How It’s Made – Jewelry – Blog Post #6

Diamond Jewelry - Diamond Necklace | Ana Luisa JewelryClea five diamond bracelet in rose gold 18 cm | De Beers US

The first step to making jewelry is to choose what type of jewelry interests you most. Deciding what type of jewelry you want to make can be very overwhelming. Choose one medium to focus on first, knowing that you can always try something else later, and he skills may even build on each other and you’ll have an easier time learning a new technique because of what you can already do.

Next, you to master a few basic skills. Whether you’re planning on working with beads, clay metal, or another type of jewelry first, there are a few skills you’re going to want to know for just about every project you make. Most projects will require that you have a basic knowledge of how to open and close a jump ring properly and form a simple wire loop.

The third step is to get good quality tools. The better the tools you have to work with, the easier the process will be and the better your project will turn out. You also need to figure out what materials you need. Testing some of those materials are also helpful because you can be more familiar with them.

Make sure you have a well organized workspace. There’s nothing more frustrating than having random supplies everywhere. If you can’t find what you need, you waste time that you could use for creating your project. Choose a room or a certain table, desk, etc. that you can work on. Once you have it, sort your supplies and label them.

For inspiration for your project, you can look at Pinterest, blogs, etc. Sometimes a great idea for a new jewelry piece will just come into my mind. Although, when it comes to making jewelry, many people get inspired by what they see.

It can be helpful to take a class. Is there something specific you want to learn? Take a class and let an experienced instructor walk you through the process.

Like any other skill, making your own jewelry has a learning curve. The first wire loop you try to create is going to look like a big mess, and that’s okay because the second one will look better and after a lot of tries, you’ll feel like a pro. Don’t let one difficult or failed project ruin your enthusiasm. Keep trying, keep practicing, and remember that all skills take time to develop.

Lastly, try to take risks. Don’t be intimidated to try a particular skill because you think it looks or sounds very difficult. So many people are scared to take risks, but with the right tools and a lot practice, they’re amazed at what they can do. It’s important to try not to limit yourself to a certain style, color, or size of jewelry. Play around with your supplies, and try new things.

The Evolution of Technology – Blog Post #5

In the 1969, the internet was developed, originally called “The Advanced Research Projects Agency Network” (ARPANET). ARPANET was created to make simpler ways for people to access computers, improve computer equipment, and to have a more effective communication method. The internet grew out of ARPANET, with ARPANET being the subnetworks that made up the internet. Modern technology has paved the way for multi-functional devices. Computers are increasingly faster, more portable, and higher-powered than ever before. With all of these revolutions, technology has also made our lives easier, faster, better, and more fun.

Oculus Quest 2 – Blog Post #4

Oculus Quest 2 review: a worthy successor to the Rift S | Rock Paper Shotgun

The Oculus Quest 2 is an advanced a self-contained VR game console. You can play games and watch TV/movies on it. The VR headset comes with two controllers, and offers hundreds of separately sold games and some free ones, too. From shooters to puzzle games, fitness titles to meditation apps, there’s something for everyone, even if levels of quality and comfort can vary depending on what you’re watching and playing.

You can move your head and see the motions reflected in real-time on the digital screen in front of you, as if you were looking out and moving around in the real world. Using the headset’s external cameras, you’ll be shown a blurred view of your surrounding environment on screen. Then, you use the controllers to paint can around the edges of your room, to show the headset the safe play space you can freely walk about in without bumping into anything. Once you make the boundaries, the wall is then revealed. When in a game, it will show you when you get close to or touch the barrier.

Dogs – Blog Post #3

There are many different types of dogs. Every breed is different, from size and appearance to temperament and exercise needs.

Owning a dog often causing people to spend more time with their family. Dog owners often spend more time outside and exercise more. Some people feel safer with a dog at home. Since dog ownership takes a lot of responsibility, people learn to stick to a routine.

Some good qualities about dogs are that:

  1. Dogs make people laugh.
  2. Dogs are loyal.
  3. Dogs make people more social.
  4. Dogs keep us healthy.
  5. People are more active with dogs.
  6. Dogs save lives.
  7. Dogs give people a sense of purpose.
  8. Dogs give people confidence.
  9. Dogs genuinely make people happy.

Childrens’ Screen Time During COVID-19 – Blog Post #2

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many kids have had too much screen time. Students are sitting on electronic devices playing video games, watching Zoom calls, and doing school work. Kids who have been working at home join Zoom sessions everyday. They also do their’ homework online. This is very unhealthy.

School closure during the first stage of the pandemic brought the widespread adoption of online learning, a sudden change for which no one (teachers, students or parents) was prepared for. For remote learning, many schools are distributing laptops or tablets for each student, so access to screens has increased in many households. Some schools have been doing 1.5 hour courses, with 5 minute breaks in between, for 6 hours a day. Some other schools have been doing just a few 30 minute sessions alternated with worksheets. Both of these programs don’t have some mandatory outdoor activity time or physical education component. There is also a lot of reliance on laptops and tablets.

