Charlie P.

Spencer C.

Phierra

Reagan O.

Will. M

“Gregory the Chameleon” by Blayklee V.

This is my project, titled “Gregory the Chamaeleon”. This project displays the Fibonacci sequence or “the perfect spiral”, which is commonly found in nature. I chose to do this project because in “Al-Jabr”, we talked about how math is more than just numbers and equations. Math can be seen in nature, in the life around us!

I made it a chameleon it’s also easy because the “perfect spiral” fits in really good with his tail and his vine this project is made to focus on showing math in art and nature.

Hayes H.

For my project, I made a picture out of plotting points and a “worksheet” that the audience can attempt to work through, if they want to. What mainly influenced my decision to pick this project was when we went over graphing and plotting points in class and when I was younger I remember doing something like that with connect the dots, or with fuse-beads. I used to really enjoy doing them.

The main thing i want people to take away from this is just to learn a little bit about how to plot points and maybe even have a little bit of fun doing it. Before doing the project I already knew a lot about plotting points and graphing but while making this I most definitely got better at plotting due to how many points I had to plot and because I had to make them more precise than before. I didn’t realize until after I finished my picture, that I had actually made graphic-art.

Emma C.

 My project is a puzzle with algebra problems on each side of the pieces. I came up with the 

idea because “Al-Jabr” means “the restoring of broken pieces”, and that’s what a puzzle is. I was going to do a regular shaped puzzle and put it together, with one picture but I thought it would represent the class better by having all the puzzle pieces be triangles that fit together to make multiple math problems and the answers. 

The idea of my project is that math can be pieced together like a puzzle to show the full 

picture. While making this project I learned about the problems I was working with. How I made my project was I had a poster board and I drew the shape of the triangles on it. I wrote math problems to align with the answer on each side.

Fletcher G.

Hello, my name is Fletcher Graham. I am in the Al-Jabr class. My project is a video talking about Daniel Tammet. The reason I chose this project was because I believe that this is a very cool story and more people should know it. In class, we watched a video on him and his life and achievements and read an article about him and read part of the book he wrote. My main idea is Daniel Tammet and I'll talk about it in my video. That smart british people are cool to learn about.

Tegan B.

“Paint by Numbers” by Kaylee M.

My project is a painting of paint by numbers in the shape of a christmas tree. I made this project because in one of the books that we were reading in class ("Mathematician's Lament" - Paul Lockhart) Lockhart was talking to a middle school art teacher. She said that the middle schoolers go into art and they learn what brush to use to do the exact technique. In high school they will get to do painting by numbers.The lady was saying that there are a lot of the kids' parents that want the kids to be in the art class because it looks good on their college application. The reason the paint by numbers looks good on the college application is because you have to see the math in the art, which is why I chose to do this project. 

The main concern that I am expressing is that I want people to see the art that is in math or the math that is in art! I learned that math is really in everything and it's everywhere.

Averi L.

For my Celebrations of Learning I decided to create a zine called Formative Roots to educate people on certain minority groups and the complex factors that fuel them. Throughout the zine certain environmental and epigenetic factors contribute to trauma and oppression are outlined.Throughout the course I found it interesting to look at the disparities faced by minority groups and the ecological and biological contributors to those disparities.  Readers will look closely at the fundamentals of Black oppression, Gender inequality, and the generational impact the Haulocost had on people. Throughout the zine there are timelines, interactive educational experiences, and writing that highlight the experiences of these groups. 

During the process of creating the zine it was important to include accessible information that anyone could understand in order for it to serve its purpose of educating. There are fun elements of education throughout the experience, including a poem that is meant to embody what it feels like to live in the home of a haulocost survivor and how that experience and trauma has lasting impacts on multiple generations. The zine also includes a Spotify code that will take readers to a playlist of songs written by women to tell stories about the female experience. One song in particular called My Mother & I written by singer-songwriter Lucy Dacus explains how her mother hates her body, and while she and Lucy share a very similar frame, she swears that she thinks Lucy is beautiful. Lucy goes on to talk about how she learned this self-hating behavior from her mother, which highlights how behavior trickles down through generations. In the zine there is also a photo collage of black history in America including the years major events occurred for example, chattel slavery(1776-1885), followed by the civil rights movent(1954-1968), and onto the more recent Black Lives Matter movent(2013-present). This is highlighting the years of trauma that Black Americans have endured and feeds into the studies done on chronic stress. 

