My name is Dean Karam. I was born in South Africa and lived there till I was 4. Then, my family won the green card lottery and we moved to San Diego, California. I don't really remember much, but we went back to visit for the world cup in 2010 and I was shocked to see how different it was compared to the US. With that being said, my family has two cultures being an American citizen as well as a South African citizen. At first it was difficult for us to adapt, but now the transition seems like it worked out perfectly. I have played rugby since I was 13 and that is the main reason why I got into UCLA. My major right now is business economics but it might change in the near future.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=55&v=4FOEuxrwxd0
Looking at the videos and readings, C.P. Snow questions why the separation between literary intellectuals and natural sciences exists, and states that it is a problem because they are polarized. This limits creativity both individually and as a culture, as well as interaction between the cultures. A source of this problem is the curricular of universities and schools. This general problem prevents people from solving the worlds main issue: the wealth gap between rich and poor.A main argument in one of his books is "Peace, food, no more people then the earth can take. That is the cause. That is why everyone should have literacy and science"
https://neglectedauthors.wordpress.com/the-authors/c-p-snow/
Ucla is one of the most diverse schools in California, yet there is still a main separation between students. This is evident in the division between North and South campus. North campus has more of the linguistics classes, whereas south campus is more science and engineering. While this is efficient, it creates polarization in the student community. Other examples of two cultures at ucla is the party scene and the academic scene, the student athletes and the students, and the students in Greek Life and the ones that are not in Greek Life.
Separation is unavoidable, but we should strive to create a third culture. A culture that is not polarized and allows the different cultures to learn from each other and learn to be more creative. That is the main idea I learned from the readings and videos. Now I am more aware of these separations and how we can use them to gain insight on different culture to improve our own lives. For example, I am a North campus major but I can still learn a lot from South campus majors whether its study skills, morals, career goals, or interests. With every new person you meet, there are several learning opportunities that come with them.
Citations:
http://www.cs.ucla.edu/~sahils/portfolio.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=163&v=VNI7dF3DIAM
http://ypia.org.za/publications/key-recent-documents-on-us-sa-and-us-africa-relations/
https://neglectedauthors.wordpress.com/the-authors/c-p-snow/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=163&v=VNI7dF3DIAM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=55&v=4FOEuxrwxd0
