Jonathan Ong's Blog

4th & U Apartments is a nice to place to live. Unlike most places in Berkeley, the apartments are actually spacious and actually comes with a dish washer, washer, and dryer. It has nice amenities such as a recreational room which is a really nice loft and a gym that has Wi-Fi. There’s free on street and off street parking so you aren’t obligated to paying for those ridiculous double decker parking systems. The leasing department is actually helpful and will fix your problems by the next day. The rent isn’t too bad, but we also only put down $400 for the security deposit and got 1.5 months rent free.

But the main issue is the location. Regardless of whether you’re a student or not, the location of these apartments is just horrible. First of all, there’s only one bus stop that goes down University Avenue, making it a hassle to go anywhere else if you don’t have a car. Even if you did have a car, parking is not fun anywhere interesting. Being public transportation, you get the oddest people riding the bus with you. Half the time I have to cover my nose with my hands or shirt because I’m sitting next to someone who reeks, and the other half of the time the bus is slow or late because the driver has to accommodate handicapped people, which I don’t mind, but handicapped because you’re overweight!? That is just unacceptable.

The second is the train. It’s 4am while I’m writing this on a Friday night and this is the second time I’ve heard a train pass by while writing this post. Trains passing by isn’t that bad, but there’s a railroad crossing right in the corner of the apartment complex where I live, and because of this, the train honks every time it passes to notify anyone who may be on the tracks. These honks are VERY LOUD, even when I close all my windows. Here’s a picture of the train passing by at 4am.

The sound proofing inside the building is perfect; I’ve never heard a squeak from any of my neighbors. But the sound isolation is just ridiculous. I can hear the train with all my windows closed. I don’t understand how the architects did not consider outside noises before building this complex. Every window should be sound proofed, or this brown wall you see in the picture above should changed into an effective sound barrier.

How much does this noise affect the tenets? I’m fortunately a deep sleeper and have trouble waking up, so the train actually helps me get to class. But for most people, this is a nuisance. My roommates are still having trouble sleeping two months into living here. Apparently the leasing office didn’t tell them about the train noise when they moved in. The train noise is apparent EVERYWHERE, no matter where you are in the complex. Of course I have it the worst, but other people still have it.

This noise is very loud. If I blast my music, the train noise still overcomes it, and I have a Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 system which is actually quite loud. If I am watching a TV show or movie, even on my headphones, I have to pause it because I can’t hear anything. My roommates both sleep with earplugs in otherwise they’ll be awakened by the noise.

Do I recommend living here? Not if you are sensitive to noise and require sleep. Apparently all the two bedroom apartments here are taken, but I’m pretty sure this complex will have a low retention rate unless they begin sound proofing all their apartments. If I lived here for more than 6 months, I would actually read Berkeley’s city code to see if this apartment violates any of these codes and try to sue them because this noise is unbearable.

I really hate Berkeley. The only thing that kept me alive was the amazing food in the Northside Gourmet Ghetto. Here’s a list of reasons to not go to Berkeley. Of course, this is merely preferences and if you’re going to graduate school, you should probably just pick the best one you got into. Topics primarily from College Prowler.

Academics

Grade inflation doesn’t really matter. I know grades are more difficult than, say, Princeton, but when you really think about it, you get the grades you deserve. The issue with Berkeley academics however is the sheer number of professors that either don’t know how to teach, don’t care to teach, or don’t even speak English. Professors aren’t chosen based on their teaching abilities, but on their abilities to obtain grants for their department. If you want to be taught, go to a smaller private school. This doesn’t affect graduate students however since they assume you’re smart and will actually try to help you.

Campus Dining

The campus food is just disgusting. After the first semester, I was limited to yogurt and cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The food is really expensive too. To eat well, you’re going to have to spend money in the gourmet ghetto, which is probably far from where you’re going to live. Let’s not even start talking about the diarrhea…

Campus Housing

Singles? What are those? Don’t expect your own room unless you’re a junior, senior, or a graduate student. In fact, expect two other roommates. Expect really old and really smelly floors. Expect the most socially awkward people you’ve ever and will ever met in your life. Co-ed floors sound nice, but you’ll realize it’s okay in Berkeley since half the girls look like boys… and poo like them too.

Career Opportunities

Berkeley has almost no career opportunities close by. This means that if you’re trying to find an internship during the school year, expect to commute 30 minutes. Most companies are either located on the other side of the bay (San Francisco, South Bay) except for Pixar, which is actually only about a 5 minute drive from Campus. Commuting is costly since you’ll be crossing the Bay Bridge or driving or riding long distances. At least there are sufficient research positions available on campus.