Throughout the course we looked at racial health disparities, epigenetics, gender inequality, ecology and learned behavior. Each of these things are featured to a degree in the zine. The first section of the zine talks about how epigenetics function in a way that is accessible to someone who had never heard of it before. The next section talks about gender inequality and how exposure to the gender construct in every facet of media and everyday behaviors from birth can impact how we behave under this construct. This section also goes into alpha male stereotypes and how that is damaging to both men and women. Next the zine explains oppression that has been faced by black Americans and the historical trauma that goes along with that. It talks about how when people experience trauma without reparations or healing, that trauma continues to weigh on people. Lastly the zine discusses Haulocost survivors and the generational effects that people faced.

Punnett Squares by Christman Coffee

Punnett squares are an extremely useful modern tool that people can use to figure out what the exact chances are for a specific trait to show up in ones offspring. This concept was originally used on pea plants to perfect the plant a little at a time. The way a Punnett square works is by simulating the crossover of two sets of genes that occurs when an offspring is created to predict it’s appearance. To do this, they use organisms genotypes. Genotypes are all the genetic code that has made you what you look like today. Genotypes are sometimes very obvious on the outside, but the tricky part is, not all genotypes are expressed in the end result. There are dominant traits and recessive traits. The dominant traits will trump recessive traits thus making them shown. When this happens, it can still leave recessive genes as by products of the combinations of genes, and these will never be known until that offspring has their offspring, potentially showing the hidden traits that they had not themselves expressed. A Punnett square can usually not tell you the exact outcome of two sets of genes because there are many factors, but more so the chances of certain traits being expressed or not. Using a Punnett square, I have found the possible outcomes for eye color, hair color, and blood types of two crossed sets of genes. Below are three PowerPoints, each containing the combinations for one of the three traits mentioned. Find the combinations that made you, maybe find the most likely outcome for all three of these traits for your future offspring.

Jack Henry L.

My project is a series of watercolor paintings showing a method of asexual reproduction called budding using a human head. In class, we went over many different ways of reproduction and how things live. The part that stuck out most to me was budding. Budding is where a single-celled organism will slowly duplicate itself, creating a replica of its being. I found this fascinating and wondered what it would be like in a world where this is how humans reproduced. This is what my project is portraying. I learned over the time creating this, that budding is not the best reproduction method, because there is not a lot of diversity with it. Which can be bad for environments and ecosystems.

I created four watercolor paintings, each showing a step in the budding cycle. The first painting shows what the organism looks like before it starts the cycle. The second painting shows the budding starting, warping the face. The third painting shows the new organism mostly complete. Then the fourth and final painting shows the two organisms separated, looking almost identical. The materials I used were watercolors, fine liner pens, and a dash of markers. I thoroughly enjoyed creating this project and it was interesting learning about the subject in class.

Amber P.

This project is a 3d, multimedia art piece that is made to represent how the things in our environment are what make up the things we think and the things we say. In one of the earlier weeks we discussed this idea that the things in our environment shape us as who we are. The flowers represent all of the good things in the environment that positively influence ourselves. The black puffs represent the bad things that negatively influence us. The red lines connect the thing in the environment to the corresponding thing on the “mind or mouth”.

Sayer D.

For my celebration of learning I’ll be exploring the different adaptations and evolution of Equus. Modern horses are extremely fascinating; they allowed mankind to thrive and push further than we ever thought possible. Our great ancestors developed methods of domesticating and breeding these magnificent beasts. Almost every Culture in the world ancient or not can contribute its success to the domestication of animals and horses are no exception from agricultural to military applications. Horses have served mankind. So I’m taking the time for the celebration of learning to explore some of the fascinating adaptations and evolution of horses.

Coby S.

