By Astrid Jackson – 7th period

This semester, I have completed the at least the first module of every category: Engineering, Biomed, and Media Tech.

In the engineering modules, we made a bridge made out of toothpicks, a wood sandwich, and a birdhouse. Our bridge was not as successful as we had hoped but we learned a lot from it. I understood more about the mechanics of bridges and how I could improve my bridge. I am always thinking about possible ways to improve my work, even after I turn it in. I know once I submit this blog post I’ll think, “I could’ve used a better word here…” and things like that. Next, we built a wood sandwich to help us get used to the tools and materials in the Makerspace. Finally, we made the right-angle birdhouse. I really enjoyed the birdhouse project. To read more about my experience with the birdhouse, click here: https://arsdesignlab.com/2014/11/04/for-the-birds/

In the media tech modules, we learned how to write an effective blog post and a movie. The purpose of the movie was to show our innovative idea of a spoon that cools your soup (or other hot food) down quickly to the perfect temperature so you can eat it right away. The way we chose to do that was by making a commercial for it. You can see it here: https://drive.google.com/a/annrichardsstars.com/file/d/0ByVKXyOqJ5PgUHpCTUR3b25kWm8/view?usp=sharing  We used a camcorder to film it and iMovie to edit it. I worked with Marlene, Sandy, and McClain (We work really well together, even if it doesn’t exactly seem like it from the blooper reel). I really enjoyed the movie module.

In the biomed module, we made a poster of what we think the future of prevention will look like many years from now. We thought of two ideas: an app and a watch. The app takes pictures and scans you to check for any viruses, infections, that might be where the camera is pointing. For instance, if you feel something wrong with your arm, you could scan it with the app and it will tell you if anything is wrong with it and will suggest the best possible approach to the situation. This can help people not make unnecessary doctors visits and keep you aware of what’s going on in your body. The watch would tell you what diseases are in the area to help prevent the spread of contagious diseases. The “HealthWatch” can help you make healthy decisions about where you go and keeps you aware of your surroundings. These ideas may seem nearly impossible today, but with the right technology, we might be able to make these work.

Overall, the engineering pathway seems the best fit for me. However, I learned something from all of the modules that I can apply to my high school and college years, and even my career when I’m an adult.