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Kaley Romain

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2022 An Inherently Superior Paradigm Shift for Renewable Energy

Fountain Hills High School AP Capstone Research, Fountain Hills, AZ

I. INTRODUCTION

EV/PV ORIGINS

In the United States, the first electric car, an 1890 six passenger electrified wagon with a top speed of 14 miles per hour, sparked an interest in electric vehicles. That interest led to electric cars representing ⅓ of all vehicles on the road by 1900 with continued strong sales over the next 10 years. With the enthusiasm experienced over 100 years ago, one would anticipate an overwhelming presence of electric vehicles (EVs) in modern society. To the contrary, electric vehicle presence in the market has declined to virtual obscurity.

EV/PV HISTORICAL AND CURRENT PROPAGATION

To explain the limited propagation of these functionally and objectively related technologies, EV (representing power consumption) and PV (representing power generation) with batteries (representing power storage) being the factor that connects them, we must evaluate their historical and current deployment paradigms while exploring the potential for new or alternate approaches that would create cumulative propagation improvements.

AN ALTERNATIVE PARADIGM

In consideration of the exponential year-over-year growth, aggressive promotion, investment incentives, competitive energy disincentives and dire environmental messaging to date the question would be, regardless of the justification for their pursuits, is a 10% market share for EVs and a 0.46% market share for PV generation indicative of a policy that has or will achieve a compelling saturation of these technologies in the U.S.?

II. GAP IN RESEARCH

INHERENT SUPERIORITY

The catalyst that triggered PV’s transition from a scientific curiosity to useful functionality worthy of production was its ability to generate electrical power where it is difficult at best to acquire. Space, the impetus of the symbiotic marriage of EV in the form of satellites and PV solar electricity, is not the defining scope for this inherently superior context. As the economics of PV improved, driven by its production for space operations, opportunities on Earth took root with powering remotely located, electrically powered functions.

III. RESEARCH AND METHODOLOGY

NATURAL VERSUS PROCESSED POWER

While this research did not seek to quantify how much of the 130 billion kilowatt-hours produced by PV generation plants in 2020 was converted to AC power and inevitably converted back to DC power to charge batteries, it does seek to quantify the reduction in efficiency caused by the additional conversion. The initial hypothesis is reducing electrical conversions required to charge batteries will reduce power losses and create an opportunity to improve the economics of the process.

TEST AND DATA COLLECTION CONFIGURATION

Referring to the block diagram below (Fig. 1), the components utilized are as follows:

1. System 1 - PV 0-70VDC to Battery 12VDC Charging System

  • Solar DC Source – (2) Grape Solar Model CS-S-180-DJ 180 Watt Modules
  • DC Charge Controller – Victron Energy SmartSolar MPPT 150/35
    • Efficiency specification: Maximum 98%

2. System 2 – Battery 23-25VDC to 120VAC to Battery 12VDC Charging System

  • Battery DC Source – (2) Concorde AGM Battery Model PVX-2120 12VDC
  • DC to AC Inverter – Victron Energy Phoenix Model 24/250 Inverter
    • Efficiency specification: Maximum 88%
  • AC to DC Charger – Victron Energy Blue Smart Model 12V Charger
    • Efficiency specification: 94%

3. Destination Battery Storage

a. Battery DC Destination – (1) Concorde AGM Battery Model PVX-2120 12VDC

Test Configuration Diagram

SPECIFICATION EXPECTATIONS AND VALIDATION

According to the original equipment manufacturer’s specification for the devices used, with the exception of the circuit related losses that are reasonably balanced for both test configurations, System 1 should expect a maximum of ~98% efficiency (minimum ~2% loss) and System 2 should expect a maximum of ~83% efficiency (minimum ~17% loss {94% of the power from the inverter derived from 88% of the power from the ~24VDC series batteries}).

IV. RESULTS

COLLECTED DATA

With the percentage of power loss charted on the left Y axis, the input power charted on the right Y axis over the passage of time in the X axis, the following conclusions can be made for the “high power mode” (Fig. 2) and “low power mode” (Fig. 3) respectively:’

In high power mode

System 1

  • input power between 265-270 watts (dark green line by right Y axis)
  • conversion loss percentage 8-10% (light green line by left Y axis)

System 2

  • input power between 305-315 watts (dark blue line by right Y axis)
  • conversion loss percentage 38-41% (light blue line by left Y axis)

Differential

  • System 2 incurred a minimum of 28% to a maximum of 33% additional loss of performance as a result of the extra conversion process (red line by left Y axis)

High Power Mode
Fig. 2. 9am – 10:36:24pm power loss and input power in “high power” mode.

