Response by Rebbeca Cole

First Impressions on Infinity:
Infinity is more than a math number or concept.
It is also feelings or beliefs.
Infinity is the feeling right before you fall asleep.
It is the sky and stars and darkness at night.
Infinity is the feeling that one can do absolutely anything.
It is something in the future we cannot predict or see.
Infinity is the hope that life will continue on and on forever.
It is the question, "are we living in infinity now?"
Infinity is a circular argument in which nothing is accomplished.
It is like the question, "what is infinity?" that may never have a
concrete answer.
Infinity is a circle or a ring that continues with no end.
It is life.  The pleasant unknown.


Response by Jacqueline Munoz 


What is Infinity?
infinity is something that is on going. Something that we know will never
end. While we know that it exist we know it is something that we won't
ever be able reach. It remains a mystery. Infinty has immense
possiblilies
that how can we be sure what it is for sure, all we know is that it does
not end and keeps going.


Response by Lauren (Power Algebra) 


(Copied by Dani from EMail)
I am very proud of you Lauren,
You are starting to realize that Math is like a game and eventually the
logic and the patterns mingle together and everything starts making
sense.  We will explian and explore reasons in class too.
--Dani
Lauren Perazza-Fontanez wrote:
>Hi Dani!
>
>I had to use my roommate's Nova account to save my homework because I
>don't have one. At first I changed the number of lines by putting a
higher
>number next to N. However, after receiving your e-mail saying that there
>is more than that to the assignment, I decided to play with the numbers.
i
>downloaded SeeLogo on my laptop and I actually had a lot of fun with it.
I
>changed each number individually at first to see what exactly was being
>changed. I then started to play around with X and Y leaving N alone. I
>wanted the spiral to end right at the blue dot. I figured that you could
>even make the blue dot really big and make it reach the line. I ended up
>changing the value of X to 30.8 and the value of Y to 4.7. I used
decimals
>because I thought it was more accurate than whole numbers. Turned out
that
>my last line in the spiral touches the blue dot and I didn't have to
>change the amount of lines like I did the first time I saved it.
>
>Thanks for hearing me out Dani!
>Lauren Perazza Fontanez


Response by Nick Gandiello 


An attempt to respond honestly to Mr. Moyers's speech...
Walking away from Bill Moyers’s speech, I knew that no one had been
swayed. As an
individual, I found his words to be powerful, informative, and
provocative. But I’m a
democratic liberal. Ask a conserative what  he or she thought of Mr.
Moyers’s speech,
and they’ll sing quite a different tune. Both myself and the hypothetical
conservative are
entitled to our respective opinions. This is a privelege, but it is also
why a politically
driven speech will hardly ever be unanimously cheered or rejected.
Liberals walked in
liberal and walked out liberal. Conservatives walked in conservative and
walked out
conservative. No one can be persuaded in one night. So, instead of
responding to issues
of liberalism and conservatism, I’m going to respond to the things which
Mr. Moyers said
that are universally true.
As he spoke of September 11th, Mr Moyers stated that terrorists never
measure their
success by the “number of dead,” but instead by the number of living
“taken hostage by
fear.” This statement reached out and grabbed me as I sat in my seat. I
remember my
girlfriend at the time of 9/11 researching chemical warfare and ways to
protect ourselves
in the coming years. I remembered not being able to take my eyes off any
plane that flew
over head in fear that it may have suddenly jerked off course and down
towards the
earth. I remember during the first few moments of the black-out three
summers ago, I
looked at my newborn niece, and wondered if what was happening around us
would be
some subconcious memory she would have years in the future of a terrorist
attack. After
something as horrific as 9/11, people can’t help but be scared. And I
wonder how much
of the support for the war is inspired by people’s fears. Have we done
any justice to those
who died in 9/11 by fearfully attacking others?
Today, we find ourselves coping with yet another tragedy. This time,
there aren’t any
fundamentalists or security shortcomings to blame. Who could deny that
Mr. Moyers was
right in saying that we were not prepared for Hurricane Katrina? Funding
was being sent
miles and miles away instead of to where it was needed in our own
country. As for the
future, I can’t predict anything. I’d like to think that Americans will
band together, that the
government will stand behind its people regardless of race, creed, or
culture, that we will
be an example to other nations of the world. But honestly, I don’t know
that I can be sure
of that. What will people say of the government’s preparation for and
reaction to
Hurricane Katrina? What will the government  do for its people? Will our
home-grown
fundamentalists, calling for assassinations, continue to be the first
people to recieve
support from the leaders of our country? Will the victims of Hurricane
Katrina be honored
appropriately?
As for the income gap that Mr. Moyers brought up, there’s no denying that
it exists.
Liberal or conservative, who can argue with plain statistical fact? What
worries me is that
poverty doesn’t exist as an actuality in many people’s minds. It’s a
concept. For many, if
they haven’t experienced it, it’s just some distant shame that needs no
more than an
occasional thought. My advice to them is to read about the economies of
countires
directly before communist revolutions. Much of it would look familiar.
I realize that I posed a lot of questions in this response instead of
answering any. My
past English professors would not be pleased. However, so much is
uncertain in the
world today. When I read the news or just think of all that has happened
in the past four
years, I feel like a previously uneducated student dropped into an
advanced course of
study. There’s so much to learn, and it’s intimidating. But I know what I
feel in my heart
and in my gut. If I could type up papers with my heart or my gut, I’d
imagine they would be
similiar to Mr. Moyer’s speech. Underneath his spoken words, I feel that
Mr. Moyers was
saddened and motivated by the untimely deaths and unjust suffering of so
many people.
To me, this sadness is beyond matters of liberalism and conservatism, and
it is what I feel


