Week 6 Musing

 

Published Interview Instructions and Rubric

Published Interview

Due: Friday, February 24, 2023 at 3:30 pm

Interview a person about your research topic. You may either choose to record the interview and submit a five-minute segment of the interview (I suggest the last five minutes) OR to interview your person of choice via email and submit the typed questions and responses. This assignment does NOT have to be MLA-formatted. Your interview must include:

• At least ten questions including, "Is there anything else you would like to add?"
• Evidence that you have created interview questions before the interview took place
• A courteous tone

*If you believe that it may be difficult to conduct an interview on your topic, please see me. I have helped a couple of students brainstorm ideas for creative ways to interview others about their topics. 

 

Week 5 Student Reflections

Week 5 Reflection Prompt

In at least 150 words to receive full credit, consider the following questions to create a reflection for Week 5 of the Quarter 3 project. 

• How are you feeling about the project this week?
• Have you finished your Documentary Review, Project Proposal and Podcast Review?
• What are some of the challenges you've faced this week?
• What are some highlights of your research so far? 
• Are you looking forward to your final presentation? Why or why not?
• Is there anything you would like Ms. Leffers to know about class work time or your personal progress?

Student 1: Making Macaroons

I feel really good about my project and where I'm at right now. Yes, I finished all of them but I'm going to wait to finish the final project because that's the only thing I have left which lifts a weight off my shoulders, and now I can just relax. Some challenge I faced this week was getting the interview done which I did. The interview would be one of my highlights because I now have information from an experienced person that knows how to make macaroons. I'm in between because I get nervous when I present in front of people, but I do look forward to presenting my project It is all in order because e making macaroons is a step-by-step process, and showing that to the class will make more sense to them. I have a question for the next quarter are we doing a long project or what are we going to do next? I like how we get to work on our own on an easy task that is well explained to us.

Student 2: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

I am feeling pretty good about the project so far. I have completed my documentary reveiw and my project proposal. I have not yet found a podcast but I plan on finding one later today or tomorrow. A challenge I faced this week was trying to find a quality video to watch about adverse childhood experiences. One of the highlights about my research so far is learning about all of the ways adverse childhood experiences can impact your health later in life. I am looking forward to sharing all the things I have learned with other people. I think there are so many people that know childhood trauma is a thing but dont actually know how detrimental it is on how the child will develop and function later in their life.

Student 3: The Fermi Paradox

I am feeling great about what I have done with my project this week. I'm finding a lot of information and brainstorming a lot of ideas of how I'm going to present the information in the final project. I've already finished my Documentary Review, Podcast Review, as well as my Project Proposal, so I'm in a good spot right now for assignments as well. I think the largest challenge I'm facing this week is to plan out what my interview questions are. I'm trying to figure out a balance between questions that you need some understanding of the topic to answer, while also keeping them simple enough to actually answer without knowing a whole lot about the topic. I've planned out the specific parts of the topic I want to dive in and explain, and started writing information and planning them out in a Word Document. The people I've shown this do have all expressed interest in the topic, so I'm quite looking forward to my final presentation, but I'm also a little nervous to be presenting in front of a lot of people. The unstructured work time is working out really well for me. I'm really enjoying the project and the progress I'm making so far!

Podcast Review: Student Work

 Student 1: Making Macaroons

My podcast is called “Episode 35 French pastries of the north” and the podcast topic is all about French pastries in the northern part of France and where you can find certain pastries. The name of the podcasters is Annie and Alyse.

They talk about the ingredients that Fiadon (a type of cheesecake) has, and it contains brocciu it is a type of goat cheese you can also add other cheeses, but goat cheese is more traditional. Cheese is very popular in France as well there is a variety of people who like cheese more than pastries.

 Something surprising they mention is that it is difficult to find cinnamon pastries but there is a lot towards the northeast of France which was very strange to me I thought that all of France had cinnamon pastries. Also, there are no traditional cinnamon rolls from France because it is a very “Germanic thing” in Germany.

 They talk about how in America you buy your pie crust with the disposable pie but in France, they do not have that instead you would have to buy rolled dough and add that to your pie crust. The podcasters say it is easier to buy the rolled dough because it is fresh and it’s so easy to use.

