Ok we did A LOT so imma split up my blogs for this week 😀

Day 6

I tried to dress semi-nicely today because we presented our devices to the Dean of Engineering at Rice, the Rice 360 staff, students and teachers from the Polytechnic school, and people working for the US Aid. Agh I was very nervous but it was actually a lot of fun! Our devices as well as some devices made by students at Poly were set out on the tables in the Design Studio, and it was so cool getting to see everyone’s designs. And it was so lively there were so many people running around and asking questions I loved it. We met Sanga, who is incredible. He taught himself electronic design from books and videos, and with that knowledge, he made a low-cost portable monitor that tracks and records ECG, temperature, and heart rate data! And he’s planning to work with some telecommunication students so that the data in the device can be sent to a phone app. He explained to us that with this device, smaller hospitals that are farther away from the city will be able to gather key information and send the data to cardiologists and other specialists at larger hospitals. It’s unbelievable he is so passionate about his device and he won an engineering design competition with his entry!

We met another team that designed and 3D printed a drone that can be controlled from a phone app! They flew it for us (it was difficult since we were inside and it hit the wall a couple of times) but it was amazing! I was also really happy because I got some great feedback on the continuous maternal temperature monitor my team and I were working on (this device essentially reads temperature continuously for mother’s in labor and warns nurses using LEDs if the mother is experiencing intrapartum fever). I have ideas now on how to make it smaller, more comfortable, and more efficient thanks to the Poly students:

1. Use the IC directly from the arduino nano rather than the entire component to make the device much smaller
2. Use a flexible plastic case rather than a brittle 3D printed case so the device can fit more naturally on the mother’s arm
3. Use larger LED lights so nurses can better see if the mother is experiencing intrapartum fever

I cannot wait to meet the Poly students we will be working with next week because these guys are so ambitious and driven. They are so passionate about the things they do and I cannot wait to start designing with these guys.

Side note I got a LOT of recommendations for places to get ice cream in Malawi 😮

1. KFC – according to Francis, KFC not only serves fried chicken but really great ice cream (I wish they had that back home)
2. Mikos – Erica (a member of Rice 360) told me that this dessert bar serves amazing ice cream in soft, warm waffles (this is going to be a problem for me considering how DANGEROUSLY close this is to Poly)
3. Victoria Gardens – also really close to the Poly uh oh
4. Gelato Carnival – a carnival of Gelato I guess?
5. Shoprite – I forgot the name of the actual ice cream place, but Shoprite is filled with different food places so I am bound to venture here too