Is Social Media the New Way to Execute Power in the United States?

For our last unit of Policy we dove into the three branches of U.S. government. We looked into the legislative branch, executive, and now judicial. We looked into the supreme court and the way it functions. The people who are currently in office, and the history of the branch itself. The way that the branch used to run compared to how it does today, and has impacted the lives of many here in the U.S. This term was a bit different. It took a turn at the end of the term after the death of George Floyd which lead to protests around the U.S. and riots. This is history right in front of us. I wanted to take advantage of this moment in time, and acknowledge the way the U.S. government is choosing to take this issue into account. I specifically wanted to look into our President, Donald Trump, and what he finds more important than what is going on in the streets. Take a look to my essay below that takes a deeper dive into the way the executive branch chose to change their system after riots struck in their country compared to the U.S.

Citations:
1. Bowers, John. “Trump's Executive Order Is the Most Futile Attack on 230 Yet.” Wired, Conde Nast, www.wired.com/story/opinion-trumps-executive-order-is-the-most-futile-attack-on-230-yet/.
2. Echenique, Sebastián Piñera. “Sebastián Piñera: A New Opportunity for Chile's Future.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 18 Dec. 2019, www.nytimes.com/2019/12/18/opinion/pinera-chile.html.

PLANNING OUT THE NEW BUCKTOWN

As we wrap up our last unit of this term, Urban Planning, we're thinking about redesign in a new way. We started off the unit by reading part three of Devil in the White City which gave us a better idea of the turn out of the Chicago World's Fair. We got to look into the design process for architects, what they wanted the experience to turn out like, their struggles, etc. This gave us some inspiration for our AP. We also dove into other cities around the world to get their view of urban planning, how they protect their city, and sustainable ways to redesign. We watched TED Talks to look more into the complaints and/or ideas of people from communities all across the U.S. We saw what differentiates the U.S. from all other countries. We were able to take a virtual F.E. to the Chicago World's Fair and understand its history, and where it lies in Chicago today. For our AP, we were asked to redesign a block within our community or take it as far as a block in another city in the world. Look at my slideshow down below to learn more! 

To conclude, I really enjoyed this last AP of my junior year! I think it was a great way to wrap up, and I it got me thinking more about my community and where I lie in it. I think that a lot of changes could be made to my area, and it's all up to me to get those ideas out there. I think that looking into other cities for inspiration got me thinking more about the urban planning in the U.S. and how it could be changed! 

The Key to an Energy Efficient Home

For this unit of our STEAM course, Urban Planning, we took a deeper look into circuits, circuit boards, energy efficient products, Nikola Tesla, and more. We started off by learning about Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison with their participation in the War of the Currents.  We then continued on and learned about direct and alternating currents, created by these two, and understood how the devices we use today are powered by currents like these. We looked into circuit boards and diagrams. The symbols that electricians use make diagrams simple and easy to understand. We learned about these because we would need them in a bit for our action projects. We looked into what electricity is exactly and how it is created. We had a Zoom call with an FE guest, Jaclyn Marcus, an architectural designer. We were able to ask questions from how lighting can affect a person's mood to what inspired them to become a designer, etc. These answers would help us when it came to our AP. For this AP, we had to create a circuit board that would power energy efficient appliances throughout a home that we created. Look through my presentation to learn more!



To conclude, I think this project allowed me to test out how far I could go in regards to creativity and design. I saw myself trying to think of new ways to get my circuit to power more bulbs, and I finally got a hang of it. I think even during these times, using new materials around the house allowed me to explore and test things out. I am glad that this AP allowed me to do that, and I would like to do the same for the next one as well! 

Imagine the feeling of being watched?

In this first unit of our humanities course, Policy, we took a deeper look into what role legislators serve in the U.S. government. Understanding different roles played in the U.S. government gives us students a better understanding of who is representing us. Who is representing our views, values, and morals when it comes to the U.S. coalition coming together and creating policy. We were able to speak with public defender Connie Jordan, who joined us last term, to learn about how policy works in our city, state, and nation as a whole. We looked into different ordinances which helped us when it came to thinking about the issues we were passionate about seeing change on within our state, and seeing the progression these ordinances are making. For this AP, we were asked to choose a topic and ordinance that goes along with it that has yet to be passed. Our goal was to construct a letter to someone in legislation who we think represents us the best in order to get this ordinance passed. We as citizens of the U.S. have the right to our opinion and getting it out in the world because that is what democracy is. Without the opinion of the people, there would be no democracy. I chose to speak on behalf of online surveillance and cyberstalking within marginalized communities. I chose this topic after looking into Assia Boundaoui´s film, The Feeling of Being Watched, which takes a closer look into the FBI stalking the largest Islamic community in Illinois, Bridgeview. During the 1990s, Operation Vulgar Betrayal was launched by the U.S. to take a closer look into this certain community in Illinois with the perception that Islamic organizations and mosques were funding terrorist groups like Hamas. Take a closer look into my AP in order to get a better understanding of the person I am and how I want to see this state improve when it comes to online surveillance.