Annie and Alyse mention that back then when people did not have ovens in their houses there would be an oven in the center of the town and when you would have bread to bake you would take it there to be baked.

Annie and Alyse say that when you become a professional pastry chef you need to have the right ingredients like butter, sugar, and flour. There are specific ingredients for every pastry there not the same you cannot use the same butter for everything. That is why they charge more or less depending on the price of the ingredients they use.

This podcast helped me because it explained how pastry chefs need certain ingredients and that will help me focus on the ingredients for my macaroon. This podcast did not talk about macaroons, so it wasn’t helping my project as much. This podcast started in 2014, but this specific episode aired on September 27, 2014. The podcast was created because the creator lived in France for twenty years and wanted to share the discoveries they made through the podcast. This podcast is hosted on the following platforms, Spotify, and Apple Music.

Why did you select this podcast? The reason I chose this specific podcast was that it had information on French pastries and where macarons originated. Another reason was that I could not find a specific podcast on macaroons. I learned a few things from this podcast that could help me with my project, but as I said, they did not have much information on macarons.

Student 2: The Fermi Paradox

        The podcast I’m watching is about unsettling solutions for the Fermi Paradox through an hour-long interview between Dr. Stephen Webb, an astronomer and author, with John Michael Godier, the host of the podcast. The podcast starts off with talking about the Drake equation, a famous mathematical equation proposed by Frank Drake to calculate the number of intelligent civilizations in the universe. It introduces the uncertainty of the topic itself, and allows you to picture just how vast the universe is. After the brief introduction of the Drake equation, the two talk about the first abiogenesis of life, and the chances we are completely alone in the universe because of how rare it may be. Then, they touch on the opposite end of the spectrum: that abiogenesis events are not rare, and in fact quite plentiful in the universe. This leads them to talk about the theory of the Great Filter and how that could be connected with the abiogenesis of life and the transition from prokaryotic to eukaryotic life, and also other theories that involve hostile extraterrestrial civilizations. They talk about the extent to which we would really want to connect with aliens. Lastly, they mention certain biases that can limit our perception of the universe and other life forms that are unfamiliar to us, including modernity bias.

In my opinion, the podcast was extremely effective in conveying information. The podcast was longer, and so it could both touch on multiple topics within the Fermi Paradox while also elaborating on them, and allowing them to be understandable. This was especially useful when they dove into some topics that, without some background context, would be quite difficult to understand, like the development and genesis of life on Earth, and the possible universe. The execution was purely through one interview between the host and the interviewee. The execution itself did not necessarily cause any sort of anticipation or excitement on the topic, but not shortly after the start, you start to dive deeper into the topics, which are explained very well. Also, the interview itself was executed well. You can feel that the topic is something both the interviewer and interviewee are passionate about, and their constant interactions make the podcast very effective in conveying information.

The podcast is one of 569 episodes published in John Michael Godier’s Event Horizon series, where he discusses – through interviews with other people – a multitude of topics from space. It’s original intent was to inform others about space, and the any mysteries that it holds. The host himself, John Michael Godier, is interested in these topics as well (it is part of what makes the interviews so engaging, both people included know about what they’re saying, and they’re both passionate about it). This podcast episode was released in October 2022, and it was streamed (hosted) on Spotify.

I selected this podcast because I’d seen a documentary by the same person, and it was a documentary that helped me a lot. This podcast is no different, and it will be really helpful for me. Not necessarily for lots of new information, because by now I’ve done my own research on multiple topics, but to help elaborate on some topics in detail that I cannot find a lot of information on, or have a different perspective on. For example, they touch on the Great Filter, which has many interpretations. The podcast elaborates on a perspective I’ll be touching on in my project.

Student 3: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) 

The topic of the podcast I chose is adverse childhood experiences. The name of the podcast is Episode 20: Adverse Childhood Experiences by Beyond Trauma Podcast.

 Some things that I learned in this podcast was that there is a connection between a person’s adverse childhood experiences and negative health outcomes. As your score goes up, so does the negative health consequences later in life.

There are eight different domains. Emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, incarcerated household member, mother was treated violently, substance abuse in the household, and mental illness in the household. The person going through these experiences sometimes might not even realize it until later in life or until someone mentions it to them.

