Naj

__Week One:__
//**Monday,31/01/11**//

Today was the first Research project lesson of the year,with Mr.street going through the basics of what the Subject entails,and the various differences between this year's course,and last year's course.Thus far,I have Several different ideas floating in the creative maelstorm for my head.the only difficulty will be to select the most interesting,and the most viable subject.I need to ensure that i am more organized this year,in order to make certain that I get a high A.

//**Tuesday,**//**01/02/11**

I've been thinking abit more deeply about what topic I want to pursue for my research project,and i've come up with yet more potential topics.I've also started wrting down a vague abstract of possible ideas,Which I have transcribed onto this page. 1)Poetry 2)Singing 3)Lock-picking 4)Gaming 5)Programing 6)Philosophy 7)Science Pathways 8)Writing (books?) 9)Experiments? 10)Mathematics 11)Modding Possible Ideas: 1)Writing a poem,or a variety of poems surrounding a theme.In the later case,one could utilize several different types/variants of poems,such as limericks,sonnets,etc. Alternatively,one could do as above,but instead use several different meters as apposed to switching to an entirely different type of poem. Pros:Relatively easy to do,and provided I remain Inspired,quickly done.Possible Primary sources might be a representative of a poetry organisations,like Poets Union( []) or Oz Poetic Society([]).My Hypothesis could be something along the lines of 'Can I create several,Different,//Unique// poems all based on the same theme???
 * <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22px;">Areas Of thy Interest: **

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Cons:The said theme might be hard to come up with(Lurve?).It might be hard to create several poems in a row,without Recycling metaphors.Also it might be hard to make several poems and ensure that they don’t sound the same,or use the same words.It might also be difficult to come up with new,interesting metaphors for each poem.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">2)No Specific ideas yet :( <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Pros:

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Cons:

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">3)Experimenting with lockpicks,Finding the optimal of a variety of shapes,Trying to find which common house-hold material is the best makeshift lockpick.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Pros:A new and recent fascination of mine,which i find interesting,yet very hard to do,as my Hand to eye co-ordination skills leave much to be desired.This challenge, complied with the various sources on the net that offer tips and hints on lockpicking just arouses me to ever greater heights.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Cons:I would probably have to spend a bit of money on the lockpicks and locks.Also,there might be ethical problems,research proposal acceptance-wise.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> 4)Researching about and presenting Games which can be used in an educational context.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Pros:There are already a few games which I can think of the top of my head,that can be retrofitted to fufil a educational role.Examples include medieval total war,with historical battles,which let the player relive the battle,and understand the strategies used to ensure the victories,of well,the victors.Additionally,students could take turns be the seiged and besieged army in a custom battle,learning firsthand the nuances of siege warfare.Another Game would be Civilzation IV,a game where the player has to try to take over the world,through a variety of victory conditions.In particular,the rhyes and fall mod,which places all the civilizations in their respective locations on the globe,with their respective historical situations.I would like to focus exclusively on large Pc games,instead of the small,but still educational games that can be found on the net.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Cons:The main difficulty,in my mind would be to keep to the tiny word restriction as specified by the SACE guidelines.Also,I'd like to do this as a presentation,but i want to present my research project for my ATAR score,which causes a bit of internal conflict for me:( Also,I fear that there might not be THAT many games which teach interesting concepts in a interesting way.Primary sources may also be a problem.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">5) Designing,and possibly making a non-boring educational game.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Pros: Gives me a much stronger intrinsic motive for learning programing,compared to just idle curioisity.Also,considering my year 12 studies,and associated stress,programming would be a postive,and productive way to release that stress. Potential primary sources could include any teacher in the school,and i could most likely draw on my more technoligically inclined freinds for support,if i get stuck trying to implement a particular feature.Also,It has always bugged me that educational games are so much more boring then what they could be.Games are ,as far as i am aware,the only form of interactive media currently in existence,and as such, limiting them to mere entertainment is a pity full waste. Additionally,iIalready have a vague concept of what kind of game i'd to design.Primary sources will likely not be a problem,As i could probably call up/email a a game designer/programmer,perhaps even interview personally.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Cons:I have practicably no experience programming,so my end product will not be a marvelous work of art,at least in terms of raw programming.Also,I might not be able to complete the game in time,which means that my design brief would have to make do,which i doubt.However,My final year end will still be doable,as i still would have personally improved,if not as much as i would like to.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">6)a)Reading and analysing Plato’s <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">//The republic// and presenting my findings on how it could apply to modern life. Pros: I've allways wanted to read this book,and the research project would be a perfect opportunity to do so.Primary sources could be philosophy professors form Adelaide various universities.It is academic in nature,and so would help me develop my intellectual talents to a greater degree then most of my other topics.

