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Let's Learn All About Minerals! - Mineral Lab with David & Inna

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-Video-



-Mineral Properties-

Luster - The property of mineral that can be either metallic or nonmetallic determined by the shininess of the mineral.
Color - The property of the mineral that can be identified when the mineral is rubbed against a hard surface like a streak plate.
Hardness - How hard or soft the mineral is. It's determined on a scale of 1-10, also known as the MoH scale.
Cleavage/Fracture - The type of breakage of the mineral. When the breakage is even, it is the cleavage, whereas when the breakage is uneven, it is the fracture.
Composition - The different factors that made up the mineral.

-Reflection-

What did you enjoy most about this project and why?
I enjoyed making the video the most because I was able to do my first proper voiceover with the high-quality microphone I bought last summer, although I was really nervous and shy when I did it.

What was most challenging for you during this project and why?
The most challenging thing for me during this project is still the limited time that was given. Besides, we also had Internship going on at the same time, so it was really time-consuming and stressful.

What new skills did you learn from doing this project?
I learned how to do and edit the voiceover in iMovie. I also explored different effects you could add on to the sounds.

Is there anything that you could have done to improve any of your work? Explain.
I think I could've made our video a little more interesting. I personally think my voiceover is quite dull and not attention-catching. If I would put more some more efforts into the video, it could've been on another level.

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Shaking Our World Project - Recap

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Lithosphere
Activities I Did
Mini-Posters, BrainPop Video, Music Videos

Topics Included
Earth's Interior, Continental Drift, Plate Tectonic, Plate Boundaries, Faults, Volcanoes, Earthquakes, Mountain Building

Summary
Earth contains several spheres: Lithosphere (land layer), Atmosphere (gas layer), and Hydrosphere (water layer). The layer we live on is Crust, and it's a part of lithosphere. Two types of crusts are Oceanic Crust and Continental Crust. Other layers of Earth includes Mantle (where Asthenosphere is at), Inner Core and Outer Core. Interestingly, the Crust seems to move, as pointed by the Theory of Plate Tectonic. The movement causes Faults and Plate Boundaries. Three types of faults are Normal Fault, Reverse/Thrust Fault, and Strike-slip Fault. Three types of plate boundaries are Divergent Boundary, Convergent Boundary, and Transform Boundary. Mountains, earthquakes (which are caused by transform boundaries) and volcanoes are sometimes also formed by the Crust's movement. Few types of mountains that could be built are Dome Mountain, Folded Mountain, and Fault-block Mountain, and few types of volcanoes are Shield, Cinder Cone, and Composite. Because of the Crust's movement, several scientists came with the theory that the lands on Earth that are separated by the oceans now were used to be one giant continent only. The theory is also known as Continental Drift.


Asthenosphere
Activities I Did
Foldables & Mini-Quiz, Demonstration Lab

Topics Included
Plate Boundaries, Faults, Convection Currents

Summary
Three types of faults are Normal Fault, Reverse/Thrust Fault, and Strike-slip Fault. Normal Fault happens when a crust falls. Reverse/Thrust Fault happens when the upper crust moves upward. Finally, Strike-Slip Fault happens when two fault crusts slip sideway. Three types of plate boundaries are Divergent Boundary, Convergent Boundary, and Transform Boundary. Divergent Boundary happens when two plates pull apart, and it has several effects including Sea-Floor Spreading, Magnetic Reverse, Mid-Ocean Ridge, and Rift Valleys. Convergent Boundary happens when two plates move toward each other, and it can create mountains, the Subduction Zone and Deep-Sea Trench. Last but not least, Transform Boundary happens when two plates slide sideway. On the other hand, the movement of Earth's crusts has somewhat something to do with the Convection Currents, the way how the heat moves in the mantle.

Mantle
Activities I Did
Evidence Paper, Narrative Video

Topics Included
Plate Tectonics, Volcanoes

Summary
Personally my favorite layer, Mantle Layer was a lot of fun for me. I was able to make a song about volcanoes with my friend Brandon. Although we didn't have enough time to make a complete song, we managed to pull out a one-minute product for this project. We put a tremendous amount of effort in it, as you can probably hear from the song. I also wrote an evidence paper supporting the Theory of Plate Tectonics using several evidences like the puzzle shapes of the continents, similar resources and fossils.

