Friday, June 10, 2011

Quiero mover mi bode

Before Spanish class today (I arrived early), the teacher, having graded our first homework assignment, asked me how many years I had studied Spanish and whether or not I was actually learning in her class. I take that as a good sign! Although I could benefit from moving up to the advanced-level class, I still feel that I need the review of all the grammatical rules I’ve forgotten since high school.

Lecture centered on ventilators, which can either forcefully deliver a specific volume/pressure of oxygen to patients at specific intervals or assist in the completion of a breath initiated by the patient. Although many problems can possibly arise in the machine itself, Ric reminded us that, “Nurses are the most common problem that the biomed encounters.”

Our lab task today was to modify our power supply (a rectifier) with added capacitors to smooth out the current (remove the alternating properties) and a regulator that allows voltage to be adjusted to the needed level. One of the capacitors (charge storing devices, for camera flashes, etc.) used in our circuit could hold 10,000 micro-Farads! When my partner and I finished building our circuit, our tests showed that there was a short somewhere. However, this was true for almost all the groups and apparently this had been expected to be the case, because our next lab is scheduled to be spent fixing what didn’t work today. At the end of lab, my partner accidentally discharged the capacitor with a pair of pliers. ZAP! (Accompanied by an orange flash).

After classes, Gladys took us to a Latin Dancing class, where we learned the basics of swing, merengue, and salsa for two hours! I found that thinking about the movements was very easy because of their close association with Latin percussion and rhythmic patterns I’m familiar with, but that moving in the correct way was very difficult, not to mention a workout. Next time, I’m bringing a towel!

No comments:

Post a Comment