Session 11- Group Project Presentation 1 :)

During this session, we had the project presentation by 4 groups, and I am glad that my group was one of them. I feel relieved that our presentation is over! So what's left of our project would be to make some minor changes to our website. Overall, I must say that this course has given us a lot of knowledge and I now look at the world with a different lens. Technology is all around us, it is basically, the application of knowledge into our daily lives. It was a refreshing experience to see the other groups present and relate technology to their specific area of focus. 


My group's area of focus was the impact of technology in the food technology in the future. We first looked at the historical timeline of food and explored how it has progressed through time. From hunting and gathering, man moved to farming and subsequently, introduced new technologies in the production of food such as drying, freezing and the canning of food. Currently, food can be processed in massive amounts and our website looks at the current situation of mass production and food processing. Ever wondered how chicken nuggets and beef patties are made? 

Besides our focus on commercial food processing, we also looked at a very popular topic in society today. Genetically modified food, as the name suggests, is food that has been modified to pass on beneficial traits to them. This might include bigger and more healthy looking fruits, or rice that has additional vitamins in them. We discussed whether GM food should be labelled or not, and what its impacts are on society today.

Looking at the issues we have in society, we then forecasted what the future might hold for food technology. The possibilities are really exciting! Imagine if 3D food printing could be taken to the next level and the food printer might become a commodity for all of us. We could print food on the fly with just the click of a button. We are able to customize the exact portions that we want and mix different colours and flavours together in our food. The picture below shows a flower that  has been printed and deep fried. This reminds me of the noodle snacks we used to eat with seasoning when I was young. They were called Mamee!

 

Also, ever wondered if we could take the idea of meal replacements further? What if one pill could meet all our demands for a meal? My group showed this video to the class and we called this future innovation the bubble gum meal. You might think that might not be possible and that its just science fiction. However, as we learnt in class, if you can think of it, anything is possible!

In retrospect, I feel that using the web as a medium to educate others and to share our views is a great idea. As society becomes more IT savvy, the internet is almost accessible to everyone now and it has far reaching benefits. I must thank my group members as they were really proficient in editing the website. I feel that the website is beautiful! Check it out here!


http://www.wix.com/wyt_91/foodforfuture

Overall, I had a good experience this week as I have greatly benefited from all the sharing by the groups. Ecotech shared about eco-technology in our world today, and how companies like Starbucks are practicing eco-friendly habits. I also learnt more about photography as another group shared about technology in photography. I could draw a parallel to what they were talking about as I would be covering the topic of digital photography in my individual topical review report. Techmerce also covered the area of e-commerce in the future. What if we eliminated the need for shopping in shopping centers in the future and everything can be purchased online? I believe that this is likely to occur in the future as I do patronize online websites and make occasional purchases when the need calls for it. :)


Alright, time to end this and work on my individual review paper! The submission date is just next week! See you!


Lenard