Ben's Performance Task: Part 2 (Final Video # 2)

To showcase his terrain park, Ben elected to create two performance tasks using filmmaking.  Please see the second of those below as Ben processes his work with the help of his park testers and The Edge Team: (also, please check out and subscribe to Ben's YouTube channel)

 

Annabel: One Last Blog Post

In Edge I was asked certain questions. I want to answer them and give my final blog post as a student in Edge.

Who were you when you came in?

When I came into Edge I was a quiet person. I did not like to speak about who I was and what happened to me in the past or the project I was working on.  I don’t think I really spoke when people were around me, but I had so much to say and was the strongest voice in the group.  Then after tours came by with families interested in Kildonan, it became easier to talk to people, but I still had no idea what I was suppose to say.  Slowly, I learned how to communicate better.  Soon I felt comfortable speaking about myself in front of crowds, even going as far as advocating for public schools to have better education in the New York State government and speaking to senators.  I felt braver by the end.

What did you learn?

I started out in Edge learning about science fiction.  I read “The Star” by HB Wells and learned more about the world of science fiction and actually wrote a couple of short stories.  Soon I was getting bored with the idea learning about science fiction, because was I burnt out from all knowledge I learned from working so hard.  Then Mrs. Charlap mentioned tessellations because of the drawings that I made in art class.  I had no idea what that was.  It was patterns so I looked at them a little.  Then the next day she said that she meant to say fractals, not tessellations.

My first couple of thoughts about that new word was, what is a fractal and how is it important to my life?  So I learned all that I could with and about fractals.  Here is a small list of basic fractals: rivers, equations from math, and some very basics of physics.  I felt like I was speaking a language that nobody else knew how to speak.  So I used the same pattern, fractals, to figure out my way of learning.

Then it came to leaving eleventh grade.  I was excited to leave and come back for the next year.  Over the summer I learned more about scrapbooking, which is a hobby in my family.  I said out loud to my mom, “I wish they had this as a job.”

My mother replied, “That is a job, and it is called Graphic Design.”

So I looked further into this field.  Graphic Design helps describe my way of learning.  So I took some FIT pre-college classes in the city during the fall and ended up loving it.  After that experience, I decided to apply to college for graphic design.  I got into all five art colleges I applied to, and I chose my number one college, Lesley University: College of Art and Design in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Do you feel like you will be successful in college?

Yes, I do feel I will succeed.  Most people don’t think you can be successful in college because people who don’t understand others with learning differences think we are lacking.  I know I won't be that way in college.  This is because I am hard working.  I know myself very well and I can tell what my limit is and what is not my limit.  I have learned problem solving and creativity in Edge, which were harder to learn before I joined the program.  I will use this work ethic to help me out with learning because I know myself as a unique, hardworking, zany, chaotic, and amiable person.  I feel as if I learned more with the addition of Edge than just regular classes.

What are you going to leave behind?

I ask myself this question a lot.  This is because I did a lot of work, but it is the process of my work that has left a powerful mark in this community.  I will leave behind a legacy of fractals, my brain and knowledge, and ideas for others. I helped show people that it is ok that you can be you.  I also helped teach Ambrose a new way how to write in a form called fractal writing.  I am not worried for the future.  I feel very confident.  I have learned from my failures, celebrated successes, and I am able to move forward.  There is a quote that I have found by  B. B. King, “The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.”  Even though I did not use this as my senior quote, this means learning is beautiful, and no matter what, don’t let anyone take that away from you.

Launch: Ben's Portfolio (via WordPress)

A screenshot of Ben's homepage:  https://benbairdportfolio.wordpress.com.

Greetings from Kildonan, everyone!

With only 2 academic days left before summer, we in Edge are tying up loose ends.  Students are reflecting upon their learning in end-of-year conferences, and advisors are finishing the last reporting cycle.  It's a bittersweet season as we prepare to say goodbye to veterans of the program.  Annabel and Chris, our community is stronger for your thinking and spirit over the past two years.  Santiago, we wish we had another year with you (but look forward to seeing your future business ventures)!

Whether bound for college or a new year, however, we all take leaves marked by anticlimax.  Our work is not finished, can never be finished.  The passions that motivated us beckon to us yet, so our leavings are the flutter of a curtain rather than the closing of a door.

Case in point:  Ben has begun the important work of creating/maintaining a portfolio that will compile all of his Edge pursuits.  He is designing a website that will highlight his past blog posts, his schematics, his videos on the terrain park, his upcoming pursuits in trail-building, and next year's work in Edge.

From here on out, we will re-post the pieces that Ben publishes via his site.  Click HERE to take a look at his paper on snowboarding.  While you're there, don't forget to subscribe!

