Media Fluency part 2

#5 - Reflection on Media Fluency

I chose the way this slide looks because in the articles  it said to make the slide noticeable. With the red background and the word ‘Netflix’ in the middle makes the readers know it has something to do with Netflix because those are the theme colors. I tried to make the text big because it said that big text should grab people's attention and it should get straight to the point. I placed a lot of things on the slide because I didn’t like the empty space rule. People might not notice the slide if there is a lot of empty space.


I chose to have all of the pictures on the slide say Netflix because that’s the main focus of the slide. The website said to make the slide easy to read. I thought it would look good if I clouded the slides with the word ‘Netflix’ because it shows that I’m passionate about it. It shows that my slide is connected to me in a real way. It shows that I care about Netflix.


I learned that you should contrast your colors on the slide. You shouldn’t make the colors blend in because people won’t be able to read what it’s saying. I changed the changes on my second slide because my first slide was kind of plain. I wanted to make this slide pop out. Research is very important when you’re doing a project because you need to understand what you’re talking about.  

Media Fluency Project Part 2; Gold

Copy of Tech Slide #2 (Revisions)

Throughout this project, I learned how important the process of research is. I never thought that when designing something, research was needed, but it is. When one researches for design, the research shows what contrasts or what goes well together. If it looks messy or neat. And when I was finished with my first slide, I realized that it looked somewhat messy. The pictures went past the edges and overlapped each other, but I fixed that. Now in my revision of my first slide, I cropped the pictures so that they didn’t touch the corners and so that they did not overlap with each other. I also added some words, because I received feedback that some words would complete it. As a result, I am really proud of my second slide.


Payton McQuilkin's Approved Slide

tech slide #1, Payton McQulikin  (2)

While doing my slide I realized that the picture for my phone was not as important as the other creative ideas on my slide. I kept my typography with my name in the same place, I also added some typography. I added a few adjectives I thought that described me. I kept the pictures of me and the softball field. This kept the idea of one slide one point. I learned that when making a slide you must be creative, you must do research, and supported reason behind every move you make on your slide. This at first was hard because I was nervous and don’t enjoy speaking much in front of others. I also learning a lot about taking in criticism.

Media Fluency Reflection

Google Slide (1)
In this project, I learned more in-depth about some things I already knew. For example, I knew about the rule of thirds, but I didn't know exactly why it wasn't appealing to the human eye. I didn't change much about my second change, but I feel like the change I made changed the slide drastically. I wasn't given many things to critique about my slide, but the one thing that seemed crucial was the text. I was told that my text should be bolder, so I chose a similar, but thicker font. I was also told that my former location of the text wasn't as great as it can be, so I changed it to appeal to the rule of thirds. To conclude, research is something that's incredibly important for this project, as is practicing what you'll say. Without research, knowing what to say and how to answer questions will be very difficult, and it'll definitely be evident that you didn't research or practice.

Lamar Reed - Media Fluency Reflection

Lamar Reed's Tech Slide

Reflection:
I learned that the rule of thirds really has a big impact on how something looks to the eye. When I had made my slide, it looked weird because of where everything was. The changes I made to my slide was getting rid of the picture of myself, moving the words over, and changing the font color of the word “draw.” I also changed the font of “fire spitting” and my name “Lamar Reed”. I removed the picture and moved the words over because the way they were placed made my slide look weird to the eye, so when I changed it up,the slide became more comfortable and easy to look at. I changed the color of the word “draw” so it can pop out more and font the font so it can a more cooler effect to how people see the slide. I also purposely kept “fire spitting” red so it can have a fire type color to it. Researching before a project is so important because if you do enough research, you can be prepared and know what to do instead of guessing and trying to improvise when you don’t have an understanding of the project and it’s requirements.