Cons:The Original treatise is in Latin,so to ensure that i get the actually meaning of the book,not a distorted caricature,I would have to read at least two different translations.Fortunately, I've already found several different websites with different translations([],[],[]),so the only thing to worry about is the speed at which i can read,and comprehend.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">b)Writing a philosophical treatise on a theme of choice.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Pros:Again,I will have the opportunity to sit down and do something i've wanted to do for a long time.I like thinking ,but have never bothered to write what i think down.As such,my thoughts are little more then idle daydreams,never actually be acted upon,or having any real effect on my life.And philosophy ,i think,should have SOME effect on how you live life.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Cons:I Truly have no idea what to use as a primary source,as,these are my own thoughts.Why then would i go to someone else to write what I think down!?(Rephrase).The theme might also be hard to come up with,since i could be anything,from the nature of evil,to the illusion of normality ,to the nature of love(LOLOLOL),or even about evoloution.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">7)In-depth exploration of various science and engineering degrees and the career pathways the can lead to.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Pros:Simple, educational ,not very hard to do and relevant to my future.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Cons:Simple,Educational,and not very hard to do.Simple,So it offers no actual challenge :(.Educational's also a bad thing as i think school is educational enough,and that it,while not tottaly usefull,will not truly devolop any of my skills.Also,The lack of difficulity will make me put it off till last minute,which will surely make me hand in a shoddier assignment then what is ideal.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">8)Writing a short story.Self-explanatory,and intriguing as one already has possible story ideas.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Pros:Already have vague idea,And i want to write a short story sometime soon anyways,so now's a good opportunity if i choose to do so.Also,Primary sources walk my school grounds,just waiting for me to tap into their stores of knowledge (By this i mean English teachers).On a more personal note,It will be pure ecstasy to write as many words as I desire,to endow every sentence with eloquent splendor :))) .I can also make new friends ,and contacts,that share similar interests to mine,if i choose to pursue this topic.

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Cons:This might be time consumptive, or even addictive,cutting into my study time for my other subjects.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">9)Conducting an experiment of some sort.Possible Ideas include:Bacterial Adaptivity(Mutation/evolution) Occurs fast when there is a stronger selection factor,The proximity needed for a magnet to lift a 100g(?) weigh is directly proportional to the strength of the magnet,and a few others. Pros:I shall finally be able to conduct an experiment to satisfy my own curiosity,instead of banally finding something just to prove we know how to.All these possible hypothesi make a good starting point.I might also be able to use the school labs,which would be convenient,to say the least.

Cons:Primary sources would be hard to find.I could interview my science teachers,but what would I ask?

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">10)Finding the square root of pi,,Finding a formula/Method for getting the square root of any number, and various other mathematics questions can be the basis for one’s project

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Pros:I have always been curious about how exactly one gets the square root of a number,WITHOUT a calculator.I realize how nerdy that is,but im proud of my curiousity:D.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Cons:Maths is hard.But given enough time, i should be able to pull through:).

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">11)Modifying a game,learning how to add new content or modifying a game,to make it more educational(Tie-in with 4)?)

<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Arial; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Pros:This would be simpler than making a game from scratch ,but only a few select games are mod freindly.Alternativly,i would most probably have to buy the legitimate game,instead of torrenting the game and perpetuating the piracy cycle My key considerations for my topics are :

//<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">Inherent Intrisintic Interest // All my topics are naturally,interesting to me,but some are more interesting then others.While my topics themselves are of equall interest,more or less,the questions I can formulate for each topic might fluncuate in terms of interest.

//<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 120%;">Ease of locating Primary sources // As it is a requierment of the SACE Research project guidelines,I have to have at least ONE primary source for whatever project i choose to do in the end.

//<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Suitability of Topic,in regards to University // As I plan to do research project B,so that my score will be part of my atar,I need to do a topic in which //<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Relevance to career plans //

//**Thursday,03/02/11**// We went to the Library today,and went through the usual session of us sitting around the tables in small groups,reading all the various non-fiction issue based books,with periodic rotations,same as last year.I personally found all of the issues offered us to be dull,and boring.While I understand that topics like child abuse,gambling,computer addiction etc are all major issues,that we all should understand and appreciate,I'd much prefer something that devolps my own skills,that makes ME a better person,rather then spending 6 months researching something that is of limited use,at best. //**Friday,**//**04/02/11** I've spent this day,and the weekend working on my topic ideas,as seen above.I have to choose one specfic idea.As much as i have too,Im reluctant to choose Just ONE IDEA:'(.

<span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Two:__ //**Add proper day here,42/42/4242**//

<span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__<span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Three:__ ____<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: large;">﻿ __ <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: large; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">Monday <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: large; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">Tuesday <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: large; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">Thursday <span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: large; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">Friday <span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__<span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__<span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Four:__ __ __ <span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Five:__ <span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Six:__ <span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Seven:__ <span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Eight:__ <span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;"> <span style="font-size: 1.1em; margin: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 5px;">__Week Nine:__ __Week Ten:__ __Week Eleven__