Ambrose: Illustration # 4

- Piece submitted by Ambrose (3/10/17)

Ben: Outreach on Trail-Building

For the last two summers I was a lifeguard for the town of Lake George at the public beaches.  It's easy work and pays well, so it's a really good summer job.  However, I have really bad ADHD, so it is super boring for me to sit still.  I was talking to my mom about getting a job at some place like Gore Mountain to build mountain bike trails.  That way, I could gain experience in the job I want to go to college for.  Right now, I want to go to college for Ski Resort Management, and after college I want to be a Terrain Park Designer in the winter and a Mountain Bike Trail Builder during the summer.  But I'm a junior, so that could change (though I highly doubt it).

Over the summer, I was trying to gather information on trail-building so that the next summer I could gain some experience.  I was talking to everyone.  I learned about places like Gore Mountain and the Lake George Land Conservatory.  My close friend, Owen, told me he had a friend who works for a company that builds trails.  Owen gave me his friend Andrew's contact information and I texted him the messages below.

Benjamin: 
     Hello Andrew,

     My name is Ben.  My friend Owen told me you are a trail builder and gave me your contact information.  I’m 16, going into my Junior year, and when I get out of high school I want to go into a career in trail-building and snow park building.  I want to build mountain bike trails like downhill, cross country, slope style, dirt jumps, etc. in the summer months.  During the winter I want to build ski and snow parks.  

     I'm looking for some information about what sort of skills and training would put me in a good position to be hired and excel at the job (college? trade school? etc.).  Would you have time to let me know your thoughts on this (as well as giving me an idea of what a typical day at work looks like for you)? And finally, so that I can get more experience, do you know of any places that I might look into for a summer job?

     Thank you so much for your time.

Andrew: 
     Hi Ben, I'm Andrew.  Rry I couldn't respond sooner, I had a cross country meet yesterday.  I joined the trail crew at the beginning of this summer when I was 17 for my summer job.  It's meant for college age kids, but I had a lot of training doing trail work with the teen trail program run by the adk mountain club.  So they hired me.  Anyways, this is probably the best entry level job for you if trail building is what you're aiming to do.  I'm not sure what precise degree, but if you do this as a summer job, there's quite a few people u can get options from.  The best school would probably be SUNY ESF in Syracuse.  Probably the most important skills would be practice with hand tools like rock bars, mattocks, axes, shovels, and rakes.

     A good place to get training would be the teen trail program.  It's a week long course where u camp out and do trail work at a job site.  It's really fun.  I did it for 3 years in a row and I feel like I learned a lot from it.  Also Moreau Lake has trails days every once and awhile.  That could be good training too.  For my job exactly, you can find information about it by just Googling "Saratoga trail crew."  It's a team of 4 of us.  We're based out of SPAC, and we're probably hiring at least one or two people next year.  Our boss normally assigns us different projects, and we travel to various state parks around the capital region.  Normally if we're making a new trail he will have already flagged and designed it.  Then we go make the trail for him.  We also build bridges and drainage systems.  If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.

Benjamin:

Thank you!

Andrew:

No problem!

At the same time, my mom, who works for the town, was asking around.  One of the people she talked to recommended that I approach the town and offer to build mountain bike trails for them.  So, we set up a meeting and I approached the mayor and I told him that I wanted to build technical trails for mountain biking at the Transfer Station (where the cross country running and skiing trails are).  I met with him so I would know if he was interested.  I would then know if it was worth the time to write a proposal. 

He suggested that I offer to work half the day as a maintenance worker and the second half the day building trails.  We talked about stuff I would need, compensation, and if it was actually possible for any of this to happen.  At the end of the meeting he gave me some maps of the land at the Transfer Station.  He told me I should write a proposal for a upcoming town meeting.  I wanted to cover everything, but I also wanted it to be short (so that it could get read at the meeting).  The proposal is below:

Proposed Mountain Bike Trail (addition to Transfer Station Trail System)

What do I want to do?
I want to build technical mountain bike trails with berms (banked turns), natural obstacles (roots and rocks), and a few features (jumps and bridges).  It's been suggested that the Village hire me as a seasonal worker:  scheduled for a few hours a day with normal seasonal responsibilities and the rest of a day to build trails.

Where will I build this?
I would build these mountain bike trails off of the cross country running/skiing trails at the Transfer Station.  Exact trail location to be decided (but within the existing trail boundaries).

How will this help Lake George?
In Lake George there is a lack of mountain bike trails, which is unfortunate considering that the Adirondacks are known for mountain and forest recreation.  In Lake George, the mountain bike trails are too far from the village and are largely unknown.  Having mountain bike trails closer to the village will bring mountain bikers, both locals and tourists, into the village, which will boost the economy when they stop for lunch or buy a keychain at the gift shop. It is giving Lake George one more activity than the next town, so they choose Lake George.  

What do I need?

Common yard tools, such as shovels, rakes, saws, clippers, and wheelbarrows.  Occasional help from a back hoe would be nice, but I can do without that if it's not possible.  

A few days after the meeting I got a call from the mayor and he told me my proposal got approved!

