The following essay was submitted for admission to Cal Tech.
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From Day 1, my goal in life has been to understand the universe
from a rational perspective. As a child I attempted to develop a
moral/political theory derivable from a small set of widely-accepted
axioms. Being a less-than-stellar philosopher, I failed at this, though I
did end up with two moral theories, both of which contained enormous logical
loopholes. As I progressed through middle school and learned to be more
precise with my mathematical diction, I realized the flawed nature of my
theories, and worse, that few people seemed to care whether they were flawed or
not – even the more intelligent people I talked to would claim “math and
politics don’t mix.”
Thus discouraged, I decided to turn my efforts to science. Not only were
the systems simpler to analyze, I reasoned, but the scientific community was
also far more receptive to rational thought. I took both Geometry and
Algebra II my eighth-grade year, and read up on calculus, physics, chemistry,
and biology. Biology especially appealed to me because it explained
phenomena relevant to my everyday life, and mathematics because of its logical
foundation. Upon entering high school my readings on physics paid off,
and I was allowed to pass into AP Physics B (and AP Biology, upon my request).
I had a crush on physics that year. The textbook demonstrated not only physics’
utility in understanding the universe, but also its beauty in and of
itself. A wave on a string became the linear wave equation, mechanics was
reduced to F=dp/dt – who knew one could describe complex natural phenomena with
such simplicity and elegance? However, the monogamous nature of my
attraction was short-lived: when I went to HCSSiM that summer (Hampshire
College Summer Studies in Mathematics), I discovered that mathematics could be
still more beautiful. Watching Kelly take hours to prove Fermat’s Little
Theorem, then with Lagrange’s Theorem conquer it in a single stroke – watching
him show two seemingly distinct branches of mathematics were in fact
inextricably connected – this was more beautiful than the best philosophical
treatise, or even any proof I had seen in physics. I decided that even if
it didn’t help me understand the universe as well as other subjects, I would
study higher mathematics for its incredible awesomeness.
Yet I refused to abandon my long-standing goal in order to become a child of
pleasure. The math I had done at Hampshire did not have any immediate,
obvious applications to the real world (save solving the Rubik’s Cube), and
though learning about how you can take a sphere and divide it into two spheres
of the same volume as the original sphere might be cool, it certainly didn’t
help me understand the world around me. Thus, while considering majoring
in mathematics, I also began looking into research opportunities with various
professors of biology. I ended up working with Professor Hay (of Caltech)
the following summer on a project that aimed not only to understand the
universe, but also to change it. My job was to use (mathematical)
modeling to discover how long these changes would take. To mold the
universe to my specifications, to cure malaria with the touch of a button –
this wasn’t just enlightenment; this was power. I fell in love with it,
and decided to major in biology as well. Yet had I been a man, genetics
would have been my wife, and mathematics my mistress: after hours I would sneak
over to the back room and do abstract algebra with a pen in my hand
and passion in my eyes.
My intention to double-major in biology and mathematics will be the fusion of
my objective and my passion; I will get to play with my axiomatic systems and
understand the phenomena closest to my heart. I apply to Caltech so
that I may work hard and play hard, doing biology for understanding and
mathematics for leisure. I know firsthand Caltech is an incredible place
for biology, and based on the ratio of math books to other books at the Caltech
bookstore and the undergrads’ attitude towards their classes (among other
things), I can infer it’s a great place for mathematics. At Caltech, I
hope to have fun, but also to acquire an understanding of the world around me.
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Do you think this is a great essay? Why or why not?
What characteristics, both intellectual and personal, have you
learned from reading these words?
Does it matter that the writer is female? Why or why not?
This student would not be able to submit this essay next year to
any Common Ap schools, as it does not fall under the scope of the common
application essay topics. Would writing
about overcoming adversity of some sort be a better predictor of academic success
than an essay like this?
Tomorrow I will follow up this post with some comments from the
writer on doing scientific research, time management, and what it means to be intelligent.
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