p Lavinia Nastase

 

Eseu:
Al Boliska said: “Do you realise that if it weren’t for Edison we’d be watching TV by candlelight?”. This phrase expresses more humour and irony than reality, but it puts forward a very controversial subject: technology.

Sometimes I try to envisage the world without computers. There would be no laptops, no word processing, no Internet, no mobile phones or digital cameras and, of course, no modern transport. If in the last century it was usual, in 2010 this situation may represent a chaos. It is a fact that people nowadays cannot live without computers, which have an important and positive role in the human society, but there also arises a side effect; Karl Marx opined that “The production of too many useful things results in too many useless people”. We should reconsider technology and identify its benefits, but we must not let it completely control our existence.

I have always been deeply fond of computers. My first memory with them is from the age of 5, when my parents bought their first MS-DOS computer and I remember that I was completely fascinated. My father, who is a programmer and databases specialist, introduced me into the gripping IT world.

My interest in computer science have been growing ever since. At first, I tried to discover new aspects by myself, exploring the wide and complex technology. Then, after the Internet became popular, I felt it was this subject that I wanted to study. It all started as an interest in using computers, but then these feelings developed into a strong desire to understand how internal components interact to produce such complex results. I knew that I could transform any idea into a concrete program, nevertheless I had to learn very hard to achieve this level.

My enthusiasm for computer science motivated me to follow a Mathematics-Informatics degree at high school. I was given the chance to develop my logical thinking by dealing with subjects such as Maths and Physics and I got the ability to resolve difficult problems. Furthermore, Computer Science is extremely closely linked to Maths, as they both depend on logical algorhytms which have to be implemented into concrete problems.

During high school, I had the chance to participate in CISCO Academy courses. I took an A degree in IT Essentials Modules 1 and 2 and now I am planning to take the CCNA exam. From this spellbinding experience I learned detailed and advanced Hardware and Software information and some basics of Networks and Security. I have also been learning C++ programming language for three years and I have developed several applications using compilers such as Borland and MinGW.

Apart from my interest in computer science, I also pursue a lot of other activities and hobbies. Two of my greatest interests are literature and creative writing. At the moment, I write on several blogs and the most important achievement for me is the prize taken at the National language, communication and romanian literature Contest. Besides my mother tongue, I am very keen on foreign languages. For example, I am about to take the CAE exam, but I also participated in courses on French, Italian and Japanese. I cannot speak all of them at an A level, however I speak French and Italian at a B level. Volunteering was always one of my biggest hobbies, especially combined with ecology and I participate at summer camps every year. I improved my social skills and ability to listen to the others while dealing with people of all ages. I usually involve in various extracurricular activities, as I enjoy enriching my experience, making new acquaintances and sharing opinions. My passion for nature is reflected in the mountain trips I go to every year and in the outdoor sports I practise: tennis, voleyball, ice skating and badminton. Apart from these, another hobby is music, which is, in my opinion, the best remedy to stress and sadness.

People say about me that I am a hard-working, ambitious, reliable and ambitious person. I would add some more characteristics: I am extremely self-motivated and once I have set a goal I strive a lot to achieve it. At the present moment, my main target is to study at the prestigious University College of London, which is an institution with such an international renown, that will perfectly suit my ambitious aims. I often think that a degree in Computer Science at UCL would be a perfect opportunity for me, because this field is constantly developing and a career as a programmer will always be successful. A fundamental rule in technology says that whatever can be done will be done and I totally agree; for these reasons I feel that IT is my ideal subject and I will do whatever it takes to reach my goal.