Response by Stacey Pastuszak 


What struck me most was when I was talking with a colleague of
mine at work the day after the speech. He mentioned how Moyers
brought up the fact that the terrorist found most of their success
within our own minds. They had violated places we had assumed to
be safe and planted worry and doubt in all of us. Of course, what
happened at the World Trade Center was horrible in itself, but it
brought with it a far reaching side effect. Whether or not we knew
anyone in the World Trade Center or on one of the planes or lived
close enough to be worried for that reason alone, each and every
person in the United States was affected by the attacks. I don’t
know of one person who hasn’t at least once thought of the
possibility of another attack on some place that no one would ever
think would be a target, because that’s what happened on 9/11. I
lived in the East Tower for my first three years in Ithaca, and
even that similarity, the two towers, would occasionally bring the
thought to my mind. We shouldn’t have to worry that we’re unsafe
in our own homes, but sometimes we do. The terrorists didn’t just
take the lives of thousands of people, they took away our piece of
mind. . I’m not trying to justify the war in Iraq, in fact I agree
with what Nick Gandiello said in his response, I think a lot of
the support for the war came out of people’s fears of another
attack. We collectively went into a “Get them before they get us”
mode.
It may not seem like there’s much we can do, after all we’re just college
students, what power do we have? However, just knowing what is going on
in the world puts us at an advantage. If we continue to remain ignorant,
there’s nothing to stop these terrible things from happening again. Of
course, we can’t stop a hurricane or other forces of nature, but we can
prepare for them and keep what happened in New Orleans from reoccurring.
It may seem easier to remain disengaged and apathetic, but in the long
run that’s what will hurt us the most.


Response by Chuck Colombo 


A. Some things you have learned in the course
B.  Some things you liked about the course
C.  Some things you feel it can be imrpoved
I have learned how to connect math equations with computers.  Every
equation represents a pattern.  What I enjoy about the course is that
besides learning, he helped us get connected with the class.



Response by fbbomber77 








Response by Laura 


I like the relaxed feeling of this class.  I like that it isn't so
intense so that I can't enjoy my time here. We are able to create
beautiful things with SeeLogo and we're able to discuss current events
and ideas.  it's a very worldly class.  I would love to spend even more
time with the children we were observing in the future...they are so
eager to learn!


Response by jeanie with the light brown hair 


I thought this was a very helpful first block in order to apply the mind
and to relax for an hour and 15 minutes. Dani is a very spiritual person
with interesting views and ideas of not only math concepts but
spiritually as well.


Response by Student 


In this course I have learned about connecting Math and Art.  I never
really thought about the connection between the two until I took this
course.  I've learned how to use the SeeLogo program to make beautiful
spirals that are based on mathematical coordinates and priciples.  I like
how we are able to venture outside sometimes and explore the mathematical
possibilities that are out in the world.  It is a nice class where I am
able to relax, which is something different from my other classes.  There
is not anything I do not like about this class, really.  Professor Novak
is a great teacher.


Response by Flurry Knox 


Question A:
I have learned more about functions in this course than in my previous
math classes. I didn't know that math equations could make beautiful
pictures and movements on a screen.
Question B:
I like how the course integrates math with art. I have more of an
artistic mind so this way of visual learning helps me to understand
better.
Question C:
The way that the equation is entered into the Seelogo program confuses
me. I understand  theoretically how it is supposed to work but i don't
always understand in what order the information is entered.