 There are significantly higher rates of injury; mental health concerns including depression, anxiety suicide, and PTSD; maternal health issues which include pregnancy difficulties, child loss to SIDS, etc.

 Adverse Childhood Experiences also have a diminishment of your life opportunities such as your education, jobs, and your income status.

Your physical and emotional selves do not know they are separate from each other. The body does not know the difference between an emotional and physical wound, so it goes into self-protection and attempts to add layers upon layers of defense around the wound to give it time to heal and/or stop it from being hurt there again. Where there is defensiveness in the body, there is inflammation. This is one of the underlying causes of things like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, weight gain, etc. because they are constantly fueled by the inflammation response in the body.

I think the podcast was well thought out and worded well. They did their best to not trigger anyone and not go too deep but still going into detail. This podcast first aired on June 20, 2021 on Spotify. I chose this podcast because the beyond trauma podcast page is all about trauma and its effects so I thought it was a good choice to use as my podcast for this project.

Week 5 Musing

 

Week 4 Student Reflections

Week 4 Reflection Prompt

This week, you were to finish your Project Proposal. Have you completed it? Have you finished your Documentary Review? Do you feel as though you are in a good place in your research process? Is there anything you're struggling with? What are you learning about yourself, if anything? What are you enjoying about this process? 

Student 1: Making Macaroons

Yes, this week I did finish my project proposal and I just need to finish the interview and the final project but I'm going to wait till I get direction, so I don't stress out since I'm ahead. I also finished the documentary review too. Yes, I think I'm in a good place it's just that the book review wasn't helping me since the book was more on the romantic side than macarons. Yes, the only thing I'm struggling with is the interview I do not know what I'm going to ask yet but I'm going to wait for clear directions. Well, I'm learning g that reading books that deal with romance makes me want to read more to know what's going to happen next, and it's so realistic. I'm enjoying the fact that I'm going to make macarons and this project gives me a reason to make them.

Student 2: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

(No response yet.)

Student 3: The Fermi Paradox

I have finished my Project Proposal already, as well as my Documentary Review. I am currently working on finding a good podcast for my Podcast Review, and trying to find someone to interview, but I've already chosen a book. I've also started planning out the specific parts of the topic I'll be reseraching about, and already started to fill in some information I'll be putting on my powerpoint from the documentaries, videos, and websites I've looked at. So, I feel as I am in a pretty good place in my research process. One thing that I'm struggling with is trying to find someone to interview, because there isn't really anyone that is directly related to the reserach of the Fermi Paradox, but overall there isn't anything terrible at this stage. I am learning that for large projects like this I do tend to plan out everything before I start working on a powerpoint, and like to have a certain section done in a certain amount of days. Many projects I do aren't large enough for me to actually plan anything out, so I can directly work on them immediately. I'm definitely enjoying the research and information I'm learning itself. The Fermi Paradox is connected to many topics, including that of biology, physics, astrophysics, astrology, cosmology, among few. There is so much information to filter through, but I've found extremely interesting views on the topic. A variety of minds from different backgrounds all contributing to this theory causes there to be a lot of interesting information.

Podcast Review Instructions and Rubric

Podcast Review

Due: Friday, February 17, 2023 at 3:30 pm

Either select one podcast fitting your topic that is at least a half an hour long or multiple podcasts for which the total length adds up to at least a half an hour. Listen closely to the podcast(s) and take notes as you listen about the following:

• Topic of podcast 
• Name of podcaster(s)
• At least five points made in the podcast
• Your opinion about the effectiveness of the podcast
• Your opinion about the execution of the podcast

Then, research the podcast and its host(s). Record answers to the following questions:

• When did the podcast first air?
• What drove the creation of the podcast?
• Where is the podcast hosted (Apple Music, Amazon, etc.)?

Consider the following questions as well:

• Why did you select this particular podcast?
• What did you learn from the podcast(s) that can help you with you project?

Then, type a one-page review containing the information above in MLA formatting OR submit a video recording of yourself discussing all of the criteria listed above. 

Week 4 Musing

 

Project Proposals: Student Work

The three students I am tracking have all turned in their proposals early!

