Hey everybody! My name is Matthew, and I'm a '27 from Florida interested in majoring in Chemistry or Biology (not quite sure yet!). Outside of the classroom, I plan on being involved in Dartmouth's theatre scene and outdoor programs! In the future, I'm hoping to merge my passions for scientific discovery and teaching others by becoming a professor. I can't wait to be a part of everything Dartmouth has to offer, and I hope you enjoy coming along for the ride!
During my first term, I wanted to try something completely new—and start working on fulfilling some of the distributive requirements. Two birds with one stone, right? To accomplish this, I enrolled in the first of three introductory Chinese language courses. Taking a fun and informative class with an interesting subject matter—and a stellar professor—has made this term fantastic! I can't wait to see what's in store over the next two terms. I also have a full blog post about my first-year language experience if you're interested in learning more!
As a STEM major, I never really saw myself taking English classes while in college. However, at Dartmouth, you must take a first-year writing sequence, which can include a writing and seminar class from any department. I ended up taking the English department offering, and it was an amazing experience. I learned so much more about how storytelling works and how we can alter the presentation of a story to completely change the way it is received by an audience. I also loved the practical aspects of this class, like writing a mini-memoir story every few weeks based on a theme and getting critical feedback from my classmates. I learned a lot more about the process of storytelling, but also about myself and the way I perceive my own experiences.
This term, I ended up taking two biology classes, which is definitely a pretty big workload, but I had a great time and felt like I really lucked out with the classes I ended up in. Global Change Biology gave me the chance to learn about climate change from a biological viewpoint. We talked about a number of different climate change-related topics, and we learned about one new large climate change topic each week. This was also an R-focused class, so we spent one day a week learning new skills in the programming language and then had a fun coding assignment each week that used data we discussed in class. I felt like I learned a lot more about climate change, but I also developed a lot of R skills that are very helpful for research and other Bio classes. In combination with the ecology class I took this term, I’d say that this class helped me decide on my major once and for all!
SummerHanover, NH
I spent the summer after my first year living in an off-campus apartment in Hanover and doing full-time research in the Biology department. I also continued my work in the admissions office as a tour guide and a leader for Dartmouth Bound! It was a great summer, and if you want to learn more about my research internship, I have a blog post about it.
Tucked between Wilder Hall and Burke Laboratory's classic Dartmouth red brick stands a huge building covered in blue glass. In an architectural style completely distinct from anywhere else on campus, the Fairchild Physical Sciences Center stands out from its neighbors. Fairchild is the home of Dartmouth's Geography department and a central hub for the physical sciences. It connects Wilder (Physics and Astronomy building) and Burke and Steele (Chemistry buildings), which is how I first came to explore it. Last term, my chem lab met on the third floor of Steele, and I ended up using Fairchild as a scenic shortcut.
Entering Fairchild, the first thing you notice is the building's height. Four stories, each floor's balcony design makes the whole building feel tall and wide open. The huge blue-green windows fill the entire space with bright natural light that feels like summer, even on February afternoons.
On the first floor, I was immediately drawn to the back window, where I could see a beautiful view of one of the more natural parts of campus. There was also a variety of potted houseplants, which is very welcoming during the winter. I also noticed a door to the outside, which I promise will become important later.
Plants - inside and out!
Next, I took a peek at the massive wooden sculpture in the middle of the building. It's titled Harlequin, and it was created from untreated wood from across New Hampshire and Vermont by a Dartmouth alum. It's hard to capture on camera just how smooth and perfectly aligned each piece is, but in person, the whole sculpture is smooth, almost like a wave of wood.
Harlequin by Thomas S. Beale
Dartmouth's Foucault Pendulum, a scientific display (and art exhibit) that demonstrates the Earth's rotation, is also located on the ground floor. The Pendulum appears to simply swing back and forth, but over time, the plane of oscillation changes, and the directions between which the Pendulum swings shift. On paper, I admit, it isn't the most exciting thing. But seeing it in person really puts into perspective the scale of the world we live in and how powerfully universal laws impact our daily lives.
The pendulum, currently swinging North-South
Heading upstairs, I spotted a display showcasing fossilized footprints and geological formations, including some truly massive crystal clusters. These are part of the "Dana Petrology Collection," a geological catalog from the Earth Sciences department.
Two quartz formations, found on Moose Mountain in New Hampshire
In the stairwell, I suddenly noticed the interesting material that composes most of the supports in Fairchild. It seems like concrete but has a distinct, vertical wood texture covering the surface. The organic texture almost gives the impression that Fairchild has just grown from the ground.
Next, I came across a bookcase labeled "FREE BOOKS." It held many copies of Local Knowledge by H.C. Petersen, a book on living resources and natural assets in Greenland, written dually in English and Greenlandic. I love coming across all the opportunities to learn scattered across the Dartmouth campus, so I picked up a copy and will hopefully start working through it this week!
With my exploration complete, I returned to grab my backpack and again noticed the building's back door. Still in adventure mode, I headed outside to look at the hill behind the building. That's when I noticed that the door was locked. Trapped between the building and a steep, icy ledge, I began the long walk around the other side of the science cluster. Although it added quite a trek to my blog research, it was worth it for the beautiful view of College Park. Oh well, all in a day's work.
In addition to blogging, I work as a Fellow for the Tucker Center, which focuses on promoting spiritual and ethical life on campus. As part of this role, I'm leading the Interfaith Alternative Spring Break Trip. Read on to learn more about my work!
