3D Printing blog post #3

Today we learned about a topic I always wanted to learn about, 3D printing. When I was in elementary school there was a 3D printing club and sometimes when we went to the computer room people were using the 3D printer and I thought it looked so cool. I used to think that you could only print small things like little decorations or toys but they brought it to a whole new level. Apparently you can also print things like ears, noses and even organs if you need a transplant. In China they have this ginormous 3D printer that printed a house in 1 day! Some things that could be 3D printed in my house are a lot of my baby brothers toys. My mom loves to shop for Hudson, my 2 year old brother,. Soon enough we had to buy a big box to put all his cool little trains and animals. I believe that a 3D printer could have made some of the toys that he has.

Hudson’s box full of toys

Timber Harvest blog #2

Today for our asynchronous hw we are learning about timber harvest. We watched 2 videos of logging In the 1900’s and 2 videos about logging today. In the 1900’s one i saw something very interesting. Two men were hacking away at a tree and they created these little slots in the tree. The they put a long plank in the slots, stood on them, and continued to cut the tree. I always thought they used a ladder of some sort to cut the higher parts of the tree that way. I also saw they used this big strange looking pulley thing to carry the tree from place to place. They also used ropes to carry themselves up the tree, kinda like that scene in Milan where she’s climbing the big pole. I would be really scared to climb up a tree that high with only a rope to keep me safe. I learned that they used to cut x’s onto tree’s, so they knew to use this tree as railroad tracks to carry the other trees to be cut in the mills. I also learned that The redwood tree’s probably the oldest of living things. Now going onto the more recent videos, logging looks much more easier then it did back in the day. In the video there were these big tractors ripping the tree’s out of the ground and placing them down. There were so many other machines as well to organize the cut pieces of wood and another one to cut them down to length. In the last video there was this big factory to organize and roll the wood pieces up and make them usable for furniture. Watching these videos made me learn a lot about wood and how it turns into something we use everyday.

This is a photo of people standing on the planks in the 1900’s to cut the tree
This is a photo from the last 2 videos, of a tractor cutting down a tree

Building tech blog #1

Ever since I was little I loved to build and fix stuff with my dad. Whether it was a chair or a stroller for my brother I loved to do it with him. It was like he was the muscle, who carried around the big pieces and tools like a hammer. And I was the brains. I would sit in my little spin chair with the manual in hand and yell out “Take the tube thing and attach it to the board now”! I still help my dad build stuff and whenever a package comes I’m the first person he’d call. I’m not sure why I was fascinated with it so much, but I think it has something to do with seeing so many broken pieces come together into some new and helpful. However, I would never be able to do something myself because I was always afraid I’d mess it up. Nowadays I can do it myself but it’s very rare that I don’t call dear old dad to help. One thing that I set up myself, and that I’m very proud of is my new desk lamp. Thanks to my dad, now I know how to build or fix anything and will be prepared for whatever comes my way!

This is a picture of the desk lamp I setup myself

P.S. Me and my dad actually built my desk and my siblings desk together!

 

 

Goodbye tech #9

Today is the last day of the quarter which means that I’m leaving tech and going to art next. In tech I learned so much and I had so much fun doing what we did. I’m really upset that we didn’t get to actually be in the class and finish our automata’s and jewelry. But it was still really fun starting them and I’m sure when we go back to school we’ll get to have them. So this is my farewell to the 3rd quarter and technology.

Mechanical engineering #8

We started a new unit! learning about mechanical engineering. This is another one of the units that i wasn’t so sure that i would like. But as we got a little more into it i found it interesting. We talked about compression and tension on bridges and trusses. We had a little project on this unit where we would build a sculpture out of toothpicks and something soft to stick it into like marshmallows. Then we would put books on top of the sculpture one by one until it collapses. After this we would do the same thing, but this time our sculpture will have trusses. I thought that this was a really fun project and it made me learn a lot from it.

Chemistry and electricity #7

We are now learning a little more about the nucleus and electricity. At first I was a little confused cause there was a lot of words but when i rewatched the video it made a little more sense. Chemistry has been with us throughout our whole life’s. It holds the secrets to how life first formed and i think thats really cool. I also learned a little more about electricity through lightning and thunder storms. At first i was really scared of lightning and thunderstorms because its so loud and scary! But learning about it through electricity made it seem really cool.

Atoms #6

The first unit that we are working on while stuck at home is atoms. Before this I didn’t really know anything about atoms so i wasn’t sure wether I’d like this unit or not. I actually think that its really interesting so far. One thing that took me by surprise what learning that atoms are everything! I thought this was really cool because we use atoms in our daily lives and i didn’t even know!

Jewelry #5

In tech we are taking a break from automata’s and going to JEWELRY!!! I love making jewelry so i was really excited for this. We had to fill out a paper where we can put our designs for our pendants. The design that i wanted to start with was the symbol for the zodiac sign Gemini since i am a Gemini. We learned how to make the main circle of our pendent and how to make the loop and hook where the chain would be. I’m really sad I didn’t get to finish my pendant due to the corona virus but I’m sure ill get to work on it again eventually.

Building my automata #4

When we first started building the automata’s we had to make a follower and a cam. They’re going to be the wheels in my automata to make the object inside the box move. We used the app Vectornator to make our cams and followers and then Mr. Calvert printed them for us. We also use chopsticks to connect the cam, follower, and the object inside the box move.

Automata #3

In tech we are making something that i think is really cool. We are making automata’s. They’re basically boxes with a system built inside (by you) inside so something on the top of the box will move by just turning a wheel. In my automata there will a miniature box on the top of my automata and when i turn a wheel something will pop out. I’m not sure what it’ll be yet but I’m really excited for it.