Architecture and Design

1. University at Buffalo – State University of New York
ARC 211 - American Diversity and Design – Spring 2017
Online Discussion Questions
Spring 2017

2. Introduction
My name is Mohamed Kaba and I'm a second year student majoring in Computer Science. Before taking this American
Diversity and Design course I had a very basic understanding of design and I didn’t know how impactful design was on
our lives. This course has shown me how important and crucial design is in almost everything that exist whether it's
physical or abstract. I'm now able to analyze and solve problems in a designer's perspective which lead to better results
.The following pages document my responses to the online discussion questions in the Spring 2017 version of ARC
211American Diversity and Design at the University at Buffalo – State University of New York.

3. Week 1
Thread 1:
My name is Mohamed Kaba, and I am sophomore majoring in Computer Science. I am from the Bronx New York, and one
interesting fact about me is that I can speak three different languages. I am excited to have great discussions with all
of you guys.
Thread 2:
One innovation that has greatly impacted the world as a whole is the factory system. During the industrial revolution,
companies were able to easily and effectively mass produce products and consumer packaged goods. This innovation
resulted in a global economic growth and many people were able to have jobs to some what support there family. It
also made various products and goods available to the average person where otherwise would not have been able to
access. However, factories have cause damages on that are nearly irreversible. First, workers at factories were working
in poor and dangerous environments, and were exploited. Although present factory workers are treated better than the
ones before them, they are still being exploited by huge corporations. Second, the smoke and waste that factories
produce have polluted our air, water and planet. This manifestation have cause many people to catch diseases in
places where with factories are abundant.
Thread 3:
A design that was impacted by a diversity group is the voting system. Only white men were able to vote in America,
that means that they were making decisions for everybody else. This manifestation was unfair because with those type
of laws in place people of color and women were inferior to white men and had little to no power in society. However,
movements started occur around the nation which help bring changes in the design of the voting system. Those events

4. led to the 15th amendment which granted any man the right to vote regardless of your race and color, and the 19th
amendment which granted women to vote.
Week 2
http://a.abcnews.com/images/Technology/ht_curiosity_mars_ll_130718_33x16_992.jpg
Thread 1:
I would place the images shown in in Photos That Changed the World in the "Readers or Audience" category because all
of the photographs are sad and touching, which I'm assuming is done so in order to connect with the audience and seek
for help.
The photograph of planet mars was a huge accomplishment or at least for scientists at NASA and people who want
humanity to become a multi-planet civilization. The process of exploring the planet mars has began since the 1960s
and although we humans were able to land a robot on mars, which took years of research and tremendous amount of
dedication, we are still extremely far from our goal. History has proven that humans have a phenomenal drive for

5. discovering the unknown, and one of the major mystery that we are trying solve is outer space. One step towards that
mission is to figure out how to sustain ourselves for a long period of time if not forever in outer space. When NASA was
able to send a spacecraft into space, land a robot on planet mars (named Curiosity) and collect important data, that
was a huge accomplishment and an affirmation of years of hard work put into this project. This photograph of robot on
mars didn't capture anything extraordinary, most people would think that it's a photograph of a desert somewhere on
earth, however the meaning behind the picture is what's really crucial. This image inspires us and give us hope to push
the boundaries even further in order to make humanity a multi-planet civilization.
Thread 2:
http://www.amny.com/news/politics/pussyhat-project-inspires-sea-of-pink-at-women-s-marches-in-nyc-dc-1.12993747
https://shop.donaldjtrump.com/products/official-donald-trump-make-america-great-again-cap-
red?variant=26118358278

6. The two hats are mentioned in articles of communication design because they were able to have major impact on our
society and yet have simple designs. The hats symbolize something greater that provokes awareness and sometimes
creates tension between groups with different interest. The bright red trucker hat with the slogan "Make America Great
Again" carries the frustration that lower to middle class suburban Americans have towards the previous leaders and
government. The pink hat carries the protest for women's rights and the message of demanding respect and equally.
They are similar because they are symbols of protest and they help get a certain message across. Their differences are
that the bright red tucker hat is about supporting Donald Trumps and his views, while the pinks hat is about asking for
women's rights and gender equally.
Week 3
Thread 1:
Henry Ford’s method of production shifted the whole production industry towards a more standardized and simplified
structure. It led to the creation of more jobs in the United States mainly because other companies started to follow the
trend that Ford set. This phenomenon made products that were only accessible to the rich because of the price tag
more accessible to the average person. One instance of this happening was when Ford’s workers were able to save up
money from their salary and buy a car. These changes still remain with us today but in a slightly different way. Most
companies in the United States have moved their factories overseas for cheaper labor and production cost which

