High times, hard times...

Well, it's been quite some time since I last posted on my blog... I don't know why. I should do it more.

I spent today going to school, and getting some homework done. It's really nice to stay ahead in school. I just picked up two classes I Sys 100 and 101. They're for Excel and PowerPoint and they're ultra-easy. It's just online. It uses words like "Objective: Minimizing a window" and asks questions like "True or False: You can not run multiple programs on a computer at once." I'm not joking... It's just funny. I'm sure that in later lessons I'll learn something I didn't know before. All-in-all, I'm really enjoying my classes and doing very well in them. I wish that I'd discovered my affinity for these types of classes before. It's so much better for me than the math and science classes I was taking earlier. who'd have thought that I would be into accounting? Not me!

Sometimes, I can feel like the song "Home" by Michael Buble "surrounded by, a million people, I still feel so alone." It's hard to describe the way that I feel about my associations with people right now. I want to be with friends and do fun things. But I just think maybe I don't know who to do it all with. I'm not super close with people anymore. It's more like being pretty close with everyone.... I'm not really close enough with anyone for them to just call me up and invite me to do something, I've realized. So, anyway... I'll have to figure that out eventually...

Anyway, enough moping, that helps nobody. Besides, this is the Bright-Side of Life blog.... Though, I think it's perfectly fine to sometimes express frustration and stuff, it's always good to end on a high note, that's why I saved these things for last.

What I'm grateful for:

Heavenly Father, and my Savior. They have so much love for me!

FAMILY!! They're ALWAYS there! :D

Ward family, they're so great!

Test score! 94% on my second statistics test!

Accounting Quiz scores. Pretty much all 100% since I decided I want to do accounting and switched my major.

Friends, they're so great, and they do so much for me!

Cakes made by friends.

Letters from friends on missions.

Professors who love the gospel and what they're teaching.

Beds to sleep in... ooooo sleep, that's what I should be doing right now....

Rockband parties :)

Men's Chorus

Employers who think I'm great :)

Myself :)

The Bright-Side of Life!

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School, Work, Church, Family, Friends, iSayHi, etc.

My, my, how time just flies by. I can't believe it! Things have been kinda crazy, and there's a lot that's gone on that I haven't posted about (obviously). But I want to sum it all up, so here it goes:

School:

• I've decided I want to try accounting and I'm doing pretty well and enjoying it, so we'll see.
• I'm working extra hard in my classes and learning valuable lessons about being a good student.
• I'm taking History 201, Statistics 121, Religion 324 (D&C 1-76), Music 312 (Men's Chorus), Accounting 200, Writing 150, and Dance 180 (Social Dance). I love my classes.

Work:

• I'm still enjoying my job.
• I work from 7:30 to 11:00 am every day, and that schedule works well for me.
• For those of you who don't know, I work at the BYU Conference Center as an Audio/Video Technician.

Church:

• I still love my ward to pieces! The newbies just make it even more awesome.
• I'm still the Ward Mission Leader and I love it. We had the CEO of the MoreGoodFoundation come and talk with us about how to share the gospel using the internet. It's pretty much awesome. That's the focus of our Ward's Mission Plan (considering we have no nonmembers in our ward boundaries...)
• I still work at the temple and I love it. I changed my shift from Tuesdays to Saturdays at 6 - 11 am. It's the best way to start a Saturday :D

Family:

• I'm still a Dodds and I love it ;)
• My little sister Susan got married. I'm so happy for her!
• I get to see my siblings down here occasionally and I go home occasionally :)

Friends:

• I love having Marc home again and being in Men's Chorus with him. We have all kinds of fun.
• I like to have parties :) And I love the regular Rock Band Parties on Saturday Night in my complex :) I'm getting better.

iSayHi:

• I'm letting the idea fly on it's own. I'm hosting another party in October, and then that'll be it. Hopefully someone else will take it over.
• The time I devoted to it pretty much destroyed my GPA last term, and it's a bad idea to let that happen, that's why I have to stop.
• I love the concept, and I'll still lead by example. But I think the most important thing for me to focus on right now is school. I am a student for a reason!

