Dirt and Robots

  Tales From College: Getting Ready for Second Year By Inaya Ali Syed Hi everyone! As people are getting ready for either their first year or second year of college, there is a buzz in the air that you cannot deny. As many of you are aware, I am a twin, and she is leaving for a college upstate tomorrow. I am going to miss her dearly; however, I am excited for the next year of college.  To start off, I have already rented my textbooks, which I recommend all students do, as it is more affordable for a lot of people. Luckily, I had only rented one book for a semester for a total of about fifty bucks. However, I am aware that does not apply to everyone, as your courses might be different. Secondly, I am ready to take on some more responsibility, as my goals this year are to raise my cumulative GPA, keep my position in ASME, practice budgeting, and pay for the spring semester, as well as do some research for Sound Dampeners. This goal setting is crucial to anyone's success. I think...

 Tales From College: How I Got on The Presidential Honors List By Inaya Syed Hi Everyone! Today, I want to explain to everybody how I got on the Presidential Honors List! The year was 2023, I had recently left the architectural technology major with a 2.6 Cumulative GPA, a broken soul, and I entered a new era (and major) of Mechanical Engineering. I wanted to end the school year strong. So, I handled everything. By "everything" I meant tuition and studies. I would spend every cent I made in my on campus job, the Machine Shop, towards tuition. I would spend a enormous amount of time doing assignments in the library, studying precalculus, doing an array of homework for my classes early. I would spend ever second studying when I could. I would complete all homework earlier than the due date, complete projects with an excellence in Career Discovery, and create amazing memories with my friends. I had it all. Because of that, I came out of the year with a 3.2 Cumulative GPA, all A ...

     "Everything's going to be alright, Hidaya. We've given you the tools to succeed, the habits. You've made it this far. And if you realize it's too hard for you, don't worry, you can always come home, and we can look at other schools closer to home." This is what my mother said to me as I lay my head in her lap, worried about having to move into my dorm. After all, I had lived at my house for the past 18 years... How could I be able to live on my own, learning something I simply heard about a year prior? What if I don't feel comfortable there? What if I don't end up having a good roommate? I mean, we've only talked on the phone a couple of times.  Suddenly the worst scenarios flash in my mind. How would I react if this happened? And there's no Halal Meat! What if I starve?! Oh my god, how am I supposed to do Ramadan and Eid? As I pack up the car next morning, I swallow a Dramamine, and prepare for my DOOM  that is college move-in day. As...

Tales From College: How I Got Real Friends  By Inaya Syed Hey everybody! How are you doing today? Today, I want to talk to you about a topic that is important to many people: Friends.  As someone who grew up shy by nature, making friends was always hard for me. I thought I had friends up until high school. However, we broke apart from the reason that we were not really close. I allowed myself to be vulnerable with them, but they did not really reciprocate that. Everything changed when I arrived at New York Tech. For one, my older sister got married and moved out of the house. Exciting times. Hidaya left for her own college upstate. I never felt so alone and desperate for friends. It did not help when a girl I thought I could be friends with, ended up excluding me from the group (This was before I changed my major to Mechanical Engineering).  After first semester, I was left untrusting and very cautious. I did not want to be burned again by the fires of friendship rejectio...

Tales From College: How I Got into My Dream School and Almost Failed By Inaya Syed Imagine: you just received a notification on your phone. It is from your email; the subject line reads "Congratulations! You're Admitted to New York Tech." You can hardly believe your eyes! You rub them once to see if the email disappears. You open it, and it reads: You can hardly believe it. You've been dreaming of this day. You had applied to ten colleges, being rejected from Stony Brook University. Doesn't matter now! You finally got into your dream school. This is what happened to me. I did not read thoroughly and ended up in a major I did not prefer. Ever since I was eight years old, all I could remember was wanting to be an engineering designer. I would constantly do experiments and think of machine design. However, if you look closely, my major was stated as an architecture major. Boy, was that hard. Let me explain exactly what happened. While applying, I made a m...

Trip to Lake George, NY By Inaya Syed Hey everyone! I just returned from Lake George. It was beautiful, and I think it was a much-needed vacation. This was all done during the past weekend, at the end of July.  So, if you are going, these are some suggestions for what to do. 1. Parasailing Parasailing is basically when you have a boat and a parachute strapped to you to make sure you don't drift away. You are about six feet in the air away from the boat.  2. Make Your own Candles Luckily, Hidaya and I had the candle place in the Lake Motel. The company was named Wax n Wick. They offer many workshops to create your own custom candle. I'd definitely recommend this if you're the artsy type. 3. Explore the Town Hidaya and I explored the town nearby our motel. It was very fun! There are a bunch of small businesses and a bunch of ice cream shops.  4. Do the Pinnacle Hiking Trail I'd recommend this for anyone who is very fit. The Pinn...