25150 kilometers.

25150 kilometers is the approximate distance between me and my partners – if you find the shortest distance across Earth’s surface between Kaohsiung American School and Bio-med Science Academy.

Overcoming distances has never intimidated me. This time, however, I was paired up with two strangers from the other end of the world; my job was to write a script and draft a storyboard, and their job was to create a movie based on our plans. During the process, we were expected to frequently update our progress with each other and give each other feedbacks.

Part I. Getting To Know Our BMSA Partner

I’ve taken a special liking to Aaron Glamm and Nicko Horvath while scrolling through their blogs. Aaron Glamm, a current freshman at BMSA, enjoys video games (Hearts of Iron 4, Fallout New Vegas and Counter-Strike), playing board games with his family, and watching Star Trek. Nicko Horvath takes an interest in ceiling fans, goes to the ceiling fans section in stores, watches videos of ceiling fans, and makes videos of ceiling fans. The way they spoke about their favorite things was so natural that I started to marvel at how different people from two places can be.

In order to let Nicko and Aaron get to know me, I sent them a 3-minute introduction video. Unfortunately, I never had a chance to receive their introduction video due to their technical difficulties.

Part II. Book Selection

Grace and I were the first to email them and send them our introduction video. 14 hours later, we received Aaron’s reply, who kindly thanked us for contacting him.

I thought it would be best if we could hear about their opinions before selecting a book that our video would be based on. After a short discussion, we came up with The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, a fictional story of the friendship between Amir and Hassan. Because our partners were two boys, I believed that they wouldn’t have much difficulty casting or looking for settings. The special friendship in the book was also a very powerful topic to develop in their movie.

Photo credit: Waterstones

Part III. Script

This collaboration project has always reminded me of the game of charades; what we were trying to convey in the beginning turns out to become something completely unrelated in the end. My greatest fear in this project was the same reason that the game of charades existed. With that concern in mind, I made sure that every sentence I wrote was clear enough so no one would misinterpret them. I would read and edit my sentences over and over again so that there was only one way for interpretation.

For me, the most difficult part of drafting our script was abridging the story and eliminating the many scenes that I wanted to see being made into a movie. Taking into account that Nicko and Aaron were as equally busy as we were, I understood that they probably couldn’t manage to create a one-hour movie in a week. Still, it was a pain to cut off many of my favorite moments in the book.

Part IV. Storyboard

I have had lots of experience with filmmaking in middle school. Still, I had to dig out my old movie storyboards and do some research on storyboard formats. I especially enjoyed comparing the storyboard exemplars to famous movies, marveling at how accurate the storyboard designer could portray a scene so vividly and realistically.

Due to my not-so-good artistic skills, Grace and I divided up the work; I was responsible for the descriptions and notes, while she must take all the credit for the wonderful illustrations. Grace and I worked efficiently together, finishing the storyboard in less than two class periods.

Unfortunately, Nicko and Aaron were only able to give us our feedback on the script after we finished the storyboard, thus we didn’t have time to make changes to the script according to their needs. Thankfully, most of their feedbacks were positive and there was only one dialogue that needed to be fixed.

The storyboard marks the end of our responsibility. I would occasionally check-in with Aaron and ask him if he has any questions about the scenes. Words are not enough to describe my excitement towards watching their final product.

Part V. Acknowledgments

Firstly, this across-the-globe collaboration would never have existed without the inventors of the Internet, Robert E. Kahn and Vint Cerf. I am more than thankful towards these two inventors, who shortened the distance between me and my partners.

Grace has been a creative and valuable partner for the past month, as we accompanied each other on creating the scripts and storyboards.

I would also like to thank Mr. Williamson, who gave us clear guidelines and encouragements whenever things didn’t go as expected. He taught us the art of collaboration and the value of patience.

Last but not least, there is absolutely no way that I could have completed this project without a wonderful pair of partners, Nicko and Aaron. Aaron always replies to my emails within 24 hours, giving me ideas and/or suggestions whenever I need them. Words are not enough to express my gratitude towards these two.

It certainly took a lot of effort in order to navigate the more than twenty thousand miles and twelve time zones that separate us. Between the 36 emails between me and Aaron, I clearly knew that we are not looking for perfection, but progress. This project was about fitful progress and postponed due dates, but it was a cherished process that I am willing to look back on in the future.

What Is “Forever”?

“Forever” is a very subjective word. The primary concept that all may have been taught is that “forever” occurs when something goes up into infinity. In The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, the main character had walked up a long flight of stairs, not knowing that the stairs actually extended up to infinity – he was never able to reach the end. The Paradox of Zeno pointed out that an arrow shot at a constant velocity would never reach the target; at each time interval, the arrow would only be able to cover half the distance left, hence there would always be an infinitely small distance between the arrow and the target. (As absurd as it may sound, this paradox had been taken seriously by elites for over 2000 years.)