Response by June 


I registered for the Math Art and Computers course as a way to receive my
math credit for general education requirements. I thought it would be
interesting to see how math is applied in a nontraditional form. I knew
we wouldn’t be going to go through rules of trigonometry and how a
triangle’s angle could be measured or anything similarly technical. I
wanted a creatively outlet to be able to apply the math I was familiar
with.
When I first heard about the course I was intrigued because art is
something that I love to learn about and analyze. I didn’t know how math
could be related to that. In my previous encounters with math I felt the
subject was complicated and I was overwhelmed with the material. I didn’t
understand how the material I was learning related to anything I was
doing at the time or would do in the future. Therefore I did not think it
was connected to any other subject except the sciences. Through my work
in the Math Art and Computers class I am seeing things differently. Math
makes up much of our understanding on the world. I have been able to see
the interesting and creative products that can come from understanding
algebra. I have learned that understanding how to use equations can help
in developing an appreciation for art at its complicated stages. Although
my appreciation for math’s uses has grown, I believe that this class has
helped the most in realizing the presence and importance of symmetry. In
order for the objects to move at appropriate rates depending on the
command both sides of the object need to receive the command equally.
Having symmetry produces an image that both appeals to the eye and
illustrates the creation of a pattern.
There is one thing that I think can be improved which is the continuity
of the assignments. Sometimes I feel that we jump from one topic to the
next without reviewing what was learned before and how it relates to what
we are starting. I understand the concepts, but sometimes they are hard
to follow after one another. What makes the class different and much more
enjoyable than others is the fact that we step outside ourselves to
understand how what we are learning in this class applies to everyday
life as well as understanding how this transition stage is affecting us.
It is nice to spontaneously experience learning outside of a classroom.
It reminds me of how much more there is to being in college than
academics.


Response by Anonymous 


First Semester, Block 1 - Class Review:
A. Some things you have learned in the course
~how to use SeeLogo
~how math can be applied to nature, art, etc.
B.  Some things you liked about the course
~open schedule
~low pressure
C.  Some things you feel it can be imrpoved
~maybe an overview of the class can be presented to students at the
beginning of semester (not concrete, but general ideas)
D.  Mid-term
~I thought the mid-term assignment seemed silly at first, but once I
started working on it, it became really fun.  However, I think it should
have been specified that it should include at least some class-related
knowledge.  Overall, it was a great assignment!


Response by koalabear2 


Through this course, I have learned about the connection between Math and
Art; how math and art is seen in so many ways in the world. I have
learned to embrace Math and enjoy it, knowing that it is fun. I have
learned a lot through the computer program, SeeLogo. This program enables
a person to use mathematical functions to create beautiful pictures and
designs. I am using my left and right brain in this class, making my
learning experience a whole brain experience. In addition, the
philosophical discussions and meditation sessions further enrich my
educational experience and allow me to relax in a busy, stressful
academic environment. I am very grateful to have been a part of such a
unique course.


Response by Corey Schallek 


I've mostly learned how to tie basic computer visuals to equations. Using
Seelogo and exploring the different possibilities with math to create new
art. The other important part of this class is learning how to think and
learn differently; to think in many different states of mind.
I liked the casual learning approach opposed to the strict grade based
learning system that all of my other classes present.
I like the class the way it is but if anything had to be improved I would
say maybe more goal oriented learning. Instead of just practicing with
the equations and visuals maybe have a goal of creating somthing with the
knowledge that we get from this class.


Response by Amanda 


A.) So far I have learned a lot from this course. I have learned to be
more open with others and to be more in tune with nature and the
spiritual world. I really feel like this class especially, more than any
of my other classes, has helped me to grow as an individual and has
really helped me feel comfortable at Ithaca. I have also learned about
seelogo and have really enjoyed learning how to make the different things
on there, especially the spiral of life.
B.) There are many things that I like about the course. I really enjoy
when we go outside or just have talks. I feel like those really help me
learn. I also enjoy seelogo and have liked getting to use it. I like
getting to be open and explore different options on seelogo and getting
the chance to do things the way I want to and not having to always be
told what I have to do.
C.) Some things that I feel can be improved in this class would be that
when we do learn something on seelogo to maybe practice it more, because
sometimes I have the problem of I learn how to do it one day and then
when we do not do it for a little while I completely forget. Also, I
would really like to have more talks about life, I feel like those are
very beneficial!


