First Assignment – Introduce Yourself

Your first OpenLab assignment is to introduce yourself to your classmates.  This assignment is due Wednesday, June 6th, at the start of class. Late submissions will receive partial credit.

Assignment. Write a comment in reply to this post (scroll to the bottom to find the “Leave a Reply” box).  Your comment should be at least 2 paragraphs in length.  In the first paragraph, introduce yourself in whatever way you wish (what do you want your classmates to know about you?).  In the second paragraph, choose ONE of the following two topics and write a response. Don’t forget to tell us which topic you chose.

Topics (choose ONE).

  1. Was math ever your favorite subject? If so, when was it? What about math made it your favorite? If math has never been your favorite subject, what about it do you not like?
  2. Sometimes people can recognize a time when their opinion of math dramatically changed either for the better or the worse. Tell us about it.

Extra Credit. For extra credit, write a response to one of your classmates’ comments. Do you feel the same? Did you learn anything? Do you have any advice? Be kind.

42 thoughts on “First Assignment – Introduce Yourself”

  1. Hi my name is Paul, I’m a full time student at city tech and part time front desk worker at a local retro fitness. I’m currently studying Construction engineering technology in the CMCE department of the school. On my off time I enjoy snowboarding and going to the bars with my friends. I’m taking this class because it is a pre requisite for Steel Fabrication detailing which is a upper level course in my degree. I also believe everyone deserves a good vacation once and a while in between school semesters.

    In early grades of my education maybe up until junior or senior year of high school I was fairly strong in math. Since I was always better in math and social then I was in english I’d say for a short time math was my favorite subject, but I am not the biggest fan of this graph analysis until i refresh myself better.

  2. Hi, my name is Renato. I am 18 years old and I am from Peru. My major is mechanical engineering technology (I love math and I feel very curious about the secrets of physics, I think It can be very surprising to know that everything that happens around us can be explained in a way that makes sense). I consider myself a very quiet and shy person except when I have to do some work or get involved in an activity that I feel very passionate about. I love to watch movies and to play tennis, even though I am not that good at it (like most of the things I try to do, but I guess that is what life is all about).
    I chose topic 1
    Math hasn’t always been my favorite subject. When I was a kid I used to love art, I could draw things on my little notebook all day long. But as I grew up I realized that the world runs on math. Also, math can be a very funny activity to do on a regular basis. I really enjoy spending hours trying to understand, solve and learn complex math problems. There is no better feeling than finally getting the answer to a very complicated and long math problem (I know it is weird).

    1. I am so glad you like math. And you know what? It is not weird at all to work on challenging problems in math and enjoy the win when you get to solve it.
      I enjoy learning new things and challenge myself in logical things as well!

  3. Hello everyone! My name is Marcus, I am a in a mechanical engineering major. My favorite food would have to be a chicken BLT sandwich. My favorite hobbies are chess, track, and swimming. I have been practicing chess ever since I was little and did a few tournaments at my school. For track I do it as a hobby, but I try to practice it a lot. Lastly, I did a lot of swimming classes as kid and have grown to love swimming ever since.
    Math wasn’t always my favorite subject, but ever since I was little I showed the most growth in it. My favorite subject used to be science, I loved learning about how the world worked. After seventh grade that changed, from the beginning I did not understand anything. Not until the end of the year I noticed I was improving a lot faster than I expected. Slowly I started gaining the passion for it after that. The reason I hated it before was because I never bothered to understand it or try to learn more.

    1. Hey Marcus, i really wanted to reply to your comment because i did experience a similar thing when i was in High school. Even though Math is my Favorite subject but i hated Geometry i never understood or can say i never bothered to understand it or try to learn it. But right after i was done with geometry My love for Math just increased rapidly specially long problems are the best ones to solve. The feeling of finally completing a long problem with a correct answer is just can’t put it in words. Take Math in a fun way.. like solving a puzzle and later you will see solving any puzzles (math problems) will be a piece of a cake for you. Good Luck with this Class. I hope this class will increase your interest in math even more 🙂

  4. My name is Sheyla and I’m 18 years old. I’m a liberal arts and sciences major. Currently trying to transfer to City College in order to major in Computer Engineering. This is my 3rd semester in city tech. Before college, I used to work on aircraft engines, propellers and really anything that dealt with a plane which was an amazing and fun experience for me.
    I’ll be talking about topic 1. Math has always been my favorite subject ever since I was little. Its also been one of my easier subjects when it came to school. Dealing with numbers and formulas was what made me love math in the first place and having to think outside the box at times in order to get an answer.

