Final Project Reflection!

Overall, I felt my final project of building a solar car to harness solar energy and travel the farthest distance was relatively entertaining. There are many things I felt I could've improved on while working on my project. I didn't manage my time carefully for the actual project itself, I acted as though I had all of the time in the world. I should have also tested my design more thoroughly outside on the actual pavement. For this project however, I do feel I managed my time well for the design report, I started it as soon as we were given the project and as I progressed, I'd update my report. If I had another chance I would angle the solar panel and do more research on the most efficient material to use while producing the car.

My experiences doing this project will help me with many of my future classes. We had to learn to work on our own and manage our own time. This could help with other classes when we have individual projects. I learned how to be more responsible, which is a good trait to obtain when it comes to having an actual career. While working on this project I had to present on my own in front of the entire class. I learned how to engage the students. This could help with other classes in high school and college as well, since we'll have many more presentations to look forward to. 

 Overall, although it was hard and I did slack off once in a while, I believe I managed my time well since in the end I completed the project on the exact due date. Writing a 10 page report wasn't too difficult, since I did it gradually, piece by piece. Writing the actual report and formatting it was rather simple in my opinion. Preparing the actual presentation was easy. However, when it came to presenting it was nerve wrecking and simply terrible. I get far too nervous when it comes to presenting in front of others because I feel like they're judging everything I say and the way I physically present myself. It was also hard for me to focus on engaging the audience when the only thing I could think of was getting over with the presentation. Nervertheless, I got through it and was proud of myself.

Working by myself differed from working in a team. I didn't have anyone to guide me when I needed help. I also had to be more responsible and focus on managing my time and completing the objective of my project to the best of my ability. It was also less stressful because I could do everything my way, I didn't have to consult anyone. It was easier to write my report since working collaboratively is one of my weaknesses. Most of the time in groups, I usually end up doing most of the work, so it was better working individually. The only person I had to rely on was myself and that's the way I like it.

Overall, I enjoyed this final project. However, I feel like I would have had more fun if I did a cosmetic project. It seemed more entertaining and easier. Nevertheless, I found this final project entertaining and a positive experience.

 Link to design report

Solar car progress report number 7!

Our solar cars must be completed in a few days. I've been able to complete my third prototype. I've already talked about my first prototype in my previous entry, therefore I won't spend time explaining it again. My second prototype is made out of balsa wood. It consists of two 3'16 wooden inch dowels for the axles, four CD's for the wheels, four rubber stoppers for the hubs, and two straws for bearings. This prototype ended up failing because when I tested it out I found the wheels were still unable to move. They were too heavy and caused too much friction. Therefore, I decided to make my prototype using gears. I used four gears, all of the same size. I found that this worked better. For the two front wheels I decided to use two gears on each side and for the back wheels, one gear on each side. I tested it out and although it worked, it was still too heavy, since the solar panel doesn't conduct enough energy. Therefore, for the fourth prototype I decided to only use two wheels in the front and two wheels in the back. I found that the motor has to be connected carefully or else it won't allow the wheels to spin properly. I also realized putting duct tape on the connectors, causes issues with the conduction.
Link to design report- (In progress)