Tech Slide- Briannie Matos

Tech Slide Briannie Matos (3)
I've learned many new things during this assignment for example there is something called glance media which is when as soon as you see something, you know what it is right away. Also there is typography and serif. Typography is text on a paper or screen and serif are little extra strokes at the end of a letter. Rule of thirds is when you can split the slide into 3x3 and no empty space will appear. White space is when there is a negative space or dead space where there is really nothing and it is just boring. I decided to change my slide to the way it was because my slide had pictures bleeding off the corners, my color palette I felt wasn,t just there, and I felt like there was two much going on. So I decided to go with one big image and typography to add with it. I chose to do a big image of SLA volleyball team so as soon as you seen it, you would know what it is about which is called glance media. No one would probably know that this is the SLA team but th y would know it is volleyball. My wording on the slide is serif because there are extra strokes at the end of my letters. Also the rule of thirds is in here because in you put this in a 3x3 grid, there wouldn't be any empty space. It is important to do research because when you are presenting you want to know what you are talking about right away and have a flow with everything you are saying.

Reflection of Media Fluency

tech bilboard  (3)
I learned to not put my images very close to edge of my slide because it is very uncomfortable.
I also learned and changed the color of my images because my slide was very plain with only black and white, so I added some blue. Another change I made was changing the positions of my pictures because everything was leaning to the left and that made it feel to heavy on one side. It is very important to research at the beginning so that when your peers are giving you feedback you know what they are talking about and you know what to change. Also making changes will be easier.

Media Fluency (Revised)

Tech Q2 #5

During this project I learned a lot about design, especially that used in advertising. One thing that is key is to have color contrast. If the colors of words on a slide are similar to the background or image that is behind those words, it can make it very difficult to read the words. I also learned that when designing a slide, as few words on the slide as possible makes it more appealing. Meanwhile, too many words makes the audience not want to read the slide.

Some of the changes I made to improve my slide were that I made the title of my slide bigger so that it is the first thing you see when you look at my slide. I also changed the font of the title because the original font I used made it look as though there was a space in the middle of a word when there was not. Originally, my slide included, in words, the topics featured in my Me Magazine, as well as images representing those topics. I removed the words representing the topics because it seemed pointless to represent my topics in multiple ways. Lastly, I replaced the image that represented music. Originally, two of the three images on my slide were outlined, and one was filled in. I changed it so that two of the images are filled in and one is outlined, and relocated them to make the slide more symmetrical. I also made each image larger so that you can see them better.

The research I did at the beginning of this project was extremely important. Had I attempted this project without knowing how important color contrast, large text, empty space, etc. are, I would have tried to cover my slide in writing that would have made it incredibly boring to read. Research is a crucial part of any project because it gives you background knowledge that you may not have otherwise had.


Media Fluency(Second Chance)

techpresentation (3)
From the critique of my peers that I presented my second slide to, I made a few key changes. One of the changes that I made was all of the spacing between all of my pictures that made it distracting to the eye with the already moving gif pictures and the multi-colored, moving background. The actual change that I made was a more basic background, and only one gif image, Which balanced the movement by being unbalanced. What I mean by this is that the Moving image was in the middle of two non-moving images.
Another major change that I made was making big wording with multiple colors that contrasted with color of the background behind them. 
https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/presentation/d/1eNEIWU_OLDdo5AJyDitjf8RYxMdi-1H81mHEVQBtyBc/edit?usp=sharing

Reflection on Media Fluency

Tech Q2-Bradley Gutierrez de Teran
Tech Q2-Bradley Gutierrez de Teran

I learned a lot from seeing what mistakes my peers made and my peers pointing out the ones I made. One of the many things I learned is that it does not look good when a photo is touching the edge of a border. However,  I learned that touching an edge/border is different to bleeding off or on. I also learned that if I have a pattern with colors or designs that I should not break it by adding different colors because it can be disruptive and unpleasing to the human eye.


The big thing that I changed is the colors of the SLA logo and of the photo of me. I did this because one of my peers suggested it, and many others agreed with her suggestion, so I decided to give it a shot. After I changed the colors I put the photos back on my slide and saw how they looked and I thought to myself, this could work out but first I had to play around with the colors and make it work. I also changed the size of both of the pictures because someone commented on making the photo of me bigger. After I had changed the colors I did that and made it to where it was partially bleeding off. When I made the photo of me bigger I knew I had to make the SLA logo bigger so there would be a better balance between it and the photo.


The last change that I made was the placement and size of the text. I was given advice from many peers to make the text more centered and to make the equation of how I got into SLA smaller. So after I moved them around to have it more centered  I made the text of when I got into SLA bigger because that was something I thought was more important. But I still needed the part of when I came to Philadelphia so I decided I would make it smaller but not too much. Finally I decided to make the text the same shade of purple as the photo of me and the SLA logo which was #540a5c. I had to then customize a color for the text so I typed in that color number and then I had my color for the text.


