Journal 7

 Feb 19 - Feb 25

Part I: Reflect on your team's Final Research Video Project Planning

During our weekly Sunday night meeting, my team and I got a lot done towards planning for the video project. We laid out different sections and assigned portions. We made a shared document to each add our own portions, and we left a portion open to add anything we found interesting so we could help our teammates with extra information. We all are happy with our portions, and we each will contribute to the four sections we decided upon. I believe our team works together very well, and we even managed to make this week's meeting fun by joking around while getting work done. We decided to focus on the fun and interesting aspect of the prompt, and we are excited to craft a video that is both funny and informative. The only thing I can think of that we can work on in the future is being punctual to meetings (two of us were late this week for various reasons). 

Part II: Reflect on Lecture Readings

For my chosen TEDTalk, I selected to watch "Biomimicry in action" by Janine Benyus. The video was short, but extremely interesting and informative. My favorite part was the portion in which she spoke about how Galapagos sharks have a certain pattern on its skin denticles that keep bacteria from growing on it. Such a pattern has been adapted by various companies such as Sharklet Technologies. Their use of biomimicry is placed on surfaces in hospitals to lessen bacterial spreading and hospital-acquired infections. Also, she goes on to mention electric eels in studying electric current insulation as they can create over 600 volts in their bodies. 

In the article regarding visual aids and props, I found very interesting information. I wish we were able to do presentations in class, but I know the CS Online format only allows for videos. Perhaps my team and I could include a portion of the video of our faces so that we may utilize a visual aid. I remember always enjoying making flip-charts in oral communications courses. In the optional videos, I wanted to watch the one about deepfakes, but it required a Paramount+ login to view, I will include the inaccessibility in our weekly survey.

I truly enjoyed the work this week as I enjoyed learning about my chosen topic for the argument essay as well as our video project topic. It is much easier to do research when the topic is interesting. I found myself torn between the two argument sides in my essay as both made great points. Overall, I am proud of the essay I wrote and hope to see a grade that reflects such.