Student 1: Making Macaroons

When I think about macaroons, I feel as if they are easy to make but that is not true. Something I have always wanted to know is how do you get the perfect meringue; this is one of the questions I have been thinking about because whenever I make macaroons it seems as if I’m missing something or doing something wrong. There is always a problem, for example, the first time I made them it was so difficult and confusing. But the most disappointing part was taking the macaroons out of the oven, and they came out as flat cookies, so they did not even look like macaroons.

I chose this topic because I wanted to know more about the process of how to get the perfect macaroon or in other words, a more advanced level of techniques. I really want to make a macaron that has the following features: one that has the aroma when you first walk into a French bakery, the lumpy texture from the feet of the macaroon, and the flavor of heaven. I know how the process goes, but I do not know what else I could add to make my macaroon so delicious, like the secret ingredient’s bakers used. Hopefully, by the time I finish this project, I will take everything that I have learned and use it for future events, and I have been thinking about getting a job for the summer that includes working in a bakery and introducing this wonderful pastry.

I have plenty of resources to help me with my project, but I am thinking of using a cookbook as an additional resource since cookbooks not only have the recipes, but they have the directions and techniques for making certain pastries. Also using different cookbooks can help me find different recipes and expand the different varieties of recipes.

The way I will compose my project is by a PowerPoint with my research and my own experiences I have already had. It is important to also share experiences because it gives the viewer a more realistic view of the story or projects the narrator is trying to tell instead of just relying on research. I will also make macarons to present my project, but I am still thinking if I should make enough for the class, I’m also hesitant since there can be people that can judge your work even if you work so hard on it.

The reason I research “how to perfect macarons” is to obviously make the best macaron so when I present it looks like a professional chef made it which is going to be difficult, but my research and the new techniques I have seen from the documentary review will help me. I think it’s good to share the process of how to make a macaron because it’s very difficult to make a perfect one the first time and you’ll have struggles along the way, but once you finally have experience and find resources to help you it will eventually become easier along the way. I know from my experience the first time was terrible that I did not even want to try my creation at all but hopefully when I make them again, I will finally perfect them.

The way I will make time for my project is by working on it one step at a time every day and staying on track on what I need to complete. Another way to have this project done on time is to get less distracted from social media because sometimes it gets boring after reading so much. I am usually the type of person who likes to get things done, but also does it right the first time because if I don’t that’s just going to slow me down and end up with the worse outcome. My goal is to finish everything before the due date, so I do not need to worry about turning in my project late.

Student 2: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

            For my research project I am going to research Adverse Childhood Experiences, also known as ACE’s. Adverse Childhood Experiences are potentially traumatic experiences that occur in childhood, ages 0-17. There is a series of 10 questions you take to determine if you have Adverse Childhood experiences.

            My central research question is: How do Adverse Childhood Experiences affect the mental and emotional development in children and teenagers? How do Adverse Childhood Experiences affect people later in life?

            My reason for selecting this topic is that I want to know how adverse childhood experiences affect my peers. I personally score a four or five out of ten on the ACE’s test, but there are many things that are not included in the test that should be included. I would like to know why there are only those ten categories on the ACE’s test, and why they have not added other traumatic things such as losing a parent or sibling. I also want to know how these traumatic experiences will affect us later in life. Do they affect our success and personal gain? Do our experiences affect how we interact with our family, friends, and peers?

            I am going to use a few methods of gathering information for this project. I am going to have some of my peers (those who are willing) take the ACE’s test. If they score one or higher on the test, I will talk to them about how it has affected them personally, and how it has changed their views. I want to ask if they think it has affected their ability to trust and let new people enter their life. I will also talk to some other people who have experience being around the people who have Adverse Childhood Experiences, such as teachers, counselors and psychologists. I will read published journals and studies about Adverse Childhood experiences and how they affect people.

            I am going to turn in a traditional research paper as my form of presentation. I chose this method because it is the most convenient way for me to organize my project and present it.

            To have my final research paper finished and turned in on time I will most likely use a week to evaluate one resource, and another week to evaluate a different resource. I will do an interview a day and spend the next day or so deciding what I want to use in my project and how I want to include it with other information that I have gathered from other sources.