Annabel (& Ambrose): Lewis Carroll & Updates

"The Tumtum Tree," by Ambrose

We’re in the Edge room again. All the kids are at their typical spots for 4th period.  Maddie is on the couch, Ambrose, Nelson, and Annabel are at their individual desks, and Farrell, Ian, and Chris are at their respective individual bean bags.  Santiago is at the round table in the middle of the room.  Mrs. Charlap, Mr. Rivera, and Mr. Bisson are looking at what Ben and James are up to with the snow park project.  The Friend (from the last blog post) and Annabel come in.  Staring at her desk, The Friend sees “The Jabberwocky” and asks, “What does the Cheshire Cat in Alice in Wonderland symbolize?”

“In Lewis Carroll’s book, Through the Looking-Glass, the Cheshire Cat shows up in the fifth chapter called “The Pig and The Pepper.”  Alice finds the cat in the Dutchess’ house grinning from ear to ear.  Alice questions why it is doing that.  The author says that most cheshire cats grin in this world.  This means that there is more than one Cheshire Cat.  The famous Cheshire Cat that we know follows Alice and is famous.  It is the one that speaks to her in that same exact chapter.  The Cheshire Cat is just like regular cats in the world of Alice in Wonderland, but the most famous one guides her around.

“A cat is different from culture to culture, so you can’t really say that this cat (or any cat, for that matter) is good or bad.  In the Dictionary of Symbols, eight different societies have eight different beliefs on this creature.  In some cultures the cat is a sign of good luck, and it is a sin if you actually kill one.  To some, though, they have the common belief that if a black cat crosses in front of you, you have 7 years of bad luck.  So seeing if a cat is good or not depends upon the culture.”

“How does this relate to the Cheshire Cat in the story?”

“Well, a website says that is just a made up idea by Lewis Carroll.”

The Friend says, “Oh, that is cool.  I have a question:  while writing Alice in Wonderland, do you think Lewis Carroll was drunk or taking LSD?”

Annabel says, “Historians don’t really know if he was or not.  There are some articles that say that he was, some say that he was not...and others say that he was.  So, we may never know.”

“Ok, then.  So...it has been about four months. Have you done any work with the symbol essay? What have you been doing?” asks The Friend.

“I took a little break from the essay, and I have been working hard to put in portfolios to five colleges.  I also got into two.”

“Which ones did you get into?”

“I would like to keep those classified until I pick which one I want to go to officially.”

“Ok.  Cool.  How was FIT? What does FIT even stand for? Florida Institute of Technology?”

“Oh, my FIT classes were great,” Annabel explains. “I am now done with them.  I wish I got more time, though.  They were a lot of fun.  I got some high school credits from them, too, so I am pretty happy.  I made a lot of art and learned a lot.  No, FIT does not mean Florida Institute of Technology; that is down south.  I went to the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.”

“Is that where you live?”

“No, I live in the suburb outside of the city.  Where are you from, Anonymous?”

“I don’t know. I think I am from Algoe, NY.”

“Wait, is that a Paper Towns reference?”

“Yes, because it is fake like me.”

“Ok then...that’s...dark.  And...we went on a tendril.  Should we talk about the picture on the table?”

The Friend picks up the drawing and Annabel explains, “That drawing is a Tumtum Tree by Ambrose.  We both read 'The Jabberwocky,' by Lewis Carroll.  We were going into art, and we were wondering what a Vorpal Sword and a Tumtum Tree might look like in real life.  So Ambrose made the Tumtum Tree, and I made the Vorpal Sword.  I also looked at the meaning behind both.  My work is included in a PDF attached to this blog.”



“Isn’t that breaking the fourth wall...and unnecessary?”

“No, it is good to know.  Well...anyways...see you later.  I gotta get back to looking at this dictionary to help me finish writing my essay.”

Annabel then opens the 1168 page Dictionary of Symbols, and her mind starts to explode "through the words."

Ambrose: Illustration # 3

- Piece submitted by Ambrose (2/15/17)

Ambrose: Illustration # 2

- Piece submitted by Ambrose (2/15/17)

Farrell: Animated

Hello, my name is Farrell:  potential cartoonist, animator, and failed comedian.  During my time at Kildonan, I always heard about this program called “EDGE."  I now spend my time in this program.  EDGE is essentially a pre-college course where you are placed in a room with other people and have to manage your time and work on a project that you are passionate about.  Ever since I joined this program, I feel as if my art has improved, and it really does help that I have time to work on what I want to do as a career.

I feel as if the work that I made in the past (outside of Edge) is something that I can now be proud of. Before this program, I never had time to try to understand how to use animation software.  But, thanks to EDGE I now know how to use this animation program called “Adobe Animate" (and thanks to this video I believe I now have an understanding of the basics).  I have made animated shorts to test out the software.  There was a short where a potato man fell down, hit the ground, and became a bird person.  I would like to continue that short and show what happens to the man.

