Another excellent Edublogs.org weblog

Fire is always a potential hazard, regardless of the industry or application. In many cases construction equipment is not required to be equipped with fire suppression equipment (fire extinguishers). Take a look at the above photo. What do you think caused the fire (how did it start)? What do you think is burning? Do you think fire extinguishers should required on all equipment? Defend your position – explain why or why not.

There is no doubt that hydraulic excavators are versatile machines; they can be utilized for a number of applications. Unfortunately some applications, like the one pictured here are extremely dangerous. These applications are not approved uses for the machines, yet people still do them. Look at the above photo and comment on the potential hazards associated with using a hydraulic excavator in this manner. What are some other “unapproved” applications for excavators? Finally, if you were asked to perform this task with an excavator, how would you respond? What if it was your supervisor/boss who told you to do this type of task with the machine – what would you say to them?

Hydraulic excavators are not the easiest machines to transport. What things do you feel need to be taken into consideration when transporting a excavator? What do you think are the ramifications (consequences) for the incident pictured above?

The photo above shows that there are hazards associated with every application that Hydraulic Excavators are used for. Take a moment to answer the following questions: What do you think happened in the above photo? Why did it happen? What could be done to prevent an accident such as this from occuring?

As you can see from the above photo, operating a hydraulic excavator is not a “hazard free” occupation. Take a moment to list your thoughts as to why the accident in the photo occured, and what could have been done to prevent it. In addition, identify any additional hazards that may be of concern when operating a hydraulic excavator.

Excavators are utilized for a variety of applications. Identify excavator applications, and any attachments required to perform those applications. In addition, comment on the machine characteristics which you feel make it desirable (positive characterisitics/affordances) for the particular application. Since few things have only desirable/positive characteristics be sure to address the negative characteristics (constraints) as well.  

In recent years large scale “core” earthmoving operations have seen a decrease in the use of scrapers, while truck & excavator “teams” have seen a significant increase in their use. Why has this occured? What characteristics of a scraper contributed to its decline? What are the characterisitics of the truck & excavator team that have resulted in its increased popularity? Are there applications which would favor scrapers over truck and excavator teams? 

I’d like to begin this post by saying thank you to everyone for listening to me this morning. I didn’t intend to dominate the conversation, and I feel I did. For that I am sorry. Maybe it is a bit of envy coming out. Everyone else in the class seems to be finding several great web 2.0 tools they can use in their classrooms, while I am in a bit of a rut. My curriculum dictates that the students receive the “maximum” amount of “stick” time possible. To accomplish this my instruction revolves around “real life, competency based, hands-on learning.” Unfortunately, that is not very conducive to utilizing most of the web 2.0 tools that are out there. Don’t get me wrong. There are a few tools which offer a great deal of potential for integrating technology in my program (particularly blogs and wikis). I liked Alice’s suggestion of doing blogs related to safety. (Thanks Alice!) I have a few logistics to work out, as to how I would actually implement those blogs, but it’s not an insurmountable task. As for how I will integrate other forms of technology, only time will tell. 

Today I came to the realization that in the not too distant future my web 2.0 skills and resources may become a thing of the past. There is already talk of web 3.0.  Web 3.0 is projected to include the following: Interoperability and Data Portability, Indentity-based Services, and Mobile-device Integration. Check out: www.edumorphology.com/?p=37 for more information. After reading that post I began to ponder ”where are we heading?” With technology changing and web services evolving I can’t even attempt to determine a sense of direction. Will cell phones, which are now the “scurge” of countless schools become an educational tool? I have already seen this happening – not in an acceptable sense (the students were attempting to text the answers to a test). Who says that today’s students have lost their creativity? They haven’t lost it, they just don’t use it in a way that we consider to be acceptable. In any case, I am still unsure where technology and education are headed, as was the case with the teachers we had in school, and their teachers before them. One thing is certain, history repeats itself, and the concerns that they had are shared by today’s educators. After having my 20 year high school reunion this year and my 15 year college reunion last year I can say that, for the most part, we all became productive members of society, even with the uncertainties facing eduction. I hope the same holds true for our current students and the students of tomorrow.

Last night I was watching Dana Carvey (of SNL and Wayne’s World fame) do a stand-up routine on HBO Comedy. He was speaking about being a parent, but he actually addressed 21st Century Learners. He was explaining how his son is taking this “higher level math” and how he can’t even help him with his homework. I thought this was too much of a coincidence. His story went something like this: “A train leaves the station at 1:00 p.m. travelling 40 miles per hour. A second train leaves the station at 2:00 p.m. travelling 60 miles per hour. What is the conductors shoe size?” “At this point my son says dad, why do I have to figure this out? Can’t I just google it?” I thought this little story related to what we learned in class about the 21st Century Learners. If you are interested here is a link to his routine off of the HBO Comedy webpage. I don’t know what part of his act it contains since I didn’t view it myself. I’m still using a dial-up connection at home, and I can’t wait for it to download. Anyway here is the link if you’re interested:

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