Leadership

Through reading the testimonies and biographies of some alumnus of the University of Texas at Austin I got a better grasp of how much U.T. has changed over the years, but also how key professors are to the educational growth of the students. While the biggest change for me since attending U.T. has been added responsibilities, I realized that the level of which I retain information has increased drastically. I feel that the classes that I have done greater in is a result of the the amount of respect I have for the professor teaching the class. For example, I didn't expect to be so wrapped up in my art classes that I would forget to eat and hardly sleep because I would be working so hard on my projects but I realized by the end of the semester that I wasn't working so hard because I loved the projects but  

because I respected those teachers so much that I didn't want to disappoint them. That definitely didn't happen for me in high school. Those experiences have taught me that before I attach my name to anything I want to be sure it is the best I can possibly do in the time allotted and has made me better at managing my time.

Denton A. Cooley said about U.T., "...the lack of personal attention and support of individual students imparted a spirit of independence and competitiveness that offset the most theoretical disadvantage of an oversized student population." (p.865) I completely agree with his statement. I was used to having some what "one on one" discussions with my teachers in the past, but at U.T. it has been my responsibility to follow my progress and work to make good grades. I think that has been an important factor in the change that I have noticed in myself since coming here. Even better, the UGS course has given me the opportunity to maintain a good relationship with students around the same age, which has proven difficult in larger classes. To have a class of 300 where I have spoken maybe 3 sentences directly to my teacher and to go to a class of 18 is awesome. I have the same pressure to do well, but I can build awesome friendships and gain a better sense of the diverse community U.T. harbors.

Not only does U.T. encourage personal growth toward more independence, it also allows its students to speak their mind and express themselves. By having a large body of students who are willing to be leaders of their causes, U.T. has seen it's fair share of the expression of the first amendment.

Betty S. Flowers comments on the boycotting and rallying that students were doing at the time she attended U.T. saying, "We were terribly self-righteous. We had no sense of the fragility of institutions, of the ease with which something precious and complex like a university can be damaged." (p.881) U.T. has proven itself to be a strong institution that encourages freedom. While of course we are not completely free to do what we want, we can express ourselves in a manner that causes no harm to others. Which is fine by me.

-Arctic Fox

Arctic Fox

        She calls me an Arctic Fox. I charge through the heavy snow, my white fur concealing me from predators and shielding me from the bitter cold. My small ears are pinned down by the force of the chill wind and my run. My mind is at rest, focusing only on my pumping legs, but always aware of the treacherous landscape before me. This winter in the tundra has been exceptionally brutal, making food scarce. Hopeful, I return to my usual haunts in search of food, recalling the different berries and plants I had buried there when food was more plentiful. I use my fur encased paws, which block the the cold from encompassing me, to dig at the ground beneath me. I jump up and down aggressively, plowing my front paws deep into the white snow. I find nothing.

Desperate for sustenance, I venture further north, the stench of a polar bear not far away. I wait patiently, taking refuge behind a bulky rock. As I squint into the distance, I spy the large bear tearing at the flesh of an unlucky seal near the ice. After eating most of the seal, the polar bear trudges along in the opposite direction. I watch the massive bear leave it's meal and decide to move from my position behind the boulder and take my only chance for food. Stealthily, I scamper in the direction of the seal. I carefully navigate the icy terrain and finally make it to the carcass. Using my teeth in conjunction with my rapid moving paws, I manage to drag the almost frozen meat to the surface. I clamp my mouth hard around the scraps, doing my best to prevent it from slipping back into the freezing earth. I cut at the leftover kill with my canines, swallowing the protein heartily. I feel the meat hit my empty stomach, hunger pangs slowly abiding.

Suddenly, before I can eat my fill, I hear several loud pops in the distance. My ears prick up at the familiar sound. Fearful, I snag what food I can fit into my mouth and dart back toward my den, hidden in the vast tundra. The aggressive pops continue, but sound further away as I rush back to my family. I pounce inside one of our hidden tunnels and continue my trek back home. Once approaching the den, I can hear my clan. I push my way up through a small opening and after surveying the surroundings, sprint toward another hidden opening closer to the edge of the forest. I burrow inside the hole. My mate and under-nourished pups are huddled together awaiting food. I push the limited seal meat close to them and watch as they feed.