The way I work on my animations is actually way easier than how I worked on them during my summer program.  I use my tablet to draw on my computer, and the animation process takes a lot of time and effort.  First, you have to plan out what you want to animate, then you make a storyboard that's just stills of the main points of the animation.  After that, you draw each frame in motion.  It's almost like stop motion in a way.  So then, you play the clips over and over to make sure they look good.

Ben & James: Snow-Making

Hey! It’s Ben and James.

We're here to tell you what's been happening with Ben's snow park project.  The project is mostly about terrain park design.  For those of you who don't know what that is, all ski mountains have jumps, rails (hand railings), and jibs (anything to jump on or tap) to ride.  Please read Ben's post (linked here) to learn more about the parks!

Now, we are trying to build a terrain park here at Kildonan, and we have a little problem this winter in New York.  There is an extreme lack of snow on campus.  So, an idea that we have been floating around since the beginning of the year is to build a snowmaker.  That process may seem easy, but it actually involves several gas-powered and electrical machines. 

A snowmaker forms snow by shooting pressurized water (made using a pressure washer) at a high velocity into the cold, dry air.  That process involves a temperature of at most 28 degrees Fahrenheit (but, if possible, preferably lower).  Then, a fan, positioned behind the snow gun shoots the newly formed snow even farther away, giving it a chance to absorb more water as it slowly falls to the ground.

So...what have we done so far? The gun itself has almost been constructed.  It’s based on several successful models that have been out on the market for years.  It uses three pressure nozzles for spreading the water in a misty state so that it can fall slowly to the ground, giving it plenty of time to freeze.  In addition, we were loaned a powerful air compressor to help break down the water into ever smaller molecules.

Here is where we need your help:  all we need is a powerful pressure washer capable of putting out 3 - 3.5 gpm (gallons per minute).  If you, or somebody you may know, is interested in helping us acquire a pressure washer or otherwise supporting our dream to bring skiing and snowboarding back to the Kildonan campus, we would love to hear from you.  Join us in bringing a long, successful, snowy season to our school by donating to our GoFundMe.

GoFundMe:  https://www.gofundme.com/let-it-snow

Thank you,

Ben & James

To reach Ben and James, please leave a comment below and the Edge Team will make the connection!

Note on photos:  Ben and James working diligently on their snowmaker.  All images taken and shared by Ben and James.

Ben & Ambrose: Collaborating on Jib Tubes

Ambrose preparing a jib tube (and surrounded by his finished pieces).
Photo taken by Ms. Charlap.

Below two Edge Makers - Ben and Ambrose - discuss their partnership in preparing features for Ben's project:  a terrain park.  Their words are a testament to their robust collaboration skills and effective work processes.

Ben:
Finding parts for the wind chime, I came across some really strong cardboard tubes.  My original plan was to use it as a tail tap even though it wasn't going to last long.  It wasn't going to last because the weather would get to it.  Talking with Ms. Charlap, she said we could have a student paint the tubes and then use the leftover NOVA Gel (from the pictures hanging on the side of the schoolhouse building) to cover the tubes.  That way they wouldn't weather.  We chose Ambrose, a fellow EDGE student, to paint the tubes.  By now, I had two long tubes, so I decided to cut them into five sections with a saw.  Then, I needed to seal the tops so that water couldn't get in and ruin it from the inside.  So, I took a plastic garbage bag, cut it to the size, then duct-taped it on.  Next, I took a piece of sheet metal and cut it a little bit bigger than the hole, drilled holes in the metal and tube, screwed it down, and hammered the metal so it was beveled along the edge.  Then, I gave it to Ambrose.

Ambrose:
As this was going on I would paint large sheets of rag paper with different designs, shapes, and images.  After the paintings were done, I covered them with NOVA Gel, a waterproof acrylic medium, and attached them to the cardboard tubes and finished them with two more layers of that substance.  I made five paintings.  The images are all different, but a lot of the paint colors are the same.  I only had a couple colors at hand, but I managed to figure out how to mix some of them to get the colors I was looking for.

Ben:
Now we just need to wait for the right weather to try them out!

Have a suggestion on materials for Ben and Ambrose? Want to know more about the project and/or these students' work? Drop us a comment in the section below!

Ambrose: Illustration # 1

Original piece by Ambrose.

This was my first one page drawing.  I made this after I studied the story arc.  The story arc is the beginning, middle, and end in a story, which you can see in a normal comic book with the sections divided by the panels in the comic.  But in a one panel comic you see in the newspaper, they don't have panels, so I believe that the story arc is in their speech that is separated by the bubbles.  So I made my own.

I will now be submitting a piece of art once every two weeks for the public to see.

Annabel: My Year in Edge

Upon approaching the end of the school year, Annabel elected to conclude her work as she began it:  with a blog post meditating upon her work and time in Edge.  Presented in its original wording, this piece speaks not only to Annabel's experience but also to the environment of Edge more generally.  Thank you, Annabel, for sharing your wise words.  You are braver than all of us.

