Staying Busy!

As the year begins to wind down, my work is actually beginning to get crazy! I have been working on my project presentation for the last month or so, as I have needed to verify testing numbers. Still no timetable has been set for the actual sales date of the sings, but we have begun preliminary talks with cities to get a sense of the local interest.
It appears the business will start by looking to sell locally, then perhaps branch out beyond if all goes well. My own life has been extremely hectic as classes are beginning to end before AP testing starts next week. I am looking forward to the extra time I will have after AP testing as school will be essentially over for me. In addition to the much anticipated free time, I will also have more time to work on my iQuest project!
I hope to make May my most productive month for exactly this reason of having so much more time.

Project Update!
The last month has been a blur for me as I have been extremely busy. I spent my spring break on the east coast touring schools and heard back from all that I applied to (finally).
With so much activity, I have not been able to spend as much time recently on my project as I would have liked to, but I believe we have made significant progress since my last blog.
My last update specific to my project involved my struggle with finding a quality solution to ensure the sign's adhesiveness to the ground. Since then, it seems I have exhausted every possible option and settled on one slightly more expensive and complex than I would have hoped. Without going into too much detail, the main idea behind this new prototype is a tile underneath the sign which can more easily bond with the street.
Most recently, I have been involved in creating ways to present this new product to potential buyers (cities, towns, etc.). In addition to explaining why the signs are even necessary, I must include the results of testing, aspects of the design to be highlighted as needed, and attempt to answer questions that may arise.
The process thus far has been long and arduous, but my role in the project is beginning to turn into what I had hoped it to be: actually running a business. Although this project cannot yet be deemed a "business" as zero sales have been made, my preparation for the product to reach the marketplace marks a critical point in the unveiling of such a title.
With months of school left, my project is still just beginning. I hope to have more to blog about in the near future as my life begins to return to its normal routine.

Things I like most and least about myself

The thing that I like most about myself is my work ethic. When I begin doing something that I truly have an interest in, I persevere regardless of obstacles and strive to do my best work. This is a quality that has been developed through high school, but in a different way because I was truthfully not interested in the majority of topics studied. In my future academic endeavors I hope that my motivation will rise as I explore areas of interest to me and that are relevant to my own career path.

Though working hard is a valuable quality, over-working is not a good thing. Because I am constantly putting my full effort into what I do, I tend to get caught up in details and spend too much time focusing on small things in attempt to perfect my work rather than making more significant progress in other areas. This is something that I must focus on to maximize my own efficiency in the future.

Second Semester iQuest

As I look forward to this semester, I am considering a change in projects. The hindrances in my current project have proven to be difficult to surmount in a cost efficient way, so there is still more work to be done before the signs can be marketed. I had a two week break from volleyball between my club and high school seasons and I am in the second week of that break right now. With high school season beginning next week, my schedule will become considerably busier. Given my interest in the sport of volleyball already, I must decide whether it is possible for me to create a project out of my participation in the sport. I am already interested in coaching at some level and have gained experience coaching at the lower club levels as an assistant earlier this year, but I would need to find a coaching opportunity during the school season to use as an iQuest project. If I can find a way to learn more about coaching during the school season and continue to work as an assistant coach for my club team in May, I may be able to use volleyball coaching as my project. I have not yet had the chance to sit down and talk with my coach yet, but I will look to do so in the coming days. As the president of a local volleyball club (different from my own club team), he has other teams playing at the same time as our high school team that I may be able to help out in some way to further my own volleyball knowledge and playing strategies. Because of the relatively small number of boys' volleyball players in the area, coaching opportunities for high school boys are not too difficult to find and I believe that I have good connections with club teams to find a position to work with players.

Regardless of the project I pursue, I will certainly continue helping my dad with the sign project at home. If this continues to be my second semester project I will assess the problems we have encountered and create a new schedule. If I change my project to coach volleyball, I will need to find a way to quantify my goal. 

As the semester closes, I will reflect on my progress for iQuest.
I began my year with only the idea of making small road signs to supplement larger signs. I set dimensions of the signs and completed the designs for several different common road signs. I ordered the signs and they currently sit in my garage.
We knew that the most difficult part of the project lay in finding a way to secure the signs to the ground. Because the signs need to be able to withstand most all weather conditions, this would be the most difficult solution. We began looking at epoxy, glue, and other kinds of cement to secure to the ground. The material for the base of the sign was also a big question mark. Initially we had a rubber-plastic compound planned, but it had too much rubber in it to remain a durable piece. The polymer supplier we worked with offered the best solution to this problem: simply add more plastic into the mixture. The result was a very durable material that could both withstand the wear from traffic and the weather conditions.our problem lays in the fact that we cannot find a way to effectively secure the material and sign to the ground with a degree of permanence.
I will not venture into the specifics of some of the solutions we have been considering, as you can find them in my earlier blogs, but we have been experimenting with a new technique involving a base to the rubber-plastic compound that would more easily bond with the ground. Our problem is not finding a solution that will merely bond with the pavement permanently, but rather one that is cost efficient and can be produced on a fairly large scale.
The project has clearly not gone exactly according to plan because of these hindrances, but these have provided me with the greatest lessons. I have seen the persistence required to taste success and now understand the work that must be put in to see an idea to completion. This is a lesson that can only be experienced and, although it is discouraging to me now, I know that I have grown in a way that could never be achieved in a classroom setting. My respect for the class remains very high because of the unique and valuable learning opportunities that have been readily available and truly abundant to me this semester.

January Update

It has been a busy past few weeks. During the winter vacation, I was away for volleyball in Southern California for a week. After that tournament, I was commuting back and forth from San Mateo in another tournament. With club volleyball now over for the winter, I hope to be able to focus on my project. Unfortunately, sickness has also ravaged my house. My dad has had the flu for the past week and, as the engineer of the project, has not been able to continue work and research on adhesives. He is recovering and has returned to work this week, so we will hopefully be able to solve the problems with the project now that we are both able to work on it together. Overall, little progress has been made since my last post because of break and volleyball.

It has been a while since my last blog, but there is not much news. We have been searching for an adhesive that will both withstand weather conditions and regular wear from cars running over the signs.
So far, we have tested several different kinds with little success. This has proven to be a real problem and has been the first true test of our project's ability. Hopefully we will be able to figure out a good solution within the next few weeks.
I have not been able to be as much of a part of this particular process as it is very technical work and requires very specific knowledge. Instead, I have simply contacted suppliers, etc. and asked them about some of the basics regarding their respective products.
Again, not much has been going on the past few weeks unfortunately, but things will hopefully pick up once we can make it past this setback.

A few potential signs...they are each about 6 inches in length