Tech-Taters

See the water wheel working

In winter break I saw a water wheel in India.  It is called a persian wheel and works by oxen who pull a log.  The log is attached to a wheel, and the wheel is attached to another log.  The second log is attached to another wheel which picks up water from a well and dumps it in an irrigation canal which takes it to the fields.  This is a water wheel that works by pulleys and gears.  I thought it was interesting.  It is different than most water wheels because it is worked by oxen pulling it and not by the person operating the wheel.  It is  also environmentally friendly and doesn’t use any fuel or electricity.  I think it is sometimes difficult to understand because it has such a complex system of working.  It reminds me of a chain reaction, because when the one log turns, everything else moves and the end result is an irrigation system.  The log turns, which makes the wheel turn, which makes the second log and wheel work.  I think it is very interesting because it is unique.

I chose geocaching as an activity on the school trip to Black Rock (read about more it on a previous post) and I have completely fallen in love with it. Geocaching is when there is something hidden (it is called a cache), and it is logged as a GPS location. Someone else can download the file to their GPS receiver and go hunting for the cache.

Geocaching is a fun way to go on adventures in places that maybe you are familiar with or places that you have never been to. For me, it was interesting to go exploring Black Rock to find the caches hidden all over with my partner. We were looking for little pink strings that my tech teacher hid. My favorite place where one was hidden was under a little platform. I also liked the ones that were hidden in the forest. It seemed to add a little bit more adventure. I have always lived in the city and the big forest seemed so daunting to me. Also, there was the anticipation of looking for the cache and then the excitement of finding it.

Usually, there are little surprises to find in the caches. The good thing to do is either: keep the surprise inside the cache, or replace it with another little surprise. This way, if another person comes to hunt for the same cache, they will find something there. On the file, there might be a description. Always read that so you know how hard the cache is to find, how hard the journey to finding it is (slope, terrain), and it might tell you some extra things you need to bring. Maybe it will even give you a few hints.  Also, remember that compass! Unless you have a superhuman sense of direction, you will need a compass to go where the GPS tells you to go.

A GPS is a very cool device. It gets information from satellites in outer space, and it knows where it (you) is. You need to be outside though for it to get the signals. Then it has the destination marked, and it tells you where you need to go (eg. go northeast 100 degrees). When you need to go in a different direction, the message changes. When you get close, it says “arriving at point ____” and even then you still have to find the actual cache. Go to geocaching.com to find out more about geocaching, and maybe find a cache hidden near you to find! I personally know there will be one near you!

-Claire