Etc:

• I'm happy that I'm alive.
• I'm learning wonderful lessons.
• I hope that you're all happy!
• And that's the Bright-side of life!

iSayHi Merchandise

The bracelets are sold out!

Bizarre!

So, I was going through some old e-mails and found this in an e-mail I sent to a bunch of people about a vacation I went on with my family. It was pretty funny. So many of you may know that I served my mission in the Missouri Independence Mission. Well, I had gone on a vacation to that area just a year and a half before my mission. Here is a portion of my e-mail about that vacation:

Anyway, we flew into Albuquerque, New Mexico and were there for about 20 minutes (I recorded us there too) then we got on the plane to Kansas City, Missouri, where we rented a car and started off for Independence.

Before I talk about any more of the trip, I want to say that the only reason I would EVER live in that kind of humid climate would be if I was assigned there for my mission. IT WAS SOOOO HUMID!!! I LOVE DRY WEATHER!!!

Ha! Isn't that great!? I had totally forgotten I mentioned that mission part. I do remember hating the humidity. But, that's just rich! Anyway, I thought you'd find that enjoyable :D

Dear Blogger...

I must say I was surprised when I realized that it has been a month and a day since my last post. And that wasn't even a real post. I must apologize for my neglect. Please forgive me!

My life has been wonderful(ly busy). I am happy. I stay busy (which is the reason for my negligence).

Recently, I have been trying to decide whether to switch my major from Electrical Engineering to Chemical Engineering. I think that I would like to get into nanotechnology and solar energy. That's where the future is going, and I find it really fascinating. I have been doing well in my Chemistry class. I would like to get onto a research team in the Chemical Engineering Department. I think it'll probably be a while before they'll let me on (I've asked several professors). I need to get more experience. But I applied to be a TA for Chem 105, so we'll see how that goes!

I recently started a new group on Facebook called iSayHi. Here's the description I put on there:

You know that awkward feeling when you're walking toward someone you don't know on campus and you're the only two around. You're both terrified of each other, both trying to decide "should I say hi, or just walk by?" Lots of the time it's the later of the two.

Or, when you're in line at the check-out just waiting there, and someone comes up behind you. You both stand there awkwardly waiting, wondering "should I say hi, or wait for time to pass by?"

Or, in the Library, or at class, or at the bank? The list goes on and on of times where things can feel awkward with people you don't know. And it's so easy for us to just think, "I'll most likely never see them again, why bother?"

iSayHi is simply a group of people who want to lighten the mood of their surroundings. Essentially, we're just committed to smiling, waving, and talking with people in these awkward situations.

Who knows, you may make a new friend, or you may never see them again. The point is, either way, you'll likely brighten their day and influence their lives for the better.

Members of iSayHi aren't super courageous. Sometimes it can be hard to break the ice in these awkward situations, but, as a good friend of mine often says: "They're normally just as afraid of you as you are of them." Generally, it's not that they don't WANT to talk with you, so why not take a stab at brightening their day.

I can personally say that doing this brightens my day as well! It makes me happier, and the stresses of school go down as I include in my busy life the brightening of others.

iSayHi members aren't crazy. Don't make things MORE awkward by making a big deal of it. We're being friendly, not freaky. For example, if I am nervous when walking by someone on the sidewalk and I pass by them without saying "hello, how are you." Then, 3 seconds later decide that I should have said hello, it would probably be kinda crazy of me to turn around and say "Oh! HI!!!" So, the principle isn't "Say hi to every single person you come within 20 feet of." It's more like "be friendly to everyone you can." Please be normal friendly people.

On a religious note, the Lord will trust you more with errands to run for Him, if He knows that you'll brighten the mood of someone who's been praying for a sign that someone cares.

I hope you feel that you can join this group and improve the mood of your surroundings. I promise that if nothing else, your mood will improve, and you'll become braver and braver with time.

Please share stories and experiences, and invite people to participate in brightening their surroundings and joining iSayHi.

I feel pretty good about it! I am actually taking it pretty seriously. I want to make a difference in the lives of other people. So, in an effort to get the attitude into more people's minds, I'm in the process of designing a logo (if you have ideas, please let me know!) and we're going to put it on bracelets, t-shirts, and fliers. I would like it to take off, where lots of people are just trying to be happier people and helping others to be happier.

