For as long as I can remember, I have been in love with nature and its beauty. To me the art of photography is a great way to attempt to capture that beauty at a particular instant. To freeze it in time, and create awe-inspiring views. I’m just an amateur, I don’t have any fancy ultra-high resolution camera rigs. It’s just me and my iPhone. I did acquire a camera drone to get some arial views of my grandparents woodland cabin as a surprise gift for their 50th wedding anniversary. Presenting the printed photos to them is a memory that I particularly treasure.

I don’t go on photoshoots, or plan my photos. What I do is observe. As I walk around campus, I don’t wear headphones or walk with my face staring at a screen. I observe the beauty of our campus, and sometimes some picturesque moments arise. Photography is something serene, to freeze a moment in time is incredible. It is enjoyable to look at these images and think: “I took that.” One of my favorite shots of campus I’ve taken so far is the header image above, it was August, before classes started. I was walking around trying to learn my way, and I stumbled on this amazing shot of the lights of Pomerene Hall reflecting of the newly revitalized Mirror Lake, surrounded by an illuminated summer-evening sky.

Of the other photos I’ve taken, here are some of my favorites:

Grasses against the summer sky. Barcelona, Spain

Family & friends kayaking on a July afternoon.

CBEC’s vibrant reflection after a rainy day.

Sunlight peaks through the clouds on a Northern Michigan summer day.

I am an avid fan of everything SpaceX is working on, so I was extremely excited when their Falcon Heavy rocket completed its first commercial flight and it was 100% successful with all 3 boosters recovered. This is a major step for American spaceflight and the cooperation between NASA and private launch companies. It is also a major achievement as the maiden flight of the Falcon Heavy in 2018 only two of the three boosters were recovered. The maiden flight was also a test launch whereas this was the first commercial flight, signaling that there are customers willing to pay for SpaceX’s heavy-lift rocket. A full article detailing this event by CNBC is available here.

CNBC did a good job with this article, it mainly stuck to the main talking points of the event. However, the article does not mention any of the other American space launch companies currently working on important rockets of their own, such as Blue Origin or RocketLab, this may lead people to believe that SpaceX alone is changing the market. However, SpaceX has been arguably the most successful of the companies with their development of technologies and making the biggest splash in the media. Their Falcon 9 booster, which is also the booster utilized in the Falcon Heavy has turned the space industry on its head in only a couple years. On April 8, 2016 a Falcon 9 booster landed successfully on a drone ship in the ocean. It was an amazing spectacle. Now, just three years later, it is big news when one of their boosters fails to land, rather than landing successfully. This speaks to the broader impact of SpaceX, they have completely changed how we think about space and rocketry. Now the thought is common: “Why waste the rocket? It’s expensive, let’s recover it and fly it again.” This monumental shift in thinking has changed rocketry forever. Multiple companies are now working to develop reusable rockets of their own. This will have major benefits for all of society, the more we can access space cheaply, the more research can be completed with other benefits as well. SpaceX plans to start a constellation of satellites termed Starlink, that will blanket the entire planet with high-speed internet access. Huge populations of people who never had internet access will soon be able to connect for a low cost. For example, the internet has major uses in third world countries for farming, weather data, planting calendars, the list goes on. This is just one of the benefits that this development is leading towards.

I think this is a major achievement that will lead to major developments in space technology and scientific research. The developments that come from space exploration benefit everyone on Earth, in ways people don’t often recognize. I’m glad that SpaceX and NASA are working together do drive costs down and open up space to everyone. As more people can affordably access space more lifesaving technology can be developed and deployed to improve the lives of everyone on Earth.

Today was Pre-Dentistry Day at The Ohio State University’s College of Dentistry! This was my first hands-on experience of what the basics of the dentistry field are like. In addition to having opportunities to listen to advice from and ask questions of dentists, current dental students, and the Dean of the College of Dentistry, we also gained some valuable lab experience! Donning white lab coats we set teeth into the mould of a jaw with wax, utilized drills and other hand tools and learned how to complete a filling!

Inside the Dentistry Lab

This was a great experience for me personally. Prior to today I had no experience in a dental environment. I was not completely sure that the career I was working toward was even a good fit for me. I greatly appreciated the opportunity to hold the tools for myself and see if it felt “right” in my hand. Obviously, working with artificial teeth and a real person who is capable of feeling pain are two completely different ballparks. However, I feel the experience gave me much more confidence that pursuing the dental profession would be a worthwhile endeavor. I left the lab excited and with an increased determination to work to attain my goals.

Successfully set Central & Lateral Incisors. (And myself rocking a lab coat.)

I realized something else important today while listening to Dean Lloyd speak. I had never thought of the true positive impact a good dentist could have on a patient’s life. He informed us of some of his personal experiences that highlighted the importance that dentistry holds. The story that stuck with me most was how he focused part of his clinic on helping to repair the teeth of elderly patients, giving them back their smiles. I hadn’t considered the self-image damage that could be done by oral issues. His speech was inspiring, and I hope that I too can help people who need it in the not-too-distant future.

Working with the Drill: Decay on a molar prior to removal

Working with the Drill: Completed Decay Removal

Working with the Drill: The Filled Cavity

Throughout my first semester at Ohio State, I have grown in many ways. The drastic difference between the college and high school atmospheres was immediately apparent. A major area of personal growth throughout this semester has been my ability to mange my time efficiently. College life requires a strategic management of my time. Compared to high school, we have a seemingly endless amount of free time. Something that caught me off guard was that there is always something that needs to be done. Despite the immense amount of free time in my day, I still felt as if I was falling behind. I needed to find a way to keep track of assignments and organize each day, so I can remain productive and ahead of schedule.

I researched ways to manage my time better, and I found two methods that helped me immensely. I created a calendar with all of the days remaining in the semester on one sheet of paper and added all assignments and tests onto it. This allows me to see my entire semester at a glance and work to keep ahead of things. I also started making a daily sticky note, I write all of my assignments I need to complete from the semester calendar as well as any other tasks I need to complete on a given day. Creating a daily to-do list on sticky notes also helps me reflect on what I’ve accomplished each day, seeing a fully completed list is a good feeling. By using these methods, I can plan ahead and get my assignments done and submitted a few days in advance. It took a while for me to develop my time management skills as high school came naturally for me, assignments were easier and did not require as much time or effort as my current coursework. Using these strategies and learning to manage time efficiently over the semester has been an important lesson that I value having learned.

Today was the first day of a new program I joined; The Wonders of Our World Program (or WOW for short). The WOW program is designed to teach elementary students in local Columbus schools the value of science through fun interactive experiments and inspire them to consider pursuing STEM fields in the future. The experiments are led Ohio State students majoring in STEM fields. Today our activity was designed to teach the steps of the scientific method through the building and testing of clay boats. Each group was given an identical amount of clay and marbles, both of which sink in water. Students were tasked determine the best way to make the clay float and then to make it hold more marbles than their classmates. Our group won! Even I was amazed as the students managed to make the small amount of clay float with 14 marbles! It was interesting to see the students in the third grade class develop over the class period, they were shy and distracted at first, but as they experimented (and as they learned they were winning the contest), they became excited and involved in the lesson. It was interesting to watch them work as a team to solve the problem. I was hesitant to join the program at first, I was worried about the challenges of working with young students. But I’m very glad I did, it was an amazing experience and I look forward to the next session!

Here is our winning boat! It began taking on water as the 15th marble was added.