Looking back on this semester, I feel like I think about society a bit differently compared to before I started. This course really opened my eyes to subjects I never imagined to think about. For example, the most obvious activities I do everyday, which someone does not normally think about why they do it, they just do it. In reality, we are conforming to the norms of our society. This class also helped me better understand the social aspect of our society, as well as better comprehend certain events and why they occur. Sociology can help us to understand ourselves better, since it examines how the social world influences the way we think, feel, and act. It can also help with decision-making, both our own and that of larger organizations. Sociologists can gather systematic information from which to make a decision, provide insights into what is going on in a situation, and present alternatives. Sociology can be applied to almost every aspect of life outside of the classroom, but none more than social change, which can also be referred to as a social movement. According to sociologist Dalton Conley, a social change can be defined as "Collective behavior that is purposeful, organized, and institutionalized, but not ritualized  (Conley 706). Several examples of social movements can be seen throughout the course of history such as the Suffrage Movement and the Civil Rights Movement. Learning about sociology and how society behaves can help us understand and create social change. According to sociologist Gene Shackman, a social change comes from two sources. One source is random or unique factors such as climate, weather, or the presence of specific groups of people. Another source is systematic factors (Shackman). For example, successful growth has the same overall necessities, such as a steady and adaptable government, enough free and accessible resources, and an assorted social organization of society. So, on the whole, social change is usually a combination of systematic factors along with some random or distinctive factors. Shackman also explains why studying socia