My name is Abamby Steve Estrada Raymundo. From a very early age, uncertainties about my future governed my thoughts. For instance, what is going to be my job, I am smart enough or does hard work can beat talent. The simple act of thinking about it terrified me. However, that state of mind eventually shuffled. One day after completing a model of the solar system for an elementary school project, hunger for knowledge and answers about the subject begun to trap my mind. Later that day, in the company of my sisters, I remember going to the nearest library for the search of a book that until now has changed my life- Astronomy: a guide for the amateur. Things like the artistic representations of the planet’s surface, distance from the earth, solar cycles, and the colors of each planet fascinated me. Every single time my professors talked about the solar system and the universe in general, my mind took me on a trip year into the future where I portrayed myself as a brighter astronomer. That was roughly twelve years ago. In the last few years, I have realized that my passion for my family and Astronomy are natural callings that I am destined to follow, and that the doubts that one day governed my mind have slowly been answered. In part, this intuitive notion solidified while visiting my family in Mexico and taking courses related to Astronomy and Physics in both Mexico and the US. But, overall my childhood memories, hobbies and education has always been tied to learning about the space, celestial objects, and the laws that rule them.

As a result, after a careful reflection I am confident about the goals that I want to achieve as a student at CCNY: Absorb the knowledge from this college to become a better skeptical and thoughtful person, to be the first member of my family to have a college degree, and at the end, to provide a brighter future to my family as an Astrophysicist. Nevertheless, the path for the completion of my goals has been full of obstacles, at this moment one of those interferences is the language. I have only been in this country for five years, which means that I possess a large number of limitations regarding writing and speaking in English. Therefore, I hope for this class to facilitate me with a better understanding of English in both aspects: writing and speaking. This is a goal that I want to achieve since the use of analytical skills in harmony with good use of the language are things that I considered essential to become a well-formed scientist.

The science that I will like to pursue is the field of astrophysics. From my perspective, this branch of astronomy is one of the most fascinating subjects in sciences and is continually evolving. Mathematics, observations, and analytical thinking are fundamental pillars for mastering this field. Therefore, I considered this to be a field with in-depth and meaningful connection with other sciences. As one of my friends said, “one thing is for sure, mathematics is the only universal language.” Thus, a field that combines mathematics and the universe in a subject is something that I considered could bring joy to my whole life. I think this to be the case because if I can be happy with my career, I would not be stress, bored or sad about my job. After all, being passionate about mathematics, cosmos, and knowledge, is the thing that brings the most fun to my life. I cannot imagine the rest of my life without learning something new every day. As a result, I considered astrophysics to be a path towards further questions, to new knowledge and to an adventure of a lifetime.

On the other hand, now as a college student, I considered exploration to be the primary key when it comes to choosing a major. Therefore, I want to be able to learn and explore subjects that I curious and passionate about. At this point, I am thinking to have a minor in philosophy or psychology. To be honest with the whole variety of subjects that the City College offers I feel like a child in a playground. But my focus is to at least have an M.S in astrophysics under my belt. This sounds like a lot of work but also, I like to think of it as an adventure to expand my horizons even further. To finalize, I hope for this class to help me reach out a better understanding when it comes to reading, analyzing, writing scientific papers and the syntax of English. Writing must be at the interface of a well-formed scientist.