Inventions Notebook

"Creativity is not only for the creative, similarly to how imagination is not only for the imaginative. Both do not require natural born talent because everyone possesses both. The reason some people are classified as creative or imaginative is because those people continue to work towards what they saw as an outcome for a project. An example of this is the action of drawing. Upon seeing a picture of the desired outcome in your mind, you expect the drawing on paper to look similarly to the imagined drawing. Most people, upon not seeing the outcome that they were looking for, do not continue working on the drawing. This can be compared to inventions because the inventors who design and create objects that we think that we could not live without are the ones who, even though the first prototype is not the desired outcome, still persevere, test, and believe in their capability to create something revolutionary." -Jared Griffith

"While on a cruise during the month of July, I was speaking with a friend who told me that the reason I was able to fall asleep so easily was because of the motion of the ship. The rocking of the boat on the water, from one side to the other, is similar to the effects a cradle. Because of this motion, the persons sleeping on a boat of such a size will find it easier to fall asleep as they are rocked to sleep by the ocean waves. An invention to allow this process to happen at home would be an adult sized cradle, similar to a baby cradle, but without the railings. It would be powered by electricity and would simulate the rocking motion which would have the same results as the baby cradle and cruise. This invention would be revolutionary as people would be able to fall asleep much faster, and get a better night's rest." -Jared Griffith

"Understanding results in the grade, but the grade doesn't result in understanding." Although this quote may be true, the majority of people don't care about learning but rather, about a grade. A letter or number out of 100 on a piece of paper. I began my Sophomore year of high school focused on one goal, getting better grades. But I failed to realize that in life, if I were to put on my resume that I have experience getting all A's, would that get me the position? Or if I were to write about what I have learned and my experiences, would that get me the position? At the start of Junior year my goal was to understand the material and strive to learn more or at the least, master the practice of understanding. Yes, this process takes self-discipline which I have not mastered yet, but by working to understand, not to get an A, I will be able to have a happier life in which I feel more accomplished and excited that I got a good grade, not because of the fact that the grade is all that matters but because I worked to understand the material, and that grade is a representation of my understanding." -Jared Griffith