The Popsicle Bridge Challenge!

For Unit 1 of Urban Planning, we looked into bridges and how they can affect a neighborhood or city. We looked into different bridge and what keeps them sturdy. We learn the shape that is the most stable which is the triangle. We began to take a deeper dive into trigonometry and finding different ways to calculate the area of a triangle. For an FE, we had our STEAM teacher head out to Downtown Chicago where he was able to communicate to us via Google Meet chat and talk more about the architectural layout of the city. Get some of the ins and outs of what the city used to be compared to what it is now. We had time to research a bridge from any part of the world and look into how long it's been up for, materials used, etc. For This AP we were asked to build our own bridge solely out of popsicles and glue. This was quite the challenge, but click on my AP to learn more!

Rue Maghreb 2.0 : What steps can Rue Maghreb take in order to engage with communities around the world effectively and authentically?

Rue Maghreb has been something that I have been working hard on for the past year. This project that went from an independent study to a brand has brought me to many realizations about the world we live in, and I'm glad to be given the opportunity to work on this right at school. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, look at my AP from last year! 

Last year was packed with collaborations with street artists from Morocco, reaching out to organizations to donate to back in countries like Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya, but most importantly, I began forming the community that I wanted Rue Maghreb to be all along.  Social media interaction was beginning to happen!  Members of our community posting their latest purchases from our site, commenting on any photos we posted, sharing photos on their stories for their followers to see, direct messaging us about how our community has made them feel like they have a little outlet to go to when they miss being back home! This is what I wanted Rue Maghreb to be all along. Being able to see the power of social media right before my eyes, and how you can virtually take someone to nostalgia.

This year, Rue Maghreb announced a new member to the board, Meriem Sadoun. Meriem is someone who is motivated to continue and enhance the Rue Maghreb mission. A hard worker that only wants to best for our brand, and sees the same future as me. Rue Maghreb is not just a brand, but will eventually turn into an organization that gives job opportunities for people in El Maghreb. The problem in our countries currently, is that we have a lot of civilians with degrees in medicine, law, dentistry, etc. but there are no job opportunities available. My goal is to help with that process and spark job opportunities for the public, and a handful of other projects in potentially ten years from now. A question of mine has been, what steps can Rue Maghreb take now in order to eventually become an organization of our own? Community is something very important to us because without a community, there is no one truly backing us up on our mission and goals. We see that by launching these lines, it's not only getting people excited to purchase from us, but it's also educating the pubic on Maghreb culture and also starting up conversations with people who are misinformed. Meriem and I began working on a line for this year called 3ala Rasi which basically translates to "the crown over my head". 3ala Rasi is a metaphor we are using for our ancestors. We think of our ancestors as being something we are not only proud of, but something we share with the world everyday. We hold ancestry above others standards. Carrying out our ancestry to our future children, grandchildren, and future generations is our mission. This line will commemorate important activists in the Maghreb region, spark old traditions in a modern light, and more.

Authenticity is something we try to capture within our brand, and we want our website to translate that. My guiding question for this project was, What steps can Rue Maghreb take in order to engage with communities around the world effectively and authentically? If you want culture to reflect on your brand effectively, you have to be authentic about it. Our website will be a platform to share thoughts and ideas, blog about traditions, recipes, clothing, and so on. A place to shop, but feel nostalgia. Take you back to the souk (marketplace), roam through El Maghreb virtually while capturing the true meaning of our mission statement throughout the experience. Rue Maghreb is taking the steps it needs to take now in order to turn into something bigger. We are currently working with someone who will managing the way we choose to look at marketing on social media. We are partnering with artists from Jordan and Spain on this project in order to build relationships with others and share work others from both parts of the world. Something that we have added to Rue Maghreb is a section called "Rue Maghreb & Friends" which basically works with local or foreign artists who may be from the Maghreb diaspora or not, may be Women business owners, or anyone who is in line with our mission.

