AMST 100 Digital Story

a digital story for AMST 100

What I've learned in AMST 100

Throughout this semester in AMST 100 I learned many things about style and semiotics to branding and public space. However, the most important things I learned from this class can’t be found in the textbook. The reason why is I didn't learn about them in class but rather for class. For instance, one important thing I learned this semester was how to create a blog so I could do the required posts for class. Although, more importantly I learned how to edit my writing more effectively so my assignments could be under the maximum word count. (Word count: 97)

We're #1 (plus six)

I find myself cheering louder and louder with my teammates in the bleachers, competing to be heard over others doing the same but only in Chinese or Spanish. I put all my energy into cheering as though by doing this I would somehow make my words a reality as the final seconds on the match clock moved towards zero. [Insert buzzer sound of choice], the match was over, the robots turned off and the crowd that was a second ago tumultuous was now completely quiet as everyone stared at the game field trying to count up the final score. My heart started beating faster than I thought possible as I realized that if we won this match our alliance would be two wins away from becoming the Vex World Series Champions, that out of over 500 other teams from all over the world, our alliance of three would be the best three teams in the world. And as I finished that thought a more important one ran through mine as well as my teammate’s minds, “Did we win?”

You see VEX is one of the largest middle through highs school robotics program and competition with millions of teams from all around the world from all of the continents except Antarctica, where teams complete against one another with 18×18×18in robots. Even though our team may  seem a bit obsessive about VEX to some people it’s probably cause that our school’s vex teams and myself invested almost a year to get to this point from when we all decided to just go for it all which included winning the VEX World Series, and because of this we spent countless summer days, Saturdays, and hours after school working towards our goal whether it was maintaining the engineer note books, checking the forums, writing code, regularly dismantling and rebuilding to improve our robots, or researching strategies and other teams. But all our hard work and effort made it so that all three of our vex teams qualified multiple times for the 2011 VEX World Series in Disney World.

The World Series was nothing like we ever seen before like at other competitions because of its size. However that didn’t mean that we weren’t prepared for it though. Since I was in charge of scouting and strategy for all three teams I thought it would be a good Idea to bring a pocket translator since I knew that there would be a large number of teams there that didn’t speak English, and as our luck would have we were placed into a division where the majority of teams didn’t. As a result of my foresight I was able to help one of our teams got picked first during alliance selection by one Chinese team that I built a relationship with and because of all the data I gathered from scouting teams we picked a New Zealand team that gelled with the other two teams perfectly. The fact that our alliance could easily communicate together helped make it possible for them to reach Division championship match against three teams from Puerto Rico. Both alliances were practically even and before anyone realized it the score was 1-1 and the match clock of the tiebreaker was at zero the buzzer barely audible over the cheering, then there was silence as the score was being tallied that seemed to last an hour, and as suddenly as the silence came it was gone destroyed by the cheers of the Puerto Rican supporters as they saw the score 51: 50; we had lost by 1 we were shell-shocked. Later when our whole team was packing up and preparing to leave I realized that we placed 7^th out of over 500 teams and that meant out team was one of the top ten teams in the world and that it wasn’t too bad for our first year of taking Vex seriously. 

The lights are always on

The Chesapeake dorm where I live is somehow always very lively. From Super Smash Bros. Brawl tournaments to heated Ping-Pong matches and even slacklining outside and other activities. No matter what floor you go to there is always something going on whether people are just having fun and hanging out or meeting up with others to try and get help so they can wrap their head around everything they need to know for their upcoming test. So whether socially or academically the Chesapeake dorm at umbc is always a great spot to meet with others. (Word count: 96)

Games that Bond

Sorry didn't notice that this did not post on Monday!

Games that Bond (Word count: 267)

 Once again, I moan in frustration as the rest of my family laughs at my misfortune as my dad adds a level 13 monster card on top of the level 20 monster that I already need to fight preventing me from gaining my tenth level and winning the game of Munchkin, one of our family’s favorite Steve Jackson game. When I now look back on my life, growing up the one thing that I enjoyed most was playing tabletop games with my friends and family. Whether, it was Magic: The Gathering with my friends, or playing Risk or any other board game with my family on game night. I feel that playing those games helped me strengthen my relationships with those that I played with. However I think this effect is only specific to tabletop games in particular in my experience because when I play video games it just didn’t feel the same as sitting down with the people I cared and playing one of the classics. This is probably the same reason why the number or tabletop games I have sat down and played all the way through is significantly higher than the number of video games that I have played all the way through. Another reason why tabletop games are such an important aspect of my life is because they can help teach you life skills like lying, resource management, and other social skills. That’s why tabletop games will always have a special place in my heart forever.

That’s why I believe that tabletop games can bring people together and also teach us valuable skills.

"Mythic Rare" of the Community

Inside Alternate Worlds

I strongly believe that Alternate Worlds; a game/comic book store in Cockeysville, MD; should be protected. You see Alternate Worlds has been around for 34 years and not only provides the type of customer service where they remember your name, a family friendly environment to meet up with and make friends, and a hub for gaming/comic related wares for customers to buy. They also provide a service to the surrounding community by offering a safe and fun place for kids to spend time and meet with friends after school, which in turn helps keep kids out of trouble and harm. (Word count: 100)

Stand By Your Brand

Haggar is a brand that I will always stand by. Haggar Clothing Co. was founded in Dallas, Texas in 1926 and has a history of being known for producing quality clothing with a lifetime guarantee. Haggar is also known for popularized the term “slacks” for a pair of men’s pants. The main reason why I buy Haggar is because their cloths last a long time plus their stylish. Furthermore, buying Haggar tells people that I like my pants the way I like my women: strong, reliable, stylish, relaxed, and corduroy… on second thought maybe not that last one. (Word count: 98)

Flashy Footwear

I was in marching band for all four years of high school (go Lion’s Roar Marching Band). During my four years as a band member I observed and took part in a fashion trend that spread throughout the band where members would wear uniquely colored or patterned shoes every day.  My friends the Prince’s started this trend and when asked why they’d say it was to help show off their marching technique and they looked cool. My friends and I and soon other members adopted this trend of wearing unique footwear everywhere, and I still do today. (word count: 97)

A Previous Misconception

My name is Sean Dougherty, I am from Baldwin, Maryland, and the place where I call home is wherever my mother, father, older sister, twin brother, and I are altogether. However, when I was younger if someone were to ask me where the place I called home was I would just state my home address without a second thought. Only after my older sister moved out of our house did my previous definition of home seem incorrect because I finally realized that a house is just a space without the people that make it a meaningful place. (Word count: 97)

-Sean Dougherty (middle of picture)