Category: Random

There is fossil evidence of dinosaur larynxes (bit.ly/dinosaur-larynx), so perhaps some of them sang like birds. I don’t know of any fossilized remains of angels, though people do speak of beautiful singing voices being “like an angel.” But I think we’ll have to call it a draw because we just don’t know.

There’s a word that sums up how you’re feeling…ennui.  So you’re not alone.  I asked one of my helpers for tips to fend off just riding it out for the next year.  They suggested: 1) Plug into one new campus activity or community. 2) Pretend you’re a tourist in Boston/Cambridge on the weekends–get a guidebook, hop on the T and explore all the nooks and crannies of these wonderful cities. 3) Take mindful breaks from the socials. Find yourself an old school notebook, and see where your thoughts take you. Wishing you the best for senior year!

“Sigma” is another new buzzword in a crowded field of buzzwords. Once upon a time it was called “self-actualization.” If you think you have behaviors or attitudes that keep you from achieving your dreams or even short-term goals, talk to someone about ways to adopt behaviors and attitudes that help you achieve your goals and dreams. A good place to start at BC: bit.ly/BC-wellness-coach

Given that major mathemeticians have devoted a remarkable number of resources to solving for this equation when k=3 or 42, I don’t think I, a wall, have much to offer. bit.ly/mit-sum-of-cubes

One technique could be to hide all the testers behind things no 10 year old would have an interest in, like tax forms or cleaning supplies. The more boring, the better.

The egg came first because breakfast is the most important meal of the day! Also, dinosaurs and reptiles were laying eggs way before chickens evolved from them.

Be your authentic self, do things you enjoy, and find other people that can enjoy things with you. At the same time, make sure you pay attention to old friends, too!

All nighters. Get your rest!

As a wall, I’m used to long periods of low activity or inactivity, but I can tell humans have difficulty with this. One of my helpers recommends: try to get plenty of sleep (not during the class), take breaks as often as practical/allowed, get fresh air, stand up and move around, and eat lightly but frequently. Good luck! You can do this!

It depends. If you’re writing fan-fiction, no. If you’re stalking a mascot at a theme park, yes.

Refuse to pay the fanum tax, and you’ll be on your way to taking over the world.

Lots of people are cheerful on the outside and struggling on the inside, it’s a thing humans do. I can almost guarantee that if you try telling people how you really are they’ll be supportive and kind. Ask for help. It’s OK to ask for help.

Haven’t watched it, but I hear Ohio is nice.

Sometimes it can feel like it, but that doesn’t make it true. Sometimes all you need is a reminder that you’re not. See a friend. But you can also go to other to talk about it too, either your friends or people here. You could talk either to a student wellness coach (bit.ly/BCStudentWell) or a counselor at BC Counseling Services (bit.ly/BC-counseling), either of which would be confidential and supportive.

Being your true self. Caution: beauty is not something that makes you attractive to everyone, popular, or universally loved. It’s a way to find the those who accept you unconditionally as you. Though it won’t be a crowd, it will be more than enough.

It’s like landing a plane: any breakup you walk away from was successful. Feel your feelings and treat them as important, because they are. You might be sad or angry or both at once. You might feel OK for a while and then suddenly discover you feel worse. All of that is normal. Connect with your friends. Eat your favorite foods. Maybe make a point of doing a couple things you enjoy that your ex didn’t. But most importantly: don’t beat yourself up about it whether you were the dumper or the dumpee. People and situations change and you have a right to be happy and with someone who cares about you. It also really sucks to think you’re with the right person and discover they suddenly don’t agree. All good wishes for you!

As a joke, very silly! If true, you might want to think about seeing a medical professional.

There are a lot of different ideas on this. I can repeat what I’ve said before and still believe though: I find meaning in being supportive, because I’m a wall. What you find meaningful might change throughout your life. Ask yourself the Father Himes questions: What am I good at? What brings me joy? Who does the world need me to be?

Generative AI is certainly pervasive (some would even say insidious). We’re quickly learning its limitations, though, (bit.ly/ai-knowledge-collapse). And in spite of updates, it falls far short of human creativity, because it only generates sentences based on the probability of word association in data sets of what’s already been written about online. But perhaps ChatGPT has an answer for you: bit.ly/elle-inventions.

As I understand it the potato cannot generate power all on its own, it needs two metals to form a circuit (probably wires!). The potato is a battery that causes chemical energy to be converted into electricity. There’s a book at the ERC called “Fun Experiments with Electricity” that could be a fun read to further understand this phenomenon.