Click the link that will send you to a presentation I have created a presentation that goes more into the idea of Rue Maghreb 2.0 visually!

To conclude, I think that we are currently headed to the right direction in carrying out Rue Maghreb's mission. But most importantly, I think Rue Maghreb is taking the right steps in working towards becoming an organization in the future. Rue Maghreb is progressively becoming a platform that sparks community engagement, and this community can help create job opportunities for our countries back home. Sparking opportunities for both sides of the world, the Western & Maghreb world. 3ala Rasi will launch April 3rd, including our new site, and we are so excited to see what this year looks like for Rue Maghreb 2.0.

Website: Ruemaghreb.com
Instagram: @rue.maghreb

The Sustainable Clock

For this term, Time, we looked into how time can deceive us. Time is relative, according to Einstein, so we really looked into this aspect throughout this term. We dove deeper into the topics of time zones, gravitational waves, twin paradox/time dilation. The class was assigned to read one of three different books including Einstein's Dreams, E=mc^2, and A Brief History of Time. We went on an FE, the Adler Planetarium! We looked into time telling devices like sundials, chronometers, etc. For this AP, we were assigned to design our own time telling devices! I was inspired by the Umayyad Clock which is located in Damascus, Syria. Read more of my blog to learn more about the Sustainable Clock! 

Script for video:

Imagine a world where time wasn’t the only thing on our minds?  Imagine a world where time could help solve economic crises around the world. When time telling devices provide clean water in countries that need it the most.

“One in three people globally do not have access to safe drinking water”, according to the World Health Organization.

Let’s think about SDG 8, to Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all, “  Over 60 per cent of all workers lack any kind of employment contract” according to the International Labour Organization.

Water purification and global economy work hand in hand, and this time telling device has just taken one step further in bringing these two contrast issues closer together.

The idea goes way back to Umayyad civilization, (zoom into map) Damascus, Syria, 800 years ago the Umayyad Mosque was constructed including the Umayyad clock which was a mechanical time telling device that required two falcons to drop a copper ball through a vase each time the hour would pass. The pulley system was located in the center of the clock. This system required water in buckets in order to function because each time pulley was lifted up or down worked. The gears would shift inside of the device to mark the new hour throughout the city of Damascus. The problem that I found when looking into this device, is that they weren’t very mindful about their water usage, and would dunk the water instead of using it in communities in need. Due to the Syrian Civil war that has been going for about 10 years now, the Umayyad mosque has been destroyed.

Time plays a key role in society today, but it also matters about the way that we cherish it. We spend too much of our time not being present, distracted by devices an inch away from us, and more. Why not create a time telling device where time can be used efficiently. Now telling what hour it is rather than being distracted by minutes and seconds only to find out that another hour is about to pass and you still haven’t used your time productively. The sustainable clock does just that. Inspired by the Umayyad clock, displaying only the hour of the day, while using a pulley system that requires contaminated water in order to function. The water gets purified for an hour through a system in the interior of the time telling device, hour passes, the pulley system goes back to its original system, water gets evacuated, while the gears shift the hour being displayed throughout the town. A person manually takes the purified water to a manufacturing warehouse where other members of the community package the water, and the bottles get distributed into the hand of the public.

This is a system that is bound to change current global economic systemic issues by sparking job opportunities for communities in need around the world. Jobs that will become necessary in order for this time telling device to function properly are employees who can get the contaminated water from local water systems, employees who can change out the water once purified, employees making sure the gears are functioning properly, manufacturers who are distributing purified water into bottles, and employees getting these bottles out to members of community. The device can change the way we purify water around the globe, while also being mindful of the way we interpret time. Time is precious, use it wisely. Most importantly, think about a future where a community can come together due to time.

Here is a link to my video! 

Five original visuals of Sustainable Clock:

The idea started with a similar concept as the Umayyad clock. This two leveled clock that used gears in order to change the hour using a pulley system. I knew that somehow throughout my time telling device concept, I wanted to add a pulley system using water. 

NB. Design 1 of Sustainable Clock. 2020

This idea sparked once I knew that I wanted this time telling device to purify water. Throughout the clock, are tubes that allow the water to circulate while the hour passes, and purify the contaminated water. 