In low power mode

System 1

  • input power between 140-145 watts (dark green line by right Y axis)
  • conversion loss percentage 8-10% (light green line by left Y axis)

System 2

  • input power between 65-70 watts (dark blue line by right Y axis)
  • conversion loss percentage 28-31% (light blue line by left Y axis)

Differential

  • System 2 incurred a minimum of 18% to a maximum of 23% additional loss of performance as a result of the extra conversion process (red line by left Y axis)

Low Power Mode
Fig. 3. 4pm – 12:36:44pm power loss and input power in “low power” mode.

System 1 from Zero to Maximum Power

Finally, System 1 was operated independently to observe its efficiency from zero to maximum power input as represented by the March 24th, 2022 charts below (Fig. 4-7 Quarters):

Sunrise Through 10:32:58 AM

Sunrise to10:32:58 AM

10:32:58 AM Through Solar Noon

10:32:58 AM to Solar Noon

Solar Noon Through 2:32:58 PM

Solar Noon to 2:32:58 PM

2:32:58 PM Through Sunset

2:32:58 PM to Sunset

INHERENTLY SUPERIOR DESIGN

The results provided demonstrate the designed for purpose performance of the solar charge controller, which confines its power efficiency losses between ~8-13% throughout its broad nominal operating range.

INHERENTLY SUPERIOR USER EXPERIENCE

Inherently superior applies to any context, which includes the user. In this context, the paradigm shift is directed toward adapting technology to its users rather than forcing the reverse.

V. CONCLUSION

As previously stated, conclusions of this exercise are intended to promote renewable energy technology propagation through unique or unleveraged opportunities that may be lost in the forest of the environmental and public policy promotions of the last two decades. By discovering, developing, and delivering unique inherently superior opportunities atypical of the industry that produce an increase in usability, performance, desirable economic outcome, and other advantages, the market share of the same would likely experience a significant increase since pursuing the same would not discourage those who are already committed to the benefits, namely environmental, currently promoted in the U.S. and abroad.

REFERENCES

[1] S. Denby, T. Purdy, A. Williard, J. Sherrington, G. Haerther, and S. Buckmaster, “The Electric Vehicle Charging Problem,” Youtube, 09-Feb-2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&app=desktop&v=pLcqJ2DclEg&list=WL&index=32. [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].
[2] “Electricity in the U.S. – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA),” Independent Statistics and Analysis – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). [Online]. Available: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/electricity/electricity-in-the-us.php. [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].
[3] “Photovoltaics and electricity – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA),” Independent Statistics and Analysis – U.S. Energy Information Administration. [Online]. Available: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/solar/photovoltaics-and-electricity.php [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].
[4] “Electric vehicles and hybrids surpass 10% of U.S. light-duty vehicle sales,” Independent Statistics and Analysis – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). [Online]. Available: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=51218. [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].
[5] Iea, “Policies to promote electric vehicle deployment – Global EV Outlook 2021 – Analysis,” IEA, 2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2021/policies-to-promote-electric-vehicle-deployment. [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].
[6] S. Gouchoe, V. Everette, and R. Haynes, “Case studies on the effectiveness of state financial incentives for Renewable Energy,” Subcontractor Report, Sep. 2002.
[7] F. Mormann, “Clean Energy Equity,” May 2019. Available: https://scholarship.law.tamu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2309&context=facscholar. [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].
[8] S. Caldwell, “3.0 power,” NASA. [Online]. Available: https://www.nasa.gov/smallsat-institute/sst-soa/power. [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].
[9] J. N. DiStefano, “Inside Amazon’s largest warehouse – where you’ll find more robots than people,” https://www.inquirer.com, 19-Oct-2021. [Online]. Available: https://www.inquirer.com/business/amazon-robots-delaware-largest-warehouse-fulfillment-20211017.html. [Accessed: 29-Apr-2022].

2021 Beijing Olympics 2022 Boycott: Ineffective

Fountain Hills High School AP Capstone Seminar, Fountain Hills, AZ

INTRODUCTION

The calls to boycott participation in the Olympic Games dwarf the five significant instances of the second half of the 19th century in which nations decided to refrain from participating due to political, social, or ethical concerns involving the host country.

OLYMPIC BOYCOTT POLITICS

Over a decade has passed since Liu concluded, “Human rights reform initiated by the Olympic Games can first focus on violations directly related to the Games, such as labor rights, evictions or discrimination, but has the potential to motivate reform of international human rights concerns as broad as children’s rights or issues of international justice” (Liu, J., 2007, para. 44).