The Arctic Fox, or Alopex lagopus, possesses an overwhelming number of traits that can both hinder and assist their species in being dependable leaders. All species of fox are notorious for being nimble, cunning, and sly, but I consider the Arctic Fox to be particularly adept. Through it's unwavering ability to adapt, the Arctic Fox has proven itself to be a great leader. Despite the many challenges that the foxes face, whether it be the constant threat of predators or the elements, the Arctic Fox has ultimately persevered.

To increase her chances of survival, my spirit animal's fur changes colors depending on the season. Her coat evolves from a burnt gray in the summer months to a brilliant white in the winter. This change in color illustrates the Arctic Fox's ability to adapt to different situations. As my spirit guide, an Arctic Fox supports me in a variety of different situations, whether it be in my education, social and professional engagements, or other life endeavors. Like her changing coat, my spirit animal inspires me to to stay flexible and be prepared to immerse myself in new experiences or opportunities. 

Due to the dangerous habitat that my spirit animal lives in, she must constantly be in the moment. If she is distracted, or ignores her basic instincts, she faces the risk of losing her life. Although my spirit animal is strong and vigilant, she too has many predators.

An interesting factor that sets apart Arctic Foxes from other animals living in the piercing cold tundra is that they do not hibernate during the winter. Their fur, serving as fantastic insulation along with their compact body, allows the Arctic Fox to conserve their heat which makes living in such a cold environment possible. The Arctic Fox is known for having the warmest coat of any mammal in the world. However, the coat that makes this fox so impermeable to the cold and allows for her to live in such freezing temperatures is also what makes her species so desirable to hunters. While for hundreds of years many indigenous people living in the tundra have relied on this fox and their coat to stay warm in the treacherous winter months, over time there has been a dramatic increase in the demand for the fur of Arctic Foxes for much more shallow and superficial reasons. Thousands of Arctic Foxes are killed each year for their fur and although the Arctic Fox in particular is not considered to be an endangered species, the brutal slaughter of poor defenseless Arctic Foxes by armed human beings disrupts the circle of life. To kill any animal in the name of fashion is selfish and disrespectful, the freedom of majestic animals being carelessly thrown away. Humans take these foxes captive and farm them for their fur. As a result, fur trade has increased drastically in the areas that Arctic Foxes inhabit and selling their pelts has become incredibly important to native people's economy. This coat serves as a barrier to the blistering elements common of the Arctic Fox's environment. Symbolically, I myself build figurative walls to protect myself from outside pressures. While I'd like to think of myself as having a thick skin, I've come to realize that I am much more sensitive than I initially believed and by keeping parts of my life a secret from the people I care about, I too am protecting myself from potential hurt. Some Native American tribes share stories of men who discover their wives are actually foxes, these tales symbolize the idea that "unless a male can recognize the magic of the feminine-in himself or others-and learn to use it to shape-shift his own life, it will ultimately lead to destruction" [i](272). I believe that the stressed importance of embracing femininity and sensitivity symbolic in foxes emphasizes the significance of being honest with ones emotions and makes the sensation of the calm before the storm possible.

        Another species of fox, the Red Fox, are expanding more and more every year into the habitats of the Arctic Fox. This competition can prove fatal for the smaller Arctic Fox because a Red Fox desperate for food will kill and eat an Arctic Fox if given the chance. Also, with the decline of bears and wolves, Arctic Foxes are losing a major source of food, the carcasses left behind by the larger predators. My spirit animal is quick on her feet, making her allusive to catch. One could learn from an Arctic Fox to always be prepared and to listen to their instincts. The Arctic Fox uses it's plethora of impressive traits to survive against all odds.

In addition to it's camouflaging coat, the Arctic Fox is also highly adaptive in a variety of other ways. For example, the Arctic Fox will eat practically anything. They plan ahead and save food for later, hiding unfinished meals very well around places they frequent. An Arctic Fox's den usually have "4–250 entrances and a system of tunnels covering about 30 square meters. Some dens have been used for centuries by generations of foxes" [ii]. Both male and female Arctic Foxes share the duties of collecting food for their young, but it is the male foxes who guard the dens from other possible predators. Arctic Foxes form lifetime monogamous bonds with each other and their family units typically consist of an adult male, a mother to the pups, another female who helps intermittently, and the offspring. The importance of loyalty and a strong family dynamic is another trait that factors into what makes the Arctic Fox such a wonderful leader.