“Zeno’s Paradox”  Image from Claire Chung via Google Slides. © Claire Chung 2018. All rights reserved. 

Is There A Limit To “Forever”?

The truth is, human history has gone a long way, part of it being an attempt to explain “forever.” From Greek philosophy to modern literature, paradoxes to mathematical papers, “forever” is demonstrated in logical, creative, and interesting methods. However, a significant question to this subject is: Is there a limit to “forever?” Consider the scenario below.

Deposit $1.00 into a bank and receive a 100% interest annually. After 1 year, you’ll end up with $2.00. 

Deposit $1.00 into a bank and receive a 50% interest biannually. After 1 year, you’ll end up with $2.25. 

Deposit $1.00 into a bank and receive an 8.3% interest monthly. After 1 year, you’ll end up with approximately $2.61. 

Deposit $1.00 into a bank and receive a 1.9% interest weekly. After 1 year, you’ll end up with approximately $2.69.

Deposit $1.00 into a bank and receive a 0.27% interest daily. After 1 year, you’ll end up with approximately $2.71. 

Now, what if you receive interest every second? Every millisecond? Every Planck time? Every instant?

Euler’s Number ≈2.718281

The scenario mentioned above is the renowned concept of the Euler’s number (represented by e). Interestingly enough, the Euler’s number is an irrational mathematical constant that is not defined by geometry but related to “growth.” Simply speaking, Euler’s number is the maximum number that one can receive when the interest is given at every instant. Referring to the graph below, the red graph line (equation attached below) features the scenario mentioned above, while the blue graph line, y = e, is an asymptote for the red graph line.

“Continuous Interest”  Image from Claire Chung © Claire Chung 2018. All rights reserved. 

“Euler’s Number”  Image from Claire Chung via Desmos. © Claire Chung 2018. All rights reserved. 

As we continue to divide the year to infinitely many moments, the resulting amount of money would approach the Euler’s number, but would not exceed it. In other words, the Euler’s number is the limit to the amount of money one can end up with for continuous interest. So as for now, you can take this further to say that there is a limit to “forever.”

So, why “e”?

For me, the significance of e suggests that growth can extend on forever despite the limit there can be. The question of this blog post, ‘Is there a limit to “forever”?’, has, as subjective as it may sound, no definite answer. There are too many ways to answer this question, just like how there are also too many properties of e that can be discussed, either discovered or not yet discovered.

People have different perceptions of mathematics. It can be hate or love, like or dislike. It does not matter whether math is an appealing subject to everyone, but one thing is certain. There might be a limit to the universe, but the wonder that mathematics can bring to us will go on forever.

Euler’s number is not only an interesting mathematical constant but also a fundamental tool in calculus. One special property of the Euler’s number is that the area of the curve and its gradient under any given point on y=e^x is equivalent to the y value of that point. The equation e^(iπ)+1=0 is also derived from derivatives in calculus. For more information regarding the Euler’s number, it is highly recommended to watch the video below!

Value of Euler’s Number:

2.7182818284590452353602874713526624977572470936999595749669676277240766303535475945713821785251664274274663919320030599218174135966290435729003342952605956307381323286279434907632338298807531952510190115738341879307021540891499348841675092447614606680822648001684774118537423454424371075390777449920695517027618386062613313845830007520449338265602976067371132007093287091274437470472306969772093101416928368190255151086574637721112523897844250569536967707854499699679468644549059879316368892300987931277361782154249992295763514822082698951936680331825288693984964651058209392398294887933203625094431173012381970684161403970198376793206832823764648042953118023287…………

What does it mean to learn? As defined by the Oxford Dictionary, learning is ‘the acquisition of knowledge or skills through study, experience, or being taught.’ However, the true definition of learning still lies upon people’s talents, learning styles and aspirations; it may vary depending on whether a person is an auditory learner, a visual learner, or a kinesthetic learner, an artist, an athlete, or a scientist.

After several discussions with my partners Winnie and Grace, we took this fact as the theme of our video making process, aiming to encourage every person to find their own purpose of learning. The filming process was the most interesting part of the production as it was heartwarming to see so many classmates willing to attend a 2-second interview for this video. We were also surprised by the fact that each classmate had thought of a word of their own to describe “learning.” On the other hand, the editing process was enjoyable as I have had several experiences with turning raw footage into an inspirational video.

