STREAM MAP OF THE SOUL: 7!

This is a class called A Maker's Lab Art! It's an art class where we learn how art is created to a certain extent. So far, we've been learning how to create our own masterpieces with machines like 3D printers and Carvey's. With this project, we were asked to create something that utilizes either the 3D printer or the Carvey answering the following questions and that's why I created this:

    


“What did you do?”
As we all know, I love music, but my favorite artist(s) at the time is BTS. So, I decided to create a 3D carved version of their new album! It’s called Map of the Soul: 7, it’s a heartfelt story that is revolved around the band and all of them finding their “real selves” throughout their journey as a group. It’s also a follow-up to their 2019 EP, Map of the Soul: Persona where all five songs ended up on this most recent album.


“What did you use to create this project?”
I used a website called Easel Inventables (Carvey). Easel Inventables is a solution for 3D carving machines and it’s an easy way to get started in the 3D carving world.


“What did you do well?”
I believe the design is solid itself because I tried my best to have it look exactly like the album and I think I succeeded pretty well.


“What would you do better on this project?”
I would definitely plan this earlier. Originally, I was going to create something basic, but once BTS’ album came out, I felt inspired by their music and wanted to make something revolve around my love for them and their album.

IMAGINE BUYING A GUITAR, couldn't be me...

For the second term of Light, Sound and Time, we studied the concept of sound - what is sound? I learned that sound is just a vibration in which sound waves pass through a medium to the ear. Cool, right? Maybe not, but anyway... the class went on an FE to the Chicago Hearing Society to learn more about the deaf and hard of hearing. When we spoke with them, they explained how living without being able to hear was like living in a society where nobody understands you and vice versa.


For this Action Project, our mission was to create our very own Diddley Bows! If you don't know what a Diddley Bow is, it's a single-stringed instrument that consists of items that can easily be found in your home... hopefully. Anyway, here's a slideshow on how to create a Diddley Bow, how it functions and so much more:

Overall, I had a lot of fun creating my Diddley Bow because it's revolved around music and I absolutely LOVE music. And just to think that you could make this in the comfort of your own home is the coolest part about it. Although there will be some frustrations while creating it (mostly the math part), it will totally be worth it in the end!

MEDIA MADNESS

I am taking a course called A Nation's Argument, in which we learn about arguments throughout history and how they evolved into the way they are today. When people hear the word "argument" they automatically think of two people screaming at each other while trying to get their points across. But I learned that's not necessarily an argument. An argument is simply trying to explain your reasoning for something you believe in, sort of like a debate. The mission for our Action Project was to create our very own class to study and write about why we should be able to study that specific subject or activity. I chose to write a declaration on social media awareness. Social media was created to maintain connections, create a sense of community, engage in virtual networking, and acquire information. However, many Generation Xers and Millennials use social media to distract themselves from the real world. I decided to study this because people should think before they post something.

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Topic: MEDIA MADNESS

Guiding Question: Can social media be displaced as more than entertainment purposes?

Introduction: If you can imagine social media being created for people to maintain connections, create a sense of community, engage in virtual networking, and acquire information at the speed of lightning, you don't have to. It's intended for all of those things to happen. However, like a lot of things when you do not have the necessary tools, it is easy to break and misuse something. Social media is no different. That is why students would benefit from a yearlong interactive class that provides then with the tools to skillfully and successfully use social media.

Personal/Logical Evidence: Many Generation Xers and Millenials use social media to distract themselves from the real world. Social media was created for people to network with others or stay-up-to-date with current events. I created this declaration because having a social media class could change that by teaching students different methods to use social media as a tool to make connections instead of using it as a competition to see who gets the most likes and followers.

Syllogisms:

• P1

Social media was created in order for people to network with others whether it's family or opportunities.

• P2

Generation Xers and Millennials use social media to distract themselves from the world.

• Conclusion

People are using social media for the wrong reasons instead of what it was originally made for.

Historical Revolution: In 1997, SixDegrees.com was one of the first known social media sites. On this site, users could set up a profile page, create lists of connections, and send messages within networks. Although SixDegrees.com was a social media that promoted connectivity, it was very different from the sites that we have today. Specifically, sites like SixDegrees.com were limited within their reach because users had to remain mostly stationary. 