INHERENT BENEFITS OF THE OLYMPICS

Beyond direct political concerns, indirect amelioration is being pursued. As a host nation per International Olympic Committee (IOC) guidelines, China is attempting to advance strategies for environmental sustainability.

OLYMPIC POLITICAL CREDIBILITY & EFFECTIVENESS

Just as important as it is for those directly involved in the grand production of modern-day games, the success of an Olympic presentation depends upon the perception of the masses. For a nation making the sometimes difficult decision about participation, this ultimately weighs heavily on everyone’s mind. A diverse group of peoples by default have an expansive spectrum of opinions that differ significantly in this regard.

REFERENCES

Berkes, H. (2008, June 7). Nazi Olympics tangled politics and sport. National Public Radio. https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91246674

China Uncensored. (2021, March 24). Surviving a Uyghur concentration camp in China | Abduweli Ayup {Video}. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfkXSNo6jAg&feature=youtu.be

Guo, P. (2020). Sustainable development of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics Zhangjiakou Stadium under the concept of ocean ecological environment. Journal of Coastal Research, 104(sp1), 152–155. https://doi.org/10.2112/jcr-si104-028.1

International Olympics Committee. (2019, February 1). Beijing 2022 committed to hosting “green, inclusive, open and clean” Games. Olympic. https://www.olympic.org/news/beijing-2022-committed-to-hosting-green-inclusive-open-and-clean-games

Lederer, Edith M. (2021, March, 19) US and China clash at UN meeting on combatting racism. https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-race-and-ethnicity-antony-blinken-discrimination-asia-372cd5274408905a2310ab5a352a0ea1

Liu, J. H. (2006). Lighting the torch of human rights: The Olympic Games as a vehicle for human rights reform. Nw. Univ. J. Int’l Hum. Rts., 5, 213. https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1053&context=njihr

McLemee, Scott (2017, March 8) Taking on the Alt-Reich. https://www.insidehighered.com/views/2017/03/08/review-james-q-whitman-hitlers-american-model-united-states-and-making-nazi-race

Orwell, G. (1968). The sporting spirit. The Collected Essays, Journalism, and Letters of George Orwell: Volume IV in Front of Your Nose 1945-1950.

Roosevelt, T. (1919). Theodore Roosevelt’s letters to his children: “Proper place for sports”. Bartleby. https://www.bartleby.com/53/29.html

Tkacik, J. (2007, August 22). Beijing Olympics boycott: A wake-up call. The Heritage Foundation. https://www.heritage.org/asia/report/beijing-olympics-boycott-wake-call

Whitlock, J. (2020, August 26). American sports are letting down America. Imprimis. https://imprimis.hillsdale.edu/american-sports-letting-america/

Yang, L., & Xu, H. (2014). Environmental concerns and policies in the Beijing Olympic Games. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Science and Social Research, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.2991/icssr-14.2014.158

香港蘋果日報. (2020, December 16). 北京香堂村遭斷電 母女燒煤取暖險死. Apple Daily. https://hk.appledaily.com/china/20201217/EFLGRQKCCRCN5BF7JKFSR5SJIU/

2020 Internet and Social Media Security

Fountain Hills High School Science Fair, Fountain Hills, AZ

Internet Security Presentation Tri-Fold

RESEARCH AND HYPOTHESIS

We believe the overwhelming proliferation of technology that surpasses the respective risk assessment and mitigation capabilities of its users will prove to discourage a majority from enhancing their communication privacy and security knowledge or behavior. Subsequently, this research project was developed to explore digital communications security and privacy awareness within a random group of respondents, to both validate our general hypothesis while simultaneously developing information that may be instructive for regulatory, educational and technology development policy.

With the ever prevalent and expanding reach of information technology networks, cyber security is exponentially becoming a concern for a similarly expanding user base. Starting in 1996 about 0.5% of the world population utilized the internet; as of June of 2019, that has risen to approximately 59% (Internet Growth Statistics, Nov. 2019). This enormous reach of interconnectivity that information technology delivers also exposes every user to a similarly increased risk of malicious victimization, which drives an ever growing effort to strengthen cyber security wherever possible in all sectors of society (National Cyber Strategy, Sep. 2018).

One such sector is social communications, which has and continues to experience rampant expansion and use (Wharton University, Jul. 2019). Subsequently, it has become a focal point of a variety of studies and concerns. The focal point of interest for this study is public awareness and concerns regarding social communication security. The aforementioned growth combined with the proliferation of mobile devices to more than 5 billion people (Pew Research Center, Feb. 2019) has presented a daunting challenge to social communication security concerns.