NB. Design 4 of Sustainable Clock. 2020

In order to incorporate the new pulley system, I decided to make this system start at the center of the clock, the gears would function in the interior of the clock, while the pulley system goes up or down. The lighting is added where the new hour is being displayed in order for the community to also see the hour, and follow that time zone.

NB. Design 3 of Sustainable Clock. 2020

Here, I show what my official Sustainable Clock would look like. Here, I display the tubes running throughout the clock, the pulley system located in the center of the clock, exits and entryways for water to pass through, and most importantly, how time is displayed throughout the town!

NB. Design 5 of Sustainable Clock. 2020

Calculations:

NB. Arc Length. 2020

NB. Volume of clock. 2020

Conclusion

To conclude, this term allowed me to think more about time on a philosophical level, and see time in a different light. This is why I designed the sustainable clock. Especially nowadays, our main focus is put on things that distract us or harm us, rather than educate us and allows us to use our time productively. I think something that plays a key role in that is that the fact seeing when the hour is about to end can put us in this funk that leads to not be productive. This device will keep people on their toes, and make sure that they use their time efficiently, while also creating job opportunities for people within communities in need. 

More flex time, better grades, better students

During this unit, antithesis, we looked into how the constitution seems to contradict itself. We started the course by looking into the constitutional amendments, and started applying them to when they were created. We found that the 1800s marked a time when slavery was occurring, but also a time when slavery "ended" due to the the civil war. The amendments put in place at that time, thirteenth and fourteenth, are controversial. We watched the film, 13th, which gave us an idea of how the thirteenth is being applied today with the situation of mass incarceration in the U.S. We were able to visit the Immigration court house to look into the first cases being looked into, which was an interesting FE within itself due to the fact that we are living in the Trump era and what we may see on media could be interpreted differently when you're at an immigration courthouse. We were also able to sit down with a public defendant and state prosecutor, Latoya Hughes and Connie Jordan. For this AP, we were asked to looked into the GCE student handbook and change a rule that we disagree with and amend it, change it. Read through my AP to look into how I would like to amend a rule at GCE regarding flex time.

Throughout my time at GCE, I have come to realize that students are given many opportunities. One of those opportunities include students being about to make an emphasis or change something in the Student Handbook. Each year, GCE students are required to sign off the student handbook in order to show that students understand certain policies that the school will follow throughout the year.

One of the points given is,

“Most students do not have a lot of unallocated time in their daily schedule. Opportunities to manage their own time increase in junior and senior years. Students are encouraged to use their time productively. Sometimes they should be studying, doing homework, or meeting with teachers. Other times, it is entirely appropriate to socialize or relax. Students who are having trouble completing work satisfactorily may be assigned to Sanctuary.” 

Syllogism the current handbook, 

P1: Students get opportunities to manage their own time.


P2: Students should be using their time productively.


P3: Students are allowed flex time during Sanctuary, which is after school.


C: Students do not have time set aside on their daily schedule for flex time, except for Juniors and Seniors. 


As a junior student, I do not see opportunities to manage my own time implemented into my daily schedule. Junior year is a crucial year for high school students in order to have students start looking into colleges they’re interested in, taking the ACT, managing prep time for tests like ACT/SAT, getting assignments in on time to keep grades up and GPA’s, and the list goes on. Senior year is also the year to start applying for college applications and ending the year off right. Being a part of a project-based school requires students to be 100% attentive in class in order to be able to show what they have learned through Action Projects. Personally speaking, I think this “rule” is unjust. The fact that GCE junior and senior students are not given the opportunity to have flex time or free periods where they are able to get work done, study, etc. If you were to consider this “flextime/free period” as advisory, many students are participating in group activities at that time or cooking for community lunch, and are not given the opportunity to get work done. Sanctuary is an after school program given to students, but staff may disregard the fact that many students, especially juniors and seniors, have other after school programs to attend after school. Many students are either getting community service hours done, headed to work, a part of a dual enrollment program, Marwen, or other programs that will make an impact in perfecting their college applications. I have constructed my own amendment, Juniors and Seniors should be given the opportunity to have at least an hour of flex time incorporated into their daily schedule.

Syllogism:

P1. Junior students have brought up the fact that they often feel stressed to the school counselor, especially because junior year requires you to be more on top of your grades, APs, etc.