Our Volcano Song



Critical Thinking Question
Do you agree with the theory of plate tectonics? Why or why not?

As I stated before, I agree with and support the theory of plate tectonics. There are quite a few evidences out there that prove this theory.
First, the shapes of the continents are like puzzles because if you play around with them, you can actually combine together almost flawlessly. Besides, at the borders of some nearby continents, there are similar resources and fossil records. Last but not least, earthquake is a great evidence of this theory since it does move the plates.

Reflection
1. What did you enjoy the most about this project and why?
I enjoyed the versatile kinds of works we're given to work on because we really got to choose our own preferences on this project and be creative.

2. What was the most challenging for you during this project and why?
The most challenging thing about this project is the time we're given. I always felt like there's not enough time to work on a single layer, and I often had to rush the thing I was working out.

3. What new skills did you learn from doing this project?
I actually regained my music producing skills. I got to make an original record with my friend for this project, which is something I haven't done in months. Hopefully, I'll be doing more of these more frequently than before.

4. Is there anything that you could have done to improve any of your work? Explain.
I could've brought some works home to finish. It seemed like that the times we were given in class weren't enough for us to create decent works. Plus, it was easier to get distracted when there were chatty classmates around you.

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Volcano Song - Brandon & David

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Rapped & sung by Brandon Garcia Produced by David Chai

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Massive Movement Project

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Vocabulary
Seasons/季节 - Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter
Direct Sunlight/阳光直射 - When the sunlight hits Earth at a straight line.
Indirect Sunlight/阳光斜射 -When the sunlight hits Earth at an angle
Equator/赤道 - An imaginary line that equally divides Earth into half.
Axis/轴 - The imaginary line that goes through the middle of Earth
Tilt/倾斜 - Not straight; sloping
Elliptical/椭圆 - The shape of an orbit.
Orbit/轨道 - The path Earth takes around the Sun.
Hemisphere/半球 - Half of Earth


Summary
Seasons are the divisions of the year. There are 4 seasons in each year -- Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. Seasons happen because of the Earth's axis, and the axis is tilted to the 23.5 degree angle, pointing straightly to the Northern Star -- Polaris. Seasons were also caused by the revolution of Earth around the Sun on an elliptical orbit. On Earth's orbit, there are two different equinoxes and solstices, and thus, they create 4 different kinds of climates. On the other hand, Earth is divided into two hemispheres by the equator. One receives the direct sunlight when the other one receives the indirect sunlight, and that's why the two hemispheres have opposite seasons.

Video



Critical Thinking Question
How is earth affected by movement (revolution)?
Earth is affected by the movement, or known as the revolution, of itself because its movement around the Sun caused the four different seasons -- Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter -- to happen. Earth has different seasons because Earth reaches different equinoxes or solstices as it revolves around the Sun. Each season has its own special weather conditions and qualities depending on whether the hemisphere receives direct sunlight or indirect sunlight in the mean time.

 Reflection
1. What did you enjoy the most about this project and why?
The thing I enjoyed the most about this project is editing and perfecting the video because I got to learn more about using iMovie and editing and cutting clips, and I also enjoyed being creative when I edit it by exploring new editing techniques and make use of them when editing the video.

2. What was most challenging for you during this project and why?
The most challenging thing for me during this project is that I was not given too much time to edit my video. I felt that I didn't have enough time to add more exciting stuffs and improve the video even more, and I had to complete the whole editing in a small amount of time. In fact, I still feel like the video could've been a lot better.

3. What new skills did you enjoy learn from doing this project?
Through this project, I've learned many new iMovie skills I've never learned before, such as cutting the screen, putting the subtitles. I also got to experience iMovie a lot more than before, and I now find it a very handy and easy application to edit the videos.

4. Is there anything that you could have done to improve any of your work? Explain.
There are definitely a lot of things I could've add to the video to improve the quality of the video. If I had more time provided, I would adjust the volume of the background music a little more, make Roger dub the clips to increase the quality of the voice, and definitely make the transitions a little smoother.