Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Introductions



Welcome to the Wyoming Union
Taken from University of Wyoming website
    Hello everyone. My name is Clark Newbold, I am 23, and I am a student at the University of Wyoming. I graduated High School in Kearney Nebraska in 2007. I am currently enrolled as a double major in both Chemical Engineering and in Chemistry. While the Mayans weren’t entirely correct about the cataclysmic events of December 2012, the zombie uprisings across the globe have been quelled enough to make international travel possible. It will be very dangerous, but my travels to Braunschweig Germany can move ahead as planned. Only joking, there is no need to panic. Seriously though, I will be spend a semester abroad at the Technical University of Braunschweig in Germany and I will be writing this blog during my travels.


symphony
Taken from University of Wyoming Website
    I originally chose the University of Wyoming because of their outstanding science and engineering programs as well as their awesome Symphonic and Chamber orchestras that I had the privilege to play in for four years. Both the Chemical Engineering and the Chemistry programs are filled with excellent teachers and classes. In fact, it is thanks to my academic advisor in Chemical Engineering that I will be studying abroad at all. In my first session with him he showed me all of the concentrations that are available to students majoring in chemical engineering such as biomedical, petroleum, and (wait for it) international engineering. This concentration replaces all of the cultural context classes that are normally required for the University and replaces them with 15 credit hours of a foreign language and one semester abroad in a country that speaks that language. I know, bummer right.

    You might be wondering why I chose German. Well it’s pretty simple. I chose Germany because of the high position they hold in the global engineering community. As I progressed through my studies I have become more and more excited for this trip. Initially I just thought it would be a neat experience, but, as I began taking my German classes and learning a bit about the country, my anticipation continued to grow. Now. I can hardly wait to meet new people, see new places, learn another language more fully, and dive into another culture.


    I am also very excited to connect with people across the globe with similar hobbies. One of my many hobbies is a performance art known as contact juggling. Most people are not familiar with contact juggling but if you click the link here, you can watch a video of an outstanding contact juggler. This is an art that is growing in popularity throughout Europe and the United states, and I hope to connect with others interested in this art form. Some friends of mine are extremely talented musicians and gave me the idea to utilize my skills in street performing. I have looked up the regulations I could in Germany and it appears I should be able to perform without much of a problem at all. I guess we will see what happens.

Clear Balls
Photo taken from neonhusky.com