MATRIX

Archive for the ‘information technology’ Category

Teachers are the key to our children’s future, they are the ones who will ignite their love for learning. Teaching contains two major concepts of learning, the arts and the science. The art is defined in the Encarta Encyclopedia as “the product of creative human activity in which material is shaped or selected to convey an idea, emotion, or visually interesting form”. This describes exactly what a teacher does in a day, they create “human activity”. While science is defined as, “a study of anything that can be examined, tested, or verified” (Encarta, 2003).The teacher is always studying the situation, examining what they can do, and verifying that their job has been complete. Teaching is an art and science that is learned and then developed through a teachers learning style.

Albert Einstein once said, “Believe it or not, one of my deepest regrets [is that I didn’t teach]. I regret this because I would have liked to have more contact with children. There has always been something about the innocence and freshness of young children that appeals to me and brings me great enjoyment to be with them. And they are so open to knowledge. I have never really found it difficult to explain basic laws of nature to children. When you reach them at their level, you can read in their eyes their genuine interest and appreciation (Parkway, 2001, p. 5). Albert Einstein was a mastermind and knew that teaching children was the only way to open little minds to great wisdom. It takes a special kind of person, one who knew that teaching was the life, not career, that they wanted to lead. Teachers are required to do the “dance”, a way of smoothly persuading the students to achieve greatness. This is the mentally, emotional, and physically preparation “dance”, or motion, that develops the entire package of teaching the students how to learn. This is the ability to maneuver through lesson plans, teaching strategies, print-rich classroom environments, classroom management, discipline tactics, parental lack of support or to much support, and all the other encounters teachers learn to juggle. This is the art and science of teaching, the ability to multi-task all the above items and still manage to accomplish the goal of teaching the students.

3D scanner: 3D scanning implies analyzing the real-world environment or objects for collecting data on their appearance, i.e. color and shape. Digital 3D models can be constructed from the data collected. Such devices are being used by the amusement industry extensively for producing video games and movies. This technology is more widely used in reverse engineering, industrial design, prototyping, keeping records of cultural artifacts, and computer vision. A number of technologies have been used for building the three-dimensional scanning devices. Every technology has limitations, costs, and advantages.

Functionality: The idea behind using a three-dimensional scanner is creating a Point Cloud of the Geometric Samples on the subject’s surface. The subject’s shape can then be extrapolated by using these points. If information regarding color is gathered at every juncture, the determination of colors on subject’s surface can be easily done. 3D scanners share analogy with cameras. If one tries to define a Spherical Coordinate System wherein the origin would be the scanner and vector would be drawn from front of it such that θ=0 and ¢=0, then every point in picture would be associated with θ and ¢. Combined with distance that corresponds to r component 3D position of every point in picture is described by the spherical coordinates.

Technology: 3D scanners consist of two types- non-contact and contact. Non-contact three-dimensional scanners could be divided further into 2 major categories- passive and active scanners.

Non-Contact Active: Some light or radiation is always emitted by active scanners. It is advised to detect the reflection of this light, as it would help in locating environment or an object. The kinds of emission possibly used include x-ray, ultrasound, or light.

Contact: Contact three-dimensional scanners locate the subject by the way of physical touch. The best example of contact three-dimensional scanner is a CMM (Coordinate Measuring Machine). It is widely used in manufacturing processes due to its precision. However, it has a disadvantage that contact with object to be scanned is required. The target object might get modified or damaged by scanning. Historical artifacts, in particular, have to be specially taken care of.

3D Prototyping: 3D prototyping is the subset of rapid prototyping. The basic advantage of 3D prototyping is that numerous materials can be used as base materials. It involves taking of virtual designs through CAD (computer-aided design) or Animation Modeling software, transforming them into virtual, thin, and horizontal cross sections, and then creating every cross-section in the physical space, 1 by 1 till the model gets completed.

LED, or light emitting diode, technology is something consumers are hearing more and more about from television advertisements, magazine ads and news reports. However, very few people understand why this light source is such a powerful alternative to traditional lighting. The advantages of LED light sources over other technologies are numerous but can be simplified into two main categories: 1.) energy efficiency & longevity and 2.) power & versatility.

Benefits: Energy-Efficiency & Longevity

- LED light bulbs generate only trace amounts of heat, resulting in nearly all of the electrical energy consumed being used toward creating the light itself. Incandescent, halogen or fluorescent lights can use up to 90% of their energy consumption producing heat-carrying infrared light photons which do not produce visible light.

- LED light bulbs produce more light per watt of energy.

- Standard LED light bulb are estimated to burn for 35,000 to 50,000 hours at full capacity before requiring replacement (some high-quality LEDs even boast 100,000 hours). Incandescent burn for 1,000 to 2,000 hours.

- LED technology is perfect for applications that are frequently turned off and on, like flashlights. Fluorescent bulbs burn out more quickly when they are frequently switched on and off.

- LED light bulbs are solid state components, which are difficult to break, unlike incandescent, fluorescent and halogen bulbs which have internal filaments that can easily break.

Benefits: Power & Versatility

- When compared watt-for-watt to an incandescent bulb, LED light bulbs produce more light per watt than any other light bulb.

- A single LED bulb can produce twice as much light (as measured in lumens) as a traditional bulb.

- LED light bulbs light up quickly, providing full brightness in micro-seconds.

- LED light bulb are much smaller than regular bulbs making them perfect for a variety of applications

- LED light bulbs do not use any mercury.

- LED technology is designed to focus the light better for a more intense, bright light.

- LED light bulbs maintain their color when dimmed, unlike incandescent bulbs which turn yellow.

- LED light bulbs can be built to emit color without using costly colored filters, which drive up the cost of traditional colored lights.

With these benefits, LED light bulbs can be used in a countless number of applications. Hunting, fishing and camping enthusiasts can be confident that with a LED flashlight in their gear, they will have adequate, powerful light that will last for days on one set of batteries and years on one light bulb. They will also be pleased to find this technology built into a number of form factors, all specifically designed for specific activities – headlamps for cave hikers, flexlights for fishermen, lanterns for campers and torches for hunters.

Home owners will be able to see power consumption reduction and lower electric bills within one month by transitioning light bulbs in the kitchen, bathroom or living room to LED replacement bulbs.

Perhaps one of the best reasons to switch to LED light sources is to lessen your footprint on the environment. By switching to LED light bulbs, you are not only saving money by using less energy, you are also helping the environment by preserving our resources. In an environment that needs the earth’s inhabitants to use less and save more, LED technology lights the way.