Building the Future

We often take for granted the gadgets in our pockets, and the effort, problem solving, and innovation that went into making them a reality.

     However, for members of LBCC's Remotely Operated Vehicles Club, ingenuity, imagination, and finding solutions to problems through science is all part of a day's work. They may not be building the next smart phone, but the tasks they set out to solve, and the challenges they are building robots to overcome provide students here at LBCC the chance to dig down, and explore this exciting field of study.

     Greg Mulder, one of the faculty advisors for the group, summed up the ROV club as a diverse group of students in various fields of study who come together for a common cause. Whether it is building a submersible to explore underwater volcanoes, and study estuaries, to working with other schools of all levels to promote an interest in the sciences, the club provides opportunities to develop a strong sense of community. The advisor was not alone in this sentiment.

     "Everyone is welcome," said Jody Eaton, the club's treasurer. She spoke of how everyone worked together, working on each component and task, and then would come together as a whole to share his or her results. The supportive nature of the club means everyone, regardless of who they are, is a part of the collaborative feel, and ultimate success of the projects at hand. "It is fun to watch the evolution of an idea," she said as she worked away on her laptop developing a code for the component she was working on.

     However, it is not all fun and games, as the ROV club tackle real world issues. In the wake of the Deep Horizon explosion, and the resulting oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the club — along with ROV clubs all over the nation — set out to work on solutions on how to cap the gushing well. The club provides the opportunity to work on real world problems, taking hands on approach to finding solutions to seemingly insurmountable challenges.

     "One of the things we do is simulating a test or do a challenge," said Michael Tilse, a returning club member. "For our competitions, we are given instructions on props to build so that we can build our ROV to fulfill certain tasks." Michael, who helps design the components and control systems for the ROVs spoke of how the process of building a robot for a competition often starts with nothing more than a few hints from the group running the competition itself. Throughout the year, using the hints given (this year seeming to point to the salvaging of underwater WWII debris), the club will work on building the ground work for a robot, adding to and changing it as they learn more about the task they will ultimately be putting the ROV through its paces in.

     The club is open to all interested students, regardless of their skill levels, for this is not only a place to work on robotics, but also a place to learn new skills, from the fabrication of parts, the coding of computer programs, to technical writing of reports on how various aspects of the process are moving along. Anyone interested in joining can contact Greg Mulder, or come to Madrone Hall 113 on Monday or Wednesday at 4pm for the club meetings.

Reaching the Future - a new year for the LBCC ROV club.

For my second article, I hope to interview and explore what the R.O.V. (robotics) Club is going to work on this year. Last year, the club won a prestigious robotics challenge, so the question is 'where do you go from here'.

My prospective sources are Greg Mulder, a faculty adviser, and the students who participate.

My questions for the advisers and club members are:

1. How did your success last year as a club inspire what you are doing this year?

2. Are you preparing for any competitions this year, and what goes into getting your robots ready?

3. When and where do you meet, and who can interested students contact about joining?

Understanding Campus Diversity

In November of 2010, someone posted flyers on campus, causing quite a stir. The flyers, which included the contact information of a LBCC faculty member to make them appear official, mocked a group of students within our LBCC community, and ridiculed an upcoming event.

     The flyers reminded us of the importance of diversity on campus, both in our student body, and in the recognition of differing opinions that are a part of our community. As we begin a new year here at LBCC, we now have an opportunity to explore how our differences can bring us together, and help us learn to live in a world where diversity is our cultural reality.

     The flyers themselves, posted anonymously on the boards around the Courtyard, rebranded an upcoming discussion panel on LGBT issues as 'Come to Jizzfest 2010' speaking of the event as 'it's Cumtastic'. The response by the student body as the news spread of what happened ranged from shock that such a thing would happen, to passionate debates about if taking down the flyer had constituted a breach of first amendment rights. Articles appeared in the Commuter, debating multiple sides of the issue. Students signed letters denouncing the attitudes presented in the flyers themselves.

     However, beyond that, most students were at a lost as to what they could do to celebrate and promote our diversity. It is easy as a student to feel there is little they can do to shape their experiences here at LBCC.

     As we settle into a new year, we now have an opportunity to do just that. We as students do have chances to reach out, and help broaden our understanding in issues of diversity of all types. For those who are new here at LBCC, the Diversity Achievement Center is a great place to hang out, meet with like-minded students, and learn. Located on the second floor of the courtyard, and just to the north of the Learning center, the D.A.C. is open to students, and is a resource students can use.

     "Everything we do at the D.A.C. is about learning, teaching, and experience different aspects of diversity," Said Associate Dean of Students, Sandra Shinkle. "Get involved; get engaged. There are many opportunities. Volunteer, participate, and come to events."

     Any students can suggest topics for events at the D.A.C., allowing everyone to be empowered, and are encouraged to do so.

     As Counselor, Mark Weiss said, "I always hope education brings us to a higher state of being."

     Our diversity as a campus is a role we the students hold. It is an opportunity to broaden our understanding of a world that grows more globally connected with each passing day. We come to learn from our teachers, but we also have the chance to learn from each other. This is the great and untold secret of the college experience.   

     The posting of the flyers was an act that done quietly, but the response to it was anything but. We came together in the aftermath of the incident, and we must remember that we do not need to wait until such an event has taken place to speak openly and civil about matters of diversity.

     In the words of Martian Luther King Jr.: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

     We may not always feel this way, but no one is powerless.

Missing information

While reading through some agregated entertainment news articles, I found one that really annoyed me. It was not that it was poorly written, but that is teased information that it did not deliver. If you are going to say that an actor was offered a role in a film, but turned it down, wanting to have a bigger role, should we not know what role he was offered? it seems like a peice of the story that is missing, but needs to be there.

http://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/view/214642/David-Walliams-Harry-Potter-blunder/