Student 3: The Fermi Paradox

            The central research question I’m going to research is “Why have we not received any confirmation or signs that extraterrestrial beings exist in the universe?” Specifically, I’m going to be talking about the Fermi Paradox, which is the conflict between the large possibility of life existing outside of earth, and the complete lack of evidence of extraterrestrial life existing on Earth. I’m going to evaluate the reasoning behind the idea, talk about the universe, its evolution, and some principles behind it, and explain some of the theories that have been proposed for the idea.

The Fermi Pardox, and the idea of aliens in general, has been a really interesting topic for me. There have been many movies, books, TV shows, and other forms of media that have evolved around aliens, especially technologically advanced alien civilizations. Comparing this with the extraterrestrial evidence in the real world, it can be observed that there are no clues as to where aliens are at all. There are thousands of theories and ideas on aliens, but confirmed facts in this topic are all unclear, because it dabbles into the unknown and unexplored vastness of the universe. Personally, I find any topics that deal with the unknown to be very intriguing. This interest really arose after I read a really good book series that revolved around the idea. The purpose of the project is to inform others on the topic, and hopefully arouse their interest in the topic as well.

Besides the sources required in the curriculum, I’m going to be looking into articles written by astrophysicists, physicists, cosmologists, or other people who are involved with the study of the universe or its principles in some way or another. It will help me better comprehend the history of the universe and principles governing it, giving me more understanding of the universe in which we live, and thus better understand theories on where the aliens are when they involve background understanding of the universe. I will also be looking into videos (not documentaries) that may further explain certain concepts. Animated videos, for example, are fun to look at and are also a good way to visualize information, and so aid in my further comprehension of the topic.

I’m planning to create a PowerPoint to deliver my project. I think it would be easier to organize my information into different slides, and it would also be easier to add pictures next to the text when it is necessary. It may also be easier to understand organized into different sections, rather than in other forms of presentation, like a research paper, in which explaining concepts may be difficult.

I will be following the guidelines given in Schoology to ensure I have the parts I need to have done for evaluation finished. I will likely be trying to work ahead, just so I am certain I have everything finished, including having the project finished. This means I’ll be looking ahead into the syllabus, and if possible, finish the assignment due next week finished in the previous week, or early in the next week. 

Project Proposal Rubric and Example

This week, Week 4 on the syllabus, the assessment due at the end of the week is their Project Proposal. I wanted to give students time to toss around ideas and find the right topic, hence waiting until the 4th week of the project to require they propose their topic. Included in this post are the instructions, rubric, and teacher example for the Project Proposal. As I may have mentioned in an earlier post, I will be completing the project along with my students so I can experience the process and so I can offer them examples of each of the assessments throughout the quarter. 

Project Proposal Instructions

Your Project Proposal should be completed in MLA format and should be turned in by Friday, February 10 at 3:30 p.m. I will accept the assignment up to two weeks after the deadline as per the AHS grading policy, but you will want to turn it in as soon as possible so you have time to work on the creation and completion of your project.

Your proposal should be at least two pages long, written in MLA formatting (see the MLA formatting folder in the Resources folder in Schoology) and thoroughly include the following:

1. A central research question: A problem you want to solve, something you have always wanted to know, purpose of a creative endeavor, etc.
2. Your reason for the selection of your topic: Do you want to know more about a particular topic about which you have not yet had time to explore? Do you wish to share knowledge of a particular topic you find interesting? Do you wish to explore the ways others utilize their creativity to better understand your own methods to produce something unique? Explain.
3. A detailed report of your methods for gathering information: Beyond the sources you will utilize as required by the curriculum, what other methods of research will you need to utilize for the completion of your project? (Examples: Watch episodes of sitcoms to better understand what makes something funny, read scholarly articles to better understand methods of deep sea exploration, visit an art museum to better understand the techniques of a particular artist, etc.)
4. What you plan to turn in for evaluation: Will you compose a traditional research paper on the topic of your choice? Will you create a documentary? A podcast? A collection of short stories? A novella? Will you perform a short stand-up set?
5. Rationale for your choice of delivery method for the Final Project: Why have you chosen to present your findings in the manner in which you have? Why do you think that is the best way to share what you will have learned?
6. A preliminary timeline for completion: This will likely change as you begin your project, but at this point, how can you best organize your time to ensure that you can complete the project by the deadline? This could be completed as weekly or bi-weekly goals, or “By (date), I will have completed _____________ portion of the project.”