- & -

Annabel's conception of fractals, The Golden Ratio, and the Fibonacci Sequence, above.
Image shared with the permission of Annabel.

The definition of a pattern is a repeated, decorative design.  The first thing that you normally think of is paisleys, optical illusions, jagged lines, a lot of circles in circles that are in circles, etc.  I joined a program, and for a full year I looked at the idea of patterns beyond the obvious.  This is what I have learned.  I am going to electrocute you with knowledge.  This is my last and final Edge blog post for the year, and I want to make it special.  So I thought of a couple of things, which will tie everything together.  Everything here does connect. 

Conspiracies are big.  They can go from a well-known president being shot to who caused 9/11 (or who took down the World Trade Center).  Conspirators are people who look up information and go more in-depth with the knowledge they seek.  They find certain spots that seem to connect everything together and say, “This is it! Here is my point of view on the story.”  One of the conspiracies I want to debunk right now - because my peers and I have been told and asked about this many times - is this belief that Edge students do not do any work.  Edge kids do actual work.  We do more work than what is expected from typical classroom habits.

One of the many qualities of human nature is neophobia, or the fear of trying new things.  People think that children must be sat down in front of a teacher and learn everything only according to that hierarchy, not allowing the child to go and figure out the information for themselves.  This idea of a child being free can seem like the end of the world.  The apocalypse.  This must seem like doomsday to most teachers, parents, and traditionalists.  Well, we Edge students do sit and think.  But we don’t do just that.  We talk to our three advisors and tell them what we have learned.  In Edge we also collaborate with our peers.  If you don’t believe me by the end of what I wrote, then I have no clue what to say. It is all just your opinion.

We have passed down knowledge to the next generation in a similar formation to hunting and gathering.  I am still digging deeper into this idea, but the gist of it is that we as humans - if you believe in the idea of evolution - started to hunt and gather knowledge and pass it down to the next generation.  We kept on doing this until we settled down into farmland and started to invent things like domestication and duplicating crops.  After about 5,000 years or so, we sat down and created optional schools for children at a young age.  This went into the factory system, which was invented in the 1800s.  We started changing this idea in the 2000s and 2010s.  But...this idea is not stopping.

Annabel's calculations using the Fibonacci Sequence, above.
Image shared with the permission of Annabel.

Another thing, which I scratched the surface of, is fractals.  This is a pattern where you see something and it keeps on repeating the more and more you get into it.  Like, irrational numbers whose origins come from the Greeks.  Like the commonly used Pi or phi.  Wait! You never heard of Phi? (Gasps from the nonexistent crowd) Well, phi is 1.181639887498948 … this could go on forever because it is an irrational number.  But the main reason why it is important is because it is used in the idea of the golden spiral.  This is a spiral where the pattern starts at 0.  Then you add 0 to 1 (0+1=1), and add 1 to 1 (1+1=2), and add 1 to 2 (1+2=3), and 2 to 3, and then 3 to 5, and so on.  If you don’t get that pattern, here it is in simplified form:  add the number before to the answer that you got before.  To the left is an example of what I am talking about.  The pattern is 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, etc..  This is just one of the many examples I have found in my learning about fractals. 

Learning about certain topics is a big pattern too.  I am going to give an example. Say you want to become an English major.  “English” is a very broad topic.  You look at certain books, and you notice that you are very into science fiction.  In a manner of speaking, you just hit about ten birds with one stone.  Deadpool-style.  With two guns, while we’re at it.  But you are still stuck because this is still a big topic.  So you say you want to look at Apocalypses.  Good, you just killed 10 more birds.  But here is the problem: what do you want to write about apocalypses? Another 10 birds after research.  Editing part of the process? 10 birds. But then you ‘finish’ or summarize what you learned. That would be the end of a hundred of birds you just killed.  (By the way, no birds were harmed in the creating of this description).

But what is the point of me joining Edge?  Well, for one reason.  To learn about something which I would otherwise never have had the opportunity for.  I started out in a normal public school and stayed there for about 10 years.  Never really knowing how to read like others, like the teacher’s “factory” way, or to do anything that is considered “normal” (which was go into a classroom and stare at a page for a long time thinking ‘what is this?’).   I had some very bad times in that school district, but there was a new opportunity presented to me.  That was, transferring to a new school.  There I was slowly able to grow.  I felt something going on.  Like, there is a part of a pattern that we are all missing. For me, something very important was missing.  So, I joined Edge thinking that creative writing was my passion, my main pattern. Patterns, on the other hand, would be something I did for art.  Then I looked more into patterns. One day one of my advisors, Ms. Charlap, told me about this thing called Fractals.  I worked my butt off trying to figure them out.  I became a very complex, modern pattern master.  Even though I am still trying to learn it, I am picking it up slowly.

