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Protecting Costa Rica
03/11/2015Preservation of natural habitats is important on a global level, and Costa Rica is one of the leading countries in habitat protection. Protecting Costa Rica is a short documentary that answers the following question: What actions have been taken by this country to reverse decades of environmental damage? The story of this country’s transformational journey is told through interviews of Costa Rican natives, directors of the country’s biological reserves and national parks, and science professors from Kent State University. The narration consists of information extracted from these interviews and from knowledge gathered during a three-week tour of four of the country’s biological reserves. The research reveals that Costa Rica is a proactive nation that values the environmental state of its country. The people of Costa Rica are paving the way for other countries in terms of educational outreach and biological programs that greatly reduce and reverse environmental damage.
Moorish and Jewish Influences on Modern Architecture in Spain
Spanish architecture is riddled with various architecture influences over the course of history. Moorish and Jewish influence on Spanish architecture traces all the way back into the times of the Inquisition in Spain. One thing that should be made apparent is that Spain was always in search of “purely” Spanish architectural identity, when in actuality Spain was always a country of many different peoples with many different cultures. This cultural variety brought diversity in what was thought to be “purely” Spanish. Two influences stand out among the rest; Moorish and Jewish architecture. These two groups of people created inspiring architecture that played a key factor in Spain’s architectural history, and has remained as an influence on their modern architecture as well. Moorish and Jewish architectural influence is seen in Spanish modern architecture in form, ornament, and functionality. The importance of knowing whether this connection exists in modern Spanish architecture aides in the analysis of it, as well as further proof of how, though seeming original, it still remains to have remnants of influence from other cultures and not just Spanish alone.
Methods that will assist in this research endeavor will be that of personal observations, analyzing texts from Flores, Mackay, and any primary sources that can be utilized to further argue that Spain’s modern architecture contains influence from Moorish and Jewish influences.
Impact of Social Psychology Phenomena on Mainstream Inclusion of People with Disabilities
03/15/2016Problem: Social psychology focuses on the complexities of human interaction. As such, I wanted to determine if some of the known social psychology mechanisms and principles could be used to explain the challenges faced and the progress that has been made in the community inclusion of people with disabilities. If in fact this was the case, then I wanted to explore whether additional application of these principles could be used to advance goals for inclusion further.
Method: I pulled relevant information about various phenomena from Social Psychology (Aronson et al., 2013). Then, I consulted several other books and articles related to social psychology and disability studies to intertwine these concepts and consider how they might be related.
Results: I have concluded that an understanding of general social psychology phenomena can be used to explain both some of the barriers seen to inclusion efforts and the progress that has been made to date.
Conclusion: It is quite possible that the deliberate application of social psychological phenomena could be used to facilitate inclusion further. The impact of social psychological principles on inclusion can be divided into three areas: policy, portrayal, and practice. Policy refers to the ways in which systems, rules, and culture are set up. Portrayal deals with how people with disabilities and inclusive situations are depicted. Practice considers how inclusion is carried out. These three areas make up a trifecta of principles under which I suggest alterations that can be used to enact change toward a more inclusive world.
Hybrid Unmanned Aircraft System with Long Flight Autonomy and Capable of Lifting 20 lbs of Payload
The current project represents Phase 3 of a four-phase endeavor at Kent State University at Tuscarawas. Its general objectives are to design, build and test an UAS consisting of an octocopter as UAV (Figure 1) for data acquisition and capable of operating under manual control, stabilized control and automated control (autopilot). The system has video acquisition and recording subsystem consisting of an SJ 4000 action camera mounted on a 3–axes gimbal for image stabilization (Figure 2) and first person view (FPV) subsystem consisting of an HD camera, 5.8 GHz video transmitter and receiver modules and on-screen display (OSD) for transmitting telemetry data (Figure 3).
Hybrid Unmanned Aircraft System with Long Flight Autonomy
The current project represents Phase 3 of a four-phase endeavor at Kent State University at Tuscarawas.
Its general objectives are to design, build and test an UAS consisting of an octocopter as UAV
for data acquisition and capable of operating under manual control, stabilized control and automated
control (autopilot). The system has video acquisition and recording subsystem consisting of an SJ 4000
action camera mounted on a 3–axes gimbal for image stabilization and first person view (FPV)
subsystem consisting of an HD camera, 5.8 GHz video transmitter and receiver modules and on-screen
display (OSD) for transmitting telemetry data