Crime

Berkeley is right next to Oakland which has one of the worst crime rates in America. In fact a lot of these Oaklanders visit Berkeley just to hang out and have the college experience they’ve never had. The south side of Berkeley, where most students live because it’s cheaper, frequently has crime whereas crime is non-existent on the north side. Expect a robbery or assault in Berkeley twice a week. Links:

• http://homesecurity.net/research/detroit/
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland,_California#Crime
• http://police.berkeley.edu/crimealerts/index.html

Diversity

Asians galore. GO BACK TO ASIA! Unless you’re a U.S. citizen like me .

Drug Scene

Even the homeless have access to marijuana. They’ll offer you the joint they’re smoking as you walk pass. I’m not sure if this is a bad or good thing, especially since it’ll just make them more peaceful. I don’t know much about the rest of the drug scene.

Girls

There are only two types of good looking girls in Berkeley. The first are Jewish girls, since they seem to be the only white girls that can be both attractive and smart. The other are the Asians, which 90% of the time live within 30 miles of where I live in southern California. Basically, all the good looking Asian girls are from Los Angeles.

Homeless

Ah, the hobos of Berkeley, the people who characterize the city the most. These homeless are seriously psychologically insane. They talk to themselves all day. They’ll pee on you in the middle of the night (it happened to my friend). They’ll run at you with a fork and knife (it happened to my friend). They’ll stink up the whole bus. They’ll refuse certain foods during certain times of the day (it happened to me). Sometimes they’ll reject anything you offer them except money and cigarettes (it happened to me). They’re willing to get punched for money (I’ve seen signs). They’ll play electro house on their cart in the middle of campus (I’ve seen it before). They’ll try to convert you into the oddest beliefs possible (it happened to me). They’ll pull out rolls of cash with more money than you have in your bank account (it happened to my friend). They’ll yell at you for ignoring them and listening to your iPod instead (it happened to me). But the best part, they’ll all disappear during Cal Day (when prospective students come to visit).

Housing

What’s nice is that all the apartments are pretty close to campus and campus is very tightly packed, making almost all apartment complexes within walking distance (say a 15 minute walk to class). The downside of this is that apartments are very small, and Berkeley restricts the height of buildings, so there aren’t any really tall apartment complexes. Expect to pay $2200 for recently remodeled 700 square feet two bedroom apartment within 10 minute walking distance to campus.

Nightlife

You have about five bars to choose from, otherwise you’re going to have to drive to an actual city like San Francisco. I say drive because you don’t want to take a bus with sketchy people at 2am and the useless train doesn’t run between 12am to 5am. So if you don’t have a car, you’re either going to get sick of the Berkeley night life, pay ridiculous cab fares, or party softly until 12am or party hard until 5am. If you do have a car, have fun paying the $4 toll every time you cross the Bay Bridge to San Francisco.

Parking

Either expensive or non-existent. A lot of apartments have street parking, meaning you’re going to have to find a new spot every time you use your car. If you get your own private parking spot, expect to pay $100 a month.

Transportation

Not really bicycle friendly due to all the hills. Buses take forever to go anywhere since a lot of the local roads are one lane roads. Traffic and parking is ridiculous. The Bay Bridge is expensive to cross. The BART is ridiculously expensive, especially compared to the New York Metro, and does not run between 12am and 5am. You have no other option but to stay home.

Weather

The weather is rather cold compared to Los Angeles, which is really only convenient during the summer, but you probably won’t be in Berkeley during the summer, which completely defeats the purpose. If you like 50 degree winters and 70 degree summers, Berkeley’s the place for you!

As a UC Berkeley student, I’ve experienced all these complaints about tuition increases. When I first arrived here, tuition was about $3,700 a semester. Next semester, Spring 2010, the tuition is going to be $5500, so the annual tuition has risen from less than $8,000 to about $11,000, which is about an 8% annual increase a year. Considering our current fiscal and economic situation, 8% annual increase in fees for something important like education is not extreme. California is bankrupt, so the university needs to attain money through other means. Obviously, you’re going to have to raise tuition.

In America, we should put this tuition into perspective: Stanford’s annual tuition is $38,000 according to USNews. For less than a 1/3 of the tuition, you can attend a university that is still ranked top 20 nationally, assuming of course that you are expected to pay full tuition (student’s whose family income is less than $100,000 a year pay no tuition at Stanford). The purpose of the UC system is to provide an affordable alternative to private schools and does a very good job at it. Of course, you can compare our colleges to more socialist countries’ such as Norway where students are basically paid to go to school, but we’re assuming you’d like to find a job in America where employers know what college your from.

