I’m in college. A little early, but that’s the way Bard College does it. All freshman take a three-week workshop called “Language and Thinking.” So far, being at Bard has been an amazing experience. I love being in such an intellectually stimulating environment. I have an excellent teacher, Thomas Bartscherer, and a great class - everyone seemed to get along, right out of the box. L&T moves fast, and the course started in “the deep end;” no introductions or family histories. The class works, as Thomas said today, no one is sitting it out, everyone is involved. I have never seen an entire class get along so well, so soon. In fact, the class began by writing for five minutes. Over the past few days, I’ve grown to love free-writing with a pen and paper. It’s nice to be unplugged. In middle and high school, free-writes never had a purpose, they were a filler, and if anything, they were too structured. The campus is so beautiful. Today with some people from my dorm, we went walking around the campus, hiking around, I forgot my camera, but I’ll be sure to make the walk again and take some photos.
My dorm room is almost all set up, only a few small details to tend to. Bard is great, I’ve been having a good time. I’m happy to have an actual break this weekend, though, I’ve been in “meet new people” mode for 7 days now, need some time for myself (you know, I’m a very quiet almost anti-social person). I’ll keep blogging. Podcast next week Sunday, I hope.
college
07Aug08
I go to college this Saturday, August 9th, 2008. I will be a freshman at Bard College, in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. I have a little more packing to do (misc items and clothes). Bard College starts rather early, as they have a three week workshop for freshman, called “Language and Thinking.” I’m not so excited about doing work during summer, but at least it’s better than going right into a 4-5 course schedule.
My roommate is from China, which is totally rad. I’m in the dorm Oberholzer, a 5-10 minute walk from campus. I’m excited and nervous. I’m happy I’m not going to be across the country, I’ll be 3.5 hours away from home, and 2 hours away from New York City. Also, it will be nice to go to school with a few people I know (there are 3 from my high school going to Bard, in addition to a few others).
The one thing I’m upset about, is that Apple hasn’t yet released new MacBook Pro’s. My college technology “situation” will be simple(r), as I’ll only have one computer (my MacBook, and in the future, a MBP). I’ve made a few purchases (hard drives, mouse, keyboard, monitor), but nothing major.
I can’t promise anything, but I hope to keep blogging and podcasting, maybe even more regularly. I’m sure my Twitter stream will be over-active, particularly in the first few days and weeks, and I’m going to take lots of photos. I’m bringing my (new) portable recorder, USB interface, and my microphone, so I’ll be well equipped to podcast. I’ll probably write a blog post a week after I settle in, but if I’m feeling particularly lonely, you may hear from me sooner.
Wish me luck.
podcamp boston 3
06Aug08
PodCamp Boston 3 was amazing. The venue this year was unbelievable, thank you, Harvard! It was easier to run into people this year, which was fun. PodCamp Boston 2 was nice and big, but this year the event was very close knit. I was more social at PCB3, and this year overall - last year I was very reserved. I also knew more people in general, those I had met on Twitter and at various Social Media Breakfasts. (For those interested in the Academic Technology session I led at PodCamp, check the end of the post.)
(Photo Credit: Gradon Tripp)
I won a Junior achievement award this year! Thank you, Adam Zand (I think, at least.) Unfortunately, I was the only teenager (I knew of) at PodCamp Boston 3. Last year, I was 1 of 2, this year, I was 1 of 1. I had hoped more teens would show up. I did know a few who wanted to come, but couldn’t. Next year!
Being social and having fun makes a huge difference. Don’t be afraid, introduce yourself to everyone. We have so much virtual, or digital, contact with each other, it makes such a huge difference to get together and have fun in person. Twitter went down for maintenance on Saturday July 19th, during PodCamp, and I think it actually was for the better - it helped people actually connect with each other. Not to say that Twitter is bad; sometimes, the best part of the session was the conversation taking place on Twitter. Check out the PCB3 tag on Twitter Search.
Steven Sherlock
MY SESSION
I led a session at PodCamp Boston about Academic Technology, mostly outlining the work I did at the Cambridge School of Weston, for my Capstone Project. If you’re interested in the presentation, you can see it on Slideshare, download it as a PDF, and download the audio recording.
israel, vienna, berlin, and more
31Jul08I haven’t blogged in a while, and you’ll see a series of updates in the coming days, starting off with my big trip to Israel, Vienna, and Berlin. Check out my Flickr Collection for Summer ‘08.
ISRAEL
I spent about 3 weeks in Israel, traveling all over the country; Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Amirim, Ein Gedi, and back to Jerusalem. I was in Israel for my cousin’s wedding (his wife is Israeli.) He made the entire trip possible (plus it was great having the entire family in the Holy land.) Being in Israel was a life changing experience for me. I’ve been raised Jewish, Reform Judiasm, but being in Israel, surrounded by so many other Jews, and passionate people in general, made me want to be more religious. We’ll see.
I never felt unsafe in Israel. I got used to having my bag searched each time I entered a resteraunt, and I got used to the constant military/police presence in the country. But I always felt safe. Israel wasn’t like a “police state” either, people appeared to be free.
My cousin’s wedding was unbelievable. The energy at an Israeli wedding is unbelievable; they just kept going and going. This was the first wedding where I took photos semi-professionally; in other words, I wasn’t the official photographer, just doing it on my own. I’ve uploaded a few photos, but I plan on assembling a more professional slideshow in the near future. Taking photos for a wedding is fun, but stressful.