7. reduced the presence of the industrial system in the American society. This shows Ford’s production line sparked a
transformation in the manufacturing industry.
Manufacturing processes in the next twenty years will mainly be operated by machines, robots and artificial
intelligence. We have started to see drastic changes in the manufacturing industries where humans are barely involved
in the process. One instance of this would be car factories. Almost every car company, except for some luxury car
companies, have machines and robots that assemble and paint cars. This trend affects the American society both in a
positive and negative way. First, products will be cheaper and more accessible to the general population which is a
good. However, this will lead to fewer job availability and more produced waste. As the manufacturing industry is
evolving, the more waste is being produced which is bad for humanity.
Thread 2:
One 2016 IDEA Gold Award product that defies the Cradle-to-Cradle concept is the OneBlade. As described on the IDSA
site the OneBlade is a single-blade shaving razor made of high quality materials. However, the blade on razors are not
that recyclable and just like plastic bags the blades from razors find their into landfills. This defeats the whole purpose
the Cradle-to-Cradle concept which is to design and structure products that are entirely recyclable.
A product that uses Cradle-to-Cradle design is Method’s all purpose surface cleaner. According to c2ccertified.org the
Method’s all purpose surface cleaner is made out corn and coconut which is better than chemical based ones. In
addition, the packaging of the all purpose surface cleaner is certified gold which means that it has a material
reutilization greater than 65. The Method’s all purpose surface cleaner is a perfect example of the Cradle-to-Cradle
concept because it’s made out of natural materials and more than 50% of the packaging is recyclable.
http://www.c2ccertified.org/products/scorecard/all_purpose_cleaner

8. Week 4

9. http://www.trinitychurchboston.org/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seagram_Building
Thread 1:
The two works of architecture that were interesting to me were the Trinity Church in Boston and the Seagram Building
in New York. Trinity Church was designed by Henry Hobson Richardson who infused the designs of Romanesque
buildings in France with modern American ideas in the late 1800s. Although the design of this building was some what
different from traditional buildings at the time, it still was deeply inspired by old European architecture designs. This is

10. an example where past ideas was the main factor of designing something for the present. Henry Hobson Richardson’s
past experiences in France while training at the Écoles des Beaux-Arts, reflected heavily on his architectural designs
which then influenced many other architects in different cities across America. The other work of architecture that
was interesting to me was the Seagram Building in New York. Seagram Building was designed by a German architect
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. His approach to designing the Seagram Building was to inspire from the future by using
materials that were never used before to build tall buildings. Instead of using stone and brick, which were used for
decades, he used glass and metal to build the Seagram Building. This instance shows how Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was
able to replace the core of his design with something different and didn't get his inspiration from the past. His design
choice have impacted many present architectural designs and will continue to influence many more designs in the
future.
Thread 2:
Both Andrew Ballantyne and Peter Zumthor believe that architecture is more than just the physical component of it,
such as aesthetics, and that architecture impacts humans on a greater and more subconscious level. However, when
the two architects differ on the micro level. Andrew Ballantyne goes to talk about how design and architecture should
be less about aesthetics and analyse how people use buildings and design them to fulfill those. This instance shows that
design nowadays focus more on the exterior and how it looks aesthetically, which may not be the most effective way of
designing. Whereas Peter Zumthor believes that design and architecture is more about creating emotional space than
anything else. He focus human experiences such light, shadow, smell and so on to design and build stuff. This is a great
example where the physical aspect is not taken into consideration in the earlier phases of design like it’s usually done.

11. Focusing more on functionality and the emotions instead of physical and aesthetics and would lead to better design and
architectural products.

12. Week 5
http://thoughtcatalog.com/michael-koh/2014/05/the-st-louis-problem-pruitt-igoe-and-the-social-factors-that-led-to-
its-eventual-destruction/
Thread 1:
I grew up in Bamako, Mali. Bamako is a city located in a developing past of the world where the government does not
invest aggressively in building good infrastructure and providing better services for the population. I would say that the
main reason for that is corruption that have been in the government for decades. The city of Bamako, is split right the