I personally believe that research is very important for just about every decision you make in school and in life. In this project I found research very important and helpful for me because it helped me learn a lot about a topic and skill that I knew very little about. Before starting this I knew very little about designing so research helped me learn many new skills and take notice of what would work and what would not.

In conclusion I believe that peer feedback is always some of the best feedback anyone can get.

Media Fluency (Revised)

tech slide

I learned not to add too many pictures onto my slide and to keep the slide looking simple. I improved my slide by changing my background to a darker color and putting lighter pictures that pop out along with the title to draw it away from other distractions. The pictures are supposed to represent the main idea and by keeping the background simple the viewers will see the big picture and what I’m trying to set out for the readers. The research is very important in the beginning of the process so it can set an idea of how your slide is supposed to look after you read the instructions and tips on how you should make your slide stand out.

Media Fluency: Revised

I learned that you should be very careful with the design. For example, in my last slide it wasn't properly centered. In this one I made sure everything was even. That's why I put the pictures where they are so it would be well centered. I also learned not to add so much text. I decided to focus on the visual aid because of this, which is why I added pictures and had less words. In my last slide I feel like the color pink didn't really fit me and made the slide more childish, so I had more empty spaces and chose white for a more mature theme. I tried to separate the colors within the pictures because 2 were colorful and the other 3 were black and white. This is why the color is more to the top and the non-colorful is towards the bottom. I did a lot of research before starting which helped me plan out my thoughts well but I feel like if I would've done more research it would've helped me to be more organized. 
Untitled presentation (1)

Reflection Of Media Fluency

Copy of ME Magazine Billboard (1)

This was a far cry from the strenuous side of the spectrum but in the end, I took away more than I had expected.

I learned that there is a proper way of creating a visual display that not only your audience will digest but you as well will be pleased with when it is completed. Balance is important when creating a billboard. You must be careful not to clutter your space at the risk of losing your audience’s interest. Patterns are welcome, as well as bold text to draw the viewers’ eye to a specific region on the board in order to bring notice to the point that you are trying to convey. Going into this project, I knew very little of these tips and tricks, however, reflecting on the piece I can say that these are ideas that I will use in future projects.

As you can see, or barely, I have made changes. Due to the peer review I’ve received pointers on how to correct the imperfections of my slide but there were only a few that I absolutely needed to change. Those being the type of font of my surname and the alignment of the center cluster of media. Because it was merely impossible to depict the word just by glance as I would have liked, I felt it appropriate to change it to a slight wider font. As for the symbols, for the audience to be able to notice the symbols’ entirety, I moved them up about an inch away from the dim mountains that filled the background.

Research was the most important factor in creating the picture that you see above. There would not have been a finished product had there not been research done before hand. Prior to the design part of the project, Ms.Hull required green stream to research elements of design and vocabulary on various websites and also watch videos that could prepare us for the hands-on element. I thank my obedience in the long run because now I am able to take away more than I bargained for, for the benefit of myself in the projects like this one to come.

Wow another one great !

One slide 2.0
They say ''the third times the charm'' I say ''you skipped a number buddy'' and hit them with a poodle. But in all seriousness hi my names Ivan and this is my slide new and revamped. I chose less images to try and figure out what little text I should add to make my slide feel different from it's past self. I will say I made it have a different problem with more space less images. This was a little difficult to remember because I forgot what the feedback was. But I tried my very best to remember and make the new even better than the first.  

My Slide- edited

Untitled presentation (1)
In this project I learned a lot of things. I learned that you can't just wing it, and to make sure you can back up the research you have for a project. I also learned that you need to keep things neat and simple. You can't have to much on the slide because then it takes away from the point you are trying to make. I made these changes to my slide based on what people thought would make it better. Before my picture was black, white, white in the background, now it is white, black, white. Also my title is more centered and I changed it from being called Me Magazine to Madison's Magazine. Research is very important when starting a project. If you don't have research you will be very confused on what you are actually looking for. Research puts ideas in your head. 

