Electricity in 24 hours

Do you have any idea how many times a day you use electricity and don’t even know it?? Let’s take it hour by hour in the life of Marilyn Diaz!!!

12am = While most people are sleeping at this late hour, I am heavy into my school work! At this time, I am using my laptop, my television, the light in my room, my air conditioning, and my fan! I never realized how much electricity I used until I began this project.

1am= This hour is my “wind down” time. I turn off my laptop and television but I still am using the fan, air conditioning, and my phone is plugged into its charger that is plugged into the wall.

2am= By this time, I am knocked out!! But even in sleep, electricity is still being used: my fan, air conditioning, and my charging phone

3am= Zzzzz

4am= Zzzzz

5am= Zzzzz

6am= Zzzzz

7am= Zzzzz

8am= Zzzzz

9am= Where most people in the world are waking up to start their day, I am still in a nice long deep comma! Electricity being used includes the same: air conditioning, my fan, and my phone charging.

10am= Zzzzz

11am= Zzzzz

12pm= Zzzzz

1pm= I know, I know it’s crazy but one in the afternoon is my usual wake up time. I turn on my television, unplug my phone from the charger, and take a nice shower. Even water running is considered in the ‘electricity’ field.

2pm= After my shower, I blow dry and straighten my hair (double whammy) and put on my make up with extra light.

3pm= It’s lunch time! Stove or microwave is going, lights are on, the fan is on, the television is on, and the air conditioner is on as well.

4pm= Usually at this time, I leave the house so any electricity is coming from outside sources.

5pm= Same as 4pm

6pm= Same as 5pm

7pm= Same as 6pm

8pm= What am I eating for dinner?? The stove is on, the lights are on, and usually the television is on as well. Not to mention the nice cool air that I am getting from my air conditioner.

9pm= This is the time I begin working on my homework. Electricity in place includes my bedroom light, my laptop, my television, air conditioning, my fan, and sometimes my printer when I need it.

10pm= Same as 9pm

11pm= Same as 10pm

We so often take electricity for granted!! I’ve recently found out that even when things are plugged into the wall and not even in use electricity is being used. It is important to put into place different practices that can help save electricity such as turning off lights when leaving rooms and shutting down televisions and computers when they are not in use!

Word Count = 465

Reflections on my Fort Myers Beach Field Trip

Fort Myers Beach has a very special place in my heart. As a child, every summer my family and I would take the trip to the beach to enjoy some ‘fun in the sun’. Going back to Fort Myers Beach as a young adult, I never would have imagined that I would learn that so much history could be found! I learned so many new things on my trip with my Colloquium class. For example, the story about giving a manatee too much water was so influential to me. I never knew that if you give a manatee too much water they will sink to the bottom and literally die before this trip.

Another interesting fact that I didn’t know or had ever heard of before this trip was that all shrimp that is caught is frozen. My favorite food in the entire world is shrimp so anytime I would see signs that would say, “Fresh Shrimp” I would be the first to stop to pick up a few pounds. Now that I know that those signs really don’t mean fresh shrimp (because all shrimp is frozen at one point) I probably won’t be stopping so quickly at these false advertised places : )

Finally, the story that I found most interesting during my visit to Fort Myers Beach was the burial story of Cyrus Teed. I recently visited Koreshan State Park to learn more about Cyrus Teed and the Koreshan belief. I found it fascinating that people actually followed this man based on a single vision he had. The story I heard about how his followers trying to actually avert from burying his corpse with the idea that he would rise from the dead was astounding to me.

In conclusion, my trip to Fort Myers Beach brought many memories to mind of when I was a child and also evoked many emotions with all of the new information I learned this visit.

Word Count = 323

My Carbon Footprint

I had the opportunity to take an interesting quiz and play an interesting game that enabled me to learn more about “My Carbon Footprint”!

The quiz that I took was called “Measure Your Eco-Footprint from Conservation International”. This quiz asked me different questions in regards to my recycling and reusing habits. For example, one of the questions asked was, “To reduce pollution, I…” An example of an answer to this question was, “use vinegar and water to clean windows”. At the end of this quiz I received a score of 17. I wish that the quiz would have specified whether or not that was a bad or good thing however from the written response I would assume that it was a bad thing. It said, “Don’t be discouraged. This is just the beginning of your new green lifestyle. Take the pledge below and join a wider community of people dedicated to protecting life on Earth.” I provided information along with my email so I guess it’s only a matter of time before I receive anything back.

The game that I played was called, “Energyville, from Chevron and the Economist Group”. At first I didn’t understand the concept of this game but after playing it a few times it was extremely interesting! Basically, you are responsible for powering up your city. Different ways of powering your city included solar power, coal, etc. At the end, you are scored on three main impacts: the economic impact, the environmental impact, and the security impact. On my second attempt of playing this game, after I learned the concept, I scored a medium final impact on my economic impact, a medium final impact on my environmental impact, and a high final impact on my security impact. I never realized how much goes into the thought process on how to power up a city!

Word Count = 308

Reflections on Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

When I visited the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, I learned about and saw several new interesting things that I did not know or had ever seen before. Here are some of those things:

THE STRANGLER FIG

I thought these were really neat because I have never seen anything like it. It really does look like it is trying to ‘strangle’ the tree!

THE ZEBRA LONGWING BUTTERFLY (AND THE CATERPILLAR THAT WOULD EVENTUALLY TURN INTO IT)

I really saw the ‘circle of life’ aspect come full circle with the caterpillar and the Zebra Longwing Butterfly. It starts with a slimy caterpillar that you would think twice about even touching then turns into this beautiful butterfly!

THE TREES GROWING INTO THE BOARDWALK

Here, you can really get a sense of how nature adapts. Even after a manmade boardwalk was built through this area, the trees found a way to still grow. It really makes you wonder how powerful ‘mother nature’ can really be.

THE CUTOUT OF THE BOARDWALK FOR THE TREES

I really liked the fact that people took the time to cut out pieces of the boardwalk instead of cutting into the trees.

THE YELLOW RAT SNAKE

This was probably the coolest thing that I think I saw on my visit. I’ve seen snakes before but seeing them in their natural habitat was a really neat experience for me!

Of course, there were several other things that I saw that I also thought were really interesting such as the Saw grass, the Cabbage Palms, the Slash Pines, the Moss, the Resurrection Fern, and the Lichen Plant. I really felt a connection with my environment that I haven’t felt in a long time. It was nice to be outside on such a nice day. I enjoyed my trip and will definitely be going back! (Especially with my student discount!)

Word Count = 306