Leslie's Logic

Nadja, my patchwork poem and my Monster Collage are in my Moo. The patchwork poem is in Justine's Barn and my monster collage is in Murder scene of William under one of the objects. My link works now too. I did not have time yesterday to fix it. I fixed it now. Have fun grading all of these things. I enjoyed working on all these things in class. I have learned a lot from this. Thanks for all that you have done.

Leslie,

Heads up!! Excellent job with your paper chase, AI research and reflection (human/computer) and revisited version, and online community information. Make sure that tomorrow am all your links are working. I was unable to view your monster collage and your first flash poem. Please fix that so I can grade them. Thanks alot.

Nadja :)

      The Thermoelectric Cooling Chip, just released last year, is already a big sensation in the electrical world, but is it a good thing? The Thermoelectric Cooling Chip or TCC for short is a new hit. Made out of two layers of semiconductor materials, it is able to chill anything in a matter of moments. It is also able to provide power to machines. It acts like a battery but never runs out because it functions on temperature differences. The TCC is about the size of a postage stamp and will work with any appliance. But is this a help or a hindrance to the economy.
      Recent reports have shown that the Thermoelectric Cooling Chip has created major problems with the economy. Before the TCC was used in all appliances, electricity was used to power objects. With the use of the TCC electricity is hardly ever needed. This has created a problem at the power plants. They are not getting enough money in to keep people employed, so therefore they are laying people off by the dozen. One previous employee of Wires and Plugs Electric Co. Ima Complainer comments, "I am an electrical engineer and when I lost my job it totally devastated me. I now have no job, no money, and am to old to learn a new trade. The TCC totally ruined my life.” Thousands of workers were laid off, thus increasing the number of unemployed.
      Another added problem that has come about because of the TCC is the money that is being lost. People are no longer paying for electricity so the electric market is dropping and money is being lost. To try and balance the money loss, the price of electricity has gone up. Those who do not have the TCC in all of their appliances are at a loss. They have to pay a lot more for their electricity in order to have their appliances work. Mr. Chris Anthemum says, " I do not have enough money to buy TCC's for all of my electrical appliances, but everyone else has, so it increased the price that I have to pay. Now I have hardly any money because the price was raised 200 percent. We should all go back to electricity."
      The TCC's have also hurt the global economy. The natural resources are not being used, like coal and natural gasses. Therefore the workers in the coal mines and the people working for the natural gas companies have been laid off. This creates a problem not only for the economy of the United States but also for the economies of the other countries. These countries are no longer exporting their goods to the United States so they are not getting any money for their economy. This causes the world market to shut down and come to a complete halt. The TCC has totally devastated the entire world. Though it does good for products, it is bad for the economy.

Title Crappy Cooling Chip
description- cools down anything that it is plugged into. Provides power for things. Made up of two semiconductor-based materials. Very efficient. Quiet. Get it once and it lasts a lifetime.
Sentence that captures the main point. The Thermoelectric Cooling Chip needs to stop being produced because it creates losses in the economy.
Three main points-
1. Layoffs at the power plant
2. Natural resources are not being used, thus creating a build up
3. People are not paying for electricity so money is being lost.

Interacting with the Internet is really fun. I went to thepalace.com and became a character. It was fun. I got to pick my character and move around and talk to other people. It was pretty real. The people actually talked back. It was unlike the Alice bot I talked to earlier. The bot was unreal and did not answer my questions especially with yes and no questions. I also went to active worlds. There I became a character and was able to move around the space, talk to other people and do different things. I found out how to fly and swim as well. I soared through the sky and it seamed real. I swam in the ocean and was amazed that I did not have to come up for air. I then played a game online. I played this funny game about milk. I was a baby and had to drink the milk in order to eat the cookies. There were several obstacles I had to overcome and things ran me over like vacuum cleaners. It was different. I am pretty good at playing these games online but not a talking with people. That is about all I had time for today. it was really neat.
I went to a really neat place today. I talked briefly about it earlier. This place is called the active world. There I signed in and became a character. I saw everything from the viewpoint of the character. I was able to walk around by using the keyboard. I figured out how to fly and swim in the place. To fly you press the"+" button and to swim you press the "-" button. It was neat. I could explore the ocean and the sky. I was also able to interact with all sorts of different people. The online communities are fun and interesting.

I think that my opinion about robots and computers not having emotion has changed. I did research on robots that had emotion and it was astounding. There were a lot of robots that had emotion. Kismet had emotion. He responded to what people said to him in a certain way. Robots can also smell. That is neat because I did not think that they could.

