connection-forming in my mind. Like so ^.

5. Finished everything I wanted to get done today by 10pm (including an online 17-module course on ethical research practices in preparation for my research assisting role - took over 2 hours, fun times). Accomplishment is a good feeling to have.
6. Got an email informing me that I'll be singing one of the solos for the choir. Looking forward to it :)

What did I learn? 

• The modernist portrayal of "Buddhism with Beliefs" (see Batchelor, 2007) is a very Western concept and has been criticised as "religious individualism" (Gombrich 2002). Then again, Buddhism has always been transformed by whatever cultural context it has travelled to.
• Gracey (1977) argues that kindergarten is an academic boot camp, preparing kids for the student role, i.e. obeying authority even if they don't make sense, following routines and structures, little room for creativity.

Miscellaneous thoughts

• Something that a new friend said on Thursday night at the Philo meeting keeps coming up again in my mind, because I feel it was a particularly profound idea. Basically, she said that she tries to understand that everyone is "operating at their level of consciousness". It's pretty true that not everyone is aware of the ways that their actions impact others. So when someone does something hurtful or frustrating, I think it is a very valuable perspective to keep in mind; one that encourages patience and understanding, rather than reactivity and annoyance.

Day 23: Cards Against Humanity with International Students

What went well? 

1. Made more progress than expected with coding some more qualitative data, this time about what people think gives their life meaning. Again, it was really interesting and uplifting to read. I'd love to hear in the comments about what you think makes life meaningful to you!
2. Had a cute Skype session with mum (and Wedgie):



So much nawwww.

3. Went to the free Stouffer yoga session and it was awesome. The instructor was really good, there were only 6 people, and it was really challenging. Stouffer definitely puts their funds to good use!
4. Hung out with some Aussies & Hong Kong students who decided they wanted to eat hot pot, so they bought a bunch of stuff from Chinatown and cooked it on the stove here.

What did I learn?

• You need to have a certain level of Western cultural context and, well, a dirty mind to be able to play Cards Against Humanity. For those who haven't played it, it's basically the most un-PC game in the world that involves a lot of dark and usually sexual humour, making fun at things that shouldn't be made fun of. It is hilarious. In a bad way. We ended up explaining practically every single card to some very innocent Hong Kong girls. It was an educational experience for all.