    1. How come you’re not in the Computer engineering program here? Here they have mechanisms & advanced mechanisms, I don’t think they do over there and you’re into plane mechanisms. Other than the title & electives, it seems like the same thing. The reason I ask is I don’t want to miss out.

    2. You working on aircrafts engines and propellers sounds cool and very interesting hobby to have. I feel the same way you do about math. I also love that there are multiple ways to achieve one answer.

  5. Hi everyone! My name is Simran Khatun. I am 21 years old. Things that are interesting about me is I love painting. Being that I am creative, innovative and artistically able, this contributes to my interest in math as well because that as well requires thinking outside the box. I love meeting new people and being friends with them. I love traveling and visiting different places. I am very talkative. I am friendly. In the future, after graduating from city tech with the degree of bachelor of Science I want to go to medical school to become an internal medicine doctor. I want to help people because in our country there are many people who don’t get proper treatment due to financial problems; especially the people who struggle financially the most for paying the doctors so I want to give them free treatments and help them as much as possible. This is my dream and I really want to fulfill this one day.
    Math has always been my favorite subject. It’s funny if I say it’s in my genes because my entire family is a math major. I love math for many different reasons. I love numbers, I love problem-solving, it encourages curiosity and questions, it keeps you busy and focuses on the problem until you finally get it. Since my childhood I loved math. Especially when I came here in 6th grade, our teacher put a competition in class about who knows the times table by heart and who can write it fastest. And I won that competition and that increased my interest in math even more. In 8th grade, I have gotten the highest grade in math and it was only me from our entire class who got 99 and was selected to get an award for best achievement in math. But there was a time when I thought I hate math but I didn’t hate math, I just hated that one specific topic which was Geometry in high school. I struggled terribly but I passed with a decent grade. Later, when I took algebra 2/trigonometry, my love for math increased even more as rewarded by my grades and an increase in overall GPA. In the senior year, I had the opportunity of being taught by one of the best teachers in the school who taught me Precalculus and Calculus 1. Also, I took Collage now Precalculus/Calculus 1 in my senior year 2017. It’s been a while since I did the math, i hope i do well in this class.

    1. Great! It makes me happy that you are thinking of helping people in the future, meaning give back to the community.
      I’m also happy that you like math. Yey…Math is great because it makes people smarter. Let’s make it a great semester everyone!

      1. My name is Hao and I’m 19years old. My major is computer science and this is my first semester of college. And math was one of my favorite subject because it makes think to have many different ways to solving a problem, before in many math class I usually calculate more fast than the other.

    2. Wow that’s so awesome you want to be a doctor in the future. I’m not really interested in medicine, but I do follow someone called America Revere on Instagram and Youtube. You should check her out, I think she’s currently in the process of interviewing where she wants to be placed as a doctor. She does a lot of vlogs, study sessions, suggestions and tips on studying for the STEP exams and what to expect from medical school. Even though I’m not interested in the area she’s in, her channel is very insightful.

      Good luck with your future endeavors

  6. Hello! My name is Imane. I am originally from West Africa, Burkina Faso. I moved to the U.S 3 years ago. I am multilingual. I graduated from Bronx International High school which is a very diverse high school. I loved meeting people from different cultures and backgrounds and enjoyed sharing my roots with them. One of the reasons why I chose city tech is because of its diversity. I hope to get to know and learn from each one of you.

    Numbers have always been something I like dealing with. I’m a civil engineering major. One of the reasons why I chose to major in Civil Engineering is because I had the chance to intern in many places. Among them was Apple. I was one of 25 students selected to attend the Apple Engineering Technology Camp for 4 weeks during the summer. I traveled with the other New Yorkers to San Francisco where we lived on a college campus. I was mentored by Apple engineers and worked in a group of 5 to complete an engineering challenge and presented it to the Apple leadership. I loved building, making and designing. In 12th grade, I was part of ACE (Architecture, Construction, Engineering) which is an engineering program I attended after school. I also worked in a group of 5 and was mentored by professionals in all the stages of the building process and we were able to design residential buildings. I also had the chance to intern with the MTA where I work with professionals and learn about the train tracks and what’s behind the train. Ever since I always wondered if buildings or homes would be what they are without engineering; and becoming a civil engineer became a dream of mine. Being involved in the design of public works to me means playing an important role in people’s lives.

  7. Hi, My name is Gaspar Arena Soria I’m here at city tech studying Computer Engineering Technology.
    My hobbies are Motorsport, Gaming, Anime, Bmx biking, meditating & all kinds of research and design.
    I Hope to implement Virtual reality, Artificial intelligence & quantum computing very soon in my own systems.

    I do like math but it is not my favorite. I like using math to create new things but I don’t like memorizing equations. I think this is because I don’t understand any direct real-life applications for it. hopefully, once I take more higher-level courses I’ll like what I currently don’t.