Watching the finished video on youtube, I would say that the production of this blog post was another learning experience for me. From being rejected by some classmates to being unable to upload raw footage to iMovie at first, the three of us confronted, solved, and grew. Perhaps the answer to the title of this post simply lies in what we do every day. Just like what a classmate said in the video, “to learn is to live.”

Pineapples belong on pineapples.     Image from Claire Chung. © Claire Chung 2018. All rights reserved. 

We’re on top of the world!                 Image from Claire Chung. © Claire Chung 2018. All rights reserved. 

We’re different flowers from the same garden.   Image from Allison Chen 

“A picture is worth a thousand words.” Every image – be it a geographic scenery, a family portrait, an abstract piece of art, or a random object – has its own significance and message to convey. It has the ability to replicate that moment in front of the camera and to bring back the emotions at that point in time. But most importantly, it restores flashes of memories that have seemingly slipped out of our brains.

And that is the reason why my partner Allison and I decided to choose our images based on the theme of “family.” After deliberately choosing the three best images we could find, we began to brainstorm ideas for interesting captions that can empower the image. In the first image, I was inspired by the joke from World Scholar’s Cup about how “pineapples belong on pizza.” Even though I was aware that not many people would respond to this, I felt that the caption adhered amusingly to the idea of having both me and my brother dressing up as pineapples. In the second image, I took advantage of the idiom “on top of the world” to express the happiness we had when my brother and I reached the tip of a tremendous rock, which also appeared physically to be “on top of the world.” It took the longest time for us devise a caption for the third image. In the end, Allison and I decided to focus on the inner significance of this picture, which was the strong bond between her and her sister. As we noticed flowers in the background of her image, we wrote our caption to convey that sisters can be different, but they are from the same origin.

Overall, my partner Allison and I worked well together and had a lot of fun coming up with the best captions. By tying these three unrelated images together by the theme of family and humor, I came to realize the importance of words and images; they cannot exist without each other.

When I was little, my mother would read me bedtime stories and give me long talks after the end of each book. This routine was influential to some extent within my personality, for example, whenever my teachers give us lectures on “academic honesty,” there is one particular story that I always think of:

Once upon a time, a beauty contest was held upon the Bird Kingdom. On the appointed day, a horde of birds flocked to a pond where they cleaned and smoothed their shabby feathers. The ambitious crow, however, was completely aware that its unremarkable appearance would not win the judge’s favor. Hopeless, the crow flew to the pond to mend its plain feathers when it spotted colorful feathers cast aside by the other birds on the water surface. “Aha!” it thought, as a WONDERFUL idea popped in its mind. Without hesitating, the crow began to ornate itself with different-colored feathers from other birds. Satisfied by its cunningness, the crow winged its way to the beauty contest.

At the opening ceremony, the crow’s exceptional appearance caught everyone’s eye. No one has ever seen such a beautiful creature! It was all until when the peacock recognized its feather dangling from the crow’s back that they began to realize…it was the plain crow in disguise. With that being said, the colorful feathers were pecked off by their respective owners, leaving the crow with embarrassment and disqualification from the contest.

You may or may not have heard of this fable, but either way, the concept of academic honesty truly applies to the situation of the crow and the colorful feathers. In reality, it is growing increasingly common among people to use resources from the Internet in order to embellish and upgrade the quality of their own work. With a more competitive learning environment and higher expectations from teachers and parents, the motivation behind academic dishonesty is becoming stronger and stronger by the moment.

Defined by the Oxford dictionary, plagiarism is to “present someone else’s work or ideas as your own, with or without their consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgment.” Truth is, among the many powerful benefits and advantages of the Internet lie one potential danger: the possibility of cheating.

Why Do People Cheat?

1. Pressure: The stress put on students to “achieve” is becoming heavier in the coming decades. While parents and teachers start to uncritically reinforce the concept that academic success is paramount, those who simply do not have the capability to do so will end up in the abyss of academic dishonesty.
2. Unreflective digital use: In this digital age, people are forming the habit of using the Internet thoughtlessly, carelessly, and uncritically. The digitals that technology gives has gradually been playing a role in students’ beliefs about cheating.
3. Learning environment: In specific schools, academic dishonesty is so commonly spread that it is difficult or resist the good grades that cheating can cause (without being found out). Peer pressure and the atmosphere of the campus can truly shape students’ perception regarding academic dishonesty.

Encouraging Ethical Collaboration

The term ethical collaboration was taught to me by my mother, but it was until in 7th grade that I understood the importance of being ethical to my family, my friends, my teachers, and even strangers. In a community of ethical collaboration, students are learning for themselves, not for others. In a world of ethical collaboration, no one is afraid to let the world know what they want to say. Taking this further, the concept of encouraging ethical collaboration echoes back to reducing academic stress from teachers and parents as well as alleviating peer pressure among students.

