Green Mickey March 26, 2008 Reading Reflection #4 In the book, "The Phantom Tollbooth," by Norton Juster, the passage from page 233-234, "But there's so much to learn... secrets of tomorrow," Milo learns that many things in life are useless but helpful. My college experience so far in this semester is similar to what this passage's underlining message is. To me, the passage is saying that my goal in college is to absorb the information I am given, even if it is boring and useless, and take it in so that I may learn from it and use the knowledge I gained to better myself. My college experience so far this semester has given me tons of new knowledge that I will probably forget about when the year is over. I should be able to retain or keep the knowledge, either in notes or by periodically rereading the information. In several of my classes this semester, I have learned new information that I did not know. After thinking about the information, I came to realize that the information I learned was useful not to me. I discarded the data, and paid for the mistake in the end, when the facts would have come in handy. The book also makes mention of the things we learn now, will have a greater purpose in future. I believe in that statement. The things I learn in one class will have a greater function in another. Knowing information now in this semester may have a great affect on what I need to know several years from now. What I do now, will have a positive or possibly a negative effect on my future if I do not come to terms with the possibility of useless information learned while in college. In light of this college experience so far, this semester has been a revelation for me. I know now that I must be interested in my classes to better understand the knowledge I am receiving from them. Even if my classes do not take attendance, I must still attend because I do not push myself, I will not understand the data, and I will not learn how to improve my mistakes in order to see "the secrets of tomorrow."