Great performances

In the past 24 hours I've witnessed some terrific performances:

1. The prof in my Scientific Imaging class introduced some new and challenging photo techniques and then set us loose to try out the techniques on campus and then return to share what we had done. In under an hour, my classmates managed to take some really cool photos demonstrating both great technical skill and impressive artistic sensibilities.

2. A whole mess of students and a few faculty members read selections from their creative writing last night at the public reading our department sponsors every semester. The variety of materials was great, from dramatic monologues to personal essays to an awesome villanelle, and it was wonderful to be a part of a highly responsive audience. For the first time since we've been offering these events, we ran out of pizza. Time to think about a bigger venue.

3. This morning five of my freshman composition students did class presentations about their research topics, and once again I was amazed at students' facility with PowerPoint. The presentations were not all equally wonderful, but I saw some remarkable graphics, amazing animations, and pleasing color palettes. For students who sometimes struggle to express themselves clearly in prose, they sure know how to create effective slide shows.

Now I need to follow their example by taking some wonderful photos, writing creatively about them, and putting the results into a PowerPoint presentation for my Scientific Imaging class. I've worn myself out teaching my students this semester and now I'm delighted to sit back and let them teach me a thing or two.