Ecology and Infectious Diseases
Becca L.
“My CoL for this term is about how we deal with corona virus. My project discusses how people are affected and have been impacted by corona virus. I was inspired by how I have lived through corona virus and how it has affected me and the people around me.”
Sylas s.
“Given that we are in a pandemic right now, I thought it would be an amazing project to cover Covid19 and the effects that it has had on people. It is such a serious and mysterious disease that has affected so many people’s lives. I wanted my project to make people more aware.”
Hayes h.
“I did my project over ecosystems and how ecology affects infectious diseases. I made two terrariums as small representations over the ecosystems I studied. One is a semi-arid and one wet-land ecosystem to see how those have an impact on human and animal life in terms of infectious diseases. I also made on that worked and one that failed, to show that if anything is off balance, the eco-system will fail. I thought it was super interesting how important ecosystems are to our life. Without them, humans would not be able to survive.”
Giselle l.
“My final project was a game that went over biodiversity and how it was important to ecosystems and human health. I got to work with Dr. Kruck to build the fundamentals, then use the artistic design process to create my cards. My goal was to create a game that taught biodiversity in a non-traditional learning tool.”
Ryleigh k.
“I chose to do an oil painting based on the 1982 Tylenol Killer. We talked about the forensic side of ecology in our class. I found this most interesting, the way that ecology affects everything in a case. My portrait represents that and the effects it has on a community.”
Fletcher G.
“For my project, I did a presentation over some facts and effects of Covid19.”
Madisyn k.
“My project is based on the plague in the 14th century. There have been three plague pandemics. This is the most famous one, referred to as the Black Death. I did a representation of the death toll in each country worldwide. I also made my representation of a plague mask that matches my project. I wanted to make it because the plague was very interesting to me. I took this class because worldwide disease was one of my biggest fears, and it was interesting to learn about.”
Ella D.
“My project is a video presentation about Covid19 as an infectious disease and the way that it has spread.”
Corban B.
“My project is a series of digital models of micro organisms, such as a corona virus and different parts of the human immune system. I am really fascinated by the immune system and how it works.”
Joanna b.
“I chose to do a project about hereditary diseases and the diseases that are most affected and most vulnerable to the corona virus. I was inspired to do this project because in this class, we talked about genetics and the spread of diseases and I found that very interesting.”
Randi W.
Schlieren photography is a visual process that captures the flow of fluids and nonvisual gases of varying densities. The technique was created by German physicist August Toepler in 1864 for the purpose of studying supersonic motion. Utilizing this approach, my project illustrates the effectiveness of various masks. An open flame sits below the camera’s lens, and, with a light source shining through a magnifying glass and into the camera, the glass’ rainbow effect splits the high pressure from the low pressure distortions, effectively showing the imperceptible waves above the flame. I then attempt to blow out this flame. The amount that these attempts distort the image is an indicator of mask effectiveness, i.e. the amount of air able to pass through the mask and hit the candle.
My class–Ecology and Infectious Disease–encouraged me to create this project. The vehicle in which transmission occurs was a vocal point in the class. Direct transmission, like an individual coughing, is a form of transmission infectious diseases use. Although masks, regardless of effectiveness, are recommended, it is important to note the strength of each mask, and what works best. Visually seeing this demonstrates that any individual can test and verify these ideas. During the creation of this project, the set design went through many iterations. The first version involved a curved parabolic mirror, a LED light, camera, and trust. Unfortunately, the light source was not concentrated enough to efficiently divide the pressures, and the mirror’s optics were insufficient. The second version included a magnifying glass, iPhone spotlight, and a Canon Rebel T6. The camera was not strong enough to capture the glass’ rainbow effect - which resulted in a circular, bright, solid light that could not capture air distortions.
In the last version, which is the one presented, a Canon EOS 7D was used. This camera is capable of achieving a shutter speed of 1/8000, and an aperture of F16. This allowed the device to capture the rainbow effect, producing sufficient results. My project is meant to artfully and scientifically showcase the efficacy of different kinds of masks–and furthermore, it allowed me to engage in a new type of photography.