What else has gone on in my life, Blogger, since I last posted on you? Well, I'm directing a portion of a Broadway review called "Sing for Something." It's raising money for cancer research. The potion I'm directing is about 10 minutes of Les Miserables. I'm enjoying it pretty well.

There's something else that has happened that's wonderful, but I want to save that for it's own post. So, other than that, I think I'm all through with that! I hope you're well!

Apologetically yours, (And THAT'S the Bright-side of life)

Kent

The Double Helix

This was a reasonably interesting book... Yeah, 'nuff said... For this paper, I received a 25/ 25! The assignment was as follows:

Assignment:

1)Complete the reading assignment for the book The Double Helix: Introduction, Chapters 7-13, 20-end.

2)Consider the supporting questions:

1.Specifically, how is the triplet code in the DNA molecule related to the amino acid sequence in proteins?

2.What are the implications of random changes in the DNA triplet code?

3)Your task is to write a two-page, double-spaced, typed essay addressing the question:

How is the expression of genetic information related to the structure of the DNA molecule?

The Double Helix

“My pulse began to race” says James D. Watson, reflecting on the process of discovering the structure of DNA (The Double Helix, 186). There was a great deal of time, effort, and competition involved in the discovery of the structure of DNA, and for good reason. The leaps and bounds that science has made since this and sequential discoveries have been fascinating and exciting! DNA is what makes up who we are physically, this information is contained in our genes. The expression of genetic information is related to the structure of the DNA molecule.

DNA contains the information necessary for organisms to create protiens. Dictionary.com defines proteins as:

“any of numerous, highly varied organic molecules constituting a large portion of the mass of every life form and necessary in the diet of all animals and other nonphotosynthesizing organisms, composed of 20 or more amino acids linked in a genetically controlled linear sequence into one or more long polypeptide chains, the final shape and other properties of each protein being determined by the side chains of the amino acids and their chemical attachments...”

Dr. Watson, in “The Double Helix,” tells us that “DNA [is] the template upon which RNA chains [are] made. In turn, RNA chains [are]... the templates for protein synthesis.” This gives enormous weight to the importance of DNA in who we are physically.

Contained in our DNA is the code for our genes, which is the code for the proteins that are synthesized (Watson, 74). Proteins are made up of a very specific arrangement of very specific amino acids. This arrangement design is contained in the DNA in a code of triplets (made up by either a purine or pyrimidine nitrogen base as a part of the DNA nucleotide). If the amino acids are not properly ordered, the result will be a useless protein, incapable of performing the function for which it was initially created (On Protein Synthesis, Francis Crick, 158-160).

With this in mind, consider the implications of even one the DNA triplets code being. This would cause the wrong amino acid to be linked to the protein, making a change in the protein, which would result in a useless protein. The DNA code of triplets is what makes up our genes, which is what is copied ultimately resulting in the proteins that make up every aspect of our bodies. Thus, this code of triplets is extremely crucial to life.

The expression of genetic information is more than simply related to the structure of the DNA molecule. It is contained within the structure of the DNA molecule. According to the organization of the DNA molecules, the genes are arranged to call for the proper amino acids, to produce the correct protein. If it seems like this point has been pounded over and over again, it is simply a result of the obvious interconnection and dependence genes have upon the structure of DNA. This is only obvious, however, because of “the evidence that genes [are] made of DNA” (74) which evidence is available to us because of the painstaking years scientists like Dr. Watson spent on these discoveries.

Francis Crick, On Protein Synthesis, http://profiles.nlm.nih.gov/SC/B/B/Z/Y/_/scbbzy.pdf

Survey for class (again! but different this time!)

http://www.zoomerang.com/Survey/WEB22ARUW2LDUD

Hey everyone! So, I'm doing a group project for class and I need people to take a survey for it. If you could please take this survey, it's not even 8 questions long! (it's 9! ;D ) I would greatly appreciate it, and feel more than free to share it with your friends/family, I need as many people taking this survey as I can get :)

Don't forget to look at the Bright-Side of Life! :-D

-Kent

24 hours in a day? That's it!?!?