13. middle by a river call the Niger river. When I lived there, there were only two bridges crossing the Niger river and there
always used to be a lot of traffic on those bridges early in the morning and in the afternoon. This showed that the city
was growing and need more ways to get people one side to the other, and ultimately because of bad design decisions
by the government. Bamako is a city where most of its roads are undone, and have only a few main roads that are
paved and made out of tar. This means that most people drive in Bamako on roads with bumps and potholes to get to
their destination. Like many other developing city, housing was one of the biggest issues in the Malian society. There
are a lot homeless families because of the lack of a system in place to help people with public housing. In addition
many people still live in houses in dangerous conditions due to poor architecture and design of those houses. Mali
became independent in the 1960; if the government would’ve invested aggressively to build better infrastructures and
services for the population, the day to day living in Bamako would’ve been drastically different for the better.
Thread 2:
If I was given the task to rebuild Pruitt Igoe, I would approach the task with a whole different intention than what the
people in charge of St. Louis Missouri intended to do building with projects like Pruitt Igoe. I would want to build public
housing for people in need of shelter and not place a bunch rules and restrictions on what people should do or not do.
Just like Talen discussed in “Design That Enables Diversity”, diversity would play a large role in building a more
successful Pruitt Igoe. I would also set well designed and funded system that would help sustain the infrastructures and
services need in the community.
I believe that Talen would focus on how to diversify the people that would live the new Pruitt Igoe. Her definition of
diversity is not only about race but it includes economic, culture, gender, occupation and more. Diversifying this way
would make the selection process way easier and more fair. This type design and structure would also fix many of the

14. problems that were bound to happen when Pruitt Igoe was first design because in this case there no outrageous rules
and restriction set in place that limits the ability of tenants to sustain themselves. For instance in the Pruitt Igoe
movie, they mentioned that families that lived in the buildings were not allowed to have a man in the house, which
was destructive in the long run because there were less adults in every household to provide for their family. Larson
would focus on the architecture and design of the infrastructure of the new Pruitt Igoe. Like he showed in his TED talk,
Larson would come up with designs and systems that are more effective and more self-sustainable. Designing this way
would make maintaining the building a lot easier which was one of the main issues with the old Pruitt Igoe. I would
want to focus on managing the housing system as a whole. My strategy would greatly differ from those of the original
urban planners and designers of the old Pruitt Igoe. I would provide the necessary services and resources to ensure a
healthy and safe in community. By having a more caring intention for this project in the first place; more energy,
funds, and empathy would go into the project which will result in a more successful outcome.

15. Week 6

16. http://library.buffalo.edu/maps/buffalo-wnymaps/location/olmsted.html
Thread 1:
Frederick Law Olmsted statement about buffalo being the best planned city was a reference to his beautiful
architectural designs in Buffalo. The parks that Olmsted designed in Buffalo are astonishing and was a design that was
never done before anywhere in the world. He purposely designed the parks around the city of Buffalo to make the city
feels like it's inside of gigantic park. In addition he has taken part in the renovation of the surroundings of Niagara
Falls. Which was another huge success and make western New York even more special. However I don't think that
Olmsted would make the same claim about Buffalo today. Buffalo has been through major changes such as post World
War and depression areas that distracted the city from focusing on its infrastructure which lead to the slow
deterioration of Olmsted's parks and designs. Many other cities in United States such as Boston have adopted Olmsted's
design concepts. With the fast developing of cities emerging around the world and with technologies that bring better
and more efficient ways to design and build; Buffalo is now far from being the "best planned city in world".
Thread 2:
If I was overseeing a project to memorialize something it would be Soundview Park in Bronx New York. Soundview Park
is about a 15 minute walk from my house and it’s a park that would love to see improved. Before Soundview Park
became a park, the location was abandoned and notorious for being the bad part of the community where crimes and
drug dealing happened. I was part of a group called Friends of Soundview Park that was in charge of organizing
volunteering and communal events in the park. Although the park is in decent condition, it was hard for us to convince
people in the Soundview community to participate in our activities because the reputation that location had back in
the day. I believe that Walter Hood's 'triad of investigations' to memorialize the community as whole in Soundview Park

17. is the solution to bring life to the park. First the park has to be renovated and more appealing to people in the
community in order for them to believe that the park is a safe place for their family to spend time in. For that we can
use the similar landscape designs such as colorful pathways and the “Woods” where people can feels like they are in a
forest. After the renovation and more people start to use the park, we can memorialize the rich history of the South
Bronx that people have taken for granted throughout the years. People can commemorate leaders and influencers that
have come out of the Bronx or their family members that by working on gardens and facilities in the park. Lastly I
would the park to be equipped with self or easily sustainable infrastructure and resources. The park could have it’s
own water system coming from the Bronx River that will help water plants and trees in the park. We could also
implement solar panels throughout the park so it could run of renewable energy only.
Link to Soundview Park video: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B0csXGc6RvyUWjJDQjZuVmdBVms