Response by ... 


I really like this class.    We learn about geometry using algebra, and
im sure that calculus would be very easy to thow in as well.  Not only do
we learn about all types of math, but we also learn about life.  It is a
great way to relate learning in general to life; something that most
courses dont do.  We have conversations about math in the world, and even
segway into current events, and other important things in the world.
This class is awesome


Response by anonymous 


This class has been one of the best experiences I've had as a freshman at
Ithaca college. It opened my mind to learning in many ways- not just the
standard way. I learned to use math on See Logo on the computer and had
many learning experiences that you don't get in most classes. Through
this seminar I also got to meet many other freshman. I have loved the
class!


Response by anonymous 


This class is very different from my other classes.  I like that
Professor Novak makes it interesting for us, and that he allows us to
participate in the discussions and activities, rather than having to
listen to a lecture and taking notes the whole class.  Everything we
learn relates back to the title of the course: "Math, Art, and Computers:
Exploring the Inner Worlds".


Response by Jane Doe 


My Math Art and Computer class has enlightened me into an exciting way to
learn. I always am looking forward to come to Dani's class because he
really engages with each student as an individual and is not judgemental
on our learning capabilities. He exhibits his eagerness to learn as well
which allows the students to become comfortable with learning at their
own speed. I enjoy the way we use computers to express art and math at
the same time. It is the most stress free class and makes me want to
learn in a new way.


Response by :-) 


This class is learning in a different way and I love it. It's not just
memorizing facts and numbers, it is learning about life. I have learned
not just about math, but about myself. See-logo lets me see things in a
different perspective, I love how it connects math and art, it's much
more interesting then just doing algebraic problems or calc problems.



Response by Dumpster 


We have learned enough basic commands for SeeLogo that we can create
fairly complex patterns and pictures.  We've learned commands for making
and manipulating objects.  Also, we learned how to create moving images
using functions.  I love coming to this class.  The only thing I would
suggest to improve the class is either to focus more on math, or try to
relate the other discussion to some aspect of math.


Response by Aaron 


A. I learned that there is math in computer code and when used correctly
that code can make amazing shapes.
B. I liked how we did not only talk about math and the math in art but
also talked about deep topics and how to adjust to college.
C. More fluid notes about SeeLogo.


Response by fbbomber77 


Overall I have found this class to be fun, interesting, and alot
different than any ohter class I have ever taken in my life.  I have
learned many things in this class that I never even thought about before.
While at Ithaca I have learned that being an athlete during the school
year is very time consuming and that you do not have much free time
especially after doing your homework.  From this class I was able to
learn new things without having the extra work to take up any freetime I
have and this gives me some time to complete the work from some of my
other classes.  Also, in this class I have learned that anyone can learn
many different things without sitting in a classroom for 50 minutes and
taking notes.  This class also has required me to get to know my
classmates whereas in my other classes I hardley know anyone in the
class.  I must say that although this class is different and unique and
have enjoyed everyday of it and I hope to learn many more interesting
things before this class is over.


Response by cheese rocks 


I learned how to apply basic mathematical skills in order to create art
using See Logo.  I learned how to make basic shapes, like circles, and
stars; and ones that were more complex like spirals with babies.  I
enjoyed the mixture of math and art, as well as class discussions, and
meditation.  The atmosphere is very relaxed; and it makes me feel
comfortable. I think that instead of only using computers to create art,
we could create art by hand.


Response by stacey 








Response by Chris 


Untitled

Inside this refrained mind
I hide
From me, not you 
The eyes that laugh and muse at the thought 
Of giving a s*** who I am and what
I've become is a product of my own design
Problem is, it's only mine
Sterility in extremes is maddening
Landslide, I'm barely breathing
Check my vital signs somebody
Before we're buried alive

Stifled

My downfall comes in anxiety I swear
Never deciding if I'm right
Stare it in the face only to find an ignorant mind
The wait never ceases, simply increases over time
Til I've fallen to the ground
On bleeding knees
Perdition's mine

and finally...

Perpetual Winter

Knowing the inevitable
It stings and burns here while
Snowy drifts clutter my mind
Flakes in thousands 
Fall into deceitful arms of the earth 
Robbing their patterns and individual minds
This is no breeding ground
Not the slightest infection could survive
So I'm safe here, but all alone
Welcome home
Don't know if you can tell but
Up ahead lies my headstone
As I'm already presumed dead
Lifeless, and dancing, only inside my head
Perpetual winter in which I hide 





Response by Gloria2