Many children have gotten into the habit of spending a lot more time playing video games on their phones. During lockdown, some families have organized activities for their kids inside and outside the house, and they do spend time outdoors, but when they come back home now, they end up on a screen. Therefore, their screen time has increased significantly. Kids often start blinking and rub their eyes constantly after computer use. When you read a book you move it around, turn the pages, and focusing is more changeable. On the other hand, when you use a computer, your distance and position don’t change, and your eyes are fixed on the screen. When you constantly focus on a particular distance, especially if you have an uncorrected refractive error, you probably will be focusing harder than you need to and for a prolonged period of time. This causes eye discomfort and muscle pain around the eyes.

The use of screens by children and teenagers in the United States was on average 5 hours per day in the 8 to 12 year old age range, increasing to 7.5 hours in the 13- to 18-year-old age group.

To solve these issues, some families make schedules for their kids to follow a certain amount of screen time including school hours. This kind of structure helps kids know what to expect and cuts down on their requests for screens at other times. If parents make a point of setting aside their own screens during set times, their children will be more likely to do the same without putting up a fight. Taking breaks from technology has the added benefit of helping you limit your own media intake and giving you moments of mindfulness with your family.

Logging Then vs. Now – Blog Post #1

Throughout the years, technology has become more advanced. Logging in the 1940s required lots of manual labor. Nowadays, it requires less.

In the 1940s, the job of a logger was a very dangerous, yet courageous. They took pride because of their dangerous jobs. To cut the trees down for logging, they had to uses many different tools. The job took a lot of time. Before the job could even start, a railroad track had to be built from the place they would cut down trees, to the saw mill. Once the track was built, the workers would uses pulleys, cables and tools to cut down the trees and transport them to the railroad. The workers would also work by hand. After the trees were cut down, more human labor would be used to move the trees to the saw mill. Some trees weighed as much as 50 tons. Once the trees arrived at the saw mill, they would be stored in the mill pond until further use. When the trees were needed, their bark would be removed. Then their wood would be cut down into timber, dried, and stored until shipped.

Modern day logging is very different from how it was in the 1940s. One big difference is that, nowadays, it is safer. Unlike in the past, people control machines to do the work for them. This makes the process more efficient because it is safer, faster, and cheaper because it uses less manual labor. More of the work is also done after the trees are cut. For example, the workers cut them to size and take off their branches. After, they are loaded into specialized trucks, and the wood is transported to the saw mill. Like the process of cutting down the trees, many of the saw mill jobs have been replaced by machines doing the work. There are very few people working at the mills, since machines do more of the work. Once trees are at the saw mill, the process is mainly the same, except there are more steps, and has a slightly different order to make it more efficient and professional.

Logging study reveals huge hidden emissions of the forestry industry | New Scientist

As you can see, logging has changed as technology changes, making the process more mechanical and safer. A downside to this is that workers may take less pride in their job. This is because it is no longer a courageous and dangerous job. Like technology, logging has changed over time.

Final Blog Post

I chose the scrolling game for my game design project. It’s the same thing as Flappy Bird. The goal is to not hit the ground or a pipe. This was a very challenging to make because I had to make my own sprites and do very challenging codes to make the sprites interactive. I am most proud of the coding part because it was really difficult to do and I had to do a lot of it. If I had more time, I would’ve made the background movable.

I’d like to give a shout out to Daniel. I found it very clever that he made a timer and a goal to beat. He said six is probably the highest you’re going to get, but to try and beat that. I thought this was a really good idea.

My favorite project we did this quarterly was the “Game Design”. I had fun making my own game as well as playing some of my friends’ games. At first, I thought it would be hard to code from home until I got used to it.

Spreadsheets Lesson

In Computer Tech, we had the option of doing different spreadsheets. I chose the “Pet info” one. I found the average number of a certain pet per household. This helps show how many pets and households were used to collect information. I also added a bar graph. It showed the number of pets per household. This was helpful because it is another way to show information.

LTC #2

In Swift Playgrounds I solved the puzzle “Treasure Hunt” in functions. This challenge was mainly based on two functions. I named them, “moveThenToggle ( )” and “toggleSwitchyTurnAround ( )”. The puzzle had a few solutions, and I chose the most sufficient way. To solve the challenge, I payed attention to what repeats. Most of the puzzle was the same, but there were a few steps that I had to add.

Commands: Learn to Code 1

In Swift Playground, I had to learn commands. These commands formed a code to move Byte around, collect a gem, and toggle the switch. The activity I chose is The Shortest Route. This was a challenging level because many commands involved, such as turnLeft ( )moveForward ( )toggleSwitch ( ), and lastly, collectGem ( ). These are the steps to this challenge. First, Byte turns left. Next, Byte walks two blocks forward. After, he turns left again, and moves forward five blocks. Fourth, Byte toggles the switch, and moves forward another three blocks. Lastly, Byte collects the gem. If these steps are followed, you will complete this challenge.