18. Week 7
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Gordon%2C_scourged_back%2C_NPG%2C_1863.jpg
Thread 1:

19. This is a picture of a former slave named Gordon who joined the Union Camp to fight during the American civil war.
During the medical examination at the camp his scars were revealed and they were so intriguing that photographer
William D. McPherson capture a pictured of Gordon's horribly scarred back. This graphic show the pain and injustice
that Africans have dealt with ever since Europeans have step foot on the continent of Africa. It also show the damage
that us humans are capable of when driven by devil forces such as racism. From a European's perspective, although
they may have no bad intentions, this is just a piece of history highlighting what happened during those times. This
perspective is an example of a symbol of control driven by the education system and scholarly books that have been
taught in schools. This basic interpretation differ from my interpretation because been African myself I'm able to feel a
deep empathy whenever I seen graphics like these or hear stories.
Thread 2:
The creating National Museum of African American History and Culture was necessary to fairly commemorate American
history. There wasn't really a place in the United States where one can get abundant information about the history of
African Americans. This is step closer to equal treatment and fair representation in our society. However, this type of
design fails to follow the equityXdesign core beliefs. The mission of equityXdesign is to end racism through unity
amongst different racial background in order to achieve equity in our society. The creation reinforces the already
existing segregation in the American society. Nonetheless, it wouldn't have helped even if the museum was created in
way that was not segregated because problem lays at a deeper level then that. In order to get close to a post-racial
society where there is equity, we have to a least try the equityXdesign core value of moving equity work toward action
which is to stop racial groups from either isolating themselves or being isolate.

20. Week 8
http://www.visitcapitalcity.com/imagens/city/Bamako/Central-
Bank-BCEAO-Bamako.jpg

21. Thread 1:
A place in my home that represents my ethnic background would be the kitchen. Although the kitchen at my home is
equipped with common western society machine and tools, my mother has put many other things in it that makes
reflect our ethnic background. The kitchen at my home has tools, ingredients, spices and more that are only available
at African Market grocery stores or were directly sent from West Africa. I would definitely model my future kitchen
after the one in my home. I love the food from my native country, so I will need the tools and ingredients that are
needed to make those type of food dishes. Also will keep the same atmosphere because I want to be able to have a
piece of my culture with me wherever I am.
I grew up Bamako, Mali which used a French colony from 1892 to 1960. After the Mali gained its independence, there
still was a huge French culture influence on Mali. First, there were westernized infrastructures in all major cities left
behind by the French colonists. In addition, many systems are modeled after French ways of doing things, such the
government, the educational system, the currency and many more. However there are still many other things that
haven’t changed even under the colonial rule. People still live traditionally however most people live a hybrid lifestyle
mix with French culture and their native culture.
Thread 2:
I am indifferent about whether sports team branding designers should use ethnic references or not. I believe that they
should be able to name teams after anytime they want. I think that the teams that are named after ethnic references
are gestures of commemoration to the different ethnic groups in our history and society. This problem is mainly caused
by the different perspective that different people have. People are always going to have their own interpretation of

22. something whether it’s positive or negative. Essentially, not naming sports teams after ethnic references wouldn't
really solve the controversies because there will always be different opinions when it comes to this subject.
Week 9
Thread 1:
The approach used in this graph is the stories in data approach. This graph shows how over the years the college
enrollment rate for women has drastically increased while the enrollment rate for men has dropped. The designer uses
data to backup the existence of a phenomenon that is the gap between men and women college enrollment. I think
this approach is effective because it expends more on the problem by showing evidence which will make the message
more impactful in terms finding solutions and easier to understand for the audience. This graph could be improved by
providing percentages of the main reasons that prevent each gender from enrolling into college. With that
improvement we can have a better understanding of what causes this problem.

23. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/03/06/womens-college-enrollment-gains-leave-men-behind/
Thread 2:
This is a situation where people’s opinions are going to be the determining factor to this problem. I think that people
should use the bathroom that corresponds with their biological gender written on their birth certificate. I say that
because it’s the easiest, simplest and safest way for everybody. Let’s say that people are allowed to use the bathroom
corresponding to their current gender instead of the on written on their birth certificate, including people who have
had sex organ change, we would not be sure if they are really a certain gender. This will put many people in danger in
terms sexual assault. However for people who have undergone sex change, it makes sense to let them use the
bathroom corresponding to their current gender. But we will have to find a way to make sure that bathrooms are a safe
for people. And I don’t think it would be good to check people and determine what gender they belong to in order to
use the bathroom. So for the safest and simply way to use the bathroom, we should stick to the tradition way of using
bathrooms. As a designer it makes sense to create a third bathroom, however peoples beliefs and perspectives makes it
a really sensitive topic which make the design more than just a third bathroom. My priority as a designer is to make
sure that the bathrooms are safe, so with the creation a third bathroom would have to come with security. There will
be security but not to check people to make sure that they belong to a certain gender, but close by the bathrooms just
in case of danger.