I've learned from my spirit animal that it is best to stay out of trouble.  In the example of the relationship between polar bears and Arctic Foxes, the Arctic Fox does not endanger itself by taking down large prey, but waits for the polar bear to do so, while still reaping the benefits. Like the Arctic Fox waiting for the polar bear to make the kill, rather than meddle in other people's business, I should stay on the sidelines. I interpret this lesson as a sign to steer clear from involving myself in other people's arguments unless I feel threatened or directly attacked. Though usually successful, this method can leave the Arctic Fox dependent on other animals skills for food, preventing the fox from reaching it's full leadership potential. Similarly, if I decide to to keep to myself, more often than not I will miss out on opportunities to lead.

I believe full-heartedly that the Arctic Fox is unmistakably a leader, nevertheless "no animal is better or worse than any other. Every animal's medicine is unique," meaning that every person has the potential to be leader, but in order to actualize this potential it is important to listen to one's spirit animal and keep an open mind for one "will find [their] greatest success in the animal that comes to [them]" [iii](10).

[i] Ted Andrews, Animal Speak: The Spiritual and Magical Powers of Creatures Great and Small (Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 1993), 272.

[ii] Tannerfeldt, Magnus. "The Arctic Fox Alopex lagopus" (On-line), Accessed February 24, 2013 at www.zoologi.su.se/research/alopex/the_arctic_fox.htm

[iii] Ted Andrews, Animal Speak: The Spiritual and Magical Powers of Creatures Great and Small (Woodbury, MN: Llewellyn Publications, 1993), 10. (or pg.114 in Course anthology)

- Gaby Guerrero 

Liberal Education

The readings on the interpretations and importance of liberal arts reminded me of something Dr. Callicott said during the sustainability lecture. He talked about liberal education, calling it obviously liberating. He says, "Education enables you to think freely." This theme of freedom being obtained through liberal education was shared in the assigned readings.

Liberal education can be considered "training in how to discern those essential human values that make us free; training in how to express, in speech and writing, our commitment to those values in order to keep us free." (p.235). A liberal education teaches one to express themselves. By focusing on liberal arts, the magnitude of our personal freedoms can be realized. We are no longer chained by the inability to say what we are thinking, we can express ourselves intelligently.

I've noticed that the idea that students "have to study something that will lead directly to a job…" (p.242) has become more popular. Earlier this year, I had been dealing with a similar dilemma, questioning whether or not I wanted to major in Studio Art. There is a noticeable pressure on students to study something that they can easily get a job with and more and more I began to worry that majoring in Fine Arts would not be the safest financial decision I could make. Eventually, I made the decision to switch majors to Liberal Arts. There were a handful of benefits to studying liberal arts listed in the reading, claiming that "studying the humanities improves your ability to read and write...will give you a familiarity with the language of emotion...[and] will give you a  wealth of analogies." (p.242)

Peter T. Flawn, president of UT at the time, stated during an address to the faculty on Oct. 16, 1984, "that liberal education was the cultivation of the intellect." (p.225) Through fully immersing myself in my liberal education, I gain intellect. I don't lose anything through my decision to have a liberal education, I can only gain knowledge.

Liberal arts is defined as originally being the "distinctive epithet of those 'arts' and 'sciences' that were considered 'worthy of a freeman': opposed to serval or mechanical." (p.236) I found this definition of liberal arts to be entirely different from the offered definition of liberal education, which states that liberal education, in it's "grammatical sense is supposed to servile, and by "servile work" is understood, as our catechisms informs us, bodily labor, mechanical employment, and the like, in which the mind has little or no part…" (p.228-229) 

Liberal arts offers a well-rounded education, that has a variety of benefits. Having this form of education can aid in expressing ourselves. Unlike the popular belief that studying something many people perceive as more "practical" is the better decision, having a liberal education is more beneficial in the long run. Liberal education frees us.