With all these protests going on around UC campuses, I noticed two distinct traits of students and of America in general that I greatly dislike. The first is entitlement. People feel they are entitled to all sorts of amenities from the governments and institutions like free or affordable education and health care. The second is that much of our country would rather sit around and talk about their feelings than go out and do something about it. Protesting tuition increases benefits society in no way, but trying to figure out a way to solve our debt issue or going out and finding a job instead of protesting to pay for your college are both more efficient ways in solving your problems.

Read our constitution. It does not explicitly or implicitly say that we are entitled to anything concerning education or healthcare. This does not mean that our nation wouldn’t be better off if we had free education or healthcare, it just means that it is not its responsibility. Sure, it would be nice if everyone had free education and free healthcare, but who is going to pay for it? The ones advocating free healthcare are mainly the poor who can’t pay for it themselves and thus attempt to make the government pay for it. Californians are not entitled to education, though California seems to be the most progressive state in terms of education. As a Californian, you are not entitled to a high quality education you can afford, though California is doing its best.

We live in America, a nation founded on the freedom to choose. You have the option of choosing which college to attend. If you can’t afford to go to a UC, contemplate attending a Cal State instead or attending your first two years at a junior college. This could save you at least half of your tuition. Choose a college where the living expenses aren’t high. Sure, UCLA is a very nice campus with a great atmosphere, but it is ridiculously expensive. If you can’t afford it, go to UC Riverside where the only natural resource is land. What people don’t realize is that where you attend college for undergrad doesn’t matter, only graduate schools matter.

In Berkeley, everyday there are people handing out fliers and pamphlets trying to get their message across and never do I see someone who responds. Do these people actually think they are changing anything? How much paper have you wasted? How much of that time could you spend on something actually productive? Americans love talking and complaining about their feelings and doing nothing to solve it. Here’s a clue: no one gives a shit about your feelings. The math department used to receive a large amount of money from NSF under the VIGRE grant, but they lost it when they did not adhere to their rules; math professors at UC Berkeley do not like to “talk about their feelings” with students. You see, math professors at UC Berkeley do NOT fuck around.

A much more efficient way of getting your message across is to be an example. Work instead of hand out fliers and use that money for your cause and let it be known what you did. I’m sure that if you are a fraction of spectacular, you will touch some souls. No one’s going to listen to you on the street or read one of your flies; no one wants to know your feelings. How about instead of protesting these tuition increases, you find a job to pay for your tuition or you figure out a way to get us out of this mess.

Today, about 20 protestors locked themselves inside Wheeler Hall. The campus was disrupted by people falsely activated fire alarms. They wanted some 38 laid off staff to return to their jobs and to have amnesty for protesting. Do these protestors think they are accomplishing anything? As long as no one gets hurts, no one really cares. Professors don’t have to teach and students don’t have to attend class. Everyone else just thinks you’re a retard. The staff isn’t going to be re-hired, our university can’t afford it.

Of course, this tuition increase is by no means fair. Only a very small majority are actually responsible for our debt crises, yet we all suffer for it. However, no one ever said life is fair. If life was fair, Patrick Swayze would still be alive. The problem with California is how we spend our money. Instead of putting more money into our educational system, we’re spending $10 billion a year on our penal system. Do we really need to incarcerate a large proportion of our residents? Is isolating a group of questionable criminals more important and more effective than educating them? Perhaps if they had the opportunity…

I am however unhappy with how the UC system’s tuition works. Sure, Stanford costs $40,000 on tuition alone, but more than 75% of the students don’t pay the full tuition and receive financial aid directly from the university. Students whose families make less than $100,000 don’t pay any tuition and those who make significantly less pay no living expenses. UC students have to rely on Cal grants or Pel grants or whatever they are called which are usually unreliable. I know my roommate started working in a lab and since he made enough money from it, he had to start paying full tuition. Basically, he works for free.

What the UC system needs is an even more progressive tuition. It should resemble Stanford’s but at a much lower max tuition. Us wealthy people could and should afford a higher tuition. For us, not attending college is a loss, and for the poor, attending college is a gain. Thus, it is worth more to us due to loss aversion.

Throughout college, I hated taking most courses since I didn’t feel as though I learned anything. If I do, I’ll learn it in the first week or two of the next course, making the first course basically useless. However, things have changed since I decided to take two graduate courses (and one experimental undergraduate course, which is basically structured like a graduate course). What makes graduate courses so much better than undergraduate courses?

