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LDAC in 1,000 Words
by Matthew Blanchard
online COmments issue 9/413
Making a Movement: How a small group of students united
behind a fringe issue and changed University policy
"What was really incredible about this was that such a strong
movement happened among members of an elite group (UM
students) who were working hard to make it easier for other
people to join that group. Most of the students in this movement
had nothing to gain personally from its success, but they fought
on behalf of others.
So now can UM students fit for others and for themselves,
and fight the rising tide of tuition?"
US ER:Cerebrallvvnurs
the science of it all: smell ya later bypaigepearcy
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All meetings are in our newsroom at 420
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Newberry Residence Halls.
Picture this: You're walking
down a busy street in a city filled
with loud noises and stimulating
sights. You pass a small bakery and
catch a whiff of the most recent
batch of cookies. A chill runs
down your spine. You wince. Your
mind flashes back to that time
when you were six, learning to
bake cookies with your grandma
and accidentally burned your
hand. Your hand became vibrantly
red, blistered and it was painful
for a week. Your mood converts
from bliss to melancholy. Until
this moment, you hadn't thought
about that in years, decades even.
And all this came from a smell?
"How weird!" you think. But no,
it's not weird: It's neuroscience.
Okay, so maybe this didn't hap-
pen to you. Maybe you didn't ever
burn your hand or even learn to
bake cookies - a true crime - but
the idea that a smell can trigger
memories, both good and bad,
is true. It's called the Proustian
Effect named after Marcel Proust,
a French writer who was the first
to write about the effect, albeit not
scientifically, but as an observa-
tion in his novel "In Search of Lost
Time.'
Unlike the other senses which
pass through the thalamus - a
relay station for movement and
sensory information in the brain -
before moving to the cerebral cor-
tex for processing, smells transmit
directly to the olfactory bulb,
without interruption. In fact, a
smell has been proven more likely
to trigger emotional memories
than a sight or a sound because of
its direct entrance to the brain.
The olfactory bulb is located
close to both the amygdala - the
area of the brain where emotion
and emotional memory is pro-
cessed - and the hippocampus
- the area of the brain connected
with more general memory.
"The memories
associated
with emotions
and smells are
likely to be
unexpected and
less focused,
more nostalgic."
The close proximity of these
regions with the site of processing
ca
actively try to remember that time
your dog died or when you saw
a car accident. However, when
one focuses on details, they don't
focus on the feelings they are feel-
ing. For example, you're trying to
remember what your professor is
saying in class. When you recall
that moment, you remember the
words, but you don't remember
that you were depressed from get-
ting a less than satisfactory grade
on that paper you just were hand-
ed back. Details and emotions are
stored in two different areas of the
brain. Thus the memories associ-
ated with emotions and smells
are likely to be unexpected and
less focused, more nostalgic. The
things you didn't want to remem-
ber but are encoded in your brain
anyway.
This is why when you smell a
man walking by wearing the same
cologne as your ex you may be
filled with sadness, or when you
smell a flower, it could trigger
your happy memories of Hawaii.
For every cadet in Army ROTC, the
acronym "LDAC" is something omi-
nous. It represents fear, expectation,
anxiety and the unique feeling of proving
one's self. Pronounced "eldahk," it stands for
Leadership Development and Assessment
Course - a nationwide camp that sees thou-
sands of future Army Officers every year.
The course lasts 29 days, and is housed at
Fort Lewis near Seattle, Wash. The purpose
of LDAC is to serve as a culminating train-
ing event and evalua-
tion period for any cadet
wishing to earn a com-
mission in the United
States Army.
I've participated in 6
Army ROTC since my"
freshman year at the
University. Our pro-
gram stresses a strong
emphasis on training
us to perform well at N
LDAC. Why? Because g
our overall performance
at LDAC says a lot about
us. It speaks to how we
handle stress, how much
we have learned, how
well we work with oth-
ers, and whether or not
we can handle military
environments. It's a mili-
tary and life test, and we
get a career-changing
grade.
Our evaluations are
part of our overall packet
which determine our
branch - Infantry, Engi-
neer, Aviation, Military Intelligence, etc. -
and duty station.
LDAC is broken into three phases: garri-
son, assembly area and patrol base. Garrison
is spent sleeping in dorm-like buildings. The
assembly area and patrol base phases are
spent in large tents with periodic restless
nights in the woods.
Since LDAC is about evaluating cadets
ability to lead, our leadership positions
change every day.
While in leadership, our every move is
critiqued.