I also had an opportunity to help fix a pattern.  If you do not know, I am dyslexic.  So, I am trying to learn how to read. It is a slow and super hair-raising, tedious process, but I am making strides.  I was able to read a paper about my life story to convince senators to sign a form that would help the next generation.  This bill would make teachers know about dyslexia in school and is called the A9116.  I compared my learning and how I was trying to learn to using a scythe, a trowel, and a shovel. I need to find which tool let me dig effectively for my treasure of knowledge.  I really did hope for the best.  I then realized:  a couple months later, this was a part of a pattern that helped fix the world.

If you have not noticed, I have been italicizing certain words throughout this piece. These are the words that I have been italicizing:  conspiracy, qualities, knowledge, fractals, learning, opportunity and fix.  These all do connect into one big project.  Everything that I have written about is just the beginning to a big pattern that I am up against.  And I will still be up against it.  It is a never-ending fight to learn something new.  

There is one word to describe all of those words, and that is realization.  One of my greatest inspirations through my learning is Leonardo Da Vinci.  He is dyslexic just like me.  He founded this quote that helps connect this entire essay and my morals for my Edge project together: “Learn how to see. Realize that everything connects to everything else."

Emily: Meringues & Nanaimo Bars

Meringues, ready to serve.
Image located at www.recipeshubs.com.

Meringues
Yum! How can you not love them? Just sugar and egg whites whipped up to perfection. I had quite a bit of fun with this recipe. It was nice to try out my piping skills, and the students and faculty loved them. From the website attached below, I followed the directions exactly.  However, I suggest you leave the vanilla extract out. It gave my meringues a cream color rather than white. If you want a little more flavor, I’d say add some almond extract or some sort of colorless flavoring. Also, when piping, use a big tip to achieve a nice size meringue.  When nearing the hour and a half mark, test one of your meringues to see if it has dried because cook times may vary depending on size and shape. Finally, I served my meringues with berries with sugar; the faculty and students went crazy for that.  http://mobile.eatingwell.com/recipes/meringues.html

A recipe for Nanaimo Bars.
Image provided by Emily.

Mouthwatering Nanaimo Bars.
Image located at thatwinsomegirl.blogspot.com.

 

Nanaimo Bars
This great Canadian treat tastes sooooo good. I used a recipe I got from my mom and aunt. I have attached screenshots of them to the left. Nanaimo bars are easy to make and they are no bake. I have no suggestions for this recipe. They’re that good. They are a must try!

Max: Theater (& Edge as Performance)

Max has spent much of his Edge time interviewing - and reflecting upon the words of - Broadway producers Stewart F. Lane, Bonnie Comley, and Sharon Carr as well as Playbill.com founder and editor Robert Viagas.  For his thoughts on the experience, please read below.

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Max, pictured at right, interviews Broadway producer Sharon Carr.
Image taken by Max.

"A play is like a corporation.  It's got a lot of different people all doing different jobs.  When people see a Broadway show, they think it is just one larger thing.  But it's not.  It's got a lot of moving parts.  You've got people picking the venue, picking the costumes, the director, the actors.  It's all that coming together to put the show on.  I mean, I didn't know all of that before the interviews.  I had to learn there are people they like to work with and teams that they like to pick.  Like, when they do a show, is there a certain person that they like to be with before they pick everyone else?

"Directors have people that they mesh well with.  If they need help, they can give them suggestions.  If they need help, they give suggestions on how to do things in a different, better way.  You know, how to make clearer a scene or the understanding of what is happening at that moment in the play.  Producers are like the CEO.  They help everyone do their part.  Directors ask, 'Are you doing your part?' The producers are kind of like what the Edge team does every week.  They say, 'Have you worked on this? Work on this more.  Go into more depth into your character.  Have you found this costume yet? Are you almost done?'

"The thing is - at the end of the school year - we do a performance of what we have learned.  We show what we've learned and show how Edge has helped us to pursue that and go more in-depth.  I think the depth of it is what helps everyone get as much as they want out of their searching and their project.  They're thinking about what they want to do.  It's kind of like them not having a schedule, but they can make their schedule in the structure that they're doing it.  They're making their own school in a way that works for them.

Posters of Broadway shows The Elephant Man and The Scottsboro Boys.
Image taken by Max.

"I [did] a show recently.  We listed things that are important to us.  We saw what could connect:  social art and music, social media (because you can share it), etc.  We whittled it down to three things that connected with each other, and then we made three different plays.  I'm in the first play, which is showing how social media enhances my life.  I am an actor.  I am the boyfriend in the play.

"In college, you create your own schedule:  what classes you want to take and when they are.  Edge helps kids with that because you're not going to have a schedule that someone hands you at the beginning of the year.  You have to make that.  You have to see when the classes are, what the classes are.  You have to build that schedule toward what you want to do.  That approach makes it set in the people.  It makes us more susceptible to what is going to happen in the future.  It helps us know what is going to happen.

"Edge makes me get more in-depth with what I want to do.  So I understand more about where my life is going and how I can make that happen, or how it will affect my life.  When I choose what I want to do and what I want to study, I can automatically have a sense of where my life is going to go if I choose it.  I think it's just easier to know how you're going to function in a setting like that.  Some of the Edge setting is like that.  It's better to know how to act in a setting than to get in the setting and not know how to respond to it."

