My Majors
Physics
Physics is one of the most basic sciences. It deals with the natural laws of
the world and how objects act and react with various forces, and predicts
future actions based on physical attributes. For instance, physics covers
such subjects as how far an object will go when thrown, how much a spring
will bounce, how long light takes to reach a distant point, how much energy
a certain atom contains, how electronic circuits work, how heat is dissipated,
and many other concepts. Physics is based on mathematical formulations of
natural laws. These laws are rules that have been discovered in the past to be
accurate predictors of events, but which are still subject to revision if
further observations demonstrate that the laws should be modified. Physics can
be subdivided into many specialties, but at the undergraduate level, it covers
many different areas, and so is quite useful for a broad scientific education.
Astronomy
Astronomy is the study of stars, planets, comets, asteroids, and other objects
in space. Astronomers seek to understand how such objects formed, how they
interact with the rest of the universe, and how they change with time. The
basis for much of astronomy is physics. Most people understand what astronomy
is, but sometimes have misconceptions about what it is not. For instance, most
college-level astronomy does not involve identifying constellations, and most
definitely, astronomy is not the same thing as astrology!
Music
Music is the most self-explanatory of all my majors. No one has ever asked
me what music is, though I would find giving a definition for music in
general to be difficult. In this program, I studied music history,
composition, and theory (the structure of chords and tonal systems, and
basically, how music is put together). My concentration was in piano
performance, which involved taking private lessons and accompanying various
groups.
Library and Information Science
Library science and information science are two different fields, but the
distinction between the two is unclear: the fields overlap, and the proper
domain of each is disputed. However, below is my definition of the two fields,
based on what I studied during the 2-year program at the University of
Washington.
Library Science
- Organizing information
- Accessing information
- Understanding what information is needed for which people and which
endeavors
- Management skills for a unique institution - the library
- Communication skills
- Categorizing the structure of the entire world of human knowledge
Information Science
- Automated control of information
- Scientific and mathematical theories behind information control, access,
and distribution
- Computer applications: databases, the World Wide Web, and even some
programming, including expert systems and artificial intelligence
Robotics
Robotics is designing,
building, and programming robots. Robots are man-made devices which perform
tasks either by themselves (autonomous robots) or under the direction of humans
situated at a distant location (telerobotics).
Robots don't have to look like the popular conception of a robot, with walking
feet or rolling tracks or moving arms, but can be built into an ordinary
mechanical device, such as a lawn mower, or can even be contained within a
computer program. Following the
description from
Carnegie Mellon's Robotics
Institute, robotics can be subdivided into several main areas: perception (how
the robot sees the real world), cognition (how the robot thinks about the real
world), and manipulation (how the robot interacts with the real world). As for
the tasks which a robot does, these can be anything, from putting together a
car to recognizing a human's voice to driving a car down the highway to
constructing a space station.
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