Robots that have emotion and smell

One site that has information on Robots that have emotions is http://www.ai.mit.edu/projects/sociable/emotions.html . This site deals with a robot named Kismet who reacts with different emotions. "Kismet's "emotions" are triggered by various events which are evaluated as being of significance to the ``well being'' of the robot. Once triggered, each "emotion" serves a particular set of functions to establish a desired relation between the robot to its environment." says the web site. To get to information on Kismeet click here.

ANother site dealing with Kismet is http://www.ee.ic.ac.uk/eee2proj/hll01/COaiextra.html. To get to this site click here.


One site that has information about robots that smell is http://aass.oru.se/Research/Learning/proj_nbs.html . This site deals with a navigation by smell. The Örebro Mark III mobile nose is mounted on a Koala robot. THis allows the robot to smell things. To get to this site click here.

ANother site that deals with robots that smell is http://www.chicagotribune.com/technology/chi-0212140142dec14.story. his tells about a robot named Banryu. This is a robot that is made overseas that looks like a dragon. It can watch your house while you are away. It has site, sense, and smell systems as well as many other things. To get to this site click here.

At this website, it talks about a new robot called the emtional machine. Like ants following their own pheromone trails back home, robots can be fitted with special quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) sensors to detect and follow specific chemicals along the ground. With the ability to sense particular odours in this way, the applications of robots will stretch yet further. For example, swarms of robots could move together without colliding by avoiding the ‘smell’ of their neighbour.
http://www.abc.net.au/science/slab/robo/emotional.htm


This website is about robots sense of smell . Gas sensor systems known as "electronic noses" have been widely used under laboratory conditions, for food analysis, but so far there have been few applications on mobile platforms in real world environments, for use by intelligent service robots.
http://aass.oru.se/Research/Learning/proj_nbs.html


This website talks about the use of smelling robots in airports.
http://www.thetech.org/exhibits/online/robotics/universal/page10.html

What does it mean to be human? That is a good question. Being human is being created in the image of God. Being human is having the choice to choose, or free will. Being human means that we are to serve God with our whole lives. Being human is also many other things. It is breathing, taking in the life producing oxygen into your lungs. It is being able to love and be loved back. It is being able to express yourself freely, cry, laugh, and have emotions. A human has blood flowing through its veins, water in its body and food in its stomach. Being human is being able to think freely, nt having a button pressed to make you do anything. Being human is awesome.
What does it mean to be a computer? That is a different sort of question. To be a computer is to be a piece of metal that is infused with chips of memory and electricity. Being a computer means that you do not think of your own accord. You have no emotions unless programmed in and you can't get up and move about. Being a compute would be dull and pointless.
_____________________________________
Well we had a little experiment. Here is what I felt. I felt a squishy ball that had stringy things on the end of it. I also felt a thin stick, next a flowing scarf or something made out of material. Then came a rock that was smooth and then some sort of round object that was like a coin because of the raised edges on it.

Next we went to smell. The first thing I smelt was I think some tea maybe chamomile (mint). Then was something I could not recognize but I did not like it (coffee grounds). Then was cinnamon. I love that smell. And then I think there was another tea but I am not sure. (pepper)

For the sound I heard a jingle bell, a piece of paper, some keys (bangles), and then a water bottle.

Taste that was interesting. First was an apple, then a piece of lemon then a ruffle salt chip.

I saw myself.

Two web sites and their evaluations:

1. “Thermoelectric History/General Information”. Melcor. http://www.melcor.com/history.htm (7/28/01)

Evaluation

1. I couldn’t tell
2. .com
3. I couldn’t find
4. a company or organization
5. to inform the public about the product and the history of thermoelectric coolers
6. balanced objective info
7. Yes, the site provides contact info
8. I couldn’t tell
9. yes
10. yes
11. no
12. first three

2. “Introduction to Thermoelectric Cooling”. FerroTec http://ferrotec-america.com/3refframe.htm (7/28/03)

Evaluation
1. no
2. .com
3. I couldn’t find this information
4. company, education/public service, research
5. to tell the public about the product and its history
6. balanced, objective, info
7. yes, an about us page
8. I couldn’t tell
9. sort of
10. yes
11. no
12. first three