Natural Science Museum

The Mustangs statue at the base of the Natural Science Museum is dedicated to the "spirited horses that carried the men who made Texas." Humans believe horses to be powerful animals who represent the a variety of things for different cultures. In America, horses represent the past, fighting for freedom and building community, a possible meaning behind the statue. By looking at the statue, it can be inferred that humans like to make totems of revered animals because they believe they serve as good representations or reminders. The latter more visible in the dinosaur items on the north side of the Museum.
The north side of the museum is home to seats that are modeled after the vertebra from a mosasaur, a large marine reptile that lived during the Cretaceous Period. The seats are actually 8 times the length of the real vertebra, but do work as an interesting reminder to humans, that animals like these used to exist. The seats, like the exhibits in the museum in a way, are a form of experiential learning. By seeing a real physical manifestation of these ancient animals, or even animals that are still around, humans are given the opportunity to learn about these animals in an exciting way.

Located on the first floor, (if coming in on west side of the museum, to your right against the wall) is the top of a Steppe bison's skull. According to the information card, "the steppe bison lived in the dry grasslands of North America and Mexico 500,000 to 10,000 years ago." The skull of this animal is being used to educate students and other visitors on an animal that once roamed this planet. To see an animal on display in a museum is very different to seeing an animal on display in someone's home as a trophy to a hunt. As my power animal however, I can imagine that the act of displaying remains of anything is quite unusual. I would wonder why humans felt the need to exhibit animals in this way and if the animals being shown were killed or died of natural causes. 

On the third floor, there was a display case of a family of American bison. In the case, you could see a large male, and a medium size female and her young calf. The note on the case described how the majority of bison were slaughtered in the late 1800s due to commercialized hunting. I found this portion of the animal exhibit to be extremely interesting, because seeing true to life representations of these animals helped me imagine them more clearly. I did ponder at how the museum attained the stuffed animals and was comforted when I saw a sign advertising that very question. After calling I learned that only a fraction of the stuffed animals I was observing were actually real, the rest being mock ups. This wasn't disappointing, because it meant that not very many animals were harmed to facilitate this form of learning, but it also left me feeling that it was very ambiguous.

The fourth floor had the most information, I felt, displayed with the animals. For instance, depicted below is the human skeleton being compared to the skeleton of a chimpanzee.

More than likely, again my spirit animal would feel that the remains of these animals, however educational, served no purpose because to really learn from an animal it is best to observe while truly living free in its original habitat. If the roles were switched and I were one of the animals on display, I would feel like a science project, watching person after person walk by and stare. Personally though, I think that it is important for people to learn about all of these different animals in any way they can whether it be through observing them in the museum or in their natural habitat. I do not believe the animals on floors 1, 3, and 4 were being displayed in a disrespectful manner, rather in way to represent the way they may have been in life. 

What is Sustainability?

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't expecting very much from the lecture. I thought it would be a one sided conversation about sustainability and protecting our limited resources, and while we did discuss the concept of sustainability and recycling, I was pleasantly surprised at the different view points offered. Dr. Baird Callicott, Dr. Sahotra Sarkar, and Jim Walker (Director of Sustainability at U.T.) all had differing opinions concerning the ways in which we attain sustainability, but their unique standpoints made the lecture much more interesting to watch.
The lecture began with  Lawrence Abraham, Interim Dean of Undergraduate Studies, introducing the moderator Jim Walker and Dr. Callicott and Dr. Sarkar.
Jim Walker is locally and nationally known as a major player in the development of sustainable communities, one in particular being the Miller community here in Austin. Personally, I was really impressed by the moderator's ability to state his own opinions of sustainability while equally respecting both Dr. Callicott and Dr. Sarkar's arguments.
Dr. Callicott is a distinguished philosophy professor at the University of North Texas, co-editor-in-chief of the Encyclopedia of Environmental Ethics and Philosophy, and involved heavily in the conversation of sustainability.
Dr. Sarkar is a professor of philosophy and biology at the University of Texas at Austin. He specializes in systematic conservation planning and is known for his criticism of hereditarian thinking in biology.