Fast forward a couple of years into the new Millenium, the internet went crazy over sites like Friendster and Myspace. Friendster had its private profiles which were short-lived while Myspace had public profiles with millions of users and lasted much longer. It was the go-to site for teens and music fanatics, plus the site allowed you to customize public profiles.

Between 2003-2006 social media sites began to look a lot like they look today. In 2003, Mark Zuckerberg launched Facemash, a Harvard University gossip site, but Zuckerberg's most successful social media venture "Facebook" followed in 2004. In 2005, "The Facebook" became and continues to be the most popular social media site. Youtube.com also launched in 2005 and today it remains the go-to site for DIY projects or video game tricks. In 2006, Twitter launched which went from users saying nothing to now being a top place to check for breaking news.

The historical revolution includes many dot-com sites that did not last a year and some sites that remain active. The origins of social media stretch further that I know. Although it seems like a new and emerging trend, sites like Myspace, Facebook and Twitter are a part of the natural progression of technology and technological advances.

Resources: 

• Books

- The Dark Side of Social Media

- Influencer

- Connected

• Movies

- Cyberbully

- Reality High

- Unfriended

• Places

- Optimizing Social Media

- Social Media for Business Class

This will be a year-long course.

Unit 1: The what, why's and how's of Social Media!

• Discuss how social media has been designed to give students the tools required to develop responsible social media habits and behaviors.

Unit 2: The Risk of Social Media: Is it worth my future?

• Understand the long-term consequences that irresponsible social media usage can have on a student's educational, athletic and professional careers.

Unit 3: The benefits of Social Media: Can I make a career in Social Media?

• Shows students the way to which they can use social media to promote their own team, school, community, and brand.

Desired Outcome: A clear understanding of the importance of knowing what you are posting on social media.

THE PINHOLE CHRONICLES

I am taking the course Light, Sound & Time, in which we study the aspects of the human eye and how it connects to a camera. So, it turns out, a cornea acts kind of like a lens since it starts the process of the eye focusing on light. The iris and pupil act as the aperture because it controls the amount of light entering the eye. And the retina acts as the film because it makes up what we're seeing. That leads me into our Action Project which was to create our own pinhole cameras and develop our own photos :)

Overall, creating pinhole cameras was a very fun and fascinating experience. I'm used to taking photos on my phone or digital camera, but this was different. From this experiment, I learned that you need to have patience and tolerance, and our photos may not turn out the way you want them to and that's fine, it's something that I would definitely do again one day.

All The World's A Stage [PLAY]

For this civic term, I was assigned to 'All The World's A Stage', a class in which we discuss various elements of theater. Our action project for this course was to develop a character, write a reflective monologue for our character and provide a detailed explanation about our characters' life circumstances. Our intended purpose of this monologue is to express our truth about an oftentimes marginalized oppressed community and perform it in a public space. My group created a play about college students living with mental illnesses and their diverse backgrounds that impact and/or affect their mental illnesses. My character Kenzie is an African American female living with depression. Kenzie is an introvert who has mostly suffered in silence since her grandmother died. Kenzie used to talk to her grandmother about everything from her depression to art and life in college. Lately, Kenzie's depression symptoms vary but, most days she feels as if she is glued to her bed and doesn't have any control over her own thoughts which are mostly negative. Luckily, art has been her saving grace because it keeps her mind and hands occupied enough to endure the immense of depression. Since her grandmothers death, Kenzie has struggled and lost interest in a lot of things. However creating art has become a necessity because it stops those dark thoughts from clouding her mind and from starting that sadness cycle all over again. Kenzie creates art, not for a grade, but for herself and for other people that may feel the same as her.

YOU WANT THE WORLD TO MELT? didn't think so...

Hey, everyone! For my Rhetoric Action Project we were assigned to design a piece of artwork that "breaks the barrier" on an important social/political issue. I chose climate change as it impacts everyone and everything. Climate change is unlike any other social/political issue because if we do not address it now, our world will be forever changed.  Addressing climate change now could save our tomorrow and it should not continue to be ignored. Ignoring the issue of climate change will not benefit anyone or anything because everyday things are getting worse.

