Waitz

Leighton Waitz
English 1001
Mrs. Coco
15 October 2015
Audience: Young Adults (Teenager- Mid 20s)
Preface
I think one of the strengths of the draft is my introduction paragraph because I give
background information of my topic. I also discuss how I was able to overcome my negative
attitude towards reading through fantasy and engineering. I also think the paragraph describing
what engineering is and how it relates to imagination and fantasy is working well so far.
One of my weaknesses of the draft is my video game paragraph. I feel like I just rambled
on about the history of video games instead of how it relates with fantasy and Percy Jackson. I
also need to work on the third paragraph where I discuss the two together and fantasy.
A roadblock I am facing is how to actually combine the two together. I dont know where
else I could look to find more articles that could relate the idea of fantasy between the two. I am
struggling with how to word some ideas. I also do not think I have found the right information
for my video game paragraph. I think I need to discuss more on how it can relate to the idea of
fantasy.

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Reading Through My Childhood

Growing up, I never really enjoyed reading until I read the Percy Jackson series. It is a
series about a young boy who is the son of Poseidon. He goes off to a camp with other
mythological people and creatures. Throughout the series, Percy goes on different quests and
must face new challenges. I was interested in this series because I enjoyed the genre, which was
fantasy, as well as the storyline. After I read the Percy Jackson series, I discovered at the age
twelve, the reason that genre peaked my interest so much because it was so similar to my video
games, which incorporated high levels of fantasy. Percy Jackson related to my video games
because some characters in the games were centaurs and mythological creatures that I recognized
from Percy Jackson.
Fantasy in itself is just someones imagination. When it is finally comprehended, it
becomes a form of engineering. The ability to create anything from imagination and for it come
to life through this process became my passion. My career path, mechanical engineering,
focused on thinking outside of the box; it became a way for me to find gratification in ordinary
activities such as reading. The engineering world was designed to make fantasy become a reality.
Mechanical Engineering has become my new escape from reality, which was previously filled by
Percy Jackson. It deals with how machines work and how they are created, which allows me to
utilize my imagination that I discovered from Percy Jackson and video games. Engineering now
has led to an increase in my passion to read.. My urge to read in general is very different
compared to my younger self. I enjoy reading more now especially since I can relate it to my
career path, engineering. It is my new Percy Jackson Series but geared more towards reality.
My goal is to discover how fantasy links engineering and video games together.

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In order to understand the relationship between the two, one must now have a
background on two. According to Lerner, Engineering is the art of applying science,
mathematics, and creativity to solve technological problems. It uses all of these subjects to help
create new objects. There are a few simple steps one must determine the problem, design a
solution, and then create a new solution. There are a few types of engineers such as mechanical,
chemical, and electrical. Engineers are usually given a problem to fix or generate a new object.
Engineering calls for strategy and to think outside the box. The engineering world was designed
to make fantasy become a reality. It has become my new escape from reality. The type of
engineering I am interested in is mechanical because it deals with how machines work and how
they are created. This allows me to utilize my imagination that I discovered from Percy Jackson
and video games. It has also led me to increase my passion to read. When I read articles, I am
find myself trying to create new designs or just improve an old one like I did in my Construction
Management class. For example, I had to pick a design and improve it. I made a new design for a
water bottle that had two containers in one. It could hot a hot and cold liquid at the same time. I
also changed the shape, which would make it easier to drink. Fantasy came into play with my
water bottle design because I saw an object and wanted to some how improve it. I used my
imagination and created a new design from a water bottle and seeing the shape of a banana.
Software engineers actually design video games such as World of Warcraft, which is a fantasy
game.
Video games are various electronic games played on a digital screen, consoles, or other
devices. The most common video game manufactures are Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony. All
video games have one thing in common, the software. The software is what allows the player to
actually play the game. Video games have various genres such as sports, educational, strategy,

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and action. Video games allow their players to escape from reality and play in the fantasy world.
All video games are considered to be a fantasy because it is all virtual and a programmed game.
Many people are probably unaware that video games are relatively new inventions. The first
video game, Tennis for Two, was invented in 1958 by a physicist named Willy Higinbotham.
Prior to Higinbothams invention, arcade games were mechanical. A classic mechanical arcade
game that everyone has played at least once in their life time is pinball. Not to long after
Higinbothams arcade game was released, Steve Russell created the first computer game in 1962.
The first console game was released in October of 1977. It was called the Atari 2600 and sold
more than 40 million copies by January 1, 1992. The Atari 2600 had one of the first video games
available for home use that was called Space Invaders.. Another classic game released in 1984
was Tetris. The next big release was the Nintendo Entertainment System because of its most
popular game, Super Mario Brothers. Soon came the evolution of gaming consoles such as the
play-station, Xbox, game cube, and the Wii. Since then, video games bought several gaming
consoles and computer games and played across the world.
Engineering and Video games both utilize imagination and fantasy. They challenge you to
go above and beyond the normal life. Engineering involves some strategy to design something
new just like video games call for a strategy as well to win the game. An example of this can be
my water bottle design. I was actually eating a banana when I came up with this design. A
banana has sort of a c shape. My water bottle design also had a curve to it like a banana. This
curve in the bottle does not require people to tilt their head back to drink.
Video games can also be used for educational purposes. For example, the University of
Florida created an online role-playing game to help students learn. According to Briggle, the
connection between games and education is deeply rooted: humans, like many animals, learn

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vital life lessons through play. When we are having fun doing an activity, the human brain is
more likely to remember it. This is why playing a game for learning is beneficial especially
because it helps us to think outside the normal way of learning.
After I read the Percy Jackson series, I developed an idea of fantasy and imagination like
I got from playing video games as a kid, which led me to engineering. Engineering and video
games help people use their mind to explore new items that can seem unimaginable to us. They
push us to the limit. I have experienced being pushed to the limit in my Construction
Management class with creating designs. The idea of fantasy comes into play with using your
imagination, mind, and experience to develop new ideas. Engineers push the laws of physics to
create things unimaginable, while video games create a world of fantasy for a player to play in.

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Work Cited
Briggle, Adam. "Games." Ethics, Science, Technology, and Engineering: A Global Resource. Ed.
J. Britt Holbrook. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. Farmington Hills, MI: Macmillan Reference USA,
2015. 331-333. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.
Coller, B.D., and M.J. Scott. Effectiveness Of Using A Video Game To Teach A Course In
Mechanical Engineering. Computers & Education 53. (2009): 900-912. ScienceDirect.
Web. 19 Nov. 2015.
Engineering." The Gale Encyclopedia of Science. Ed. K. Lee Lerner and Brenda Wilmoth
Lerner. 4th ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2008. 1590-1591. Gale Virtual Reference Library.
Web. 19 Nov. 2015.
Gee, James Paul. What Video Games Have to Teach Us about Learning and Literacy. New York:
Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. Print.
Gwo-Jen, Hwang, et al. "A Knowledge Engineering Approach To Developing Educational
Computer Games For Improving Students' Differentiating Knowledge." British Journal
Of Educational Technology 44.2 (2013): 183-196. Professional Development Collection.
Web. 19 Nov. 2015.
"Video Games & Consoles." Encyclopedia of Products & Industries - Manufacturing. Ed.
Patricia J. Bungert and Arsen J. Darnay. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2008. 1045-1056. Gale
Virtual Reference Library. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.