P2. Some students have flex time in advisory.


P3. Sanctuary, an after school flex time program, is considered “flex time”, but not all students can attend due to jobs, extracurricular activities, and more.

C: Junior and senior cohorts should have a flex time period in their school day in order for them to get work done in school, and participate actively in any after school programs they are a part of, without feeling stressed.


If a student gets their device taken away or is not actively participating in class discussion throughout the week or is almost an hour late to school, those students should NOT be given flex time.  The Fourteenth Amendment states that no state can, “ deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws” GCE is currently setting up a standard for junior and senior students. Students should be looking into colleges/universities they are interested in, advancing their college portfolios with extracurricular activities, etc. If Freshman and Sophomores are given more flex time than it seems as though Juniors and Seniors are not being given the same opportunities as shown through the student handbook, “Opportunities to manage their own time increase in junior and senior years.” Juniors and Seniors should be given the opportunity to have at least an hour of flex time incorporated into their daily schedule. The Fourteenth Amendment states that no state can, “ deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws” GCE is currently setting up a standard for junior and senior students. Students should be looking into colleges/universities they are interested in, advancing their college portfolios with extracurricular activities, etc.

If Freshman and Sophomores are given more flex time than it seems as though Juniors and Seniors are not being given the same opportunities as shown through the student handbook, “Opportunities to manage their own time increase in junior and senior years.”  I was able to speak to one of my peers about this rule and they said, " think this amendment will be beneficial for juniors and seniors to focus and prioritize on what they need to work on in and out of school.” SR. 

Furthermore, my other peer, SN, agreed to go forward and sign this amendment! 

I believe that equity plays a key role at GCE. By being a student at GCE, you are entitled to your own beliefs, actions, etc. You are also able to contribute into new school policies, and add onto them for the better. By amending this rule, as a junior GCE student, I would be contributing to this institution and making sure that rules that are found in the handbook are being applied to students' daily schedules equally.

HOLY DIDDLEY BOW!

For this unit, Sound, in our STEAM course Light, Sound, and Time we explored the way that sound is not only produced, but how we interpret sound. Sound can deceive us depending on the way that we interpret it. We looked into the anatomy of the ear including how the pinna gets funneled into the eardrum to the three small bones called, the ossicles, to the cochlea which transfers sound to our brain.  We also had the opportunity to visit the Chicago Hearing Society where we were able to speak to some people who were deaf, we were able to ask them questions, etc. This was a nice opportunity for us to be able to look at the world in a different lens once we realized the challenges that came along with living in a society that is not accepting to marginalized communities. We also had a guest come in who was a sound therapist. She was able to give us a performance using different instruments that allowed us to not only calm us down, but also applied science. The doppler effect was phenomenon that we looked into throughout the course. This is when a sound source may appear to be heading towards us giving us a higher pitch than when the sound is heading away from us making sounds appear further away. For this AP, we made our own Diddley bows! The materials needed was an aluminum can, a battery, wood, a guitar string, and screws. The screws were used as tuning pegs to increase tension when wrapping the guitar string around the screw. The piece of wood was able to be used as fretboard, and the aluminum can was used as a soundboard in order to amplify sound. You can learn more about this AP down below!

Audio recording of my Diddley bow!

To conclude, I really enjoyed this AP. I thought it was a nice opportunity to learn more about not only sound, but think about it in the way that it may deceive us at times. I also thought it was interesting to get the different opinions from the people at the Chicago Hearing Society, and understanding that there is more that can be done in this world to include everyone. Next time, I would like to see what other instruments could be made with basic materials that I could find around my home. There are instruments waiting to be created around me, and I think this AP allowed me to understand that.

The Declaration of True Immersion Experience

Throughout this unit of my humanities class, Argument, we have dove into the deeper meaning of what exactly is argument, how it can be detected, and what makes an argument strong? We have looked into argument in a political setting, so we had the opportunity to head down to city hall and observe a couple committee meeting that were taking place that involved alderman from throughout the Chicagoland. This gave us more of an idea of the kinds of premises, or statements,  that were being used to prove the claim that was being brought up. We have also been looking through the declaration of independence and seeing who exactly is being addressed throughout the document. Who exactly is receiving the right to  life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? We have been looking over syllogism which is a group of premises that make a conclusion true or false. We were also able to sit down with Walter Burnett Jr., Alderman of the 27th ward and ask some questions about Chicago politics, relationships within your community, etc. This was a meaningful conversation to have in order to help us think not only more about the city we live in, but also think about our action project. For this AP, we were asked to create our very own declaration of independent study where we would be able to study whatever we chose and create a set of unalienable rights that come with the independent and a declaration to help back it up. Read through my declaration of independent study to learn more about my hopes for this independent study.