Traveling through out Israel is easy, since it’s such a small country. I’d say my favorite part of Israel was the north, the city of Safed, in particular - it had the piousness of Jerusalem, but isolated in the mountains. Swimming in the Dead Sea was “fun,” but nothing beats watching sunrise atop Masada. Ein Gedi was beautiful, I _think_ I saw a Gazelle in the national park there, but I’m not quite sure. If you go to the Dead Sea, stop by and see the botanical gardens at the Ein Gedi Kibbutz, it’s phenomenal.
I miss Israel, Jerusalem in particular - wandering through the Arab Markets in the Muslim Quarter, bargaining with shop keepers, and stuffing a note in the Western Wall. In Jerusalem, one could see three religious living so close together, yet the difference between the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim quarters is so great. I’ll be going back to Israel, hopefully sooner than later.
VIENNA
I went to Vienna with my mom, mostly to search through records, to learn more about her side of the family, 17 members of which were murdered during the Holocaust. So, as you can imagine, the trip wasn’t really for “pleasure.” Vienna’s a nice city, pleasant and livable. It works - the subways, buses, trams, and it’s safe. Check out my mom’s website for more about her project in Vienna. There was amazing Graffiti in Vienna, best graffiti I’ve ever seen. Lots of photos on Flickr.
BERLIN
Berlin was nice, but tiring. Constantly being surrounded by memories of the Holocaust was tough, as there were memorials and museums everywhere. The city hasn’t forgotten. It’s a good place to visit, and has lots of history.
OVERALL
I had a good trip, if you have specific questions regarding my trip, don’t hesitate to email me.
Vacation Notice
08Jun08Tomorrow afternoon, Monday, June 9th, I’ll be taking a big trip overseas: I will be in Israel for 2.5 weeks, Vienna for a week, and Berlin for a few days. I’m going to be busy; my cousin is getting married in Israel, and I’ll be meeting with a lot of people in Vienna. I will take lots of photos, most of which will be uploaded to Flickr, (I may set up a separate gallery on my website), and I’ll (try) be active on Twitter - when I have Internet access I’ll be online.
MY AGENDA:
In Israel, I will be at my cousin’s wedding - almost the whole family is coming - and I will be touring the country (Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Golan Heights, etc).
I’m visiting Vienna with my mom, Karen Frostig (check out her new website!), to meet with various people about the Holocaust and Holocaust Education. My mom is a Jewish artist, activist, and author.
In Berlin, I’m just visiting, you know, for fun.
Do you have any recommendations? Places to visit? Good food? Free WiFi? Let me know: kabren@kabrenlevinson.com.
Capstone Presentation
07Jun08Here is the video from my capstone presentation. It’s about 35 minutes, and the audio isn’t great (I was only using the built-in microphone of the video camera). Anyways, hope you enjoy!
Here are the materials associated with my capstone:
The Video
Capstone Presentation from Kabren Levinson on Vimeo.
Search for Meaning
07Jun08This is a video about a final project for a class I’m taking, “Search for Meaning.” It’s about my soul and how I think the soul creates lenses - it alters my perspective of the world. My vision of my soul, is a falling stream of shards of glass, mirror, and other material. As these shards fall, they form together to create a lens. As you age, you loose and gain shards. Just an idea.
Search for Meaning: Final Project from Kabren Levinson on Vimeo.
Digital Natives Forum
20May08
On Friday May 2nd, I had the privilege to attend a Digital Natives Forum at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard Law School. The event was labeled as an “interdisciplinary roundtable discussion: Investigating young people’s use of digital and networked technologies.” When I arrived, I was surprised to discover that I was the only teenager, or “young person”, at the meeting. I already felt out of place.
Background
The event was amazing - I found out how adults observe and understand teenagers’ use of technology and the Internet. At the beginning of the meeting, there was a short presentation by Andrea Flores and John Francis citing research conducted about kids using technology. They talked about identity, privacy, skills and tools for teenagers and adults, and the importance of design. For more about the content of the forum, check out this blog post and my Twitter, I live-blogged most of the meeting.
Silence
I didn’t speak during the entire meeting, only to some people individually during lunch. I wish I had spoken up. I learned, but didn’t teach. It felt like people in the room didn’t understand what kids were about. With the exception of a few, it seemed that people were only beginning to formulate their opinions; it was too early to introduce the young-person’s point of view. Being a teen in the room, it felt like we were being addressed as the problem that needed fixing. Per usual, adults were assigning issues to kids. As the group discussed how some kids feel safer sharing their thoughts online versus offline, I only felt comfortable sharing my thoughts on Twitter. I let the group silence me.
For next time…
The only problem, I can think of, was the lack of primary sources, or “young people,” in the room. Yes, case studies and reports were cited throughout, but as my history teachers tell me, you need primary sources to support your argument. I was the only teen in the room, and I wasn’t even previously involved with the project. It is difficult to discuss teens, or any other group of people, without them present. Not only that, it is undiplomatic to discuss and refer to teens as if they’re not in the room, when in fact, I was sitting right there. My presence was never acknowledged - the adults failed to exploit me as a resource. It felt weird having adults tell me how I used technology.
Video about the event
Digital Navies Forum from Kabren Levinson on Vimeo.
Or on Viddler.
Kabren Levinson
kabren@kabrenlevinson.com
www.kabrenlevinson.com
