Summer Research Project 2017

As you may have guessed, I don't like not being busy. Already, I'm finding myself to have too much time and not really know what to do with it and so, I have decided to take on a summer research project to keep myself occupied. I've put together a reading list that is very ambitious, considering before last year I didn't really read anything expect Facebook posts and the odd news article, the page count totalling 1220, some of which being very big pages. It is also ambitious as it takes me many months to read a 250ish paged science fiction novel, but this is much more serious. I'm thinking this is what I will need to do to prepare myself for my final year. Yes, I'm already thinking about it. I have been all year.

As I've said, this is going to be quite a big project in terms of how time-consuming it will be and I will probably need to set myself targets which whether I meet them or not, I can later reflect on. Will it just self-motivation or will something else get in the way?

I want to do this properly. Maybe, not as if it was for my dissertation in the not-so-distant future, but I have already started writing a research proposal. I need to know what I'm going to get out of this and doing this is the best way not only to help meet targets, but to improve my academic skills. Also, I need a refresher on writing proposals. I find them to be quite tough after only ever writing my first two this year; the first one was scrapped for its vagueness. To improve my academic skills is one of the main aims and to give myself more practice, even if I don't feel like I get anything out of this in the end. I believe I will and I hope to have a solid conclusion of some sort, but it will be a true test of self-motivation; something I claimed to be of high importance nearing the end of last year.

Reading List:
Understanding Music, Antony Hopkins.
This Is Your Brain On Music, Daniel Levitin.
On Sonic Art, Trevor Wishart.
Naked At The Albert Hall, Tracey Thorn.
Stravinsky, Francis Routh.