Excel Entry

I have really enjoyed the excel homework and class assignments thus far.  I have learned how to copy down formulas, merge cells, format cells, and numerous of other functions in excel. This has actually helped me in my classes now (Chemistry lab), and I know it will help me in future labs as well.  It will also help me in the "real life" because most jobs and internships require their employess to know how to use excel (knowing how to copy down formulas would be quite useful here).  I dislike that the program is not the same in MACs, but I do love how the new excels are so much easier to use with their menu being so simple.  I can see the menu bar clearly on the top of my screen, which is really helpful for finding formatting tools and different functions.  I also really enjoy the built in tables as well, which allows the used to insert data in a pre-made table.

Jason Hardin Copyright Lecture

The other day Jason Hardin, who is the manager of access services, came into our computer class to talk about copyright laws.  I found his lecture quite informative and interesting.  I particularly found his lecture to be interesting when he described that plagiarism is usually just a moral sin or an academic crime rather than a federal one.  Copyright means government recognition of an intellectual property.  That means that the government is actually protecting your work from being copied.  He discussed that the moment a work is saved, published, or finished it is protected by the law, and is protected for the author's lifetime plus 70 years.  I found out that Disney is the reason that this law has been passed by Congress.  In order for them to retain ownership after Walt Disney's death, the Disney Corporation had to lobby Congress to increase the amount of years works can be copyrighted. 

It was good to know all of this information, so that I can myself be knowledgeable of copyright laws if I was to ever make my own published work. I was a bit frustrated to hear that a big corporation manipulated lobbyists to control the law.  Even though I am frustrated to hear that, I believe that the amount of time a work can be retained by the author should be much longer, since it is an original work, but Congress itself should pass it rather than a large corporation.  

I think Joe Hardin did an excellent job on keeping the class engaged by making his lecture interactive allowing the class to ask questions through out his presentation as well as using clicker to quiz the class and feed them interesting topics.

Trinity Network Diagram

Hopefully my diagram will prove to be insightful for anyone trying to learn about the Trinity Network.  I found the tour In hassel very helpful in making this diagram, and through making this diagram I have learned much about the complexity of Trinity's connections.

Joe Hatch

I was not actually present during his presentation, but I did read some interesting facts from what my peers wrote.  I learned that Macs can actually get viruses too, and that it is very helpful to delete the history  to create space and protect the Mac.  I also learned that TU secure, although a pain, is very beneficial to students because it creates a safe online environment, protecting users from viruses.  I own a Mac, so reading that majority of viruses are created for PCs was quite a relief.

I used the effect boost to enhance the green color of the grass and trees.  It was also a useful effect because it draws more attention to the foreground, and hides the background in a way by making it brighter.   This allows me to disguise the location of my picture, while also enhancing the colors of the trees, grass, and railing.  I chose this location because, in my opinion, it overlooks the most beautiful part of campus.

About me

Hi.  My name is Kayvon Tavakoli.  I'm from Houston, Texas.  This is my sophomore year at Trinity, and I am excited to begin a new semester here.  As of now I am not sure what my major is, but I do know that I will minor in Spanish and go through the Pre-Med program.  My goal in life is to become a doctor and help those who do not have healthcare, possibly opening up a free clinic in an impoverished country.  An interesting fact about me is that my parents are first-generation immigrants from Iran.  A a result I am quite influenced by the Persian culture (I also know how to speak, read and write in Farsi).  My extracurricular activities at Trinity include being a member of Phi Sigma Chi, and I am looking forward to join other clubs.  I took a computer class in high school, so I am familiar with some applications.  Up until college I have used a PC, but I currently use a Mac for college.  My email is ktavakol@trinity.edu.  Please email me if you have any questions.