      There are many innovations that have come around during our time. Some of these are the light bulb, the radio, the microwave, the computer, and airplanes. None of these has a more interesting history and future than the car.
     Automobiles have been around for many years. They are used by millions of people every single day. They transport people, cargo, and many other things. Automobiles have an interesting past, a useful present, and a promising future.
     Most people think that automobiles were invented in the United States and by Henry Ford. Well this is far from the truth. Automobiles were perfected in 1901, by a number of men from countries like Germany and France. Some of these men were Nicolaus Otto, Gottlieb Daimler, Carl Benz, and Emile Levassor. The first modern automobile in all essentials was the Mercedes built in 1901 by Wilhem Maybach. The first successful car in America was built by bicycle mechanics J. Frank and Charles E. Duryea, of Springfield, Mass. They created the first successful American gasoline automobile in 1893. In 1908 Henry Ford came into the automobile world. He did not invent the car but invented interchangeable parts for cars and the assembly line with mass production. By 1908 Henry Ford had introduced the Model T to the world and William C. Durant founded General Motors, a major car part producer.
      Since then the automobile industry has provided cars to people with both low and high income and to a variety of people from farmers to millionaires. Cars have been produced to ship around goods and also to move people in times of war and peace. The automobile industry has also provided a number of jobs for the people in the community. The automobile industry provides one out of every six jobs in the U.S. The automobile also ended rural isolation and brought urban services, such as medical care and schools.
      Automobiles today are not like automobiles of a few years past. When they were first invented automobiles were big, slow moving objects on wheels. As they progressed, automobiles became sleeker, faster, and came in a variety of colors and with appliances. Cars never used to have air conditioning but they do now, they never used to have radios but they do now. The same thing is with antilock brakes, power steering, and comfy seats. Cars today have greatly advanced from the cars of 5 years age. Today cars have navigation devices, CD playing capability, televisions, DVD players, appliance plugs, seat warmers, and auto starters. This is a big change from about 100 years ago.
      One hundred years ago cars were totally different from what they are today. One hundred years from now cars will be totally different from what they are now. As the car industry develops I think that we will find some changes. Cars will most likely not run on gasoline. They will probably run on electricity, maybe even the semi-conductor based thermoelectric device that was in my article summary. Cars could even run on processed trash. The trash would give that car energy and also take away the overcrowding of landfills. Cars will most likely not get any smaller, for if they do nothing will be able to fit in them. The speed will probably increase, but that will depend on the roads and the surrounding area. One thing that might change is the way the cars are driven. Cars today are driven by the driver all of the time. In the future cars might have a device in them that allows the car to go all by itself. A destination could be programmed into the car and the car would go to that destination. There would be sensors on the car that will tell the car where objects are so that it does not collide with them.
      There is a strong future in the automobile industry. Many things can happen. People predicted that we would be driving in the sky in 2000 but that never happened. It probably will not any time in the near future but it is possible. For now there are plenty of things that can happen with the future of the car.
     There are many pros for an automobile and several cons. One pro is that a car can get people around faster. One con of the car is that it causes accidents. Cars carry people around at a high rate of speed and sometimes they crash. This is usually because of the carelessness of the driver, but sometimes it can be because of the car. Another con to the car is that is makes people fat. People used to have to walk everywhere or go on a bike, but now people drive everywhere. This causes them to just sit on their but all the time and not get any exercise. If they had no cars then they would walk.
     There is a big difference between something that is organic and something that is binary. Something that is organic is put together by God, it has living materials inside of it. Something that is binary is put together by humans and consists of numbers that program it to do a certain function. Organic things are not programmed to do a function they just do it. Binary reads a combination of ones and zeros to get things done. Binary things cannot think for themselves, they have to be programmed. Organic things (humans) can think for themselves.

Batteries/electricity
1. http://www.nature.com/nsu/030414/030414-14.html
· “New batteries promise low cost electricity”- These batteries are made of Magnesium and are light, nontoxic, and cheap.

