#waddi016

[designumn2015]

DES 1000 Reflection

Overall, I thought Design 1000 was a great class. I’ve never been much of a creative thinker, and much of this class requires a good amount of creativity and creative thinking. What I enjoyed about the class is it forced me to tap into the creative part of my brain, which I don’t really do much. In the future, I will be more likely to look at problems from different points of view as a result of this class. 

My favorite part of the class was probably having guest speakers come in and talk about their jobs and how creativity and innovation play such a huge role in their everyday lives. Previously, I didn’t think creativity played such an important role, but looking back and thinking about the man who designs efficient buildings for example, I realized that it is a big part of people’s jobs.

I would definitely recommend this class to other students because it causes you to think about things in a different way and allows you to actually have fun while doing it.

[designumn2015]

Process Documentation: Project 3

Well I’d say Nick and I nailed our presentation. I think we had a really solid idea, and the implementation of the Aluminum Waste Control would be a very doable task for the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities. Going forward, I definitely want to work on my recycling habits. I am one of those people that recycle when it’s convenient, but if it’s easier to just throw a can in the trash, I would most likely do that. Unfortunately, a lot of people are the same way.   

[designumn2015]

Process Documentation: Project 3

Yesterday, Nick and I finalized our powerpoint slides for our presentation. We made some minor changes to some of the slides, finalized the interview responses, and made a final copy of what the A.W.C. website may look like. The only somewhat big change we made was deciding to focus the A.W.C. program and bins towards the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities campus. It makes more sense to start off here, and we could eventually expand as the business grows. I am very satisfied with our work, and I am very excited to see how our presentation goes!

[designumn2015]

Fuel From Air and Water

I recently read the article Emily posted about how Audi just found a way to create diesel fuel made from air and water. The process is actually quite intriguing. You start by taking electricity from renewable energy sources, such as wind, water, and solar, and using it to produce hydrogen from water. The hydrogen is then mixed with CO2 that has been converted into CO. This “blue crude” is then refined into synthetic e-diesel. I think this is incredible. We have been trying to find new ways to fuel automobiles while being eco-friendly and I think this is a groundbreaking step in the overall process of decreasing our carbon footprint. 

[designumn2015]

Process Documentation: Project 3

During work time in class, Nick and I looked at many different websites (link provided below) to find out what makes up most of America’s waste. We found that even though a lot of paper and aluminum is recycled, there’s still a lot that is wasted. after looking at some graphs, we decided it would be very beneficial to do something having to do with recycling aluminum. According to Global Stewards, manufacturing an aluminum can cause an increase in global warming, acidification, eutrophication, low level smog, and ozone layer depletion. Creating a product that solves these problems would help out the environment an immense amount.

http://www.globalstewards.org/sustainable-lifestyle.htm 

[designumn2015]

Process Documentation: Project 3

I’m really excited to see where this project takes me and my partner, Nick Maney. We decided to come up with a project in the Sustainable Technologies category. Thee are always new and innovative ways to improve the way we create and/or conserve energy and waste. We saw this as an opportunity to possibly improve an aspect of renewable energy or waste conservation. It should be exciting to see what we end up doing!

[designumn2015]

Public Space

Where do I spend time in public space?

I spend a good amount of my time in public space, especially since coming to college. In high school, if I did not have an event or athletic practice, I would either go home or go to a friend’s house. So on a school day, I might only be in public space at school. Of course that is different on the weekends because there is no school, but what I’ve noticed since coming to college is you spend pretty much all of your time in public space. Whether you’re in the library, the dining hall, walking around in the mall, or on the campus connector, that’s all public space. I thought about it, and i realized I spend a majority of my time in public just walking around campus. Unless I’m going to West Bank, I walk to my classes or wherever I’m going at the time.

[designumn2015]

When Things Don’t Go As Planned

My reactions when things don’t go planned vary. It all depends on what didn’t go as planned. For example, if I were to make some microwavable macaroni and cheese for a snack, I would expect all of the noodles to be fully cooked after being in the microwave for three and a half minutes. If I took out the cup of noodles, and found all but one of the noodles were cooked, I wouldn't react in a very negative way. Yeah, it’s a little disappointing that the noodle didn't get cooked, but it’s not the end of the world. If I make plans with a group of people to work on a class project and the other members of my group don’t show up, then my reaction would be very negative. Like mentioned before, my reaction all depends on the situation.