Reflection

ME Magazine Slides (3)
I chose to completely change my slide because it look nothing like my ME Magazine. this time I used contrast within my images. I also used transparency with my background. One top of that this time I used my own background instead of the one from google slides. On my Me Magazine I also made different fonts in my text so incorporated that in my slide.

The Incredible William Magazine (revised)

The Incredible and Creative William Magazine (5)

After receiving some feedback on my Google Slide, I made a few adjustments and arrangements to my slide’s structure. First, I cropped my picture to take out the meme phrase at the top of the picture because the phrase, ¨I NEED DIS¨ had nothing to do with what my me magazine was about. Second was that I moved the title and the subtitle over to the bottom left corner so that it would not block the otter and the ice cream sandwiches from view, and I shrank the text to help it fit. Third I shrank the picture so that it would not touch or go beyond the borders of the slide box, so that the picture would not bleed. Last I changed the name of the title to be exact to the actual name of my me magazine.

Split Brains: 5 Minutes of Science

The science of my topic surrounds a part of the brain called the corpus callosum. The corpus callosum is a set of nerve fibers located between the two hemispheres of the brain and allows the two halves of the brain to communicate with each other. In 1939, the chief surgeon at the University of Rochester Medical Center, William Van Wagenen, performed a surgery on ten patients which cut their corpus callosum in hopes of treating epilepsy. He thought this would work after seeing an epilepsy patient stop having seizures after a cancerous tumor destroyed their corpus callosum. This surgery resulted in an obvious reduction in seizures in seven of the ten patients.

Through split brain patients and experiments done by other surgeons, much has been learned about what happens when the two sides of the brain cannot communicate with each other after developing with a functioning corpus callosum. Roger Sperry ran an experiment on split brain cats where he covered one eye of the cat while teaching them the difference between two shapes. When the eye was uncovered and the other eye was then blindfolded, the cats could no longer tell the difference between the shapes without relearning. This shows how in split brains, each side of the body works independently. Each hemisphere of the brain only controls half the body. The right hemisphere controls the left side of the body while the left hemisphere controls the right.

Sperry later worked with human subjects with the help of Michael Gazzaniga and Joseph Bogen. They performed a split brain surgery on William Jenkins, a WWII veteran that suffered from seizures, in 1962. After the surgery, they ran experiments on Jenkins. In one, a dot was in the center of a screen while another picture was shown to the left or right. If the photo was to the right, Jenkins said he saw it, but if it was on the left, he claimed to see nothing. When asked to point to the object on either side, he could. This showed only one side of the brain could communicate information through words in split brains. In addition, Gazzaniga found by working with a patient referred to as P.S. that the left brain made excuses for mistakes made by the right brain pointing to a photo when it would not make sense to instead of saying they did not know why they were pointing.

In another experiment, Jenkins had to arrange blocks with one hand. The right side of the brain is good with motor skills, and his left hand was, therefore, able to arrange blocks easily. Meanwhile, his right hand not only struggled, but his left hand would start helping subconsciously. The sides of the brain can disagree in split brain patients or get in the way of each other. For example, Jenkin’s left hand would undo what his right did when allowed to use both hands. This work won Gazzaniga and Sperry a Nobel Prize in 1981.

This is important to society because it challenges ideas of individualism and self. If the two halves of the brain can work separately, it questions whether a person can be one or two conscious beings in one body. One way the theory of two beings in one body is being tested is through the current research of Michael Miller. In his experiments, the split brain patient is told a character trait while the word “me” is on one side of a screen and “not me” on the other side to the left and right. Then, they must point to the screen when a word corresponding to how they were told they are appears. If each hand points to opposing words, that proves each hemisphere in split brains can have its own unique emotional state. However, this research is ongoing. Split brains also build on Sigmund Freud’s idea that psychologically, humans have three parts fighting within them (the ego, the super-ego, and the ID). Multiple personalities in one body can also be seen in stories, such as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, or an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other.

As far as myself, I was drawn to this topic after watching a YouTube video, and I am a YouTuber. I also like being able to debate things that have no clear answer, like split brains being either one person still or two beings. I think it would be cool to imagine two beings in the brain, but that also makes little sense. I have been raised with the idea people can change over time, and we are multiple people over the course of a lifetime, but not two people at any one time. I suggest people stay open to any possibilities science can later present, but not worry about split brains too much right now.