Information technology communications take many forms, however, its security is mostly protected by a cryptographic system, which facilitates encryption and decryption of data between any two points of its movement, meaning that said data can be “locked” or “scrambled” so only certain people can access it once it has reached its destination (e.g. VPN – Virtual Private Network; websites that begin with HTTPS – Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure; etc.). Encryption generally involves creating a “secret key” known only to those intended to use the information and then employing this key to “scramble” the contents before transmitting it in a domain where its interception is a concern. An authorized recipient can “unscramble” the encrypted communication using the “secret key” in order to consume the communication in its original form (decrypted). During World War II, American Navajo Indians formed a specialized radio communications force, commonly referred to as “Code Talkers”. “Code Talkers”, in part, utilized their native language as a “secret key” to “scramble” radio communications between American forces in the Pacific theater preventing their undesirable interception by the enemy, the Japanese and their allies. American Comanche and Meskwakis Indians similarly aided in the European and African theaters respectively. These native languages were mostly unknown to the rest of the world and facilitated an extremely efficient and secure means to communicate in the battlefield.

In a digital technology context, points of movement could be from a storage component like random access memory, magnetic storage mediums and written documentation to intra-device communications like smart phones, computers, televisions, personal assistant devices, etc. At any point in time, data can be in an encrypted state (incomprehensible to anyone other than someone with the appropriate decryption components and knowledge or someone with components, knowledge, access and enough time to overcome the encryption algorithms utilized). Encryption methods and algorithms range from easily broken to unbreakable within the relevant life cycle of the protected data (MIT Technology Review, May 2019).

Proportional to information technology propagation and use, interest in the deployment of cryptographic systems has followed, albeit at a much slower pace. Subsequently, public awareness, concern and use of these security technologies do not keep an appropriate pace with the ongoing innovation. Knowing public appetite for the next new social service, application or device of the moment is overwhelming, will a random survey of individuals demonstrate that a majority will not express a desire to enhance their current social communication privacy and security knowledge or behavior even if the potential consequences of failing to do so are divulged in the process?

We believe the overwhelming proliferation of technology that surpasses the respective risk assessment and mitigation capabilities of its users will prove to discourage a majority from enhancing their communication privacy and security knowledge or behavior. Subsequently, this research project was developed to explore digital communications security and privacy awareness within a random group of respondents, to both validate our general hypothesis while simultaneously developing information that may be instructive for regulatory, educational and technology development policy. Due to the limited and uncontrolled means by which respondent participation will be solicited, the revelations of this survey will not be representative of any larger defined group of individuals within any reasonable margin of error, however, said revelations should provide guidance for additional research and efforts to address concerns highlighted by its results.

MATERIALS AND PROCEDURE

Materials list: computer(s), devices, software, communication services, assorted technologies, participation materials.

Procedure:

  1. Create survey propagation, response collection and reporting system utilizing a web server with WordPress and eForm software.
  2. Deploy scanning system computer with pfSense software to capture participant data streams for security analysis utilizing Wireshark software.
  3. Make survey participation promotion cards.
  4. Distribute and broadcast survey participation promotion materials and communications.
  5. Monitor and review survey response collection. Evaluate, document and report participant data stream analysis privately to participant.
  6. Analyze, contrast and record participant responses as a whole and by subcategorization.

GRAPHS

There were a total of 21 questions asked in the survey to provide a multidimensional analysis regarding the key question, “Do you expect to implement additional privacy and/or security precautions as a result of participating in this research?”

Web server analytics reasonably established all respondents completed their survey while in the greater Metro Phoenix area. This is consistent with the solicitation methods deployed to acquire survey respondents (personally delivered written or verbal invitations and any downstream propagation by those initially contacted). There were a total of 21 questions asked in the survey to provide a multidimensional analysis regarding the key question, “Do you expect to implement additional privacy and/or security precautions as a result of participating in this research?”. The following data points were contrasted against the key question: Age, gender, internet experience, daily use, encryption technology awareness, encryption technology use, pre-existing precautions deployed and a number of informative briefs about internet communications security and vulnerabilities. A total of 17 responses were recorded. The following table illustrates how each of the aforementioned data points related to the outcome of the key question:

Internet Security Survey Results

The age groups of the surveyors ranged from 13-60s with some electing not to say (RNS). Two primary age groups (Chart “Age”) emerged from the responses, 13-19 and 20-60s. Similarly, 8 identified their gender (Chart “Gender”) as female, 4 as male and 5 elected not to say (RNS).