Argenberg, Vyacheslav. “File:Syria, Damascus, Life on the Streets.jpg.” Wikimedia Commons, 15 Aug. 2018, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Syria,_Damascus,_Life_on_the_streets.jpg.

Why I'm writing this declaration?

The reason why I find the need to write this Declaration today is due to the fact that as a student and as a global citizen, I see my world deteriorating right before my eyes. I see countries deteriorating. Families being separated. Children not receiving an education. It is necessary for me to visit a country like Syria where Syrians have been facing a war for the past nine years.

Purpose of school/learning?

The purpose of school and learning is for students to reflect and learn about their identity and connect their true forms to the real world. Learning can take place in any way, not just in a setting where education is intended. Although school is a place to learn, it’s truly a place where students are granted to learn in their own way that makes them comfortable rather than in a strict structure.  

Guiding Question 

How have the lives of Syrian communities changed since 2011?

I hope that this independent study will give me the opportunity to not only grow my knowledge of communities around the world, but also allow me to grow connections with people from around Syria to get to know this country a bit better in order to grow and help a country thats situation is yet to be resolved.

Analogy of historical revolution: 

Back in 2011, Syria was faced with war between its citizens and the Assad government and have continued to destroy Syrian civilians for the past nine years. Syria has been a headline on mainstream news outlets for the past nine years, and within those nine years, Syrians have been misunderstood, especially by Americans. The Syrian Civil War needs to be reexplained to the public in order to educate citizens around the globe on the true Syria. 

Unalienable Rights

• Right to travel to Syria 
• Right to build relationships with Syrians
• Right to grow and teach others about community building through what my learning in a war torn country. 
• I reserve the right to learn and explore in any place and form.

Resources included into study

People:
Abdalaziz Alhamza- Syrian Activist

Isra Chaker- Civil Rights Activist, advocacy expert, and public

Movies:
1. “For Sama”
2. “Last Men in Aleppo”

Books:
1. Dam, Nikolaos Van. Destroying a Nation: the Civil War in Syria. I.B. Tauris, 2017.

2. Malek, Alia. The Home That Was Our Country: a Memoir of Syria. Nation Books, an Imprint of Perseus Books, LLC, a Subsidiary of Hachette Book Group, Inc., 2018.

Syllogism

Premise #1: The Syrian war has been going on for 9 consecutive years now.
Premise #2: The Syrian war has been misunderstood by mainstream media for almost nine years.
Premise #3: Aleppo, Idlib, and Damascus. The cities that have been most affected are
Premise #4: Syria is being represented as a "dangerous" country full of dangerous communities.

Therefore, I have the right to create relationships with communities in Syria in order to have a better idea of how Syrians are doing in their war torn country. I have the ability to pursue this independent study due to the fact that I am a person who is constantly learning and wanting to see changes in my life. I can educate myself on the situation in Syria including where its people stand today, and bring this information with me to the U.S. to educate Americans on the true Syria.

Conclusion

This action project truly allowed me to gain a better understanding on what it would be like to work on an independent study like this one. If I had enough money to work on an independent study like this one, I would take that opportunity! I think that students should be given the opportunity to travel abroad to these countries facing conflict like Syria in order for students to learn more about the world around them, and its citizens. 

My camera is better than yours!

For our first unit of Light, Sound, and Time we took a deeper dive into light and how light affects our everyday lives. The first two weeks we looked into the electromagnetic spectrum and how these waves surround us day in and out. We also looked into prisms and with that came the topic of refraction because a prism is essentially bending light whenever light passes through it. We spent some time learning some trigonometry and what exactly happens when light passes from one substance into another (Snell's Law). For this AP we were asked to create our own pinhole cameras to study how cameras take in light, what happens when light goes into a camera, and finding out the ending result. As an FE, we visited a darkroom at Harry Truman College where we were able to take some photos using our pinhole cameras and go through the step by step process of developing our images. To learn more about my pinhole camera and the process that came along with it, look through my presentation!