Week 3 let’s create

I was really excited for this week because 3D modeling is, by far, my favorite hobby—more precisely, 3D animation. Anyway, my point is, I really looked forward to this course. I’m not especially good, but I enjoy the process. Usually, when I model, I create some characters or some VFX. I used Blender before, but I recently switched to 3DS Max for reasons I won’t bore you with. The class was engaging and free. I was already familiar with the basics, so I decided to do my own stuff. I’m not very satisfied with the result, and my scene looks rather empty, but it’s not too bad. Time just flew by. We also experimented with SolidWorks—it was interesting. Although I’m not a fan of how restrictive it is, I appreciate how parts can easily interact with each other with a great deal of realism, without much effort. For similar results in Blender, one would have to animate the entire thing.

We had some very interesting luncheon presentations. I was particularly interested in Professor Johnathan Kelly’s research on spatial cognition. Virtual reality provides such a unique and different sensation; there’s so much we have to relearn. It reminds me of when I used to play a game called ‘Beat Saber’ a lot. Initially, it took me a while to get used to judging the distance to hit the keys, but eventually, I got the hang of it. After a lot of practice, not only did I become better at the game, but I could also spend more time in VR before starting to feel off.

Here’s some gameplay of someone who’s really good at the game:

The extracurricular activities were quite fun. I never knew that you could “paint” with light. I was initially skeptical about the idea, but my opinion changed quickly—I enjoyed it way too much.

We also went on a “hike” at Ada Hayden Heritage Park Lake—it was very pretty. I wish I could fish there. I need to get my hands on a fishing license before leaving. It was fun, but before I knew it, there was no one behind me and I ended up circling the whole lake. I had to run quite a bit to make it back in time since the others took a shortcut. I quickly regretted my choice when I remembered I hadn’t brought any water. Still, it felt great to run alone with some music in my ears. I would do it again at any time!

We also started to design a T-shirt. We were pretty lost initially, but the brainstorming session somehow went well. I proposed a mascot, and the others said it was fine as long as I had a design—so I did. I’m not the best artist, but I managed to produce something, then asked a friend to help clean up my sketch. A rabbit was mentioned during the brainstorming session, and we wanted something cute with big cheeks. So, I based my sketch on that.

The final thing I want to discuss in this blog is the meeting. Just like last time, it was very stressful—I feel like I’ll never get used to it. I had a hard time expressing my thoughts about my readings, but after gathering my thoughts and trying again after everyone else, I was able to share my opinions in a more concise way. I still have a lot to improve in this aspect, but I hope that I can get better eventually. We finally received our IRB approval! Now it’s time to be practical. The first thing to be done will be the interviews. I will do my best.