As the type of devices utilizing internet communications have different security attack surfaces, developing an understanding of the context in which each response was submitted may provide a deeper insight into their revelations. Subsequently, a checklist of common use devices was presented in addition to “other” devices that could be offered by the respondent. 17 responses acknowledged using a smart phone, 8 used tablets or IPads, 14 used computers or laptops, and 1 submitted a “RaspberryPi3” as an additional device. Likewise, a checklist of common use applications was also presented with the ability to offer “other” choices resulting in the following number of respondents utilizing the respective applications: 3 used Ancestry, 16 email, 8 Facebook, 1 Flickr, 10 Instagram, 4 LinkedIn, 10 Pinterest, 4 Reddit, 9 Snapchat, 7 TikTok, 5 Twitter, 1 WhatsApp, 16 YouTube and 2 offered “other” choices.

Similarly, respondent internet, technology and security experience is rather diverse. Evaluating how many years each has utilized the internet for communications (Chart “Years on Internet”) in one form or another established the following primary groupings: 5 years or less, between 5 and 20 years and finally, more than 20 years. Just as important in framing the respondents hands-on practice level is determining the daily usage (Chart “Max Internet Hours/Day”) over the aforementioned time spans.

Next, it was important to focus on the key discipline of the research, security/privacy knowledge (Chart “Security Knowledge”) and use (Chart “Use” subdivided into “Encrypt” and “VPN” representing encryption and virtual private networking respectively). Based on the responses for each category, primary groupings were developed in order to provide a more generalized evaluation of the same.

To further establish a metric to evaluate each respondent’s command of the subject matter, a multiple choice question was asked about VPN (virtual private network) security value. The respondents were offered choices that established the following: 9 properly understood VPN security value; 3 improperly determined using a VPN provided no security value whatsoever; 3 improperly determined using a VPN provided complete security at all times; 2 did not know, understand the question, or elected not to provide a response. Since the key question inquires about “additional security” it was probative to detail the respondent’s pre-survey security baseline. The results of this input would subsequently be compared against an identical exit question to detail the extent to which “additional security” would be deployed providing a resolution to the key question beyond a binary “yes” or “no”. Prior to presenting the key exit question to the respondent, they were presented with options to view additional educational and background information regarding the core subject matter and current events regarding the same. This included VPN functionality, reliability of 3rd party VPN service providers, and mobile device vulnerabilities. Survey analytics tracked what topics of this information were accessed to provide a deeper understanding of each respondent’s results. After advancing beyond the informational presentation, the respondents described the level to which participating in the survey enhanced their knowledge regarding the subject matter: 3 stated their knowledge remained the same, 8 increased “somewhat”, and 6 increased “significantly”.

Finally, the key exit question was presented. If the respondent answered in the negative, the survey completed. If the respondent answered in the affirmative, a follow-up inquiry mirroring the aforementioned security baseline was presented to establish what changes the respondent was actually considering as a result of participating in the research project.

RESULTS

Internet Survey Results Table

The “average” amount of “Tech Experience” means they know the basic idea of how each works and how to use them properly (e.g. password-protected Wi-Fi, reliable VPN providers, etc) compared to a Professional, who work[s]/[ed] with VPN or encryption as an occupation. Power User indicates they have worked with VPN a number of times, or know a significant amount of information about encryption.

ANALYSIS

While the extents of the responses do not establish a reasonable ability to develop a high degree of confidence regarding the repeatability of the results, they did in fact, underscore regulatory, educational, and technology development policy guidance. For virtually every metric contrasted against the key question the outcome was a slight majority favored increasing their privacy and/or security precautions. Given the projects intent to provide an educational outcome from its participants, digging deeper and looking at the multi-metric analytics paints a far more specific picture.

As predicted, the project did not collect a large enough data sample to establish conclusions within a reasonable margin of error. In spite of in-person verbal and written solicitations for participation, prospect follow through was rather low. Having the opportunity to provide equipment, time, and a location to complete a response when soliciting prospects in-person, would dramatically improve the conversion rate for completed responses. In the absence of the foregoing to enhance a more localized project, an internet marketing campaign designed to drive prospects to our survey website would likely yield a larger data set to provide a better margin of error for a broader project. Consideration would be required, however, as the broader respondent context would introduce many new variables that would have to be properly evaluated regarding their influence on the research conclusions. While the extents of the responses do not establish a reasonable ability to develop a high degree of confidence regarding the repeatability of the results, they did in fact, underscore regulatory, educational, and technology development policy guidance. For virtually every metric contrasted against the key question the outcome was a slight majority favored increasing their privacy and/or security precautions. Given the projects intent to provide an educational outcome from its participants, digging deeper and looking at the multi-metric analytics paints a far more specific picture.