So, I've decided that I'm a pretty busy person. I'm doing pretty well with it all I feel. But if I were to let off for even a moment, I would fall behind and probably be really stressed about my life! Luckily I have friends and family who are really supportive! Thanks everyone!

I just thought that I would share with everyone my schedule just because I've been thinking about it, and that's what a blog is for. By definition, a blog is: "a type of online diary that someone makes available to other people on the internet. (A very popular way to communicate one's personal details without any social interaction.) : John started a weblog so that other people could read about what he eats for breakfast. , I deleted my blog, since it was too silly." So, anyway, my schedule consists of:

22 hours of school

• 6 Hours of Biology - 100 (3 credits - Quite fascinating, we also read a book a week, write a paper on it, and have one lab a week)
• 6 Hours of Moral Leadership in Technology (3 credits - Also quite fascinating, we have big group and personal projects due at the end of the course and a LOT of reading before each class)
• 4 Hours of Book of Mormon (2 credits - 2nd half, Brother Thompson is really awesome, I love the Book of Mormon!)
• 6 Hours of a Math Refresher (This is a 0 credit class to get me re-integrated on math, it's really helpful, but hard to be motivated to go as it's a two hour class at the end of the day and worth no credits....)

7 - 10 hours of work

• I work at the BYU Conference Center. I'm a A/V Technician. Basically, I play with A/V equimpment the whole time. It's awesome. I'm doing what I really enjoy doing. For me, it's like putting a child in a playground and saying, "As long as you play with the toys and do nothing else the whole time, I'll give you $8.00 an hour. And sometimes, I'll ask you to help another kid learn how to play on the toys too." So, it's pretty awesome. I do wish that I had time/could work more hours and get paid more, but you can't complain to be able to play for work :-)

5 hours at the Temple

• I just got called to be an ordinance worker two weeks ago. My first day was last Tuesday. I start Tuesday mornings at 5:00 until 10:00. It's pretty early, but it's awesome! Such a wonderful experience. So I have to go to bed at 9:00 on Monday evenings just to get 7 hours of sleep (I would go to bed at 8:00 to get 8 hours, but we have FHE at 7:30, so that wouldn't work!) It's awesome!

So, let's break this down...

• There are 168 hours in a week. You're supposed to get 8 hours of sleep every night. That leaves me with 112 hours a week.
• We're supposed to study 2 hours for every hour in class (according to President Samuelson). So with the 22 hours of class, I should add 44 hours of class. That puts me at 46 hours a week.
• Then I have the approximate 7.5 hours of work a week. That's 39.5 hours left.
• Then there's my church stuff (meetings/activities, the frequent-enough temple trip), approximately 15 hours + 5 hours at the temple = 20. That leaves me with 9.5 hours.
• That seems alright.... Oh YEAH! Let's not forget that I don't suddenly get up and appear in my class! So, there's the get up, shower, heiginate myself, scripture study, eating, and travel time. Let's say that it takes me an hour and a half from the time I wake up to the time I can be where I need to be, and we'll tack on a half hour lunch and half hour dinner (that's thrifty), and then about a half hour of travel every day (that's also thrifty). That's 21 hours! But WAIT! That doesn't work!
• That leaves me with -11.5 to use on a social life! This simply doesn't work! I was a part of an Ultimate Frisbee Team that took about 4 hours a week. That's over, but now I'm a part of a singing group called "Up a Notch" which practices Wednesdays for 2 hours. Then I also like to spend time with friends. Oh yeah, and then there's laundry, and house cleaning, and piano playing! It just goes on, and on, and on!

So, with all of those things, where do I get my time to do them??? I would venture to guess that I DON'T exactly follow the counsel to study 2 hours for every hour in class. I also would have to say that I don't get 8 hours of sleep EVERY night. Or maybe I don't get exactly eight hours of sleep ANY night! But I try really really hard to get enough sleep! So that's probably where my time comes from. There's my conclusion.

With all of this, I assure you that I'm doing well in my classes, and I'm having a wonderful time here in Provo. So, THAT'S the Bright-Side of life!

