I can lift CARS (Jutland part 3 of 4)

We spent most of day 2 (Friday) on an island in the Southern part of Denmark. This island is sometimes colloquially referred to as Danfoss Country, after the HVAC company of the same name that has its HQ in that area. Many people on the island and in the surrounding area work for the company, either in manufacturing or more behind-the-scenes work. Literally thousands of employees live in this area. Think "Roger and Me," but before the factory closed. This is a one-horse island, in some ways.

However, there is a university in the area, where the Danfoss Foundation research center is. There's 10 or so researchers doing positive psychology work, and we went for a visit. We listened to a short lecture about learning styles, then split up into groups to address a pedagogical issue and explain how we would structure a research project on that issue. I learned that some of my classmates had done research on various topics for previous classes, and chatted with some of them afterwards. Apparently research had been done showing that many seemingly minor improvements in schools (i.e. slightly more comfortable chairs) cause significant increases in student attentiveness. I'd be interested in seeing the details of these studies. I did a project back in high school about sleep deprivation in teenagers, and I shared that with some classmates too. It was a good chance to talk about what we already know, and what else we want to learn.

The university building containing Danfoss Foundation is almost pointlessly large and open. Just take a look:



(left: a shot exemplifying the open-air-ness of this space)




(below: our meeting room)



In the afternoon, we went to Danfoss Universe, a huge science park in the middle of nowhere. Not only does the place see little traffic due to poor location, but it was also a weekday. As such, we were more or less the only people in this park that day. We spent the afternoon running around like little kids, pressing the buttons on everything that had buttons. There was a Segway exhibit, which I didn't waste my time on (I'd seen them before, and we only had two hours in the park). There was a multiple intelligences building with all sorts of puzzles and games to test different things out. A few classics ("make these shapes into a cube" puzzle, the make-15 puzzle, as well as many others) and a bunch of wacky new things I'd never seen before. The "spatial awareness" puzzle was basically a Mission Impossible scene: Get through the passage as quickly as possible without touching any of the ropes stretched across the path.

There was also an interesting alternative energy exhibit and a few random, non-educational things (like a trampoline). Out in the front of the park there was a car attached to one end of a scale, and ropes attached to the other, and we lifted the car. They were trying to make a point about lever arms (the last rope was three times as far from the fulcrum as the car) but they also used pulleys to make it even easier, so the point was somewhat lost. Didn't matter to any of us, though; mostly we just had fun lifting the car, then someone would hang onto the rope and everyone else would let go, causing that person to slowly rise 10 feet up in the air. Good times. There was a lot of positivity, and everyone seemed to enjoy running around the place.


(lifting a car)

(waterworks)

I realized partway through the afternoon that the emptiness of the park helped me enjoy it. I like being able to be a little kid at times, but when there are actual kids present, it feels deeply wrong and invasive. I have strong memories as a kid of being 8 and hanging out at a playground, then teenagers would show up and I would feel nervous and uncomfortable. Our rowdiness and size would have probably been disconcerting for many small children, but I'm glad we had the chance to run free and goof off for the afternoon we were there.

That evening we dropped our things off at a hostel in Haderslev (see map above) then went out to dinner.


(the hostel cabins. Despite the skies, it did not rain)

We ate at a semi-fancy BBQ joint. The restaurant was medium-sized, and we took up the entire place, save two tables (there were over 50 of us). The food was good, albeit very American (hamburger patty, baked potato, fries, ice cream for dessert). The restroom signs were cute. Of course, had I actually entered the one that looked most like me, I would have entered the wrong one. Thanks, societal gender constructs! Sure, I'm not the first person to make that point, but I did almost enter the women's room); I think I was looking for "not wearing a dress," and when I saw that, I assumed male.


(AWWWWWWWWWWW)

My friend Katia* and I were chosen to lead the group on the walk to and from the restaurant, due to our high scores in social intelligence and spatial awareness (because we're friendly and can read maps). Half the group got caught at a crosswalk, and I stayed behind with that group while the other leader went on ahead. Apparently that was a selfless and noble thing to do, because the professor thanked me for hanging back and one of the other chaperones bought me a Black Bird (beer) later, on account of my "being a great leader." I liked the beer better than other beers I've had, but I'm not really a beer drinking kind of guy, so that's not saying much. One positive note was that it was a local beer. We could actually see the brewery across the bay from our hostel.

We returned to the hostel to a bonfire, where we made snobrød, which are basically doughboys, for those of you who camped as a kid. You take a ball of dough, put it on a stick, and roast it. Simple as that. We hung out for about an hour, but we had been asked in advance to quiet down or head to our cabins at 11:00PM. We went down to the water briefly, then I headed to my cabin with the friends I had chosen to room with. It was the same crew who went on the late-night walk on the bike path the previous night. The cabin had two bunk bed rooms and a loft, and all six of us wanted the loft to one degree or another, so we decided to just stick all the mattresses up there and get cozy (which it was. Hyggeligt, even). We stayed up and talked while lying in bed, just like a teenage sleepover party. I joked a bit about the incredibly awkward conversation I'd been part of the previous night in the boys' room (the contents of which will not be repeated in this family-friendly blog). One of my new friends countered with a story about suddenly finding herself in the middle of a conversation about sex that she found a bit too explicit, especially for strangers. I think we bonded.

The following morning I took a shower and did some Tai Chi out by the water. I hadn't consistently done Tai Chi since finishing Peace Practice, but the place just seemed right for it, surrounded by a beautiful bay and nice plants. I watched a lone duck as I did the movements. She quacked at me when I started leaning into my Ward Off Left. She told me to stop leaning into the movements, and keep my nose lined up with my navel, like Ailish taught me. Well, at least that's what I think it was saying. Maybe it was saying "Who the heck are you?" Or maybe it was just saying "Quack."

-Eli


(the view from roughly where I was doing Tai Chi)

*I stole all the photographs in these four posts from Katia, and am forever grateful to her for the awesome photography.