As each respondent navigated the survey, the information they consumed provided a significant opportunity to expand their knowledge about internet communication privacy and security. Subsequently, it was quite likely that personal desire to use internet services and devices with little regard for personal privacy and/or security would be overcome through education. A detailed evaluation of every “No” result for the key question identified a specific profile for the respondent that underscores the likely reasoning behind the response.

Of the 8 “No” results, 3 out of 4 of the oldest respondents that all have in excess of 20 years internet experience averaging a maximum daily usage of about 7.3 hours, already implement significant privacy and security measures, in which they describe their knowledge as increased “somewhat” or “very little” as a result of participating in the survey. It comes as no surprise their response was “No”. The 4th respondent of this group only uses the internet for email, LinkedIn and YouTube, has a “Basic” understanding of the issue and regularly uses a VPN so it is likely they believe their exposure is satisfactorily limited.

The remaining 4 are younger respondents having an average of 6.8 years of internet experience. 1 of the 4 did not avail themselves to any of the education information provided, described their encryption and VPN knowledge as “Basic” and improperly believes their internet activities are always protected since they always use a VPN. The 2nd of the 4 describes their self as a “Technology Professional” that regularly uses encryption and did not view the educational information provided. The last 2 fit the profile of the hypothesis of this study. Both use social media services and applications important to their generation and describe their knowledge of internet privacy and security as a result of participating in the survey as “Significantly” or “Somewhat” increased, but in the end, plan on “full steam ahead” regardless of learning about icebergs in the water.

CONCLUSION

In the end, the outcome of this project validates the need to aggressively pursue internet privacy and security concerns on a multitude of fronts to prevent large scale undesirable impacts on societies that are, or becoming, so tightly integrated by the internet.

The outcome of this project established that a majority of the respondents decided to pursue additional internet privacy and security measures contrary to its hypothesis. As detailed in the analysis, a modified hypothesis would have been more appropriate. Specifically, for the younger, non-technology professional social media consumer, internet privacy and security concerns are secondary to use of the services provided. As hoped, the educational aspect of project participation by the respondents appears to have been well received and convincingly underscored the secondary focus of this research.

Due to the rapid augmentation of social communication systems, the quantity of internet users has been similarly impacted. However, awareness of internet safety is a major concern. This experiment substantiates concerns that have been raised by multiple studies to date and further suggests the need to expand upon internet safety education in middle and high schools. This does not suggest education for adults is not warranted as well, especially for the elderly and vulnerable as they are often targets of malicious internet actors. The survey included information about cryptographic systems and how to properly use them. With the ever-growing use of the internet, knowledge of cryptosystems is crucial in order for privacy to be ensured. Most who use such cryptographic systems, but don’t have the knowledge of a professional, may not realize encrypted data can be decrypted with proper knowledge, time, and resources.

VPNs are not a “one size fits all solution” either. Not all VPNs are the same, so it is important to know the difference when looking to obtain one. A VPN can be installed in “good faith”, and the user will be “thinking they’ve set in place an encryption process that will protect their data and online security” (Dinha, F., Oct. 2018). However, if it is from an unreliable provider, VPN users may still be exposing their private information to unscrupulous actors. Some VPN providers covertly or overtly collect and sell information their users expose while using their services. Governments often pose as VPN providers as a means of collecting information from a multitude of targets.

There are reputable VPN providers as well, however, they often fall victim to malicious actors who target them because they are a known entity that can be “staked out” by signing up as a user to collect information about the service to facilitate their breaching efforts. In recent years, NordVPN has admitted to a security breach in 2018 involving one of its data centers in Finland (Turton, W., Oct. 2019). The statement from advisory board member Tom Okman concluded that “the hackers only had access to a single “exit node”, the part of the service that masks its customers’ IP address”, and “no user credentials have been intercepted”. This is a situation everyone has to be wary about, and customers should execute due diligence when searching for a reliable provider.