Art type- I chose to make stickers as my art piece because stickers are trendy, popular and they easily express a person views. On any given day I pass people on the streets, buses and trains with stickers on water bottles, phone cases and/or laptops. Additionally, many activist organizations pass out stickers as a visual expression of support. I even have several stickers of support for various organizations on my own belongings. I believe that stickers are small tokens of appreciation to advance the message of big issues. 

In part, climate change is defined as a change in global or regional climate patterns and it has greatly increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Human expansion and increased human activity are the leading causes of climate change phenomena, global warming. When people talk about climate change terms like greenhouse effect are mentioned but few people really understand what it is. Truthfully, I still struggle to fully understand the ‘whats and whys’ of climate change but the greenhouse effect occurs when heat from the Earth gets trapped in the atmosphere. Despite all of the scientific terms this climate phenomena is very real and is  causing devastatingly irreparable harm. 

The most important thing we could do now is to address the issue of climate change in every way possible. The unintended consequences of climate change are still unknown but traditionally predictable climate patterns have become difficult to predict. Thus far, the effects of climate change have contributed to overly warmed oceans, melting and disappearing glaciers and increased sea levels. Increased heat and extreme weather patterns have led to more evaporation and precipitation which has caused unseasonably heavy rains and floods. Climate change impacts all weather patterns and disrupts seasonal weather patterns all over the world. If we do not act now, by the year 2075, 18% of the Earth’s surface will suffer from annual extreme heatwaves.  In order to combat this present climate crisis, humans need to do whatever they can to decrease their individual carbon footprint. I am working hard to do my part to combat climate change by making small changes like forgoing plastic water bottles for a reusable metal water bottle, recycling at home and giving up straws. It may not seem like a lot but, I needed to start somewhere. I will continue to do my part to combat climate change and with every sticker I will advance the message to a larger audience. Humans the leading abusers of the planet so, we have a moral obligation to try to reverse the damage to combat climate change.

BENEFICIAL BIKE SUCCESS

Hello everyone! For this unit in Design & Engineering, we focused on wheels and motion. Specifically, how wheels, motion, and weight distribution of the rider all work together to operate a bicycle. For this Action Project, we were asked to assist a cyclist named Ko a Taiwanese native who loves to cycle. Taiwan is an extremely bike-friendly city but, the city's high rates of theft can make cycling a dangerous pastime. In designing Ko's bike, we considered the region, available resources, and terrain. Therefore our objective was to make a practical bicycle that allowed Ko to remain safe and secure while cycling. Ko's daily cycling routine consists of commuting to and from school and picking up groceries at night for her family. To help Ko, complete her daily tasks my partner and I decided to add a few cool features like a basket, several lights, and reflectors to her bicycle but, we primarily focused on her safety. Although Ko loved to cycle, her bike design was not built to simply look cool. We designed Ko's bicycle to withstand the elements, maintain speed, and meet her specific needs. Understanding the terrain and the rider's skill level were key factors in our design. We made a 3D model of our sketch which is both shown in our slideshow below.

Our field experiences at Earth Rider and Working Bikes gave me better insight into understanding the needs of cyclists. It is vital that all cyclists feel comfortable while riding and that the bicycle meets the needs of the rider. Like the bicycles at Earth Rider, our bike design for Ko met her needs while allowing her to enjoy her riding experience. During our field experience at Earth Rider, I could see that most of the bicycles were well equipped to handle the flat terrain of Chicago and support various weights of riders. Although, gadgets like baskets and reflectors do enhance the rider's functionality they are not as important as safety and comfort level. At Working Bikes, I was inspired by their deep understanding of bicycle transportation in developing countries. I also learned that bicycling is the only form of transportation in certain villages in Panama and townships in Ghana. This just reinforced the importance of meeting the needs of specific cyclists according to their region. The insight I gained from visiting Working Bikes and Earth Rider inspired me to create a uniquely practical yet thoughtful bike for Ko because I have a better understanding of her needs.