Monday, March 10, 2014
GoPro Dissecting
I was recently gifted a GoPro Hero3 camera from loving family members and I have been messing around with it a bit. I decided to see how a dissection video would do so I strapped on the head mount got out a dead cat and started a how-to dissection video. I think it would be cool to have multiple cameras going at the same time from different angles but this wasn't a bad video, it also wasn't that great because I couldn't zoom in. Perhaps though I could do some editing and it would still look good because of the HD camera. Here it is regardless. I will definitely be making some more videos with the GoPro in the future.
Saturday, February 8, 2014
Happy Valentines Day to my Kim
I made this for my wife. I love her more than life.
Click here to create your own Shutterfly photo book.
Thursday, February 6, 2014
Snapchat and Mobile Learning
Yesterday I downloaded the app for SnapChat on my phone and immediately
thought that this could be a very useful and powerful tool for studying and
reviewing material for comparative anatomy. Here is what our class did.
1. I first broke up the students in the class into teams, small groups, or individuals. Each group needs at least one person with a smart phone with snapchat, a small chalk board, chalk, and eraser.
2. Each team added me to their Snapchat account, and then I changed my settings so that anything I put on "My story" could be shared with anyone. That way I don't have to send it to everyone and they can view it again and again for the next 24 hours.
3. I took pictures of specimens and then used the simple labeling and drawing functions of Snapchat to specify what structures I was asking them to identify (Picture above), and then posted it to "My Story" (The orange arrow is pointing to the "My story" icon in the picture below)
4. Each student group wrote their answer on their chalkboard. I gave 2 points if they could do it without their notes and 1 point if they used their notes. I then recorded their scores on the board at the front of their room. What was nice about Snapchat is that I could take a picture of the next specimen while they were working on last one I sent them and then could have it ready to go immediately after they were done. The questions only took seconds to upload and post to their phones, and there was little to no wait time in-between questions.
5. At the end I did a final question where they could wager their points and then tallied the final scores and the winning group received a prize. This time it was a cookie cake that I personally decorated (see below).
After it was all done, I saved all of the pictures to my phone and uploaded them to a flikr account and then sent the link (http://www.flickr.com/photos/116618222@N04/) to the whole class. That way all students could participate and review on their own time. It was more fun than I had expected. The students learned a lot, and had all the advantages of mobile learning.
1. I first broke up the students in the class into teams, small groups, or individuals. Each group needs at least one person with a smart phone with snapchat, a small chalk board, chalk, and eraser.
2. Each team added me to their Snapchat account, and then I changed my settings so that anything I put on "My story" could be shared with anyone. That way I don't have to send it to everyone and they can view it again and again for the next 24 hours.
3. I took pictures of specimens and then used the simple labeling and drawing functions of Snapchat to specify what structures I was asking them to identify (Picture above), and then posted it to "My Story" (The orange arrow is pointing to the "My story" icon in the picture below)
4. Each student group wrote their answer on their chalkboard. I gave 2 points if they could do it without their notes and 1 point if they used their notes. I then recorded their scores on the board at the front of their room. What was nice about Snapchat is that I could take a picture of the next specimen while they were working on last one I sent them and then could have it ready to go immediately after they were done. The questions only took seconds to upload and post to their phones, and there was little to no wait time in-between questions.
5. At the end I did a final question where they could wager their points and then tallied the final scores and the winning group received a prize. This time it was a cookie cake that I personally decorated (see below).
After it was all done, I saved all of the pictures to my phone and uploaded them to a flikr account and then sent the link (http://www.flickr.com/photos/116618222@N04/) to the whole class. That way all students could participate and review on their own time. It was more fun than I had expected. The students learned a lot, and had all the advantages of mobile learning.
Friday, January 10, 2014
Bioethics: My passion without time
Bioethics is the culmination of everything that I love, and I love everything about it. Soooo....when I received an email from the chair of the Bioethics Chapter at the Alabama Academy of Science asking me to submit a title for a presentation (thereby committing me to write and present a topic encompassed by the future title of my future submission), I obliged. I have said no in previous years because I have been "too busy", but look at me now, I am writing a blog entry so I can't be THAT busy. Here is the title and future premise of my submission, and some links if you are interested in attending or learning more
Title: Do you want to commute to work?......FINE!