My celebrations project for Human Behavior and Biology is about how artificial intelligence is starting to learn in very similar ways as humans. The way that humans learn is by trial and error and a lot of learning is genetic. My project was made to inform people about the advances in technology and how these advancements are based on human biology.

Sam L.

In my class, Human Behavior and Biology, we talked about topics like natural selection, genetics, mating preferences, reproduction, etc. Since this class was all about human behavior and biology, I thought that doing a project on tool use throughout the animal kingdom would relate very well. My project is a Slides presentation, and throughout it, you will learn about what a tool is, as well as six animals that use tools and how they use them. In my project, you will see the tools that they use displayed on the slides, and if you click the audio button you will hear me explain it in further detail. I hope you enjoy it!

Kyla C.

For my celebrations, I made two model clay figures representing Mallard ducks. One of my figures represents a male with bright vibrant colors, and the other a female with dull neutral colors. In class, we spent a week talking about animal reproduction and their mating preferences. I was influenced to do this project by talking about different animal’s mating preferences and how they are attracted to one another. 

A female Mallard duck is attracted to a male mallard duck because of how aggressive they show to be and their vibrant colors. Many animals like Mallard ducks, are attracted to colors and aggressiveness because it shows the female they will protect them. This is how many animals are attracted to each other, although many animals have different mating preferences. From this project, I would like people to take away the main point of animal’s mating preferences because it is something that really interested me due to the fact that humans have their own distinct way of their mating preferences. 

In making this project, I learned how to use clay to make large animals. I think that it taught me to use a lot of patience in waiting for the clay to dry and taking my time to paint it and make it look realistic.

Poetry for my Future Daughter’s Mother
by Sophia W.

My unborn child’s 

Methane-stained cheeks

Brand her:

Past humanitarian mistakes

As calcine red trails,

Echoing the wildfires.

Feral humanity wreaks

Cataclysm on the communal Mother

Who went unappreciated.

She birthed fauna - we maimed -

 Then planted flora in their gravesites.

We became erudites to

Lackadaisical trample,

Heavy-footed. Empty-headed. 

Because I became friendly with

Lungfuls of disease,

My daughter will dance with

Hot wires of industrialization,

Leaning into the sticky web

Of pure convenience 

Immediate gratification has to offer.

My daughter, the bee,

Grew with the pesticide

Of inevitable extinction

By the hand of god:

The primate, Homo sapien.

A lonely religion.

Its white knuckles decimated 

The only Mother humanity knew.

And the only life worth saving.

“My Education Matter” by Caroline G.

Over this term, I took the class Faustian Bargain. In the course, we learned about many things, including Donut Economics, Project Drawdown, climate change, and of course the concept of the Faustian Bargain. The main inspiration in choosing this project was that in our Project Drawdown reading, we learned about the importance of educating girls globally, and how it would make a positive impact on climate change. Additionally, we learned that 62 million girls are denied schooling throughout the world. Project Drawdown ranks educating girls as the sixth most effective effort to reduce carbon in the atmosphere. When women are educated they tend to have less children and they take better care of the children they have, which in sum can reduce emissions. Additionally, women who are well educated can also help their economy in many ways. The impact I want my project to have on people is that currently, girls across the world are not getting enough education, and that's simply not okay. My artwork went pretty smoothly with a couple of mess-ups but they were easy to fix and I'm pleased with the final product. I am titling my art piece “My Education Matters.”

Dr. Frankenstein’s Ecology” by Kt H.

In the class Faustian Bargain we discussed ecology, economics, A.I., philosophy of science and technology, as well as reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and Overshoot by William R. Catton. My project is about the Faustian Bargain of ecological issues, and I was inspired to do this project after we learned about Victor Frankenstein’s Creature and ecological issues. I hope that my audience takes away the true depth of our ecological issues, specifically deforestation, overfishing, poor agricultural practices and the story we are telling ourselves. Instead of living the story of Earth being a tool for our use, we can change by living the story of humans being a part of nature. The project was originally going to be about moral philosophy, but when we discussed ecology more and more in class I decided to make the project about ecological issues. I would say that the making of this project came out rather well, we didn’t run into any unexpected problems, and the whole thing overall went smoothly. For my project, I decided to make some of the pieces already out of the holes and some already in. for example, the horse piece symbolizes carbon emissions, and it is taken out of the board to be put in, so the board represents the Earth just as we putting carbon emissions into the atmosphere rather than taking them out.