Food Rules

The "Rules" in this book were pretty common sense (especially for those of us familiar with the Word of Wisdom). There were some quite interesting points in the rules though. A good hour read. It gave me a desire to improve my eating habits. The assignment was as follows:

1)Complete the reading assignment for the book Food Rules – An Eater’s Manual: Entire book.

2)Consider the supporting questions posted on Blackboard.

1.How can you align Pollan's basic premis - "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." with current world populations growth patterns?

2.How do current global issues related to food availability and nutritional quality relate to Doctrine and Covenants 89?

3)Your task is to write a two-page, double-spaced, typed essay addressing the question:

Summarize some of the key economic, agricultural, and ecological implications associated with large scale implementation of Michael Pollan’s advice to “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

Food Rules Exploration Topic

Societies, throughout the history of the world, have changed and morphed to become what they are today. In the book “Food Rules,” the author, Mr. Pollan, suggests “food cultures are embedded in societies and economies and ecologies” (89). As our society changes, our food culture follows suit. The Lord issues us this warning about our food culture: “In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation” (Doctrine and Covenants 89:4). Let it not be suggested that the entire food industry is designed by the evil one, however, it is important to note that the motivator behind much of where and how we get our food is not altogether to get the most healthy things into our bodies. Mr. Pollan's answer to this is “Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly Plants” (xv). Considering where our world is concerning food, a large scale implementation of this concept would have dramatic effects economically, agriculturally, and ecologically.

Currently, a “Western diet” consists of “lots of processed foods and meat, lots of added fat and sugar, lots of refined grains, lots of everything except vegtables, fruits, and whole grains” (Michael Pollan, xii). Historically, people with this kind of diet commonly suffer from “so-called Western diseases: obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.” (Pollan, xii). There couldn't be a more convincing case that this type of diet is not good for the body. To preserve health in our diet, there needs to be a change.

If a change, what kind? Mr. Pollan outlines sixty-four eating “rules” that he believes are the change we need. These rules can be separated into three categories (stated earlier): “Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly plants” (xv). Let us consider what this concept is. Essentially, the concept “eat food” refers to the difference between “real food” and processed foods. “Not too much” deals with our relationship to food. The conceptual phrase itself is self-explanatory, simply don't over eat. And thirdly, “Mostly plants” gives us a guideline of proportions to the types of food that is most healthy for us.

If we were to implement these concepts, and change from our diet linked to diseases to a diet linked to healthy life (Pollan, xiii), there would be some major ramifications surrounding our current economical, agricultural, and ecological status. There are over seventeen thousand new products on the shelves at groceries stores every year (Pollan, 5). This alone should show us some of the enormous affect a change would present. That's dietary scientists, food processing factory workers, and many more, who would be negatively affected if people chose to stop buying their products. Agriculturally, it would be a huge blessing, at least those who don't sell to large food processing companies. Moving from buying factory processed “food” to right-off-the-stem food would dramatically increase the demand for agricultural growth. As far as ecology is concerned, it seems that the implications of change within that realm would be too numerous to cover. With the rise in demand of “real food,” more crops would be planted and less factories would emit pollution. Focusing on the rule 24 which states “eating what stands on one leg [mushrooms and plant foods] is better than eating what stands on two legs [fowl], which is better than eating what stands on four legs [cows, pigs, and other mammals]” (Pollan, 55) would be a big change from the enormous amounts of meat we eat, which would increase the mortality rate of the animals we currently consume. The affects of this change would go on and on!

The revealed truths of our health code, referred to as the “Word of Wisdom” recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants, section 89, are uniquely connected with these concepts. As science improves, it seems to draw closer and closer to confirming what the Lord has revealed through the ages. The Word of Wisdom encourages rule 24 discussed earlier, along with the majority of the other rules (with the strong exception of rule number 43, which encourages the consumption of wine at dinner).

To sum things up, the economical, agricultural, and ecological implications of a large scale implementation of Michael Pollan's advise to “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants” would be both positive and negative on different levels, for different individuals. Though study of health science is still a relatively new science (Pollan, xi), it is wise to give it some credence. However, we can trust that the Lord knew what he was doing when he put the world together and eat the natural things of this world.