Through SIE2016, I have gained a deeper understanding of communication skills including the verbal, non-verbal and written aspects of communication. I cannot believe how far I have gone by looking back at my first blog post. I see effective communication as a life-long ‘learning’. I conclude that we will never stop learning and it takes experience and practice to improve our communication skills.
The two most valuable takeaways from this course are learning about elevator pitch and listening is equally important as speaking when it come to communication. The activities that I enjoyed the most was the presentation that I had to explain about "The Assertion- Evidence Approach for Scientific Presentations", it was stressful as I only get ten minutes to prepare, but it improves my confidence in front of my peers. It was fun, and I have learned other presentation method from my peers. I felt that this was a great exercise and it has better prepared me for an unscripted presentation.
As Brad has mentioned previously, the most efficient way to improve writing skills is by practice writing. I find to be true as I felt that my writing is better now compared to the first blog I had posted. Initially, I found blogging laborious due to my poor writing skills. However, I could see my writing skills improving gradually through the assignments. Through blog writing, I notice that I tend to write minimal without much elaboration. Hence, I am grateful for the comments received from my peers and Brad as it had assisted me to identify my weaknesses and help to improve my writing skills further.
The project was an excellent opportunity for me to apply what I have learned through the course. I tried to adopt the 7Cs when I was writing the proposal and practice effective communication with my teammates. Besides this, I had a chance to create a survey and carry out an interview with Dr Andrew Ng.
I feel that the presentation was a stressful, yet rewarding experience for me. I have learned more about my weakness from listening to how my peers presented their proposal. I appreciate the encouragement and feedback on ways to improve my presentation skills. I believe that the learning experiences would be valuable to me forever.
Lastly, I would like to thank Brad for the excellent learning experience and my peers for making SIE2016 enjoyable.
Wednesday 16 November 2016
Analytical Reflection on Oral presenation
As I look back on the presentation that I gave as a result of our group task had some aspects which could have gone better. This report will briefly describe the presentation, identifying some of the problems our team faced. The purpose of this is to learn from our experience so that we can improve on our presentation skill.
The first mistake I had made during the presentation was being too nervous at the start of the presentation, I calm down after a few minutes, but I believe that by putting in more effort in preparation my performance could be much better. The second mistake that I committed was not having enough eye contact with the audiences. I had noticed the problem while I am presenting. However, I stuttered when I tried to spread my eye contact. I also noticed that I did not organise myself well enough. Rushing through the presentation when I should relax and talk about the point I wanted to focus.
I am not impressed with my presentation, but I am fairly pleased with my performance. Because this was the first presentation, I had for two years. I felt that the design of the slide is good and easy for the understand audiences. I need to work on the way I delivered, many times I rushed for no apparent reason. I also need to use a better transition phrase to end my part of the presentation.
From the feedback's that I had received for the presentation, I concluded that for me to improve my presentation skills, I have to get used to speaking in front of a crowd. Practising on the flow of the content would make my point clearer and easier to follow. I will read more book to improve my vocabulary bank.
From this experience, there are some things that I would do differently next time. I would practice the flow of the content that I am presenting instead of memorising a script. I will stand in the middle for future presentation and not stand at the side like the last presentation. In conclusion, I have to be more confident in myself and not rush through the presentation for no apparent reason.
commented on:
Adam
Alcina
The first mistake I had made during the presentation was being too nervous at the start of the presentation, I calm down after a few minutes, but I believe that by putting in more effort in preparation my performance could be much better. The second mistake that I committed was not having enough eye contact with the audiences. I had noticed the problem while I am presenting. However, I stuttered when I tried to spread my eye contact. I also noticed that I did not organise myself well enough. Rushing through the presentation when I should relax and talk about the point I wanted to focus.
I am not impressed with my presentation, but I am fairly pleased with my performance. Because this was the first presentation, I had for two years. I felt that the design of the slide is good and easy for the understand audiences. I need to work on the way I delivered, many times I rushed for no apparent reason. I also need to use a better transition phrase to end my part of the presentation.
From the feedback's that I had received for the presentation, I concluded that for me to improve my presentation skills, I have to get used to speaking in front of a crowd. Practising on the flow of the content would make my point clearer and easier to follow. I will read more book to improve my vocabulary bank.
From this experience, there are some things that I would do differently next time. I would practice the flow of the content that I am presenting instead of memorising a script. I will stand in the middle for future presentation and not stand at the side like the last presentation. In conclusion, I have to be more confident in myself and not rush through the presentation for no apparent reason.
commented on:
Adam
Alcina
Reader response Final draft
According to the "Sustainability Efforts" (n.d.) web page taken from Gardens by the Bay (GBTB) website, much effort was made to plan and design for sustainability for water and energy throughout the Gardens. Firstly, GBTB uses their lake system to filter water naturally with aquatic plants. This system aims to promote the importance of clean water and how plants can play a significant role in the ecosystem. The web page further explains the existence of glass biomes known as the Conservatories. Which consume lesser energy due to the specially chosen glass, along with the incorporation of thermal stratification and "Combined Heat Power (CHP) steam turbine". The “Supertrees” is a large structure that is made up of reinforced concrete core. It is as tall as a 16-storey building. While some "Supertrees" in GBTB act as the exhaust air storage, the others have solar cells to collect solar energy. Since GBTB is a sustainable infrastructure, it should not only function as a tourist attraction but also a serve as a research institute and help to educate the public about the importance of sustainability.
