I was surrounded by the incessant sounds of cars and bikes speeding by, mixing with the equally fast Spanish being spoken behind me. They whirled and swirled in the warm eddies of the wind, picking up other sounds. The cacophony entered my ear and banged on it, demanding to be heard. It was a warm day, one of those days so hot you can smell the heat, the smell I now know to be of metal, rubber, concrete, litter, all...

I remember watching Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture in my Computer Science class three years ago. Even then, as a freshman, I was amazed at his passion and charisma. And, at the same time, I was drawn to him, and I thought to myself that this is someone I would want to be like one day. Randy, of course, was a proud CMU alum and professor who, in many ways, embodies the spirit of the college he dedicated his life...

Its an awesome school, especially in engineering and computer science. The real drawback is the hefty price tag, which...