 You can find details of the Final Project requirements, including an explanation of how I will determine the final grade for it in the Final Project folder in Schoology. 

Project Proposal Grading Rubric

Project Proposal Example

Final Project Proposal: Composing a Song

            For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to compose my own song. I started singing as a child, moving up through the grade-level choirs until I auditioned for and was accepted into my high school’s prestigious show choir. As an adult, I have been in a variety of musicals and am currently in a cover band. Singing has always been part of my life. While my dream of becoming a (semi-) professional singer has come true, I now want to be able to create my own songs instead of always singing songs written by someone else. Since my band members are incredibly talented and have also been wanting to create original music, now is the best time for me to write my own song.

            In order to be able to accomplish the task of writing a song, I want to do research into other musicians’ process, as I have never attempted this feat before. I found a documentary series on Netflix called Song Exploder that I have enjoyed and found informative. Each episode features a different artist and details their process for writing one of their famous songs. I plan to watch as many of those episodes as possible, as each featured artist has a distinct style from the next, and I am still not completely settled on my own style and sound yet. I plan to find a podcast about songwriting, as well, but I have not yet searched for one yet. I am hoping to find something useful on iHeart Radio. I will also read a book about songwriting. I am currently debating between The Songwriter’s Survival Guide by Judy Stakee and Writing Better Lyrics by Pat Pattison. My plan is to purchase one of them in the next few days. I think the most valuable part of my research process will be to talk to songwriters I know and get their take on the process. These interviews will be more personal than the interviews I will watch, and I am hoping that these friends can offer me some advice about how to tackle my own project.

            Though I would love to be able to perform a song with my band live in front of my students, I do not think that will be possible, considering my bandmates’ work schedules. I will likely present a video recording of our song. I think that the video recording will serve as the next best option to a live performance, as students will be able to see my band mates and get a feel for how we interact with the music. An audio recording would be okay, but I think a video would be more engaging.

            The following is a tentative project timeline:

·       Week 4 (2/6 – 2/12)

o   Finish Project Proposal

o   Purchase book for Book Review

o   Take notes on podcast about songwriting

o   Watch Song Exploder episodes

o   Listen to recorded music; play with melody and lyrics

o   Gig with band 2/11 at Austin Eagles

·       Week 5 (2/13 – 2/19)

o   Finish Podcast Review

o   Update Works Cited

o   Set up interviews with songwriters

o   Watch Song Exploder episodes

o   Read 1/3 of selected book

o   Solidify melody; Continue to play with lyrics

o   Practice acoustic songs with Jeff

o   Band practice 2/19

·       Week 6 (2/21 – 2/26)

o   Complete Published Interview

o   Update Works Cited

o   Watch YouTube videos about songwriting

o   Read 1/3 of selected book

o   Solidify some lyrics; Practice singing

o   Acoustic performance with Jeff 2/25 at B&J

o   Band practice 2/26

·       Week 7 (2/27 – 3/5)

o   Finish book

o   Complete Book Review

o   Complete Works Cited

o   Finish lyrics; Practice singing

o   Band practice 3/5

§  Run through song

§  Record video of performance

Week 3 Student Reflections

Each week during the unit, students are required to answer questions in a journal prompt related to their work for the week. The Weekly Reflections are a way for students to activate metacognition--to think about how they think and reflect on the decisions they have made in their research. The prompts are meant to give students ideas on what to reflect and do not necessarily require students answer every question. The Weekly Reflections tend to be more difficult in the beginning of the unit, as students to not have as much upon which to reflect until they get further into their process. 

Week 3 Prompt

Student 1: Making Macaroons

I haven't started on my book but will after completing my podcast review since it did. My goal is to read 4 chapters a day and ill be done with the book at the end of the week when I start. Yes, my book seems to be the perfect book for my project. I already completed my document review and my project proposal. Yes, when I watch my documentary (YouTube videos) there was so much useful information for my project. Yes, for example in my documentary review, I found out I can use sprinkle I honestly thought you couldn't since it could burn it. I feel like this project will help me with understanding de literature since I'm not so good at language arts I still need to comprehend a bit more so I can get to a level where everything that comes at me can be easy to do.