All devices are susceptible to vulnerabilities regarding security. For example, “vulnerabilities were found in 38 percent of mobile applications for iOS and in 43 percent of Android applications” (Positive Technologies, June 2019). Mobile devices are not needed to access private information – hackers can use malware to access said device from any location. Another cause of vulnerability in security is a “weakness” in security appliances. Since these “weaknesses” are minor and can easily be missed, a considerable change must be made in the code in order to correct it. In the end, the outcome of this project validates the need to aggressively pursue internet privacy and security concerns on a multitude of fronts to prevent large scale undesirable impacts on societies that are, or becoming, so tightly integrated by the internet.

BIBLIOGRAPHY & APPENDIX

Internet World Stats, (Unknown). Internet Growth Statistics. Retrieved from:
https://www.internetworldstats.com/emarketing.htm

The White House (Sep. 2018). National Cyber Strategy of the United States of America. Retrieved from:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/National-Cyber-Strategy.pdf

Wharton University of Pennsylvania (Jul 26, 2019). The Impact of Social Media: Is it Irreplaceable? Retrieved from:
https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/impact-of-social-media/

Silver, L. (Feb 5, 2019). Smartphone Ownership Is Growing Rapidly Around the World, but Not Always Equally. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from:
https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2019/02/05/smartphone-ownership-is-growing-rapidly-around-the-world-but-not-always-equally/

Dinha, F (Oct. 15, 2018). Council Post: Why The Wrong VPN Is More Dangerous Than No VPN. Forbes.com. Retrieved from:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2018/10/15/why-the-wrong-vpn-is-more-dangerous-than-no-vpn/#1d3f0b642e5f

Turton, W. (Oct. 21, 2019). After Twitter Allegations, Nord VPN Discloses 2018 Breach. Bloomberg. Retrieved from:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-21/after-twitter-allegations-nord-vpn-discloses-2018-breach

Positive Technologies (June 19, 2019). Vulnerabilities and threats in mobile applications, 2019. Retrieved from:
https://www.ptsecurity.com/ww-en/analytics/mobile-application-security-threats-and-vulnerabilities-2019/

APPENDIX:

Survey used in experiment: https://open.transmittals.net/
***NO LONGER AVAILABLE***

2019 Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Economic Performance vs Acceptance & Adoption

Fountain Hills Middle School Research Challenge, Fountain Hills, AZ

INTRODUCTION

There are countless calls to action to mitigate climate change caused by human activities, but supporters of those calls must acknowledge any action that requires significant sacrifice must be justified and will be subjected to a level of scrutiny commensurate to the sacrifice.

MITIGATED PUBLIC DOMAIN PV PROJECTS

While everyone retains the right to their opinion about PV solar electricity and may pursue its use how they see fit within the rule of law for their personal domain, the public domain requires a level of consensus.

PUBLIC PV PROJECT ECONOMIC EVALUATION

While the preceding examples demonstrate a reduction of the overall increases of cost for their PV solar electricity, it is unlikely skepticism about the technology or confidence in the administrations of these entities has experienced the same degree of improvement.

COMMERCIAL PV ECONOMICS

Because PV solar generated power is not available twenty-four hours per day, accounts utilizing PV electricity as an alternative must rely on firm power available from their local utility when the solar system cannot provide all the needed energy at any given moment.

COMMERCIAL PV VALUATION

Overvaluation of PV electricity rose out of an inappropriate methodology and evaluation of the same.

COMMERCIAL PV COST ESCALATION

Annual PV electricity escalators have been promoted by solar developers and providers. Conceptually, escalators are intended to represent local utility rate inflation. When promoting a PV solar electricity contract, a vendor will sometimes request an annual PV kilowatt hour cost escalator be included in order to entice investors to finance the project.

MANDATED SALE OF UNUSED PV GENERATED POWER

Lastly, Arizona Corporation Commission law, rules and regulations create circumstances that require accounts to sell unused PV kilowatt hours back to their local utilities at slightly below wholesale rates, which are one sixth to one third the amounts paid to purchase the power from the PV solar provider.

PV ECONOMIC SUCCESS IS OBTAINABLE

Fortunately, these pitfalls are easily avoided with proper due diligence by qualified individuals, which ideally are directly and only responsible to the public entity.

CONCLUSION

Earnest attention to detail will reveal the fitness for consideration of any public domain PV solar project.

REFERENCES

“Casa Grande Solar Agenda.” BoardDocs® PL, 3 Apr. 2018, sourced from:
https://www.boarddocs.com/az/cguhs/Board.nsf/goto?open&id=AWWK3F4FAFC3.

Davenport, Debra K. “Gila Bend USD Solar Report.” AZ Auditor General, Aug. 2011, sourced from:
https://www.azauditor.gov/sites/default/files/Gila_Bend_USD_Report.pdf#page=16.