I do not think the original video I watched was reliable since CGP Grey does not list their sources or even give their own name. However, I was able to find my own reliable sources to backup the video. The Nobel Prize’s website talks about split brains since Gazzaniga and Sperry shared a Nobel Prize. I was also able to find a large amount of information from an article published in The Atlantic. I found information on Sigmund Freud’s theory on a site written by a college professor of psychology. I learned more about Wagenen from The Society of Neurological Surgeons. While I found this topic from a questionable source, I was able to verify the science of split brains with trustworthy websites.

References

The Split Brain Experiments. (n.d.). Retrieved December 17, 2016, from https://www.nobelprize.org/educational/medicine/split-brain/background.html

Smith, E. E. (n.d.). One Head, Two Brains. Retrieved December 17, 2016, from http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/07/split-brain-research-sperry-gazzaniga/399290/

William P. Van Wagenen, MD. (n.d.). Retrieved December 17, 2016, from https://www.societyns.org/society/bio.aspx?MemberID=99178

McLeod, S. (n.d.). Id, Ego and Superego. Retrieved December 17, 2016, from http://www.simplypsychology.org/psyche.html

You Are Two. (n.d.). Retrieved December 17, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfYbgdo8e-8

Photography

I made this slide because I am inspired by photography and art basically any kind of art. That picture I put up was the temple from my church and I took it myself. I'm just really inspired by the setting of the sun touching the flower has they defrost from the cold weather.  

    The photo represents my artistic side of myself and what you see is a big church  and the sun over it.well the sun just represents my shine of happiness and the flowers represent the new things that bloom at and day.

   


   


ME! Presentation  (5)

Media Fluency Slide Pt. 2

After presenting my slide to my classmates they gave me some insightful feedback. The first bit of feedback was to make my name on my slide much bigger so it doesn’t look the same size the words below it. In doing this I immediately saw the difference between the two slides. The second thing I did was take out part of the sentences I wrote because I was told it was too much. I understand why it was too much because it was a glance media slide and there was a lot to read for just a glance. My classmates told me that all of the colors worked together well especially the gray background, so I didn’t really change any colors. The final thing I changed on my slide was the picture. I was told by my classmates that the picture wasn’t big enough and that having bleed of the side worked but that it needs to be bigger so, I made it bigger. Those are all of the changes I made.

Media Fluency Slide 2

Media Fluency Reflection

Google Slide (1)
In this project, I learned more in-depth about some things I already knew. For example, I knew about the rule of thirds, but I didn't know exactly why it wasn't appealing to the human eye. I didn't change much about my second change, but I feel like the change I made changed the slide drastically. I wasn't given many things to critique about my slide, but the one thing that seemed crucial was the text. I was told that my text should be bolder, so I chose a similar, but thicker font. I was also told that my former location of the text wasn't as great as it can be, so I changed it to appeal to the rule of thirds. To conclude, research is something that's incredibly important for this project, as is practicing what you'll say. Without research, knowing what to say and how to answer questions will be very dificult, and it'll definitely be evident that you didn't research or practice.

Retinoblastoma

Science:

Formed by mutated nerve cells which expand & is inheritable through parents. Inheritance is of type "Autosomal Inheritance Pattern", known as ADIP. The dominant gene for Retinoblastoma (Rb) is located on the autosome. Therefore, you only need one gene to be affected by Retinoblastoma. For example, if a father has Rb, than there is a 50% chance for child offspring to have it, and 50% to be unaffected by Rb. This image shows Retinoblastoma tumor before & after treatment. Thermotherapy in conjunction with Chemotherapy is used over 6 cycles to remove Rb, therefore leading to scar tissue prominent in image D. 

Society:

Rb can affect life by numerous factors. First, in places where advanced medical treatment is unavailable, Rb left untreated can be fatal growing rapidly and inhibiting normal function of the eye, then facial features, leading to very large growths. It can be detected by a photograph; when taken with flash, light will bounce off back of retina thereby showing up as white, when normal eye would cause light to bounce of retina, causing 'Red Eye'. Vision loss will occur even after treatment of Rb, leading to a blurry or soft-focused image. Focusing of the eye most likely will be not functioning, with eye control sometimes being impaired. Rb affects 200-300 people in the United States, and is the most common type of eye cancer in Children. Affecting 15,000 people per year, it occurs equally in boys and girls. Right/Left eye appearance of Rb is equal, with 75% chance of occurance in one eye, with reduced, 25% chance of occurance in both eyes. Over 9/10 cases of Rb are treated, however this is in US, with modern medical procedures (chemo, thermo, cryo & laser therapy). 

