Student "edition" found at {csi dot journalspace dot com}.

Maybe I shouldn't have started this blog now, not with everything that's been going on.

First lecture for the first week of the first term of the new year.

It was in Energy Conversion class. This is my second time to teach the subject, having done it before for the now engineering terminals.

Before, I didn't start with the same topic I did now, having done that with the middle of the chapter on phasors. Now I went with the start of the same chapter (having borrowed the same book that only had my name before in the library card - no one else used it in the interim of ten months) which was on the graphical responses of current and voltage to resistive, inductive and capacitive elements. There was another reason behind the additional topic besides this though.

I had included computer exercises in the grading system I presented to them last meeting.

Even though this is not necessarily because there are programming concepts, it's because eventually there will be too many computations needed for them to be able to perform by hand.

That's why for now I'm also discussing with them the repetitive calculating capabilities of spreadsheets, that hopefully everyone has access to.

To be able to demonstrate to them the need for quick graphs in some of their subjects (also so that they will be able use them in possible reports) and to show them the potential that spreadsheet software has over mere word processing, I first discussed the basic theories and equations they are already familiar with, then showed them how to graph them, including the step or gap for the necessary independent variable.

I also had to clarify for most of them the relative and absolute addressing of cells, and the instant re-computation possible for the change in any one value. This translates to an instant change in the graph if they are on the same sheet.

A power failure in the middle of the class (great omen for the first day of the week) made me cut my demonstration short though, and just gave the rest to them as an assignment.

Session 2181 sometimes takes basic computer opportunities for granted. Class dismissed.