As I continued to read “The Two Cultures and The Scientific
Revolution,” I had more and more trouble classifying myself in one of C.P. Snow’s
two polar groups – literary intellectuals and scientists. C.P. Snow's argument of just two cultures is overly simplified. I am a fourth-year
UCLA business economics major, and although my degree is classified as a
Bachelor of Arts, I have been required to take several math-based classes such
as calculus, statistics, and econometrics. UCLA also does a great job with the
General Education requirements, which has allowed me to explore different fields of academia including the life and physical sciences. I would best classify myself as in between the artists and scientists. For example, in
the field of finance, executives must understand how to not only value
businesses (science and math), but also manage and work with people (art).
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| Discounted Cash Flow Model Used By Investment Bankers (valuation can sometimes be more art than science) |
There is a constant mixture of both science and art in our
everyday lives. At the forefront of technological innovation is what is known as virtual reality – a computer technology that simulates an environment for the
user to interact with. A recent article from TechCrunch notes that the lack of content is holding virtual reality back from going mainstream.
Example of Virtual Reality Experience
The idea of divergent thinking brought up by The RSA Animate: Changing Education Paradigms video was particularly compelling. The paper clip example that tested
creativity of children at different ages showed how many of us are limited in
thinking by our social and physical boundaries. I was actually asked a question
similar to this in one of my job interviews in finance: “What are 10 different
uses for this [pencil]?” Although I thought I was creative with answers such as
“chopsticks” and “firewood,” I could have provided much more interesting ideas
if I utilized divergent thinking.
 |
| Divergent Thinking |
Works Cited
Bird, Jane. "Selling a Business: Valuation Can Be More
of an Art than a Science - FT.com." Financial Times. N.p., 07 Sept. 2012.
Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
Jacksepticeye. "THE FUTURE IS NOW! | HTC Vive Virtual
Reality." YouTube. YouTube, 01 Mar. 2016. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
Scherba, Tony. "Virtual Reality Is about to Go
Mainstream, but a Lack of Content Threatens to Hold It back." TechCrunch.
N.p., 03 Apr. 2016. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
Snow, C. P. “Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution.”
Reading. 1959. New York: Cambridge UP, 1961. Print.
"STREETOFWALLS." Street Of Walls. N.p., n.d. Web.
03 Apr. 2016.
TheRSAorg. "RSA ANIMATE: Changing Education
Paradigms." YouTube. YouTube, 14 Oct. 2010. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
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