Problem: Long and exaggerated commutes to work have led to the following problems (list not complete
Problems: traffic jams, Construction to account for the traffic, gasoline taxes to pay for the construction, easier access to suburbs that are further away, LONGER commute times, traffic jams, Construction to account for the traffic, gasoline taxes to pay for the construction, easier access to suburbs that are further away, LONGER commute times, traffic jams, Construction to account for the traffic, gasoline taxes to pay for the construction, easier access to suburbs that are further away, LONGER commute times, traffic jams, which leads to something else that I cannot think of off the top of my head but Canadians are guilty of sprawling too (see below)....AND everyone thinks they are SOOOOOOO polite (pshfffshaaawww!)
Peripheral problems: Urban blight, urban sprawl, food deserts, waste, CO2 emissions, GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE
My solution: FINE THE (gasoline-powered, automobile) COMMUTERS DIRECTLY....Keep track of who is commuting, how much gasoline, roads, oil, electricity, power, pavement, construction, accidents, and commution they are using, and then make a standard fine for each...then impound their vehicles till they pay...Use the money from the fines to destroy all cars, suburbs, commuters, and CARBON DIOXIDE in the atmosphere
OR My solution: Create policies that Incentivize (give incentives (i.e tax breaks or tax refunds)) companies to offer more pay to employees that commute less in gasoline-powered automobiles to the point that the greatest incentive is given to those who do not spend any energy other than what they have put into their bodies via the form of digested food (direct photosynthesizing commuters are exempt).
CAVEAT: I do not think that this solution has not been thought of before, sooo I will do some research on things that have and haven't worked for people confined to certain geographic areas in the past, present, or future.
What do you think? If you thought anything you are OBLIGATED (being forced, coerced, bribed, or blackmailed) to write it in the comments section below. (The link below is not the comments section, it is a link to the Alabama Academy of Sciences)
http://www.alabamaacademyofscience.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_sprawl
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_decay
http://www.urbanhabitat.org/node/2742
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=682008 (<-------I live closest to #1)
Title: Do you want to commute to work?......FINE!
Problem: Long and exaggerated commutes to work have led to the following problems (list not complete
Problems: traffic jams, Construction to account for the traffic, gasoline taxes to pay for the construction, easier access to suburbs that are further away, LONGER commute times, traffic jams, Construction to account for the traffic, gasoline taxes to pay for the construction, easier access to suburbs that are further away, LONGER commute times, traffic jams, Construction to account for the traffic, gasoline taxes to pay for the construction, easier access to suburbs that are further away, LONGER commute times, traffic jams, which leads to something else that I cannot think of off the top of my head but Canadians are guilty of sprawling too (see below)....AND everyone thinks they are SOOOOOOO polite (pshfffshaaawww!)
Peripheral problems: Urban blight, urban sprawl, food deserts, waste, CO2 emissions, GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE
My solution: FINE THE (gasoline-powered, automobile) COMMUTERS DIRECTLY....Keep track of who is commuting, how much gasoline, roads, oil, electricity, power, pavement, construction, accidents, and commution they are using, and then make a standard fine for each...then impound their vehicles till they pay...Use the money from the fines to destroy all cars, suburbs, commuters, and CARBON DIOXIDE in the atmosphere
OR My solution: Create policies that Incentivize (give incentives (i.e tax breaks or tax refunds)) companies to offer more pay to employees that commute less in gasoline-powered automobiles to the point that the greatest incentive is given to those who do not spend any energy other than what they have put into their bodies via the form of digested food (direct photosynthesizing commuters are exempt).
CAVEAT: I do not think that this solution has not been thought of before, sooo I will do some research on things that have and haven't worked for people confined to certain geographic areas in the past, present, or future.
What do you think? If you thought anything you are OBLIGATED (being forced, coerced, bribed, or blackmailed) to write it in the comments section below. (The link below is not the comments section, it is a link to the Alabama Academy of Sciences)
http://www.alabamaacademyofscience.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_sprawl
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_decay
http://www.urbanhabitat.org/node/2742
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=682008 (<-------I live closest to #1)
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