Student 2: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

(Not yet turned in)

Student 3: The Fermi Paradox

I've finished most of my book already - I've finished book one and two, and I'm almost ifnished with book 3 of the trilogy (I'll be looking into a series). The book definetely is a valuable source that will aid me greatly in one specific portion of my topic. I do hope, however, to find other books that could help me with other parts of my project, though it is currently difficult to find any books really relating to my project. However, I've already finished watching a documentary, and it was full of information that was valuable to me. It was a very helpful source. From it, as well as the book I've picked out, I've found a lot of really interesting information. I'm feeling a lot better about the project now, especially because I've settled on a topic. It's actually pretty fun to find all these sources and look into the information that they give me.

Documentary Reviews: Student Work

I have decided to track the progress of three students throughout the unit to offer a feel for the student perspective throughout. I will refer to them as Student 1, Student 2, and Student 3 (creative, I know!) and will post their work here on the blog under those psuedonyms. The Documentary Reviews were due Friday, so I will start there. 

I have chosen these three particular students because the topics they have chosen to research are vastly different from one another, and I believe their Final Projects will demonstrate the diversity of topics chosen by the greater class. Student 1 has chosen research how to make the best macaroons. Student 2 is exploring the effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on teenagers. Student 3 is looking into the Fermi Paradox, the conflict between the extreme likelyhood that life exists outside of Earth and the lack of evidence to support that theory. I'm already intrigued by their topic choices! 

Please see the previous post for information about Documentary Review requirements. I had created a video example, but I allowed students to choose whether they wanted to deliver the review via video or written in MLA format. Students 1 and 3 chose to write their reviews:

Student 1: Making Macaroons

To begin, my project is about the journey of making a macaroon and the difficult tasks you will encounter when making this pastry.

In the first video I watch, Jamie from the channel called Anti-Chef is very confident towards the beginning. Jamie describes the texture of a macaroon as “crumbly on the outside and chewy on the inside” and “fancy-pants Oreos”. Jamie states that macaroons can also get confused with another pastry with the same name, but it is a coconut pastry. Jamie uses Food Network as a source to get the recipe. Jamie instead of making traditional flavors like Chocolate or vanilla he decides to go with Raspberry cheesecake and blueberry which to me it is a bit advanced. Meanwhile, he is explaining the process of how to make the pastry he then realizes that he forgets the cream tarter and instead uses a substitute. Jamie explains how it is difficult to pull apart the egg yolk from the egg white to make the meringue and when you’re whisking the egg white the outcome needs to have stiff peaks, so when you are doing the upside-down test the meringue won’t fall on top of your head. When he is done making the cookie, he takes it out from the oven, and they are not even close to looking like a macaroon there for he failed on his first attempt. 

Next, the second video that I watch was Jamie again, but this was his second attempt. This time Jamie is very determined to make the perfect macaroon. Jamie says that you must be precise with the ingredients like the eggs need to be at a certain temperature or else you will ruin the recipe since macaroons are very delicate and fragile. Jamie puts the dry ingredients and then explains when you are done mixing the egg whites, they need to be white and frothy after you are done with that process. When it comes to food coloring Jamie prefers to use gel food coloring because the liquid makes the mixture too watery, and macaroons have a unique balance that it needs to have the perfect amount of liquid and dry ingredients. Jamie uses a technique when he is mixing the dry ingredients and the meringue, which is called macaronge and once you are done you should test the mixture by doing a figure eight test which consists of watching the eight not sink into the mixture. Jamie says that he is positive because he learns from his mistakes and states that when the cameras are off you tend to do better. When baking the macaroon, you must keep an eye on them to see if the feet from the cookie arise. This time Jamie finally succeeds.

Lastly, the last video I watch was once again Jamie on his third attempt, but this time Jamie has new tools, and techniques and did not use recipes from the web since there difficult to understand. This time Jamie quickly gets everything set and knows what he is doing, unlike the first time when it took him five minutes to get to the next step. This time he adds the eggs to the dry ingredients first. Once he has the mixture ready, he makes the one-inch circles, but since there were many air bubbles, he adds sprinkles to hide his errors. He bakes them and adds a filling. Once again, he successfully makes macarons.

