Here I am going to explain exactly what my projects were at CDIP in detail. As explained in the photo essay I posted, I had three internship projects each one related to a different focus at CDIP. In this post I will explain in depth (without being boring) exactly what I was doing in each project.
First, I am going to talk about my outreach project. In this project I made a series of informational flyers for the community. All of my flyers were made on photoshop, a program I am very familiar with. Theses flyers explained the components inside a buoy, the components of buoy's mooring and general facts about waves and how CDIP's buoys collect data on said waves. I went through a strenuous revision process on the road to making a flyer that the CDIP staff was happy presenting to the public. First, I was given a prompt about the kind of information that was needed for outreach, along with some specific facts to explain. After presenting my initial drafts, I collaborated with my mentor, Jennifer McWhorter, to add more information, make the information more accurate and create a interesting and accessible layout in which to display that information. I went through 7-21 revisions on each page, changing layout options, and information after each version was presented to different CDIP employees. Finally, during the last week of internship, I created a version of each sheet that was approved by the entire program!
Next, I am going to talk about my data project. In this project I modified Chronodots and then installed/configured them onto the Beaglebone computers that CDIP uses as field stations to relay the buoy's data. This project consisted of three major steps. First, I was given several Chronodots and told to replace the metal studs with insulated wires. Then, I had to cut, straighten and rearrange the wires so that they could be successfully installed onto the Beaglebone. Finally, I had to follow a specific set of instructions created by my mentor, Grant, to configure the chronodot onto the Beaglebone. This last step took the longest because configuring the Chronodot onto the Beaglebone required me to learn how to use Unix and Terminal, programs I had never used before. Once all of the Beaglebone's were successfully configured they were put to use collecting data or packed away for future use.
Finally, I am going to talk about my maintenance project. In this project, I learned several different skills to maintenance a buoy and prepare a mooring line. In this project, I cleaned off a recently retrieved buoy, polished a buoy tophat, assisted in running tests on a buoy soon to be deployed, learned how to take out the data flashcard from the buoy, and made several pieces of a mooring. Cleaning off the recently retrieved buoy consisted of taking a buoy to Seaweed drive next to birch aquarium, scraping off the gooseneck barnacles that were covering the buoy and then power washing off the seaweed and other sea life. Polishing the tophat consisted of scraping off the rust, smoothing the stainless steel and then polishing it. Running tests on the buoy consisted of putting the buoy n a pool of water and seeing if it was collecting data correctly using a Terminal on a computer. Removing the flashcard was like a complicated version of safely ejecting a flash drive. Making mooring was just putting together different pieces of chain or polypropylene rope together. Doing this work gave me experience working with the physical buoys.
Doing these three projects allowed me to contribute to the three main aspects of CDIP and simultaneously be exposed to three different career fields.
First, I am going to talk about my outreach project. In this project I made a series of informational flyers for the community. All of my flyers were made on photoshop, a program I am very familiar with. Theses flyers explained the components inside a buoy, the components of buoy's mooring and general facts about waves and how CDIP's buoys collect data on said waves. I went through a strenuous revision process on the road to making a flyer that the CDIP staff was happy presenting to the public. First, I was given a prompt about the kind of information that was needed for outreach, along with some specific facts to explain. After presenting my initial drafts, I collaborated with my mentor, Jennifer McWhorter, to add more information, make the information more accurate and create a interesting and accessible layout in which to display that information. I went through 7-21 revisions on each page, changing layout options, and information after each version was presented to different CDIP employees. Finally, during the last week of internship, I created a version of each sheet that was approved by the entire program!
Next, I am going to talk about my data project. In this project I modified Chronodots and then installed/configured them onto the Beaglebone computers that CDIP uses as field stations to relay the buoy's data. This project consisted of three major steps. First, I was given several Chronodots and told to replace the metal studs with insulated wires. Then, I had to cut, straighten and rearrange the wires so that they could be successfully installed onto the Beaglebone. Finally, I had to follow a specific set of instructions created by my mentor, Grant, to configure the chronodot onto the Beaglebone. This last step took the longest because configuring the Chronodot onto the Beaglebone required me to learn how to use Unix and Terminal, programs I had never used before. Once all of the Beaglebone's were successfully configured they were put to use collecting data or packed away for future use.
Finally, I am going to talk about my maintenance project. In this project, I learned several different skills to maintenance a buoy and prepare a mooring line. In this project, I cleaned off a recently retrieved buoy, polished a buoy tophat, assisted in running tests on a buoy soon to be deployed, learned how to take out the data flashcard from the buoy, and made several pieces of a mooring. Cleaning off the recently retrieved buoy consisted of taking a buoy to Seaweed drive next to birch aquarium, scraping off the gooseneck barnacles that were covering the buoy and then power washing off the seaweed and other sea life. Polishing the tophat consisted of scraping off the rust, smoothing the stainless steel and then polishing it. Running tests on the buoy consisted of putting the buoy n a pool of water and seeing if it was collecting data correctly using a Terminal on a computer. Removing the flashcard was like a complicated version of safely ejecting a flash drive. Making mooring was just putting together different pieces of chain or polypropylene rope together. Doing this work gave me experience working with the physical buoys.
Doing these three projects allowed me to contribute to the three main aspects of CDIP and simultaneously be exposed to three different career fields.