Dr. Callicott began by talking about how skeptical people are of the concept of sustainability. He told us how he prides himself on being a contrarian and actually thinks the concept of sustainability is quite clear. He simplified the concept by using the example of a runner in a race, their pace being sustainable for a certain amount of time. While the definition of sustainability is clear, it is also relative. It's naive to plan on sustainable agriculture to last millions of years, the process is relative. He stressed the significance of understanding the "temporal metric" of sustaining anything. He also stressed the importance of recycling and modeling our economy after the economy of nature.
Dr. Sarkar agreed with Dr. Callicott in that as a community we must take better care of the world around us that isn't human. He uses owning a baseball team and spending a certain level of money each year to achieve success as an example to explain large scale sustainability. He brought to our attention his work on the protection of the Jollyville salamander that is going extinct, speaking about him being told that the protection of animals has  to do with sustainability. (In my understanding, he disagrees that the extinction of animals effects sustainability.) He thinks that instead of taking on large scale sustainability, it is more important to have small scale individual solutions so that the next generations can enjoy our world as we do.
Jim Walker presents the question, "Why aren't we moving forward on teaching this?" He claims that nothing measurable has really happened in the past 30 years.
Dr. Callicott disagrees with his assessment, blaming his optimism. He finds 21st century problems so complex that they require interdisciplinary conversation. He then goes on to tell us about the Clay conference.
Walker states that his pessimism stems from the big data, asserting that there is an absence of urgency with the big data. He notes that the it is hard to conceive global action when such large examples are used.
Dr. Sarkar brings up the the clean air act, clean water act, and the endangered species act. He speaks about the unwarranted fears of the world collapsing due to increasing population (7 billion people) and poor environment. Sarkar then summarizes Haldane in Possible Worlds who says that the job of a university professor is to make students think. I loved this point in the lecture because I've always felt that the teachers who have impacted my life never told me what to do, but allowed me to make my own decisions and take different positions. Dr. Sarkar says, "We aren't denying any service to students by talking about fuzzy concepts..."
Dr. Callicott discusses liberal education, saying that is obviously liberating. He says, "Education enables you to think freely." He goes on stating that we humans are subject to the same laws of biology that all creatures are. Our cultural values and attitudes can effect our behavior. He brings up population control, using the example of European countries like Italy being less fertile because women are achieving economic opportunities and gaining control of their reproductive lives.
Walker summarizes the discussion with the question, "How are your actions relevant to the people around you?"
Dr. Callicott argues that the most important thing we can do to make change is to vote for representatives that want policies to protect us. An example being the no smoking policy implemented at U.T. and apparently U.N.T. as well.
Dr. Sarkar agrees with Callicott on the importance of voting for representatives that want sustainability, but also argues that "it is a collective problem that requires collective action."

I think that overall I agreed more with Dr. Callicott's stand point. I did find some of their metaphors a bit hard to follow, but for the most part I understood what they were saying. Something that really shocked me was the question from the guy who made the conscious decision to not reproduce. I think that the concept of reproduction is completely different for men and women. People want to have children for a plethora of reasons and I seriously doubt that anyone who makes the decision to bring another human into this Earth does so to ruin the environment.

Jim Walker noted in the beginning of the discussion that the lecture aimed to try and get students to think about ethics and critical thinking. At least for me, the lecture was a success. I'll definitely be looking out for next year's conversation!

The Longhorn, Our Totem

Before reading about Frank Dobie and his perceptions of longhorns, I had not thought about why exactly the longhorn was the University of Texas at Austin's mascot. Through reading his various depictions of wild longhorns and mustangs, I noticed the character similarities between Longhorns and the students on this campus. Longhorns are our totem because they, like the cattle that Dobie described, represent perseverance, resourcefulness, and "efforts to maintain freedom." (p.145). Both the stories of Sancho and Table Cloth illustrate a longhorn's never ending quest for freedom. To Sancho, freedom meant grazing outside of the Kerr's cabin on Esperanza Creek enjoying the occasional hot tamale. For Table Cloth, freedom meant roaming as a wild longhorn. "Hadn't Table Cloth fairly won life and liberty?"(p.150) This question is posed following the boss's orders to bring back Table Cloth's carcass. I don't think animals should have to work so hard to free themselves from the grasp of man, but any animal as persistent as the one's illustrated, further prove this point. Animals deserve the chance to live their lives free of cages and shackles.