24. Week 10

26. Pictures taken by Mohamed Kaba
Thread 1:
I chose to photograph the Buffalo Metro Rail train. These pictures were taken at the train station facing UB South
Campus. Although the train is well designed, innovative and convenient to use for the average person, it is poorly
designed when it comes to transporting elderly, overweight and disabled people. From these pictures you can clearly
tell that the seats are not spacious at all which makes it difficult anybody with crutches or a wheelchair to fit
comfortably if not at all. The third picture is a space reserved for elderly and disabled people, and even though they
have thought about accommodating for those people it is still poorly designed. This design approach discriminates
against people who do not physically fit the norm. With the advancement of technology and innovation, we have to
come up with better ways to include these people as much as possible.
The spaces on the metro are prickly because there is not enough room to seat or stand comfortably. If I was to
redesign the metro, I would definitely increase the width of the train which would allow me to make the seat wider
and longer. Also I would have a more spacious and more practical section for disabled people on every car of the

27. metro. I believe there are police officers and surveillance cameras right before you enter the metro. I think that
surveillance is necessary in public area to ensure safety.
Thread 2:
First, I will help them build a budget to make sure that their spending is significantly below their means which will help
them accelerate their way out of poverty. Second, I will create better savings account system that are supported by
the government and change retirement plans so that people who are around the poverty level are exempt from paying
taxes and paying hefty penalty fees for using their money in case of emergency. This system will encourage more
people to save money for future expenses such as paying for college and will ultimately help them get out of poverty.
Lastly, I would like design cheap training programs for people like Tammy to help them develop particular skill sets or
teach them entrepreneurial skills to start a business. This system will help people find decent jobs or create more
successful business that would enable them to increase their income flow. Finding ways to increase income is a crucial
part of accelerating your way out poverty.

28. Week 11
Thread 1:
One major issue with the rebuilding of Regent Park was that the designers did not get feedback from the people in the
community. This is the same issue that let the failure of other public housing projects. Another example of that would
be Pruitt Igoe. Pruitt was designed with very little to no input from the residents which ultimately led its deterioration
because it was a bad design choice to the people living there. So in order to make the rebuilding of Regent Park a
success the designers have to figure out what the people want in the community. From there they can start
implementing stuff into the design that would include all age groups and all income groups. However actions that could
be taken specifically for older living in new Regent Park are creating places where they can relax such as a park, a
swimming pool or a shopping center. With this type of design not only would the elderly feel integrated but the whole
community would be inclusive and ultimately improve Regent Park in the long term.
Thread 2:
If Juan Enriquez’s assertion was to come the world will become overpopulated and will head towards a place of
scarcity. With the increasingly rate of childbirth alone the human population is growing exponentially and will reach a
point where places will be overcrowded especially in cities. The possibility of living to 120 years and beyond will just
accelerate that phenomenon. All these people have to be taken care of one way or another which will probably lead to
shortage of basic needs like food and shelter. Designers will have to come up with better and more efficient designs in

29. architecture, infrastructure and transportation in order to meet the needs of the population. In terms of shelter
designers would have to design single room apartments with rearrangeable furniture instead of having apartments with
multiple vacant rooms. Infrastructure will need to be revolutionize in order to meet the needs of the population. For
example highways need to have more lanes in and around major cities in order to reduce traffic. Another example
would be to push boundaries in the energy and power supply field such having more sustainable energy sources and
more effective usage of power. If the first two problems are resolved transportation would follow because all the
fundamental work have already been done which leads to easy and better transportation.