My thoughts about these short videos were you won’t always get the recipe right the first time for example Jamie didn’t even know how to mix the ingredients because there’s a certain technique you need to follow it’s like riding your bike for the first time without training wheels you fall because you don’t know how to ride it perfectly. These videos will help me with my research by not only focusing on the type of ingredients needed but the process of making the pastry because I feel like most people do not focus on that often.

In the end, I feel like these videos could have had some encouragement towards the end like making the viewer more confident since most of the time Jamie was upset for every little error he did, but he did state that he does learn from his mistakes. Jamie did succeed but he did struggle to get the perfect macaroon.

Student 2: Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

(Not yet turned in)

Student 3: The Fermi Paradox

The documentary starts out with the question an introduction that introduces us to the idea of the Fermi Paradox, and some broad theories that are involved in it. With this brief introduction, the documentary then moves into an interview with Stephen Webb, a science fiction author who has studied the topic, and the interviewer. They start off the interview by talking about the advancement from the detection of electromagnetic waves to gravitational waves, and the possible manipulation of the phenomenon to send messages or signals to other civilizations in the galaxy. They talk about the level of development alien civilizations could have already reached – the Kardashev scale – considering how old the universe is, and how it would be theoretically possible for those gravitational waves to be used as radio waves. This leads them into two possible solutions to the Fermi Paradox: the undetectability of aliens due to their technology being far above ours, or the unpredictability of the waves causes all civilization to live in a constant state of “was that a signal, or a regular gravitational wave?” Next, they touch on the topic of interstellar space travel or even communication by using pulses from neutron stars as a GPS signal, or modifying them to communicate with other civilizations. They bring up the topic of modernity bias and how it could affect how we perceive alien life and technology to be, and how that may affect the possible solutions to the Fermi Paradox.

        Here, they move away from the technological part of the Fermi Paradox, and focus on the possible effects of the development of life itself on the Fermi Paradox. This includes the theories on the original chance of abiogenesis – life developing – occurring, and the evolution of prokaryotic life to eukaryotic life being very low. This brings up the possibility of a shadow biosphere, a microbial ecosystem that is home to microorganisms that are likely prokaryotic. An undetectable world that is too microscopic for us, the rare chance of life developing beyond the prokaryotic point, is thus proposed as another solution to the Fermi Paradox. They touch on some of the fundamental elements of life – carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur – and the possibility of the replacement of one of these elements with another element. Arsenic or silicon have been popular contenders as possibilities for elements that may support life. This brings up the final possibility proposed in the interview: the possibility that aliens may not necessarily want to leave their planet, because the foundations of life on another planet may be completely different. The documentary wraps up with Stephen Webb explaining how his interest in the Fermi Paradox was aroused.

            I really liked the documentary. One of the best parts about it is that it is really informative. It touches on a variety of topics that are involved with the Fermi Paradox, including the scale and development of the universe, the possible development of life, the involvement of technology, the biases that contribute to some of the possible answers of the Fermi Paradox. The interviewer was also very interactive with the interviewee, and you can tell that both of them are really interested in the topic. I feel their enthusiasm also contributed to how interesting the topics they talked about are. They really cause me to think, and look into some of the terms and principles brought up in the interview. For example, the specific part where they talked about the chances of the evolution of life and the change from prokaryotic to eukaryotic life was really interesting to me. It’s because it raises the possibility that life itself is rare, and that it may not be as common as perceived. I find contradictory theories like this really interesting. The possibility that multiple genesis has occurred, and that other life exists as a “shadow biosphere” so microscopic it is undetectable causes me to wonder what really causes life. Is life really as plentiful as we believe? Or is it a rare fluke in the universe? The discussions cause me to think about these questions and want to look into the topic more. All of these factors make the documentary really helpful for me. I can glean a lot of information from it.

            The documentary was very successful in its purpose to both inform and arouse my interest in the topic of the Fermi Paradox. It was packed with useful information relevant to my topic, and the interviewer and interviewee were very enthusiastic and interacted with each other. There were some flaws in the documentary, but the background of the documentary was the clearest. It was rather monotonous, sometimes a little confusing. I’d listen to the interview and try to understand what exactly was being shown on the screen, but it was sometimes quite confusing to understand was the images were trying to visualize. They could try to make the images shown more impactful to the interview, adding on to the success of the documentary.