1) Describe any math and/or science-related activities (beyond regular class work) to
which you have devoted much time in the last 2 years (e.g., volunteering at the zoo,
science hobbies, computer activities, math club, etc.). You may list any extra reading
that you have done in science or mathematics. Explain how these activities and
readings have influenced you. (Use no more than 750 words.)
Mathematics and Science have only recently become my friends as I used to
avoid them; they were so confusing to me! I complained to my parents and teachers of
their trickery, too hard for my brain to comprehend. But, as my mentors figured, it was
because of my best friend, Distraction. We had a very close relationship; we were
always there for each other. Teachers were annoyed with us all the time because of our
short attention span and losing focus. But I soon realized Distraction would keep me
from making other good friends. So I broke off our friendship and made friends with
Math and Science. Everything was so clear once I had friended them. Logical
explanations, solutions to problems, and why and how were finally answered. It made
sense. My new friends have helped me a lot in figuring out the world around me. So, in
the last 2 years, I have done a considerable amount of math-related work either over
the summer or this year’s lunch time and science-related reading as well and have been
very influenced by doing so.
During the summer, on the Khan Academy website, I find the bridging section of
my previous grade and the grade ahead and do that for multiple days, along with the
assigned math packet for the next year, to help broaden my understanding of old
concepts, and by doing new concepts, I can help turn my math-brain on for the new
school year. I make a calendar for myself, on which I write how much percentage of the
whole category I will do that day (e.g. from yesterday’s 20% of the section Get Ready
For 8th Grade, I will forward it by doing 15% more today). My goal last year was to try to
reach at least 90% completion over the summer and it worked. Doing these exercises
has helped me a lot, especially when I made mistakes since I learn more that way.
Worksheets I printed out last summer were also very helpful, in which I did
graphing slope, finding b in y=mx+ b, point slope, etc.. The reason I printed these out
was to try to keep what we had learned recently fresh in my head so I wouldn’t forget
the concepts over the summer. I also have recently joined Math Club and it has helped
me go past what we are learning in class and also apply math in real-world situations. It
also helps keep me stimulated and constantly thinking.
I have also coded quite a while back while reading a Python beginners coding
book. It helped improve my memory, since memorizing the basics to add on quicker was
much more efficient than looking back and forth from the pages. Another reading I have
done was an adventure fiction book called Max Einstein Rebels With A Cause, in which
a lot of Albert Einstein’s and other experiments are shown. The explanatory steps and
reaction descriptions were very influential, since the knowledge gained was beneficial
for me. Another activity of science that I will be doing this year will be volunteering in the
STEAM Fair. By visiting stations with the younger kids, I hope to help scientific
discoveries, arts, mathematics, etc. open up their minds and show them how everything
works.
Despite my special interest in reading, language arts, English, and spelling, I take
out time for math and science as I know they are very important and crucial to master
and discover. By taking out this time, I have improved in both subjects and am heavily
influenced by them.
2) Why are the sciences and mathematics so important to living in our world today?
Analyze an issue in science and/or mathematics that relates to this question. How could
you contribute to the issue as a future scientist and/or mathematician?
Science and mathematics are very important to living in our world today because
they shape everyday life. Math is the foundation of most jobs, while science helps us
understand and discover the wonders of the world we live in. An example of that is
Greenhouse gasses (GHG), an issue that matters to me and one that I have researched
particularly. It has both scientific and mathematical implications and without the
understanding of both concepts we cannot make progress on this issue. Carbon
dioxide, or CO2 is the biggest GHG. Carbon dioxide takes up 79% of total GHG
emissions, which obviously makes it the primary contributor. It enters the atmosphere
through burning fossil fuels, solid, waste, trees and biological materials, and also as a
result of certain chemical reactions. Carbon dioxide also has a large concentration in
the atmosphere. Humans play a big factor in CO2 emissions as we use and consume
these materials in everyday life.
Let’s expand on the science of CO2 emission. CO2 is “naturally present” without
us, but we are messing with its cycle, adding more than the natural amount, which
causes global warming. The five sources that make up CO2 emissions are
Transportation, Electric Power, Industry, Residential & Commercial, and Other
(Non-Fossil Fuel Combustion). Transportation is the leading contributor with 33%,
Electric Power following with 31%, Industry 16%, Residential & Commercial with 12%
and the rest being Other with 8%. Seeing this, the biggest causes are transportation,
electricity and industry. In transportation, fossil fuels such as gasoline and diesel
produce the most emissions. Production of electricity uses fossil fuels such as oil, gas
and burning coal. In industry, the fossil fuel contributors are production of metal and
chemical reactions. Industry also “indirectly contributes to emissions from electricity”,
because lots of processes use electricity. CO2 is always being interchanged around the
world, in “atmosphere, ocean, land surface” as it is also made and consumed by “lots of
plants, animals, and microorganisms”.
There are many ways to reduce our carbon footprint as we cannot remove it from
existence; many technologies depend on releasing carbon dioxide emissions. Some
efficient ways are improving insulation in our buildings, building more “fuel-efficient
vehicles”, better electricity-powered appliances, “turning off lights when not in use”,
lessening long distance traveling in vehicles; reducing fuel consumption, and fuel
switching which is producing “more energy from renewable sources” (e.g. solar panels).
As a potential future scientist, I would like to contribute to more innovative solutions,
such as efficient batteries and solar panels to name a few.
Here are the mathematical implications of CO2 emissions. Our carbon footprint
can be measured to know how much gasses we emit in our daily lives. The current
systems are limited in accuracy as they depend on averages which leads to estimates
and by the lack of specificity across all countries. These systems use a carbon
calculator and multiplication based on averages to measure footprint. I would like to
contribute to this issue as a mathematician by focusing on a novel calculator, related to
the carbon calculator. This could potentially provide more specific estimates from
various contributing elements and with more localizing data to inform precise actions
that are applicable globally. I believe this will help us reduce our emissions with more
exact information and not estimates.
To conclude, science and math help us understand everything in our daily lives.
As both scientist and mathematician, I would like to improve our efforts to reduce GHG.
Sources Cited (for 2nd essay)
1. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Glossary:Carbo
n_dioxide_emissions#:~:text=Carbon%20dioxide%20emissions%20or%20CO,as
%20well%20as%20gas%20flaring
2. https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/overview-greenhouse-gases?scrlybrkr=6e239
0e3