When my evaluation day came in garrison,
I approached it with high energy. I was highly
motivated, ready to wake everyone up, fully
prepared for our day's training, and ready to
"valiantly" lead my peers. In truth - though
I did not know it at the time - I was leading
in appearance, not actuality. It was too soon
to understand the needs of my squad, and
my motivation developed as a result of my
assessment. When I strutted into Captain
Brooker's office to receive my evaluation, I
fully anticipated an "E" for "excellent."
Minutes later, I left confused and disap-
pointed: "S" for "satisfactory."
Surely the system was broken. Surely I
deserved an "E", and the captain did not
know what he was talking about. However,
Lw
-(
laugh, make plans. You'll make it through."
With my renewed attitude firmly in
hand, LDAC seemed quite a bit easier. My
goals no longer circumvented my ego,
but something much more important. My
notions about leadership were challenged,
and I am a better person for it. But, in order
to better paint a picture of LDAC, it's better
to look at all cadets as a whole, rather than
one cadet alone.
Transitioning out of garrison, our regi-
the smell stimulus provides the
link of smells with memory. Like-
wise, it explains why the memo-
ries associated with smell are of N
the emotional type rather than the
episodic type, which involve par-
ticular details.v
This goes into a more compli-
cated idea associated with the
smell memories: They are com-
pletely involuntary. When one
actively tries to remember things,
they focus on details, on the ele-
ments they want to remember
- they're selective. You wouldn't
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it was later that same night that I learned
something about my own leadership. A mem-
ber of my squad told me a cadet, James, was
outside crying on the steps. When I went out-
side to talk to him, he told me he had lost his
medical qualification for Aviation and maybe
even the Army as a whole.
"How crushing," I remember thinking.
This kid's dream of being in the military is
being threatened, and here I am getting ang-
sty over an "S" rating. Something became
apparent to me that night. I could choose to
focus on myself and my own desire for suc-
cess, or I could seek to help those who need-
ed a calm and comforting voice. Helping my
peers through LDAC was a vow to which I
became truly committed after that moment.
That night after talking with James, I left
him with a note: "If you want to make God
ILLUSTRATIO BY ME:
ment moved out of luxury and into the
woods. Next stop: Land Navigation. Four
nights of unsheltered sleep - no buildings
or tents - were accompanied by busy days in
the hot sun. Physical stress met psychologi-
cal wear and tear, and so began the process
of emotional decay. The once optimistic felt
their resolve smoldering beneath them. Pain
from chaffing, a lack of proper hydration,
freeze-dried food and poor sleeping condi-
tions started to break the locks, and demons
started showing their ugly heads.
Our food came in the form of Meals Ready
to Eat. They are freeze-dried packages con-
taining snacks, entrees and deserts, but lack-
ing the flavor and texture we take for granted
at home. Proper politicking ensured a good-
tasting MRE, thus moist towelettes and Skit-
ties became a valid currency.
The living conditions during marksman-
ship, obstacle course, hand-grenade-assault"'
course, first aid, squad tactics and patrolling
did not much improve the tempo. It took
strong, interpersonal control to not act on
the frustration and discomfort, to suppress
lashing out, talking back, or being hurtful to
one another. Not everyone broke down, but
at some point many cadets became toxic to
working as a team - yelling and de-railing
exercises. While fixated on our own dis-
comfort and pain, it's dif-
ficult to remember those
around us and the purpose
behind our training. The
emotionally resilient cadets
were able to ignore their
own ailments and care for
their buddies instead.
LDAC teaches two pow-
erful lessons: First, we learn
about our own leadership
style and how. we change
under stress. We learn that
being genuine and taking
care of each other is the
most fulfilling of feelings.
Second, that people really,
change. In the absence of
sleep, quality food and van-
ity, people lose sight of the
big picture. These are rare
lessons; ones only experi-
ence can teach.
LDAC is anticipation and
expectation. It is four hours,
silent, laying in a bush look-
ing down the sights of an
M16. LDAC is ignoring the
mosquitos and heavy eye-
lids. LDAC is learning about oneself. LDAC
is seeing what people can become, both posi-
tive and negative. But, most importantly,
LDAC is an opportunity to see who we are
at our limits. It is a great, tough and worth-
while opportunity, and not one I would trade
for any other experience.
On the bus ride back from patrolling,
someone burst out singing Taylor Swift.
Everyone joined in, and we realized it was
over. We had overcome a life test together
and we knew each other during the highs
and lows. Each of us had grown as indi-
viduals, but nothing felt better than coming
together - unified and collectively stronger
Matthew Blanchard is an Engineering senior
and the University's Army ROTC cadet
battalion commander.