A Mid-Quarter Evaluation

In terms of my performance, this quarter in Concept Physics has been terrible. I struggled in Chemistry all of last year and still never averaged my abysmal Concept Physics grade. I accept full responsibility for this. Never before have I taken a class, acquired adequate knowledge of the concepts and done badly because of an inability to organize and pull through. As Brandon said in his blog, I think part of the reason I didn't give Concept Physics as much priority as other classes because it doesn't conform toIolani's traditional model of learning. I always look forward to Concept Physics and yet homework for this class often got pushed back because of other classes and I didn't put in the adequate effort into reviewing for tests. Because of the relaxed atmosphere I didn't show the class as much respect it deserved. I knew, that unlike in AP European History, if I did badly in something I wouldn't be called out on it in front of the entire class. That kind of thinking is unacceptable. For the remainder of the quarter I will do my best to respect and ensure the relaxed atmosphere's future by doing my homework and being more diligent about turning things in on time. I picked the Modest Mouse album cover because Modest Mouse is my favorite band and I listen to them anytime I need to pull myself out of a funk.

The fan in my sister's room uses an electric motor in order to move air and cool the room. Motors are the result of a unique interaction between a magnet and wire carrying current and their ability to produce physical motion. A permanent magnet produces a magnetic field in a region where a loop of wire is mounted to turn. Any current in the loop has one direction in the upper side of the loop and the opposite direction in the lower side. If the upper side of the loop is forced to the left by the magnetic field, the lower side is forced to the right. In a motor the current is reversed during each half revolution by means of stationary contacts on the shaft. In this way, the current in the loop alternates so that the forces on the upper and lower regions do not change directions as the loop rotates. Motors are the basis for modern technology. Yay, magnets!

Magnetized Scissors

When I was working on my mixed media project, the pins I was using were frequently attracted to my scissors. The blades of the scissors were ferromagnetic meaning that the scissors contained domains, or microscopic clusters of aligned electrons. Through the cutting motion, the domains within my scissors had become aligned and thus the scissors became magnetized. The magnetized scissors then attracted the ferromagnetic pins.

I think Concept Physics provides me with an opportunity to learn more about the world around me without the burden of cumbersome calculation. Basic concepts and manifestations of natural laws are presented in a manner that increases my understanding of the natural world and this is key component of learning science. My goal this quarter is to improve my journal grades and lab grades. I also hope to get all my assignments in on time. Not doing my best on those three things affected me adversely last quarter and this quarter I hope to prevent those adverse affects on my grade. I hope to continue doing well on quizzes and hope to improve my test grades my creating a more effective study method. I think last quarter I put an appropriate amount of time and effort into Concept Physics and this quarter I hope to increase my grade and understanding by putting in more time and effort.