Fall Fail 2010 draws to a close

Well, I'm more than halfway done with my Bachelor's of science now. Somehow I managed to pull a 3.81 this semester even though I hated my life. This semester I took Heat Transfer (my favorite class) with its corresponding lab, Mechatronics (my least favorite class) with its corresponding lab, Engineering Communication (A Speech/Writing class) with Luke, and Engineering Finance with my friend Matt.

It was a terrible semester for a lot of reasons, some of which I've already explained. But I'm glad that things are sort of looking up now. My job at the Combustion Lab is going really well even though I technically haven't accomplished anything just yet. The grad student that I work with is hilarious, in a really good way. I hope this will be a good couple of years. We're running some experiments with jet fuel this week, hopefully it will go as planned.

I enjoyed working on my communication project with Luke this semester. I learned a lot and I've become really self conscious about where I throw my trash. Did you know that producing a recycled aluminum can takes only 10% of the energy of producing an aluminum can from its mineral ore? Or that the density of aluminum in some landfills is greater than it is in natural deposits in nature? I'm going to do what I can to encourage people to be more green about their waste, even if they're not exactly green about their energy. There's only so much energy out there to be had. I'm reminded of the short science fiction story, "The Last Question" by Isaac Asimov. It's a good one and it's available online, luckily, otherwise I wouldn't have read it.

For now, I'm going to enjoy working by myself for a while in Austin over winter break. I don't know what else to say about it. And, I'll actually get to spend New Year's in San Antonio this year, so maybe I'll get to hang out with my friends for once this time.

Difficulties

Anything worth having isn't easy to get.

Slow and steady wins the race.

Just need to get to the end of this week

Anxiety attacks; not fun

I wish I knew the future

My summer schedule

Wake up early
Go to work
Fight traffic
Workworkwork
Go home/run errands
Fight traffic
Get home hours later, too tired to do anything
Veg for a couple of hours
Contemplate the fact that most of your friends are out of town
Go to bed before midnight
sleepsleepsleep

Repeat as necessary for the cash monies.

Fun with the English language

Man I love this guy.

Thoughts on SEEK

I did not know what to expect coming into Student Engineers Educating Kids at the start of the semester. I had never been in SEEK before, I particularly didn't know what to expect in terms of how it was organized, what the schools would be like, or what the students would be like. Like most UT students, I have not lived in Austin for very long, and as a result, I am unfamiliar with the city, its suburbs, and its public schools. My initial goal in joining SEEK was to get involved in the community, get to know people who also work in the community so that I could become familiar with it, and help promote the interest in science among our younger fellow citizens. Public schools in Texas are almost infamous for their substandard promotion of the scientific curriculum, and I felt that if I could just impact even one student and get them interested in a scientific or engineering related field, that I could do some good. I never really had any engineering/scientific role models or mentors when I was growing up—particularly in middle school, a confusing and crucial time that I know is hard on every child—and I wanted to provide that role to a student.

Over the semester as I got to know Steven, my mentee, my goals shifted a bit. Steven had been in the SEEK program in the previous semester and already possessed a significant interest in the projects, and their scientific nature in general. My goals shifted to a more in-depth approach. In addition to discussing the physical principles behind the projects we were working on, I talked about the applications of the physical principles. For example, during the course of the bottle rocket session, I talked to Steven about the implications with existing rockets and ballistics, and the use of fins; how the use of fins was a delicate balance between stabilizing trajectory flight and minimizing drag.

I believe that I was able to accomplish these shifted goals for the most part. It is important that students, at a young age, learn about the applications of the subjects that they study; how the use of science and math in the right way can take us to the moon or help us fly planes. All too often in my compulsory education I've heard the question, "When are we ever going to use this?" I think that answering this question is crucial in motivating students to learn, and is a critical component of the solution to our current public education woes in the state. By answering this question, I feel that I have accomplished my shifted goals. I will make sure that in future semesters of SEEK, that I will be sure to continue doing my best to makes sure that students understand the ramifications of their education.

Working with Steven has given me some sense of pride knowing that I've been able to provide someone with a volume of information and experiences that they might not have otherwise had. He's a smart kid, and he never ceases to surprise me with some aspect of his abilities every time I see him. I'm more motivated to be involved in the community than I ever was before I started working with him. Sometimes he can be easily distracted, but kids are like that. They need something to hold their attention, lest their minds wander. Their minds are always active and especially so as they are developing, so it's no surprise. But those are two elements of growing up in school, I think. There is, at a younger age, a desire to learn. The development of work ethic and focus comes later, and sometimes there's nothing you can do about that when instructing a kid but to do your best to keep them interested.

I think that SEEK has indeed accomplished its mission this past semester for Lamar MS. These kids kept coming back every week, eager for more. While attendance varied every once in a while, we were able to keep a group pretty interested and engaged throughout the semester, and a lot of them have outwardly expressed desires to continue in the program in future semesters. If these students are being motivated to learn, and they're having fun while doing it, then I think that SEEK is accomplishing its mission. In that sense, it's one of the best things about the SEEK program; that feeling of accomplishment that is felt when you feel like you've made some kind of difference, even if it is small. It motivates the participants, such as myself, to get more involved in other community projects. For the extra volunteer hours I was required to do, I helped out at the Austin Children's Museum during an engineering-related event one Saturday morning. It was tiring, though rewarding. If I could improve anything about SEEK, it would probably be to expand its influence so that we can reach more students, which from what I understand is in the process of happening.

Overall it has been a fun semester, and I'm looking forward to participating in future semesters.