A) My name is Daniel Bibawy. I am a second year psychology major in the Macaulay Honors program in Brooklyn College. I am studying to become a physical therapist, the lone person in the program who is studying for this.

B) Being that my career choice is a science-oriented one, this Seminar will be of the most relevance to me than previous seminars. I expect to learn about science in this class in a way I have not in the past. Specifically, I expect to see science in a different light than the memorizations in biology and the formulas in chemistry that have become my definition of science. I expect this class to widen my views and ideas of science.

C) In the Bioblitz, my group studied and watched birds, looking specifically for their behavioral differences, such as how each species acts as a group. We also studied the birds’ superficial aspects, such as the color of their feathers and the specific calls they make to one another. The importance, I must admit, seemed minimal to me. I did not understand the importance of watching birds and learning to differentiate this bird from that bird by its calls or by its feathers or things of that nature.

D) In our group we had a number of professionals watching the birds with us. The one we spoke with and taught us the most was of course the ornithologist. I was amazed by how much he knew and how he could differentiate the birds by the most minimal of feather colors from a good distance. His enthusiasm for what he was doing also inspired me, namely because I could never share the same enthusiasm for birds that he does. There were other professionals with us as well. There was a journalist from the NY Times interviewing several students, including myself, and someone working from the park, perhaps for safety reasons considering we were moving as a big group. I believe these people were doing this for work and got paid for what they did. However, the journalist and the ornithologist seemed to really be enjoying what they were doing, which was refreshing. I respected them for their admiration for what we were doing, even though I myself could not see the practicality of it.

E) I don’t particularly see the benefit as citizens, however I think this is something everyone should at least try for a number of reasons. It’s nice to get out and out of the house and the ventilated air and appreciate nature just for what it is. Something I took out of the BioBlitz was that I realized that there is so much life in the world and the world is so vast and varied and just so beautiful. It’s nice to just stand outside and relax and just watch the birds fly in the park. It’s a peaceful experience everyone should at least try, just to see if it’s something they would like.

F) Although I did not particularly enjoy the BioBlitz, I’m glad I was a part of it. I have never gone birdwatching in my life, and odds are I would’ve never went bird watching if I was not forced to by the Macaulay Honors program. I do not tend to step out of my comfort zone often and try new things, and that is something I really do appreciate about being a part of Macaulay Honors. This was not the first time I had a “first time” experience as a result of something I did with Macaulay Honors, but it was one of the few times I did not enjoy what we did. I would not like to go on another BioBlitz, but I did appreciate that I had the experience to go this time.