Healthy Vibrations
Dr. Kai Dupe • May 3, 2021
Thoughts on Dis-Ease
Lately I have noticed an alarming trend on social media particularly on Facebook where those who have been diagnosed with disease have decided to embrace or bring awareness to the disease by posting pictures and facts regarding the disease. This is unwise. You should never own a disease. In fact, the goal should be to reduce the amount of time that you speak or think about being ill. Moreover, you should be diligent in refusing to allow illness a place in your consciousness. You should only place your attention on that which is desired. The reason being whatever you place in your consciousness will become your experience.
Socrates said: The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new.
It is my feeling that most folks who do this or not aware of the harm they are attracting to themselves. They believe they are empowering themselves and facing their circumstances head on. They are not. Recently in good faith I reached out to one of my Facebook friends to make them aware of the unintended consequences of focusing their attention on the disease.
I sent my friend a private message and suggested that they recognize the power of their thoughts and that it would be wise to refrain from posting about her bout with the disease. I received a terse reply. It was something along the lines of: Thanks Kai, I am well aware of the power of words. Obviously not! One may understand something intellectually but that does not mean that you have not internalized it in such a way that is has transformed your behavior and behavior transformation is the goal of any understanding or habit. You see when you make yourself aware of something then it becomes part of your consciousness.
That which becomes part of your consciousness will become part of your experience. There is no way around this truth. You can take it or leave it.
According to Esther Hicks, author of Ask and It is Given, You get what you think about whether you want it or not. Just because your post says: you are going to beat cancer, it does not negate the fact that you are actually focused on cancer! What you focus on expands. The fact of the matter is that you are still mentally involved with cancer, thus it will continue to be a part of your experience.
A mentor gives you advice. A sponsor creates opportunities.
Representation alone will not solve the persistent racial disparities in computing.
The truth is that most software applications exist to manage information.
Artificial intelligence has become the newest member of nearly every software development team.
The true promise of computing is not found in the machines we build, but in the human potential we unlock when knowledge becomes accessible to everyone.
One of the reasons I value the MCT program so highly is that it represents more than technical knowledge.
Software engineering is not simply coding.
Companies often promote the idea that technical skill alone determines success.
Hackathons also strengthen teamwork and communication skills.
Stepping onto the campus of Morehouse College this past weekend for Admitted Students Day was more than a visit—it was a moment of reflection. As I watched young Black men walk with purpose across the yard, I found myself asking a simple but profound question: What would it have been like for me to study computer science here? My journey into computing was shaped in environments where I was often the only Black man in the room. That reality brings with it an unspoken weight—the need to prove you belong, the awareness of being watched, and sometimes, the quiet isolation that comes with underrepresentation. Standing at Morehouse, I realized that this burden is not a given. It is a condition of the environment. At Morehouse, the environment is different by design. Here, Black men are not anomalies—they are the standard. I imagined what it would feel like to learn algorithms, data structures, and software development in a space where my identity was not questioned but affirmed. Where excellence is expected, not in spite of who you are, but because of it. As a computer science professor, I understand the academic rigor required to succeed in this field. There is no shortcut through recursion, no bypass around debugging, no substitute for disciplined problem-solving. But what struck me during my visit is how much context matters. When students are free from the psychological burden of proving they belong, they can redirect that energy toward mastering the material. They can collaborate more openly, ask questions more freely, and take intellectual risks without fear. I also thought about legacy. At Morehouse, students walk the same grounds as Martin Luther King Jr.. That kind of history does something to a person. It raises the bar—not just academically, but personally. It invites students to see their education not just as a pathway to a career, but as preparation for impact. Leaving campus, I felt inspired—but also reflective. I cannot rewrite my journey, but I can appreciate what spaces like Morehouse offer the next generation. For a Black male pursuing computer science, it is more than a degree. It is an opportunity to develop skill, confidence, and identity in alignment. And that combination is powerful.