“City, firm settle $375K lawsuit” Sedona Red Rock News, 1 Mar. 2019, sourced from:
https://www.redrocknews.com/news/88888896-city-news/55172-city-firm-settle-375k-lawsuit.

“School District Alert – Solar Power Contracts.” AZ Auditor General, July 2012, sourced from:
https://www.azauditor.gov/sites/default/files/SolarAlert.pdf.

Smathers, Heather. “CGUHSD to Get $250K Rebate on Solar Panels.” PinalCentral.com, 18 May 2018, sourced from:
https://www.pinalcentral.com/casa_grande_dispatch/area_news/cguhsd-to-get-k-rebate-on-solar-panels/article_d4993962-7a6f-5be6-a314-6e76ab880eab.html.

“U.S. Energy Information Administration – EIA – Independent Statistics and Analysis” eia.gov, 5 Mar. 2019, sourced from:
https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=427&t=3.

2018 Constellation Shoebox

Fountain Hills Middle School 7th Grade Science Project, Fountain Hills, AZ

2017 Prosthetic Hand

Fountain Hills Middle School 6th Grade Science Project, Fountain Hills, AZ

2016 Nikola Tesla

Fountain Hills Middle School 5th Grade Science Presentation, Fountain Hills, AZ

2015 Fukushima Daiichi Power Plant Nuclear Accident

Fountain Hills Middle School 6th Grade Science Presentation, Fountain Hills, AZ

2023 Senior Recognition Awards

United States Congress, 1st Congressional District of AZ

Thomas Memorial Engineering Award

Golden Eagle Education Foundation, Fountain Hills, AZ

Jenkins Technology Award

Fountain Hills High School, Fountain Hills, AZ

2022 Stellar Student of the Month

Town of Fountain Hills, AZ

Award Winning Video

Co-directed, co-recorded, edited and co-produced the 2022 Prom promotional video.

2021 Kiwanis Pacesetter Award

Kiwanis Club, Fountain Hills, AZ

2019 Principal's List of Academic Excellence

Fountain Hills Middle School, Fountain Hills, AZ

2018 Kiwanis Falcon Leader Award

Kiwanis Club, Fountain Hills, AZ

2016 Fifth Grade Highest Math Score

Fountain Hills Middle School, Fountain Hills, AZ

2013 Third Place AMVETS National Americanism Contest

AMVETS National Headquarters, Lanham, MD

2021-2023 FHHS STUGO (Fountain Hills High School Student Government)

2022-2023 Student Government Vice President
2021-2022 Junior Class Vice President

Award Winning Prom Promotion Video

Co-directed, co-recorded, edited and co-produced the 2022 Prom promotional video.

2021-2023 NHS (National Honor Society)

Membership Qualifications

As an outstanding student, each member has demonstrated exceptional attributes in the areas of scholarship, character, leadership, and service, which are the four core values of NHS.

Expectations & Responsibilities

Every member is expected to carry the four core values of NHS with them in school and out in the community. Members understand they represent the values of NHS and stand for what the society means. They are expected to maintain an exemplary image to the school and community during the school year and to participate enthusiastically in all NHS projects.

2022-2023 Induction Chair

The duties of the Induction Chair shall include: recruiting new members, informing school and community of membership requirements, organizing and providing refreshments for the faculty selection council and setting up the student selection process. The Chair will also completely plan, organize and execute the Induction Ceremony, and orient new members.

2021-2022 Service Chair

The duties of the Service chair shall include: responsibility for organization of the food drive, publicity for the contest food drive awards, and maintaining contact with the food bank.

2021-2023 FHHS POM Spirit Line (Fountain Hills High School)

2022-2023 Fall Spirit Line
2021-2022 Spring Spirit Line

"2022 Yeah" Halftime Show Video

The 2022-2023 FHHS Fall Spirit Line presents their “Yeah” halftime show.

2019-2021 FHHS Marching Band (Fountain Hills High School)

November 16, 2019 Placed 7th at ABODA Division 4 Arizona State Finals
2020-2021 First Chair Trumpet
2019-2020 Second Chair Trumpet

2017-2019 NJHS (National Junior Honor Society)

2017-2019 Member

2014-2019 Piano & Music Studies (Baldwin & Veech Piano Studio)

2015-2019 Dr. Michael Veech
2014-2015 Heather Baldwin

2013-2021 Fountain Hills School District Falcon Leader

2013-2021 Member

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The “Outstanding Achievement Award” was added to the gallery. 12/1/2022
Originally blank topic, initial information has been published. 11/30/2022