In my opinion, GBTB did a great job to conserve energy and reduce pollution. Besides being used to provide habitats for insects and fishes, the Dragonfly Lake and Kingfisher
Lake is also designed to clean the water run-off within the Gardens before releasing it to the reservoir. Instead of using other complicated technologies, GBTB chooses to use a more natural method for water cleaning by having reed bed and aquatic plants. By using Reed bed in the lake is environmentally friendly as it required minimal energy input(Reed-Beds, ”n.d”.) and it can absorb nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus in the water. It is important as, without nitrogen, the alga is not able to bloom.
GBTB had also reduced the energy consumption by using specially selected glass as a material of the conservatories to reduce the heat and use horticultural waste to generate power for the on-site cooling system. The glass effectively reduces the dependence of natural resources such as fossil fuel and oil. The CHP requires less fuel to produce energy, which also means it will contribute fewer greenhouse gases to air pollution (EPA,2016). One of the main reason for global warming and the change in climate is because of greenhouse gases. All these is pointing to the fact that GBTB is putting the effort in environment sustainability.
Additionally, the photovoltaic cells on “Supertrees” is absorbing the radiation from the sun and convert the energy into electricity. Natural resources in the world are reducing every year, while solar power will always be available if the Sun exist. Solar power makes it a good alternative to generate electricity beside using fossil fuel. By using solar energy to create electricity, it will not release any greenhouse gases to pollute the air or contribute to global warming. The “Supertrees” further support that GBTB upholds the environment sustainability concept.
In my opinion, GBTB did a great job to conserve energy and reduce pollution. Besides being used to provide habitats for insects and fishes, the Dragonfly Lake and Kingfisher
Lake is also designed to clean the water run-off within the Gardens before releasing it to the reservoir. Instead of using other complicated technologies, GBTB chooses to use a more natural method for water cleaning by having reed bed and aquatic plants. By using Reed bed in the lake is environmentally friendly as it required minimal energy input(Reed-Beds, ”n.d”.) and it can absorb nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus in the water. It is important as, without nitrogen, the alga is not able to bloom.
GBTB had also reduced the energy consumption by using specially selected glass as a material of the conservatories to reduce the heat and use horticultural waste to generate power for the on-site cooling system. The glass effectively reduces the dependence of natural resources such as fossil fuel and oil. The CHP requires less fuel to produce energy, which also means it will contribute fewer greenhouse gases to air pollution (EPA,2016). One of the main reason for global warming and the change in climate is because of greenhouse gases. All these is pointing to the fact that GBTB is putting the effort in environment sustainability.
Additionally, the photovoltaic cells on “Supertrees” is absorbing the radiation from the sun and convert the energy into electricity. Natural resources in the world are reducing every year, while solar power will always be available if the Sun exist. Solar power makes it a good alternative to generate electricity beside using fossil fuel. By using solar energy to create electricity, it will not release any greenhouse gases to pollute the air or contribute to global warming. The “Supertrees” further support that GBTB upholds the environment sustainability concept.
References
Gardens by the Bay and its sustainability. (2013 October) Retrieved from https://sites.psu.edu/designthinkingksk/2013/10/30/gardens-by-the-bay-and-its-sustainability/comment-page-1/#comments
Mason, M.(n.d) What is Sustainability and Why Is It Important? Retrieved September 28, 2016from,http://www.environmentalscience.org/sustainability
Supertree Grove. (n.d) Retrieved from "http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/supertree-grove/facts-and-figures.html" http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/supertree-grove/facts-and-figures.html
Sustainability Efforts (n.d.). Retrieved "http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/aboutus/sustainability.html"http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/about-us/sustainability.html
What are the advantages of using a reed-bed system? (n.d). Retrieved from
http://www.reedbeds.co.uk/page/what-are-the-advantages-of-using-a-reed-bed-system.php
Gardens by the Bay and its sustainability. (2013 October) Retrieved from https://sites.psu.edu/designthinkingksk/2013/10/30/gardens-by-the-bay-and-its-sustainability/comment-page-1/#comments
Mason, M.(n.d) What is Sustainability and Why Is It Important? Retrieved September 28, 2016from,http://www.environmentalscience.org/sustainability
Supertree Grove. (n.d) Retrieved from "http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/supertree-grove/facts-and-figures.html" http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/supertree-grove/facts-and-figures.html
Sustainability Efforts (n.d.). Retrieved "http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/aboutus/sustainability.html"http://www.gardensbythebay.com.sg/en/the-gardens/about-us/sustainability.html
What are the advantages of using a reed-bed system? (n.d). Retrieved from
http://www.reedbeds.co.uk/page/what-are-the-advantages-of-using-a-reed-bed-system.php
Welsh, M., Orantes, C., Brown, A., & Moe, M. (2012). 4. Sustainable Infrastructure. Retrieved September 28, 2016, from https://sustainable-infra.wikispaces.com/4. Sustainable Infrastructure infra.wikispaces.com/4.+Sustainable+Infrastructure
Problem and Purpose Statment
The main issue in public buses is overcrowding and that also leads to long waiting times. Despite the campaigns and increased bus frequency, many commuters are still unable to board during peak hours and bus bunching still occurs.
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