An Eggs-cellent Plan

The goal in our group was to get 5 points extra credits which would be gained upon the satisfactory test result: making sure we create a good protection device that will prevent our egg from breaking after it dropped in the basket within limited time, and the device will be constructed with limited resources.
The objectives are: first, within 25 minutes, we have to come up an ideal or usable construction plan for the egg. Second, we have to build up the protective piece within the following 10 minutes.

Our group identified that the limited resources we will receive were 8 straws and about 24 inches long tape. Beside choosing the shortest person who would go on to the chair and drop the egg, we didn’t really specify who would be doing which part of the tasks in the first 25 minutes discussion time, but just simply everyone pitched in and talk about each member’s opinion. We did question about whether someone in our team was good at physics or some sorts to exam if the final decision could work out, but since no one was the method was eventually decided by popular votes.

I think our group’s strength was that everybody was willing and enthusiastically participated, and we allow each person talk about their opinion in a democratic way which I think was really cool.

The only alternative strategies to back up or contingency plan was probably the other building method of the only two we came up with. The weakness was obvious our team had too little back up plans to choose if the first decision was hard to accomplish. (Although I mentioned about someone might want to go to downstairs’ cafeteria to grab some extra straws in case we don’t have enough to use. Because our group values ethic due to fair competition, everyone just gave it a laugh.)

During the last 10 minutes, we assigned the jobs to each member in terms of straw folding, egg holding and taping. However since the time was so limited, we stick to the first plan throughout the whole building process. Though we did encounter some difficult issues in the building process, however we could only alternate the positions of straws in order to make them and the egg stay together.

Despite of coming up more building ideas (which now I think about it, brain storming can be really helpful), I don’t really think we can really alternate our process in planning during such limited time. In my opinion, the only improvement we could do is to acquire more knowledge and try to think outside of box like the other “long rope of straw-plus-tape combination” in the future, so next time if we get another similar “egg”, we will be able to do better.

In end, I think the class was really fine,; although our group didn't get the credits, I really enjoyed team working.

Current management problem and solution

How to manage well my school work is always the most important issue since the day I entered college. Nevertheless, because I’m also working four to five days a week, how to arrange my schedule effectively to correspond my full time student status makes this task more difficult. I am a person who strongly believes getting good grades is crucial to students, therefore I think to full-time and working students, good time management is critical to academic success.
This semester I am taking four courses which absolutely require a considerable amount of time to study in order to get good grades. Since working occupied a huge portion of my time, besides the days I go to school (Mondays, Wednesdays, and the evenings of Tuesdays and Thursdays) I have to divide my time to small sections that can fit in my working schedule. And how to divide it efficiently becomes one of the most important tasks right now. Unfortunately, all my professors in this semester do not tell which parts of the material in the text books will be tested in the exams, which implies I’d better read everything in every single chapter in the syllabuses (which I think it is pretty unfair), it makes my time management more difficult .

What I’m doing right now to manage my time table is listed below:

1. Although there is no scientific evidence to prove, but it seems that I can memorize and remember more things and material in morning than other time. Therefore, I force myself get up early and try to study at least 2 hours. (Honesty, I’m really not a morning person, to accomplish this is pretty difficult for me. Still, I cannot promise to get up early every morning 3 hours before my first class or work starts, but I am getting better ) In addition, the main course that are reviewed or studied during morning time are history and management which I think there are lots of things to remember.

2. Utilizing small-scaled time period such as forty minutes subway riding and lunch break during my work days.

3. Sleeping before 1 am. I think to use time more sufficiently, only saving the time to study from a hectic schedule as much as possible is not good enough; to realize how to stop and take a break is also an essential factor to success. Since in late nights I cannot really focuse , instead of pushing myself keep my red eyes open and shove more thing into my head, I think the best way is to stop what I’ve been doing and go to bed. If I don’t do so, first I cannot really get my job done well, and I probably ruin my first plan which is to get up early.

Above are some of my plans. Nevertheless I’m not a workaholic or studyholic, and I can still arrange some leisure time to relax (although I admit it is much less than before). However, I think my leisure time will be more enjoyable if I know my proprieties (school and work) are managed well.
In conclusion, self-management is the key to this semester’s success for me.