Physics & Biophysics Summer 2017 - Sarah Jystad

Uncertainty ~ You know that aphorism "The more you learn, the less you know?" It's this lovely contradiction that even though we strive for knowledge and skills, wisdom increases and can be felt as this awe and humility for the complexity and relativity of reality. This is a like a soft, cuddly version of the Uncertainty Principle, which leaves me feeling strained in the brain and unsettled in the heart. Ultimately, how things are going to happen is uncertain. We can apply probability, establish hypotheses, and wonder, but there is an odd sense of simulataneous comfort and discomfort in realizing that we don't know for certain. Philosophically and spiritually, I really enjoy the uncertainty principle. I find that it keeps my mind open to considering other points of view with respect, which I don't always see with folks who have rigid religious views. I don't mind not knowing what happens after death or what happened before birth. Mark Twain said it Beautifull...

The overall feeling I left class with was a pleasant intellectual excitement. I really loved learning about the arrows of time, even though I'm still fuzzy on how they are all reversible. I hadn't heard about the Red Shift before the class discussion, so that was a surprise and good bit of information. I makes me wonder what's going to happen if the universe just expands infinitely and how the universe started in a small dense ball. Weirdly enough, I prefer uncertainty over certainty. I remember in high school, I argued, as a senior, that math wasn't always reliable or infallible, because humans process the equations and factors or write the algorithms and there's always room for error when humans are involved. I was met with a lot of passionate disagreements, but I retain that feeling today: we can't really know for certain whether we're right or wrong. Mostly I believe this because everyone experiences reality differently, people's opinions change, and...

My name is Sarah Jystad. I'm originally from Orange County in Southern California. I've liked to sincerely consider myself a NorCal transplant ever since I moved here to the Bay 6 years ago. My first intention moving here was to study herbalism to become more connected to Nature, my body, and to become a part of a community. Herbalism has provided a beautiful framework for me to grow and learn how to heal myself and others. I'm focusing on Traditional Chinese Medicine for about ten reasons but the top three are:  It trains you for a strong position of providing healthcare and allows for further studies down the road in herbs, pain management, and so much else.   It allows me to learn more about my mom's family's heritage and conserve it for my children, if I have any. It transforms its students on a spiritual level as well as physical.  Passions: Nature (experiences in it and documentaries), Open Communication and Relating, Sharing Philosophical opinions a...