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Have a thought on Max's work? Please post in the comments section below! (If you do not see that section, please click on this post's title to be brought to its individual page.  Once there, scroll all the way down to see the comments feature).

Tim: On Building a Z80 Computer

This build will consist of a breadboard, Z80 processor, 8K ROM, 56K RAM, and a display hooked up via VGA. The computer will run Microsoft BASIC. The goal of this project is to get a better understanding of how different parts of computers are connected, get experience with hardware and software work, and create a controller for the robotic arm. The breadboard is essentially the mother board; thus, all of the chips will be attached in their respective places. The computer's memory will only exist as RAM (Random Access Memory) and thus will not be active once the computer is shut off. The OS (Operating System) is stored on the ROM (Read-Only Memory). This allows for the memory chip to be read even after the power has gone out; however, you cannot edit the information on the chip. In other words, it is a read-only chip. Overall, this build will work as a basic computer to control the robot and for the purpose of experimentation.

On the left is a complete build and on the right is a reference for building.

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References:
- https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/how-to-read-a-schematic (Helpful website for reading electronic schematics)
- http://landley.net/history/mirror/cpm/z80.html (More information on z80 processor)
- http://searle.hostei.com/grant/z80/SimpleZ80.html

Emily: Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars & Sweet Strawberry Jam Cupcakes

A couple weeks ago I made Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars, and they were delicious. I found the idea on Pinterest as usual.  However I didn’t use the exact recipe from the site. I used the Nestle Toll House Original Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe and a Cheesecake recipe from a website I found on Google. The ratio of cookie-to-cheesecake is one batch of cookie dough to two batches of  cheesecake. For the cookies I suggest using mini semi-sweet chocolate chips because it makes it easy to press into the pan. If you do decide to use the mini chips, you can add at least half a cup more. I just eye-balled it. For this recipe I have no suggestions because they were simply perfect.

I also made Sweet Strawberry Jam Cupcakes. It’s a vanilla cupcake with a homemade strawberry jam filling and a vanilla buttercream with strawberry jam mixed into it. I suggest using your favorite vanilla cupcake recipe. If you don’t have one, I’ve attached the one I used. To fill the cupcake just take a small ice cream scoop or a teaspoon and scoop out as much of the cupcake as you want to fill. Add as much of the strawberry jam to the buttercream to taste. You can also put any topping you would like to garnish the cupcake. I put a slice of strawberry on top, but a drizzle of chocolate would make it look pretty good.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars.
Image shared by Emily &
located at divascancook.com.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake Bars:

1) Once you have made the cookie dough, take about half the dough and press a thin, even layer into a greased 13x9 pan.
2) Then double the cheesecake recipe and spread the cheesecake mixture evenly across the bottom layer of cookie dough.
3) Then take the remaining cookie dough and put pieces of it on top of the unbaked cheesecake until it mostly covers the cheesecake.
4) Then place in oven heated to 325 degrees for 35-45 minutes or until cheesecake is set and cookie is a golden brown.

Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies:  https://www.verybestbaking.com/recipes/18476/original-nestle-toll-house-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Cheesecake:  http://divascancook.com/chocolate-chip-cookie-cheesecake-barsrecipe-cookie-dough/

Vanilla Cupcake & Vanilla Buttercream:  http://www.browneyedbaker.com/vanillacupcakes-vanilla-buttercream-frosting/

Sweet Strawberry Jam Cupcakes.
Image located by Emily.

 

Clancy: Envisioning the Nanosuit

Some may believe that nanoparticles - let along their weaponized applications - are the stuff of crude science fiction.  However, as recent sources and TED Talks suggest, nanotechnology is an emergent reality that will bring massive innovations across various sectors of modern society.  Clancy shares thoughts on how he is tapping into the promise of the field below:

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A nanosuit, as worn by a soldier from Crytek’s video game Crysis. 
Image located at crysis.wikia.com.

The idea of this particular [nano]suit is to fully enhance the user physically and mentally, making them 100% effective in a combat situation. The suit is specifically a type of hybrid nanosuit that weighs in at approximately one thousand pounds. The suit has four layers that all correspond with each other to keep the user functioning at physical capacity. The first layer actually acts as two; it is the contact layer. This means it is the layer that is responsible for reading the user's bio-electrical signals. The layer is crucial to the suit's design. It is comprised of, on the inside, a crystal compound that can speed up bio-electrical signals and ping them through the suit to a neural transmitter. The first layer on the outside acts as a foundation for the second layer. The first layer resembles a wetsuit. Once the user puts the first layer on, it is filled with a carbon-based gel. This serves as the sub-layer and a median for the active nanite life support system. The second layer is a titanium nano-composite material which is used to construct nano muscle packs. The muscle packs will act as a secondary choice to exo skeletons, having the same functions and properties as a traditional exo in a much more compact, natural-looking, and normal-feeling system. The second layer will have the capability to transfer power to the inner and outer layers. The third and outer most layer is titanium alloy plating, which is magnetically bolted to the second layer. The plates are between three and four inches thick. The third layer has a piezonucleic coating of gold and lithium-hydrate. This is woven into the third layer at 14 nano meters. This coating produces energy for the suit. My hypothesis is that it can also project energy, forming a shield around the suit.

