Life in Lumens

Thanks for your patience. We are back to blogging. We can't believe it is already March! And it has already been a memorable year. Several of the memories we would just as soon forget, but several others are worthy of sharing. We'll start with Paige. As a 3rd grader she was introduced to the science fair, a mandatory assignment for 3rd - 6th grades at her school. The science project was a topic of discussion from October (when she received the assignment) until February (when the assignment was due). We discussed project ideas, plans and experiments. What would we choose, what would be fun, what would be educational, what would hold relevance to Paige and her life. Because green is the new international color and doesn't appear to be going away - right or wrong, we decided to choose a topic of renewable energy. The most significant source of renewable energy is the sun, so in early January we purchased a solar panel and began our studies.

Life in Lumens was the title of her project. We learned a lumen is a measure of the perceived power of light. Light bulbs are measured in both watts (power) and lumens (light). Paige's hypothesis was the more light a solar panel is exposed to the more power it would produce. She was correct. Leading up to the experiment itself, Paige learned about multimeters and how to use one. We tested batteries as a way to use the multimeter. Brock and Sidney wanted to test the batteries too. In fact, testing batteries proved to be the funnest part of the project for Paige (and Brock & Sid). She loved testing rechargeable batteries and determining those with a full charge (1.2v) and those that had less than a full charge. The solar panel had two lead wires to connect an electrical unit to, such as a fan or motor. Instead we exposed the solar panel to light bulbs with different lumen ratings and connected the lead wires to the multimeter. We then took readings from each light bulb and recorded its output in mA (milli-amps). We performed several experiments and tracked the data - this is how we confirmed Paige's original hypothesis. She charted this data on a graph in lumens as a function of mA.

Not to bore you too much, here is what we learned. Solar panels are constructed using semi-conductors, the most common semi-conductor used is silicon. The best solar panels convert light from the sun to power with about a 30% efficiency. When the sun doesn't shine, when its cloudy, etc. solar panels do not produce power. In such cases expensive battery back-up systems are required. Even with these shortcomings however, solar power is the most efficient source of alternative energy. In fact, the German Council on Climate Change has predicted that by the year 2050 solar power will be the world's most prevalent source energy - eclipsing fossil fuels and coal. Paige will be 60 years old in 2050. On a side note, we also learned that in order to power a 100 watt light bulb continuously 24 hours a day for a year, requires 714 lbs. of coal. And in burning 714 lbs. of coal, we also produce 5 lbs. of Sulfur Dioxide (acid rain), 5.1 lbs. of Nitrogen Oxides (smog) and 1852 lbs. of Carbon Dioxide.

Have I convinced you that we are tree-huggers now? We're not, but this exercise was really eye opening to me. It has made us a little more conscious of how we live and reinforced my summer work commute on my bicylce.

Now for the best part. Paige was required to give an oral presentation to her class and the judging panel of the science fair. The presentation to her class was the day before the presentation to the judges. On our way to her school the day of the science fair Paige said that the worst part of presenting to her class the day before, was that she got so nervous she forgot what she was going to say. She told me that she had it all planned out in her mind that morning and that it was going to be really good- but then as she stood in front of her class her hands became sweaty and her mind went blank. I had to laugh and explain that experience is pretty normal for all of us. Well, Paige insisted she wear Sunday attire for her presentation to the judges, saying her teacher said it was required. As we entered the school and headed toward the multi-purpose room to setup her project board, two of her classmates (both girls) approached her and asked her why she was looking so good. They were both wearing t-shirts and jeans. She said, just because. After setting up and in my preparation to leave, Paige's final words to me were "Dad, I hope I win a blue ribbon". She said she had heard that the best projects received a blue ribbon.

Charmayne, the kids and I went back to Paige's school that afternoon to see the science fair. As we turned down her isle and upon making eye contact with her, she gave us a huge smile. As we got closer, she simply said - my teacher told me that she had something exciting to tell me but that she couldn't. Paige then said, I knew that meant I won a blue ribbon. Her teacher came and spoke to me and explained that the children who win are those who know their subject matter the best and who are able to answer the judges questions. She told me that Paige was one of the kids who knew the most about her project and was very happy for her. In all honesty, I wasn't real concerned until Paige told me she wanted a blue ribbon and at that time I figured it was too late. I had my fingers crossed that whole day. But the reality is that Paige knew she wanted it from day one. Which is why she was laying in bed practicing what to say the day before presenting and why she wanted to look so nice the day of her presentation. She worked hard at keeping her journal and was always very inquisitive about what we were doing and why. I just finished reading a book called Outliers: The Story of Success. The author explains that the people who are the most successful aren't always the smartest or most talented but usually the hardest working and the people who want it the most. Paige's blue ribbon can be attributed to her desire and to that I can only say - congratulations Paige!