I am very glad to have been a part of the college park scholars program Earth, Life and Time. It has given me the chance to explore areas of interest I have held for as long as I can remember. Earth, Life and Time is unique because it focuses so much on true science and knowing how to look for falsehoods in science. I personally feel this is one of the most important aspects a human being can hold, understanding how to look for truth and understanding in the natural world.
The ELT program focuses on natural history, origin of the earth, the evolution of humans, the formation of society and looking for truth in the world. One of my favorite lectures of ELT involves the formation of complex societies based on the reading by Jared Diamond Guns, Germs and Steel. We read this book and received the lecture during the third semester. This book was an excellent choice for the program and represents the one of the many good choices of books used in the program. After taking the course and reading the book I feel everyone should read this book. The book does a stunning job at exploring the reasons for the advancement of Europe and Asia over America and Africa. This helps explain so much about the modern world, something I am glad to have read and learned about.
Another experience I really enjoyed in ELT was the chance to take field trips to different sites where we could really experience the things we were learning about. My favorite trip was the fossil hunting trip to West Virginia. We went to three different sites where we could search and collect our very own fossils. I went on this trip during my third semester of ELT. This was great because we got to learn about different depositional environments, time periods and the organisms that used to live there. Ever since I was a kid I have wanted to go out and actually look for fossils and this gave me the chance. This trip showed me that fossils can be found everywhere if you know where to look. Two of the sites where simply cuts in the road where we could look for fossils. I enjoyed this because you can see how environments have changed over time and that earth history can be found in all places if you know how to look, even on the side of a highway.
One of the better things about ELT is the staff that teaches it. Dr. Holtz and Dr. Merck are great lecturers and do a good job of having an entertaining class every week. Its great to have teachers with a sense of humor and who arenÕt afraid to be funny to get a point across, but, as incoming students I should tell you to look forward to Dr. MerckÕs chimpanzee impression. The class was always full of laughter but we got our work done and learned a lot at the same time.
ELT required that we take several supporting courses that deal with many aspects of the course, such as Geology, Anthropology, Biology or other sciences. One of the courses I signed up for was Astronomy; I took this in my first semester of ELT. I enjoyed being able to take this course for the class because we did not get much of a chance to discuss space and the universe in class but I have a huge interest in these things. The course was great because it allowed me to gain a much better understanding of the Universe, how it works and the many mysteries that still remain about what lies out there.
I also took the supporting course Art of Ancient South America. This class was a nice supporting course because I got to take a course for ELT that didnÕt focus so heavy on science. It allowed me to explore culture and different aspects of Archeology as well as Anthropology. I took this course in my first semester of ELT here at College Park.
The final thing I enjoyed about ELT was the chance to live, learn and work with other students who were in the same courses and program as I am. By living with people in many of my courses I was able to form study groups for many classes with the people on my hall, very convenient. I was also able to find help among my peers when ever I needed it because I was always able to find someone who was working on the same or a similar project.
I am glad to have had the chance to take ELT and learn the many things and gain the many experiences it has to offer. I know by completing this program I will be proud of myself and will have something very distinct and telling on my resume and transcript. ELT has also helped me nail down my major because it covers a broad spectrum of my interests and allowed me to explore all of them and decide which one better fit my interests. If you are remotely interested in Earth Science ELT is one of the most important things you can do for yourself.