• Professors don’t care about undergraduate courses. I remember one of my professors talking about how he told his substitute what to teach the undergraduate class, but didn’t really care what he actually did and was even more unsure about what he told him to say since the substitute was chosen on short notice and wasn’t a very good teacher supposedly. Undergraduate courses are, for the most part, weeder classes. Professors assume a good amount of the students are dumb and that the smart ones don’t really need lecture material. You really don’t need an A in an undergraduate course unless you want to go to graduate school in a field close to that class. In graduate courses, professors actually care what they teach since usually they will be teaching topics in their research field.
• Graduate courses have less students. For UC Berkeley and other public universities, a typical undergraduate course has anywhere from 50 students to a few hundred. Graduate courses typically have around 20-40 maximum. Not only does this make it easier to talk to the professor since there are less students competing for his time, but there are also less stupid students who ask the professor stupid questions, which motivates the professor to hire a graduate student who can’t teach.
• There are no discussion sections. Usually undergraduate courses have discussion sections because the professor gives poor lectures and doesn’t have enough time to help every single student. However, most of these graduate students don’t know how to teach and thus waste your time. In the end, you don’t learn anything from either the GSI or the professor since they both suck at teaching. This is highly beneficial since a 4-unit undergraduate course can take 4-5 hours a week of your time, whereas a graduate 4-unit course takes a maximum of 3 hours a week of your time since there’s no discussion section.
• The professors teaching graduate courses are interested in the material. Professors teach topics in their research field and since the material is high-level, they can actually show you examples. My ODE course professor showed us animations of bat wings and fluid motions he made himself. Totally awesome. Inspired me to do well in this class so I can make my own animations.
• Professors don’t have enough time for you. In undergraduate courses, you have GSIs helping the professor with grading, exams, etc. In graduate courses, you usually don’t. All my graduate courses have are graders. Thus, professors aren’t going to assign exams because they will have to grade it; they only assign homework that their GSIs and graders can grade. Basically, professors don’t do anything but teach and don’t care about the grades.
• Professors are lax. Since most of them (at least at my school) are busy with other research activities, they don’t have time to worry about course nuances. My professors don’t care when you turn in your homework as long as you turn it in at a reasonable time and most of your grade is from these homeworks.

My main regrets in college are taking so many undergraduate courses, and taking so many undergraduate courses in economics. Economics is the most useless major unless you actually want to be an economist. However, what people don’t realize is that economics is 90% math in graduate school, so if you learn economics with no math in college, everything you learn is basically useless. It’s much better to take business classes in accounting or finance than to take economics courses. I should have taken electrical engineering or physics courses instead, but it’s too late now.

Today in my graduate Numerical Linear Algebra course, Professor Kahan, who substituted for Professor Demmel, discussed the differences between the nonsymmetrical and symmetrical eigenvalue problem. He then asked, “What do matrices and potato chips have in common?”

Attempting to be an active listener, I thought about the possibilities. Since we were discussing symmetric matrices, I thought about a saddle point which has a shape of a Pringles potato chip if it is within a certain boundary. This of course a logical conjecture since the Hessian of a matrix, which tells you if a critical point is a saddle point, is a symmetric matrix.


I then thought about particular shapes which could be present in topology or geometry that I’m not aware about since I prefer numerics, but I wasn’t sure how that could relate to a matrix. I only thought of this because the words “tensor” and “torus” popped into my mind when I heard “potato chips”, the former having to do with matrices (among other things) and the latter with shapes.

Alas, after a good 15 seconds of thinking, he told us the answer:

You can’t just have one.

…ARE YOU SERIOUS? THIS WAS A JOKE? I couldn’t tell because even after he gave his punch line, he still wasn’t laughing, but boy was I laughing inside. I couldn’t believe that he was joking and that I took him so seriously. However, he was talking about dual spaces and how all matrices have one. Too bad I fell asleep in my undergrad linear algebra course so I don’t remember any of that.

The whole lecture was made of these subtle jokes, though this was the only explicit one. I remember his saying, “But it’s miraculous that I remember any of this at my age.” He’s 76 but he sure doesn’t act like it. This was probably one of the single greatest math lecture’s I’ve ever had.

If you don’t know who Kahan is, he’s a very notable mathematician and computer scientist; he even has his own nontrivial wiki! He was the father of the IEEE standard and won a Turing award. Around campus he’s known as the man who wears overalls and despises tech companies for not supporting processors with higher than 64-bit architectures for its numerical accuracy. Who knew he was such a character?