Thoughts or questions for Clancy? Please post in the comments section below!

Marcus: Money & Happiness

A screenshot of Marcus's original survey.  Image shared by Marcus.

Hello my name is Marcus and I am in Edge. My project is business, and I am studying the many aspects of the topic. Lately I have been focusing on the science portion of my project. I have sent out a survey asking how much money would you need for your entire lifetime. Then I took 6 people from the list who filled it out, and I have been asking multiple questions about their answers. The hope of my whole science project is to get people really thinking about their future because we do not know what we want until we think about it. What I have been finding out from the survey is that people really don’t know the worth of money, how much they need, or their expenses for the future.

I would love any feedback relating to what I’m doing and the survey (ex:  questions you like and more good questions to ask).  Here are my questions:

1. What did you pick as your money amount? 
2. What is your definition of being happy with the money amount? 
3. What influenced your decision?
4. Are you expecting to have a family?
5. Did you take account of kids and schooling, dentists, doctors, bills and other expenses? 
6. Are you planning to support your spouse with the money? 
7. Why do you think this amount will keep you happy?
8. Are you expecting to go on family vacations?
9. Why do you think some people need less or more money to be happy?
10. Do you know the average American would make $1,400,000 in their whole lives? (The average kid till the age 18 the parent will usually spend $245,000.)

Tess on Her Internship at The Center for Attachment Research (CAR)

Over the past few weeks while working at the Center for Attachment Research (CAR) at The New School (@TheNewSchool) in New York, NY, I ascertained things that I never would have learned being confined to a rural setting. I have been introduced to complex psychological concepts, while simultaneously learning a tremendous amount about myself.

The New School for Social Research (NSSR):  "A Global Hub in NYC.”
Image located at www.newschool.edu/nssr/.

In the lab, clinicians implement an intervention known as GABI (Group Attachment Based Intervention).  “This project concerns family preservation and the prevention of child maltreatment. The families who participate in GABI are often very isolated, and have had multiple adverse childhood experiences and ongoing experiences of poverty” (lab memo regarding ongoing projects). My direct work with high risk families has been both enlightening and painful.

I have always been conscious of poverty, both in and outside America. From a young age I have felt a strong obligation to help those less fortunate than I. I have had the unique opportunity of traveling around the world with my family during our summer vacations. Every country we visit, we allocate time to volunteering in townships, orphanages, or building schools in remote villages. At the end of the trip we always return home and those experiences soon become powerful memories.

There is a big difference between volunteering in Africa, many thousands of miles away from my home, and interacting with affected families on a consistent basis (some of whom live less than thirty blocks away from me). Now, there is not a ten hour flight distancing me from the harsh truth that many Americans struggle to obtain their next meal every day. 

This past week, a new mother came into The New School to take part in the intervention.  When new mothers come in, they are given a series of surveys such as the AAI (Adult Attachment Interview) and ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences). These are designed to help get a well rounded idea of the patient and to gain insight into their lives and struggles. At the end of the session, the mother, 23-years-old with four children, asked the clinician administering the surveys if she had any extra diapers. She acknowledged that her government check was not going to come for three days and she had no money to buy diapers for her children; without them her four children would be wearing dirty diapers for the entire weekend.

The interventions conducted at The New School are strictly focused on mending the parent-child bond. They do amazing work and help countless families. Yet, it is an ongoing struggle for me to hear some of the devastating personal stories and not be able to do anything to improve the quality of life of the people I meet. Unfortunately, the anecdote above is on the less extreme end of the spectrum of some I have heard.

I find myself conflicted when trying to find the line between patient and struggling human being. I have realized that this internal struggle is good. It reaffirms the fact that I feel a strong obligation to help those who have had far more complicated lives with less resources than I. At work I have to compartmentalize these feelings, but they definitely do not have to disappear.

Logo for The Robin Hood Foundation.
Image located at http://2014.c4q.nyc/#/logoslide.

I have channeled my frustrations into positive actions. I have started volunteering at a homeless shelter where many of the GABI participles find refuge. In addition I have joined a teen council to fight poverty in America through the Robin Hood Foundation (@RobinHoodNYC). None of these would be possible if was still living in Amenia.

Before I started my internship at the CAR, my goal in life was to rise to the top of whatever field I decided to pursue, trusting that it could be lucrative. Now, my goal is to strive to help as many people as I can. I will still yearn to make a name for myself, but I hope to be known for fully focusing on being altruistic and not on how many zeros are at the end of my paycheck.