  8. Hi my name is Kehinde Adesina. My major is Computer systems Technology CST, but prior to that a I was majoring in computer Engineering Tech also at city tech, For a long time I thought I wanted to be a computer engineer, but my journey at city tech hasn’t been the most pleasant. My breaking point was when had to take physics which I was very excited to take because I loved math but both professors where not helpful one barely spoke English, making it hard to under I then decided to switch majors because I was more familiar with IT. Coming out of High-school I built computers and also fixed them, but I wasn’t making enough money doing what I loved doing for fun. So I got a job, became a restaurant manager and now I currently work at Apple .
    Ive always loved math but my opinion dramatically changed when I took pre cal the first time, the professor didn’t teach the class with the purpose of making sure we learned something, so I dropped the class. It’s one thing to tell students to ask questions but at the same time not be encouraging, my second time the professor was trying to get through all the materials so fast he told students to keep all our questions for after class and his office hours. I also dropped that class, until the third time I took the class, the professor made the class so easy, explained everything in detail and didn’t move on to the next topic until we all understood, I passed pre cal with an A and I’m hoping my experience in this class will be as good as the last class.

  9. Hello everyone! My name is Wilnny, I am in a computer system information major. I’m from the Dominican Republic, one of my favorite food is Italian. I am a tech support intern for the University heights high school.  One of my favorite class is database design. Since I’m on the database track I enjoy this class a lot, designing a database is very difficult, but when you put everything together and make it work, it makes it all worth it.

    Math was never one of my favorite class, I find the class very stressful and most of the information I learn I know I will not be using it in the future. I feel that math takes away to much time from me and other things I like doing during my off time.

  10. Hi everyone,

    My name is Amanda Rosario, and I’m currently in my junior year of college career. My major is Computer Systems, and I’m moving in the direction of networking and security. Fortunately, I’d like to get a job as a cyber security consultant, or even start a company of some kind. I love having Netflix running around the background on my own while learning coding or educating myself more about networking programs. I love helping people in any way I can, and I put every effort into any job or project I’ve been given. However, if I could eat one meal for the rest of my life, it would definitely be Chicken Parmesan.

    As far as the second question is concerned, surprisingly, math was never my favorite or strongest subject. I’ve always struggled with it all my life, but one of the most thrilling math experience happened in Grade 5. I recall the 5th grade parent teacher conference where my math teacher told my mom how bad I was at math.Then, I had a long talk with my mom and all I did was research, study, and learn. I started getting B’s in middle school, and soon enough I became a straight A student in high school. Hard work pays off, particularly in math, but sometimes it takes patience. Everyone has the impression that math is such a “difficult and complicated” subject, and sometimes it feels that way, but I prefer it to a lot of other subjects because there’s only one answer. Also, math is pretty interesting because if that means there’s one answer that also means there’s more than one way to solve it.

  11. hello im adam scott i dont really like talking about myself but im in mechanical engineeiring major and this class is required for more advanced calles down the line. i never really like math nore do i hare math its just one of thoes subjects where you know it but can still get it wrong because of a missed negitive sign or sothing small. i look forward to this semester

  12. Hi everyone! My name is Chelsea and I am 25 years old. I started attending City Tech about 2 years after taking about a four to five year break from attending college. Initially, I had every intention of being a lawyer and taking the political science route, until I realized that reading and writing is not my favorite thing to do. I actually dread doing both things. I’m currently a pursing a bachelors in Information Systems (CST major). I am currently makeup artist and I absolutely LOVE it! Growing up, I was more on the tomboy side, so it’s ironic that I developed a passion for makeup.

    Math was definitely my favorite subject. My dad, sister, and brother were all great and math, so they decided to pass their knowledge onto me. I’m good with numbers and remembering them, therefore math seemed so natural and fairly easy. My favorite part of math will always and forever be algebra.

  13. Hello my name is Sm, since I was young I liked to do math but once it got difficult I let myself slip and now i’m trying to get back on track. I’m not a big fan of math right now but i do understand that it is important, there is so much that could be accomplished using math such as making graphs that show trends. This can be a very lucrative thing to have in your mind if you know how to use it. There are many many things that could be solved using math, but many people shy away from it because it is work intensive and so did I honestly. Once someone understands all of the formulas and how to carry them out, math turns into a puzzle game where you have to find all the pieces.

  14. Hi, my name is Joseph. I am 21 years old & my major is construction engineering technology, I am in my 6th semester. I love to watch ufc fights and to like to travel a lot.