Relating the characteristics of these "outlaw" Longhorns to the students at this university, I can see many similarities. Having the Longhorn as our totem allows students a symbol to represent the University of Texas and the diligence, hard work, and determination expected of students. Sharing this totem also serves in unifying the campus. In 1916 T.B. Buffington, class of 1892, presents "...the University of Texas a mascot or protecting spirit that now and in future years will bring good luck to the institution and it's teaching" (p.154) 

Dobie himself inspired in students traits that a Longhorn like the one's depicted in his stories would bear. "Dobie protested when they fired the president of University Homer Rainey in 1944, when they tried to censor the Daily Texan, etc. He was always on the side of the students."(p.129). From the way he was described, I believe Dobie taught students, through example, to fight for what they believed in. Today I can look around on campus and see a diverse body of students exercising their right to protest, raise awareness, or share differing points of view.

In my first semester of college here at the University of Texas, I was taking an introduction psychology class where the professor told us all to look around the room at what everyone was wearing. As a class, we noticed that the majority of the people in the room had on UT Longhorn paraphernalia of some sort. We were told that people are always looking to be included and the burnt orange Longhorn was an emblem of inclusion for this campus. Just by advertising our affiliation with UT, we are given the sensation of being a part of a larger group. Totems are described as being "worshiped or esteemed by members of the clan bearing its name" (p.152). Our longhorn totem, Bevo, "stands for the fighting spirit of progress" (p.154).

Again, while reading The Mustangs, I was reminded that even though I'd like to believe that longhorns, mustangs, and all animals meant to be wild remained wild, sadly most are in danger of being domesticated.

Dobie describes a mustang "...trembling with fear before his captor, bruised from falls by the restrictive rope, made submissive by choking, clogs, cuts and starvation." Dobie assesses that the mustang "... had lost what made him so beautiful and free. Illusion and reality had alike been destroyed. Only the spirited are beautiful."(p.165). What we admire in the longhorn is their freedom, endurance, and drive, but by the mass breeding and capture of longhorns for their horns, meat, and hide, what makes the longhorn so majestic and inspiring is being stubbed out.

"As the great longhorn was free to roam the wilderness of Texas, so must the University be free to roam the world of thought, unhampered and unafraid." (p.154)

Power Animals

I used to believe that one's spirit animal was their favorite animal, so I was surprised to realize my spirit animal was a buffalo, not a dairy cow. I had heard about spirit animals before this class in a camp I had gone to as a kid. There they had told us that spirit animals, or power animals, represented a feeling of protection. When I was a sophomore in high school, the image of buffalo's appeared everywhere to me and I decided that buffalo's would represent my protection. For this experience, I wanted to be more specific with the type of buffalo that represented me. I discovered that there are many types of buffalo in the world; an American bison, European buffalo, or wisent, water buffalo, and the African/Cape buffalo being the more common. In reading about the buffalo's, the African buffalo stood out to me the most. This buffalo's herd is highly centralized around the female buffalos. The African/Cape Buffalo also does not mock charge, which is unusal compared it other buffalo. So in other words this buffalo charges to kill. Humans fear this buffalo for it's unpredictable behavior and dangerous charge, making this bull entirely undomesticated.

"When we learn to speak with the animals, to listen with animal ears and to see through animal eyes, we experience the phenomena, the power, and the potential of human essence, and it is then when animals are no longer subordinates." (p.111). This quote reminded me of the exercise we will experience when we go to an animal adoption center. The bit about the "potential of human essence"  seemed important to me because references to human nature are powerful, mankind constantly challenging their superiority.
"Then he pointed to a man who was bright red all over...as he pointed, the red man lay down and rolled  and changed into a bison that got up and galloped toward the sorrel of horses of the east." (p.127). This quote from Black Elk Speaks was effective in illustrating the power of the bison to Native American tribes. I had always thought of the buffalo as a strong animal who protects the members of their herd and defends gallantly. By putting myself in the mindset of a buffalo, I can imagine that I would enjoy my freedom to roam and graze effectively by being surrounded by the other buffalo.