Friday, June 1, 2012- Fluid Mechanics

I can’t believe that it is already June and half the year has already gone by. It is really crazy to think about. Today, I did a lot of stuff, but it is really boring to talk about. The main thing is that I worked on, essentially, a fluid mechanics problem for most of the day. I actually took my fluid mechanics class to fulfill my requirement for engineering. I am proud to say that I got an A. However, a real world problem is a lot harder for me to think through. I was also trying to talk out what my reasoning was with Dennis and Walter in Spanish, but my vocabulary is still very limited. Needless to say, it was a bit difficult. The reason I need to solve this fluids mechanics problem is to know how much gas (volume) is in the biodigester before and after my water boiling test while only knowing pressure and some basic measurements of the PVC. Physically measuring the digester will be much too inaccurate for what I am hoping to accomplish.

Since this ends week three of my ten week stay in Nicaragua, I think it’s a good time to reflect on this week.

1.       Hot showers are a nice luxury that I definitely took for granted in the US and sorely miss now.

2.       I need to wear bug spray during the day. I do not feel bugs biting me, but my legs are a disaster and definitely have new bites every day.

3.       I need to look up technical words before I enter into a technical conversation. It would make things go much smoother, and I would be able to anticipate what words I need to use. I also need to get better at using my little notebook for writing new words every day, so I can continue to expand my vocabulary, especially verbs.

4.       I also realized that I only have a weeks’ worth of clothes. I really wish I would have brought more shirts to wear. I am definitely learning how to be a better packer.