UGRC - The Hardcore Geeky Dorks!

That's right everyone! The Third Annual UGRC is coming up at the end of March! For those of you who don't know about this event, it is essentially an opportunity for undergrad students to showcase their abilities in various subjects and formats, ranging from essays to posters. I was in the conference last year with an Education research project and am exploring the possibility of participating again this year, so I can give you a few of the deets, and admit that I am a hardcore geeky dork.

The UGRC is the last Friday and Saturday of March, usually starting in the evening on Friday with and introduction to the weekend and speeches by all the important people around, then followed by the posters being on display with the presenters there to answer questions. The posters are on display Saturday as well, but the presenters usually are not present. Last year the posters ranged from Education to Chemistry to Geography. Then on Saturday, those with papers present and anyone in the university is welcome to attend. It really is a great opportunity for anyone looking to showcase their talent and research and to be recognized beyond the class level. Also, if you're looking into grad school, it is great experience and looks fantastic on an application.

If you're thinking you don't have time to write a whole new paper or do a whole new research project, never fear! This is actually to present research you have already done!

If you'd like more information because you're a hardcore geeky dork like me, or at least starting to convert to our side, I don't think there is a website right now, but your professors should have the information for you and I'm sure most would be more than willing to help you along. I believe the proposals are due this Friday, March 15! So get a move on and apply!

Whirling Words owt.

Con-Ed Dorks

As you are all aware (because you all obviously faithfully read my profile), I'm a con ed student here at Nip. This means I was on placement this past reading week. This may mean I didn't get a real "Reading week" because I didn't catch up on a lot of work, but let's be serious folks, who actually does? Aside from us dorks. Yes, I read David Copperfield on Valentine's Day. After that, I was definitely lacking in the productivity department for the rest of the week, aside from placement responsibilities. Which are what I am going to talk about now! Because some of them, I personally think, are blog-worthy.

So, Monday being Family Day (which is solely an Ontarian holiday, in case you weren't aware! It's not Canada-wide), I finished up my David Copperfield affair before heading to a Grade 8 class on Tuesday. I know what most people think -- Grade 8 kids = hormone overload. This is true. BUT, they were a very well-behaved group of hormonal youth, that I was able to accompany on two field trips! It was actually a fantastic week to be in the classroom. I did my lesson on Wednesday (autobiographical news stories, to any of you who are going into teaching and want a little lesson idea). Then on Thursday we went to the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto to see the "Body Worlds" exhibit. I was in charge of 6 students, and in typical dork fashion, I called them my "peeps" and would say things like "Alright homeslices, let's peace out to the rainforest exhibit. Werd." It just so happened that a lot of my group found my 'retro' sayings like "stellar" entertaining, so we got along well. They also enjoyed my geeky-dorkiness when going through the bodies exhibit when I explained scientific and biological things to them. It's really an environment that dorkiness can thrive in. On Friday we went to a tech centre, which was also fantastic and gave me time to get marking done.

So, while us con ed people may complain about having less reading week time than our Nipissing peers for getting work done, we'd be lying if we said we hated it. We're dorks and we love being in the classroom teaching or working with students, or we wouldn't be in this program. Embrace it. It's stellar.

The Origin of the Name

In technical terms, the history and evolution of a word is called "eptymology," which any English student learns from using the OED (which is the Online Oxford Dictionary, for those non-Englishites), a.k.a. the English students' definition bible. Now, I could go through and tell you the origins of the word "embrace", "inner", and "dork", but I am not planning on ENTIRELY boring my readers, but instead I intend to provide my fellow Nipissing students with some nerdy tidbits that float through the Nipissing halls and dorky experiences we can all relate to because, as my "about me" states, we are all dorks and it is my goal to help you accept this fact.

Now, the term "dork" has undergone much backlash in the recent past. That's right. I hear it used as an insult throughout the halls. I hear "OMG you're such a DORK!" To me, this term has recently become associated with "geeks" and the like. It's interesting, considering the term actually means quite the opposite; by its definition, "dork" refers to people who are seen as foolish or stupid. Slightly paradoxical, I would say. Nonetheless, quite amusing.

Whether you are a dork or a geek, or would rather just deem yourself a 'normal' person, or even 'POPULAR', we all have our dorky moments, and this is the first of blogs to start documenting those at Nipissing. Enjoy! And embrace your inner dork!