Self:

I was affected by Retinoblastoma at an early age, around few months of life. Treatment taken place using Chemo, and continued check ups lasted till I was school-aged. After these treatment for Rb, I continue to receive checkups at Wills Eye in Philadelphia. I was prescribed glasses though due to little improvement, and dislike I stopped wearing them. My control of left eye is difficult and although it follows my right eye movement, I cannot focus or see images through left eye clearly. After using the eye-patch at an early age, it improved my visual acuity through left eye to the point where peripheral vision is equal in both eyes. I still have difficulty with activities requiring both eyes, such as 3D glasses, or looking through binoculars/ microscopes. My views on Rb are that, I am thankful to Lord for being treated, and that I am able to continue life normally. 

Sources:

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/retinoblastoma/symptoms-causes/dxc-20156215
http://www.chw.org/medical-care/fetal-concerns-center/conditions/infant-complications/genetic-disorders/
http://retinatoday.com/pdfs/0515RT_oncology_Saktanasate.pdf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3574237/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1280085/

The School Transition

I don’t know what to write about. I forgot my idea. I posted it, I swear, but now I can’t find it. My teacher is bugging me about it. She won’t leave me alone. My old school wasn’t like this. I just can’t seem to get used to this untraditional learning style.


Here’s what would happened in class at my old school, I would walk into class and sit down at the desk with my name tag attached to it and immediately complete the question on the smartboard.


After completing the question the teacher would tell the class to take out the homework from last night and pass it to the front of the classroom.


The class would then write notes and the teacher would specifically tell us what to write down in our notebooks. At the end of class we would be assigned a question prior to what we learned in class that day. This was an everyday routine.


But i’m not there anymore because I thought that military school would not benefit me unless I wanted to join the military in the future.


And now, I’m stuck in this new class with no idea what to do, and the teacher is going to come look over my shoulder any minute, I know it.


And in Math, the teacher asked me about my homework and why I was absent. I was absent because I was sick. And i sent an email out, but i don't know if my teachers got it -- because nobody responded. I didn't even want to send that email. My dad made me do it.


And I told the Principal my lunch sucks. THere are these Freshman in there. He told me to get over it.” That´s  what he said! ¨Get over it.¨ I don't feel like I have any support here. This school, they try to say they support kids here. They say the work is hard, but I don't have a problem with the technical part -- I have a problem with the format, how they all teach. It´s confusing. I have a research template for World History, and I didn´t know if that was homework or not. I thought it was, and then I missed the deadline. To say ¨the template is due the next day,¨ then itś not clear that itś a project until the end. It just is like any other lesson until the very end, when weŕe making it pretty and presenting it in front of the class. This is so confusing.


There are never any specific instructions telling me how to complete anything. My teachers just expect me to figure it out, and when I ask for their assistance they tell me to use my brain. It’s not that I don’t understand the lesson taught in class it’s the format of each assignment given after the lesson that always confuses me. This can’t go on any longer I have to try and figure these issues out before it's too late.   


The social life here is not any better. I gave one person my instagram, and then overnight everybody had it. And all the girls act weird around me. Iĺl talk to them and they stare at me as I´m talking, and then just laugh and turn their head like I said something funny. Except Iḿ being serious. Itś kind of annoying. At my old school, they werenẗ shy the way they are here. I don't know why they would be shy, Iḿ just talking. Iḿ trying to be friends, and they get all weird like weŕe not supposed to be friends.


Except the one who sits next to me in English, Julia. Her behavior is different because she talks to me. She doesn't laugh at every single thing I say. She actually talks to me about the work, and doesn't get off topic if we do talk in class. She doesn't ask me about Instagram or anything.


Why did I do this to myself?


I just have to stop turning in nothing in class. I have to turn in something, or else it becomes a zero.


Hey Julia I have a question. Can you help me get started?