    Math hasn’t always been my favorite subject. When I was a kid I used to love art, I could draw things on my little notebook all day long. But as I grew up I realized that the world runs on math. Also, math can be a very funny activity to do on a regular basis. I really enjoy spending hours trying to understand, solve and learn complex math problems. There is no better feeling than finally getting the answer to a very complicated and long math problem (I know it is weird).

  15. Hi, my name is Joseph. I am 21 years old, My major is construction engineering technology I like to watch ufc fights and to travel a lot. I am not a big fan of math even though my major is engineering. I am more fascinated with the physically aspect of my career, for I have more field experience. I am welder on the side. I am choosing topic 1, Math was never my favorite topic always found it boring. I don’t like it because when it is being taught to me its never been a group activity more of a individual subject.

    1. Hi Joseph,
      Am I confused, or you have replied twice here?!
      If yes, can you please revise only one, so you don’t get your classmates confused?
      I am looking forward to seeing one solid answer.

  16. Hey, Pro. Mingla and fellow classmates hope you are doing well. My name is Annfinee, a name given to me by my cousin’s favorite basketball player. Form a young age I would receive positive affirmations for my drawing and building miniature structures, therefore I decided to make my career by studying civil engineer. I don’t really like math that much because it is so meticulous…one wrong sign can be resulted in the wrong answer after spending so much time doing long calculations. They’re so many formulas to be memorize and for some reason when the professor solves one problem, I grasp the concept but when it time to do it by myself it gets so complex. But with constant practice I hope my outlook on math can change to fulfill my major obligations.

  17. Hi, my name is Luis Mendez. This is my second semester in college and I am majoring in mechanical engineering. Some cool facts about me is that I like to draw, watch boxing and soccer matches. I also like watching movies of any genre. I love birds and dogs. I currently have three birds.

    Since Middle School, math has been my favorite subject in school. I can say that I’ve always been good in math and in class, I would quickly get the hang of how to solve the problems. It’s kind of like the solutions would stick to me and I wouldn’t forget. The best thing in Math is being able to solve a problem and finding the answer. I also like how there are multiple of finding an answer. When I was in high school, I took some extra math courses at Columbia’s S-prep program.

  18. Hi everyone,

    My name is Amanda Rosario, and I’m currently in my junior year of college career. My major is Computer Systems, and I’m moving in the direction of networking and security. Fortunately, I’d like to get a job as a cyber security consultant, or even start a company of some kind. I love having Netflix running around the background on my own while learning coding or educating myself more about networking programs. I love helping people in any way I can, and I put every effort into any job or project I’ve been given. However, if I could eat one meal for the rest of my life, it would definitely be Chicken Parmesan.

    As far as the second question is concerned, surprisingly, math was never my favorite or strongest subject. I’ve always struggled with it all my life, but one of the most thrilling math experience happened in Grade 5. I recall the 5th grade parent teacher conference where my math teacher told my mom how bad I was at math.Then, I had a long talk with my mom and all I did was research, study, and learn. I started getting B’s in middle school, and soon enough I became a straight A student in high school. Hard work pays off, particularly in math, but sometimes it takes patience. Everyone has the impression that math is such a “difficult and complicated” subject, and sometimes it feels that way, but I prefer it to a lot of other subjects because there’s only one answer. Also, math is pretty interesting because if that means there’s one answer that also means there’s more than one way to solve it.

  19. My name is Vincent Corleto, and currently I’m in my 2nd semester of my second year of College. My major is Nursing Undeclared, and I’m aiming to at least become a BN by the end of my college career. I firmly believe that Math was one of my worse subjects ever since I was in grade school– so I definitely admit to not liking it as it was always a repeated pattern of me slowly losing a firm grip of understanding to the content being taught in class up to now. I hope to come into this semester, taking Calculus with a bit of interest and also to change that to see how far I can go if I can push myself to understand what’s being taught in class. I share a space in this class with people that emanate the same vibe as me, so I hope this’ll help motivate me too to get a good score and become more interested in this subject.

  20. Hello, my name is Jacky and I am 18 years old. I am in my second semester at City Tech and I am majoring in Electrical Engineering. I love listening to music. I will always have headphones on if I can. I also love taking naps. After graduating, I want to go backpacking for a month.

    (Topic 2)
    A time my opinion changed around math was when I decided I wanted to go into an engineering field. After taking AP physics in my junior year of high school, I started to realize just how important math really is. It’s the reason why we have advanced so much as a species. Being able to predict how and when things will happen is amazing. Taking physics opened my mind to how important calculations and math are in every day life.

  21. Dear Students,
    Thank you for your thoughtful ideas and experiences shared in this introduction.
    I am looking forward to more interactions and participation in future discussions.
    Regards,
    Prof. Mingla

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