I suppose I should start with the important bit, even though I just wrote it on the cover sheet: I want to major in astrophysics and concentrate in cognitive science. I'm not sure what kind of research or thesis work I want to do, but I have a while to figure that out (or change my mind completely).
When I was in high school, trying to decide which college propaganda mailings to take seriously, I recycled everything that came from schools without astronomy programs (well, first I tried to burn everything, but after I almost set the floor on fire I decided recycling would be much more environmentally responsible, not to mention less hazardous to my own wellbeing). I don't think I really knew why I wanted to study astronomy. I just knew that it was important to me.
Maybe I still don't know why I like astronomy so much, but after taking two astro courses I do know that it makes me happier than anything else I've ever done in school; it's even worth all the math, I think. That's why I want to take nine physics and astronomy seminars, even though I need only six to fulfill the major requirements. Astronomy has a treasure-hunt feeling to it that's missing from lab sciences, because so much of our information comes from different points in space and time. I will probably never understand how the universe works, but I like trying to figure it out, and I like knowing that there is still so much left to discover. I want to discover something, eventually, and I think I have a better chance of doing that if I actually learn about astronomy instead of just looking at the pretty pictures from the Hubble Space Telescope. (Why astrophysics and not just astronomy? For graduate school. And because physics is fun, too.)
Supposedly course majors are choosing breadth over depth (I had to throw the buzzwords in at least once, right?) but I've sort of killed that aspect with an eight-credit concentration. I want to study cognitive science for many of the same reasons I just mentioned for astrophysics; I like knowing how things work, and there's a whole lot of mystery left to explore. I dissected a brain once, and it was pretty amazing to realize that something I could hold in my hand was capable of doing so much when it was inside someone's head. I was also a little uncomfortable with the idea that I (a strict vegetarian) had just reduced part of a living creature to a pile of grey and white scalpel-scrambled mush. That's why I'm fulfilling all the cogsci requirements within the psychology and philosophy departments.
Then again, maybe I just have an affinity for words that start with the letter p. I want to take a poetry class too. Writing is fun, and I need a good excuse to devote some time to non-academic writing. There it is.
addendum november, 2001: I am now a straight astronomy major.
see?
Plan of Study (ooh):
Fall 2001
PHYS 111 -- Analytical Dynamics
PHYS 112 -- Electrodynamics
ASTR 126 -- The Interstellar Medium
PHIL 012 -- Logic
Spring 2002
PHYS 113 -- Quantum Theory
PHYS 114 -- Statistical Physics
ASTR 128 -- Galaxies and Galactic Structure
PSYC 030 -- Physiological Psychology
this is the fun part of changing my major. here's what I'm actually doing:
galaxies, physpsych, american poetry, performance tap, and astro research. go go gadget astrogirl.
Fall 2002
ASTR 123 -- Stars and Stellar Structure
PSYC 033 -- Cognitive Psychology
PHIL 086 -- Philosophy of Mind and Psychology
actually, the philosophy department is lame and changed their schedule. so really I am taking
ASTR 094 -- Research Project
ENGL 070C -- Advanced Poetry Workshop
DANC 090 -- Repertory Tap
Spring 2003
ASTR 121 -- Research Techniques in Observational Astronomy
PSYC 130 -- Physiological Psychology (Seminar)
COGS 090 -- Senior Thesis
and something else yet to be determined