As students’ opinion may vary from the Internet, honesty is a significant virtue to own in order voice out your thoughts. If an ethical collaboration is built upon all school communities, the world will definitely see more youth voices being heard.

Source: 
“Ethical Collaboration.” Harvard Graduate School of Education. N. p., 2018. Web. 20 Nov. 2018.

What do “liking” a tweet, searching on google, referencing sources, and commenting on a post have in common? Even though they are seemingly unrelated, these are all actions that leave a digital footprint. You may or may not have truly experienced the importance of “digital footprints” or “digital citizenship,” but it is a pivotal concept to be aware of while revealing yourself on the Internet, especially in this digital era.

Photo credit: Shutterstock

Digital footprints are left in many ways, for example, leaving a comment on someone’s post, registering accounts, and even uploading videos. It can be an action as automatic as pressing a like on someone else’s post or as harmful as posting a toxic comment under a video. Either way, the entirety of actions done are the Internet are what you reveal about yourself online.

Being a Twitter and Facebook user, I don’t reveal too much of myself on social media. Most of the times, I only “like” posts from my closest friends or environmentally concerning ideas that I can respond to (UN Environment, UNESCO, Marine Connection…basically everything about the ocean!). In other times, I use social media to communicate with my clubs and classmates for schoolwork purposes. This can certainly sound a little paranoid, but for me, cyber safety is the priority while I hope every footprint that I leave on the Internet can be beneficial to the world rather than being pure entertainment for short-term purposes.

Whenever I see people commenting on unsecure posts (replying to random sources so that the source could message more information seems like a trend nowadays), revealing every moment of their lives, or chatting with made-up identities, it’s extremely difficult for me to imagine people not thinking about safety on the internet. The Internet is a totally different world than real-life, but danger could be anywhere if people don’t watch out.

But it’s not just safety, the purpose of being a digital citizen is not to appear as superficially “perfect”, but to be able to leave influential footprints that records your mental growth throughout the years to come.

Photo Credit: L.C.Nøttaasen via Compfight cc

Here is an insightful story on the significance of digital footprints:

What is the first thing you do when you receive a new book, play a new musical piece, or watch a new movie? Do you flip the book over to read the synopsis, search on the Internet to read the piece’s appreciation, or scroll through the critiques of the film? While it may seem like a meaningless act for those who have read the book, played the piece, or watched the movie, these clues from the synopsis, appreciation, and critiques are handy resources for clueless people to determine:

Can I relate myself to this book?

Am I suitable for this piece?

Will I enjoy this movie?

Every day, people encounter new experiences in their lives. Whether it is trying a book by an unfamiliar author, attempting to play a musical piece by a composer who is unheard of, or having a friend dragging you to go watch a new movie – it is always difficult to start.

This is where “school handbooks” comes in. Not only that handbooks have the capability of displaying the mission statement of each school and reinforcing the rules in the learning environment, they also have the capability to convey their culture, values, and ethnology to the readers; for a new student, a new parent, or a new teacher, school handbooks provide a sense of security and warmth.

Almost every school handbook circles their content around school operations, school courses, academic honesty, disciplinary codes, safety issues, and health support. However, an insightful reading of the handbook can proceed from plain school rules to the core of a handbook. From the tone of written accounts regarding to school operations, mission statements, and disciplinary codes, one can tell apart what each school values. As each handbook is personalized to fit the style of their education, the format and tone of the handbook are able to reveal what type of general feeling the school can give you.

Taking Kaohsiung American School’s handbook as an example, the pertinent statements for each section conveys a sense of freedom within the school campus. This can lead to students tending to have more diverse thoughts; this sense of diversity and creativity is what makes Kaohsiung American School special. Morrison Academy Kaohsiung bases their education on God. With religious values, students can develop stronger cohesion with peers while being united as a whole under their faith in God. On the other hand, 90 % of the handbook from International Bilingual School at Hsinchu Science Park are disciplinary codes and penal systems. This establishes a more principled character within the students of IBSH in order to prepare them for more in-depth studies in the future.

Education is a powerful tool of influence. Each type of education builds a different character within the student, parent, and teacher, which is why it is essential to judge which type of education is most suitable for one’s development depending on their needs, talents, and beliefs.

But how?

A handbook is powerful because it is like a synopsis of a new book, a piece of appreciation for a new piece, and a critique for a new movie. It is an introduction to a new school life. It is what makes you say – confidently –

Yes, I can relate myself to this environment. 

Yes, I am suitable for this type of education. 

Yes, I will enjoy this school.