Water
1. http://www.clo2.com/reading/drinking/recent/recent.html
· “Recent Advances in Chlorine Dioxide Application Technology for Water Treatment”-This deals with the use of Chlorine Dioxide to treat water and make it pure. This treatment can remove both odor and taste from the water.
2. http://www.waterforliving.com/files/Advances_in_Membrane_Technology_for_Beverage_Water_Treatment.html
· “Advances in Membrane Technology for Beverage Water Treatment” – This article deals with three new procedures that deal with treating beverage water so that it is drinkable. The three new procedures take out different sized particles.
Appliances
1. http://www.centralchronicle.com/20030703/0307171.htm
*”LG to bring Internet-equipped refrigerator”- This article tells about an internet- equipped refrigerator that can display a mouthwatering dish with a recipe, an automatic inventory that will show what's inside without opening the door. It can also order the food when you are running low.
2. http://gizmodo.net/archives/001839.php
· This is about a robotic vacuum. It can automatically figure out the way around the room, clean the room, and go back to the charging station.
3. http://www.geappliances.com/advantium/about/
a. This is about a microwave that can cook food up to eight times faster with light. This can bake, broil, roast and even grill. It is a smart faster new way of cooking.
4. http://www.forbes.com/2001/12/21/1221networking.html#smart
· This is about a smart washing machine. It looks like a regular washing machine but it does all of the washing via the internet. The machine can tell if the soap and water have soaked through the clothes, how much soap and water to use, and it can perfectly time the cycle.

     One of the future innovations that can come from one of the articles that I read is a device that can see what kind of molecules are in the air. This can be helpful in determining if we have been under attack by biological weapons. The device coul pick up the proteins in the chemicals and tell the researchers what that chemical is. This device is put on a simple silicon chip so it is small and can fit anywhere.
     The discovery that plutonium leaves a genetic fingerprint can help people who have been exposed to the effects of the radiation from the atomic bombs. This can help doctors distinguish the difference between the mark of calcium, plutonium and radon. The clacium and plutonium both are absorbed by the body and taken into the bones. Now with the genetic fingerprint of plutonium doctors can decided if that is in the body and then trat it. A future innovation will be an easy detection device to those people who have possibly been exposed to radiation and plutonium.
     A prototype that is able to chill objects really quickly and create power too is being developed today. In a few years this device could be used in many fields. The device the size of a postage stamp could power cell phones and many other electrical equipment and be powered by the changes of heat in the body. It could chill a can of soda and a few minutes before it comes out of the machine so it will save electricity. It could be installed in coolers wher they put the heart to keep cool for heart transplants. It could power and AED and save people's lives. It could be the future battery and be put in many deices. It is really safe because it only uses thermoelectric materials and a thin layer of semi-conductors. There are many innovations that can come out of this one prototype.

     The article I chose is called A New Cool Prototype chills and electrifies, too. This article came from the Science News Weekly magazine April 5, 2003 issue. This article is basically about a prototype semiconductor-based device that can chill things and provide electricity. This device stands a pretty good chance at changing power and refrigeration technologies. The prototype is made up of thousands of alternating atoms and thick layers of two semiconductor materials. This thermoelectric structure can produce and pump heat when it is powered by electricity and it can also turn a temperature difference into an electric current. Some scientists have envisioned that thermoelectric materials are not noisy, really reliable, and energy-efficient components for cooling devices such as refrigerators. But in reality thermoelectric materials have been inefficient and expensive. These materials are in space probes so they are kind of expensive.

     About 18 months ago, Rama Venkatasubramania of the Research Triangle Institute (RIT) in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, and his colleagues have reported a new thermoelectric material. The new thermoelectric material greatly surpasses the efficiency of previous materials. Venkatasubramania and his colleagues have incorporated their material into a prototype device. This device performs as well as conventional thermoelectric based coolers but it is quicker to chill and smaller. The research team used the prototype to as a power source to run four small fans and to demonstrate the chilling abilities of the prototype by chilling a block of steel to 15 degrees F in two minutes. In about another six months Venkatasubramania thinks that the devices efficiency will double. Some applications that are being done right now is putting this cooler in high end ones, such as spot cooling of lasers in communications networks. He also hopes the in the future that the thermoelectric components will power cell phones by taking advantage of the person’s body heat. Another application that can be made from this is putting it is soda machines so that is can quickly cool the can of soda shortly before it is dispensed instead of using energy consuming perpetual refrigeration.

Articles chosen for the Paper Chase.
The articles I chose for the paper chase are as follows:

1. Tough Nut is Cracked: Antibody treatment stifles peanut reactions. from Science News This Week, March 15, 2003
2. Radiation Marks Chromosomes Plutonium leaves genetic fingerprint from Science News This Week, April 19, 2003
3. A New Cool prototype cools fast and electrifies, too from Science News This Week, April 5, 2003
4. Tiny Labs polymers on silicon chip catch, release proteins from Science News This Week July 19, 2003

I will most likely be writing the article on either number 3 or 4. Good luck to the rest of you.