“Unethical Medical Experiments that Shape Today’s World” by Giselle L.

Faustian Bargain is an English class where students studied relevant ecological issues, studied the writings of Mary Shelly, and were able to explore their interest in Faustian Bargains in today’s world and how many of those ‘bargains’ all are intertwined. This celebration project explains two unethical human experiments and how they shape today’s world. I specifically chose the Guatemalan STD experiments because they were just recently discovered in 2010, and there have been investigations and lawsuits on them. The head surgeon in the experiments, John C. Cutler, was a well-known surgeon for the U.S public health medical department and was also part of the unethical Tuskegee syphilis experiments. I also chose to focus on CRISPR- Case9 as it is still relevant in today’s world. 

Leading to this project, I was inspired by one particular quote from Frankenstein: Annotated for Scientists, Engineers, and Creators of All Kinds: “Who shall conceive the horrors of my secret toil, as I dabbled among the unhallowed damps of the grave, or tortured the living animal to animate the lifeless clay?” ( Page 39). At the bottom of the page, there is a footnote that asks if the ends ever justify the means in research. I want the audience to look at how these experiments directly affect them. I took the research from my Faust In Today’s World paper and turned it into a script for my video. Once I finished recording it I added videos that give more evidence to my video.

“Chemical Dependency” by Ryleigh K.

My class was about Faustian bargains, and we read Overshoot, about climate change, Frankenstein, and the story of the Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe. 

For my C.O.L I am researching three types of dangerous unregulated chemicals in the United States First PFOA/C8, which is the chemical that the movie Dark Waters is based on, Polychlorinated biphenyls, and ethylene oxide. Watching Dark Waters at the beginning of this class inspired me to research these chemicals for my C.O.L. The interesting and terrifying part about this research is that there are so many chemicals as dangerous if not more dangerous than C8 in use in everyday products, and these chemicals are unregulated in the United States. 

I want my audience to learn about these chemicals and be aware of the harm they can cause. Our government does not care enough to regulate them. As well, it’s alarming that people care more about the money they make than the harm they cause. 

At first, I was planning on making a poster board, but since celebrations are going online this quarter, I had to change and make it an online presentation. Not really a big deal, but the website I am using can be a little frustrating. Other than that, the project was mainly researching these chemicals, which I find really interesting!

See full presentation here.

Insatiable Birds by Clara Y.

My class, Faustian bargain, asked the question, “What is a Faustian bargain?” We determined it was a bargain made to gain something substantial like wealth, glory, knowledge, etc. but at a price that was much steeper and not equal to the gain. We examined how Faustian bargains play out in literature like Frankenstein and in real-life issues like climate change. My project is about the Faustian bargain of “endless” consumerism and the resulting detrimental resource drawdown. I wanted to make a visual representation of these concepts in hopes of representing them in a new and abstract way. I used drinking birds as stand-ins for the nature of consumerism, though their symbolism is open to interpretation. I used a glass of water that is drained to the point of being empty to represent the finite resources of our earth. It is my hope that viewers will come away with food for thought and a better understanding of the consequences of our society’s current model.

“Gene Editing: A Dystopian Frontier” by Corban B.

The Faustian Bargain class read the books Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe, Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, and Overshoot by William R. Catton Jr., and connected these works to our current era. My project is a cautionary essay about the ethical problems and dilemmas of bioengineering as it relates to human beings. The topic of creation ethics was very prominent in Frankenstein, and I felt I could dive deeply into that as well as bioethics. I want the readers to take away a sense of caution, and a deeper understanding of the negative impacts bioengineering could have. I was inspired to write this essay when reading Frankenstein and first thinking about the topic of creation ethics. I then researched a few articles about gene editing and bioengineering. Finally, I incorporated the research into a cohesive paper. I hope that everyone who listens to my project will take wisdom and caution away from it.