30. Week 12
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SMs4xyrtWQo/TjqPD1BbQBI/AAAAAAAAAiU/yS2nM5rTlkM/s1600/Fold-801-Folding-Chair.jpg

31. http://www.melbourniansfurniture.com.au/image/data/Sofas/Alan/Single%20Recliner/Alan-1RR.jpg
Thread 1:
The example I chose was Size and Space for Approach and Use. First I chose a metal folding chair because although it’s
easy to use it’s not designed for large or disabled people. It’s not spacious enough to fit larger or overweight person
and not stable enough to support a disabled person is incapable of seating straight. Second I chose a one seater couch
because it’s designed to comfortably seat almost any sized person. It’s large and comfortable enough to support
disabled people such as people with back problems. Some of these couches are reclinable which makes them even
better. A way in which the one seater couch could be improved is to add the ability to lower it in case short people or
a disabled person want to seat on it. Another way to improve could be to make it cheaper and more accessible to
people.
Thread 2: What lessons do you think we should learn from history when thinking about emerging enhancement
technologies and reproductive technologies? What are some of the possible consequences (both positive and negative)
of being able to design our bodies and the bodies of our children? What ethical quandaries do these technologies pose?
The lessons we should learn from history when thinking about emerging enhancement technologies and reproductive
technologies are the repercussions attached to them. There are many evidence of failure after enhancement or
reproductive treatments such as acquiring diseases, passages of weaker genes or even death. There are however
positive consequences that we can say have help the world. For instance enhancement treatments have been used to
cure diseases and help people with difficulties. Like I have mentioned unfortunately there negative consequences as
well. I believe that most of the negative consequences come from people using these technologies not out of necessity
but instead out capability. This have lead to overpopulation due to increase in lifespan and high childbirth rate. The
ethical quandaries that these technologies pose are the violation many religious beliefs and rules. As a Muslim myself I

32. know that it’s unethical alter your body in anyway and I’m it’s the way for many religions. Another ethical quandary
would be procedures like plastic surgery or body augmentation in our society. Many people consider those practices
very unethical and tends to shame people who undergo those procedures.

33. Week 13
Thread 1:
Wiseman should have definitely allowed to film residents of Bridgewater Massachusetts Correctional Facility because it
educates people who are not familiar with correctional facilities on what really goes on there. In addition, it helped
expose the harsh conditions that patients were going through at that specific correctional facility. It is not okay to
mask something this serious from the population, especially from people who have family members in correctional
facilities. The state of Massachusetts tried to ban the movie because they knew it would ruin their reputation which is
not right; instead they should take initiative to better their correctional facilities throughout the state and make sure
that patients are not treated poorly. This film is really valuable to designers because it exposes the flaws and
weaknesses of this particular facility such as the bad social construct and weak design choices. Designers can take
advantage of this movie by learning from it and not make those same mistakes in their designs.
Thread 2:
If I was to live in a neighborhood where it was proposed to build a group home for intellectually challenged people I
would support the proposal because I believe in an inclusive society. As mentioned by Wolf Wolfensberger, our society
have segregated against intellectually challenged people by treating as inferior to the rest of population. I think that

34. we should make a stop to that and start treating intellectually challenged people with extra care in order to help
them. The second scenario wouldn’t necessarily change my opinion about the construction of the group home in my
neighborhood however I would suggest to have more people such as security in and around the group home prevent
accidents like these to happen in the neighborhood. If residents in the neighborhood were to vote to reject the
construction of the group home I would suggest build the home or purchase a place in the downtown area of the city so
that they surrounded with life. They would have to allow the residents of the home to visit other part of the town
regularly so that they don’t become isolated from the rest of population.

35. Week 14
http://malijet.com/thumbnail.php?file=mosqu__e_105367512.jpg&size=article_large
Thread 1:
The place of worship that come to mind is the mosque located in neighborhood I grew up in Bamako, Mali. Islam is the
main religion practice most of the population in Mali, so similar to my neighborhood the mosque play huge part in the
formation of communities. For instance, there are specific routes dedicated for people to go and leave the mosque in

36. order to most efficient way of transportation. In addition there are speakers in several street corners surrounding the
mosque to inform people when it’s praying time. Although my neighborhood has evolved over time in terms of
infrastructure and overall design, one thing hasn’t really changed and that is the role that religion has in my
neighborhood. The majority of people in my neighborhood still attend the mosque for prayers just like people did 50
years ago. As for the future, I can only see people being more involved with the mosque because the amount of
contribution increases every year.
Thread 2:
I am majoring in Computer Science and the biggest challenge that researchers in my field are trying to overcome is
developing artificial intelligence also known as AI. An AI machine would be a machine able to reason like a human brain
based on mathematical logic and reasoning. Basically an electronic brain. The development of AI has been a problem
that elite computer scientists tried to solve for decades now, however many are scientists like Elon Musk are very
hopeful about the potential achievement of this goal in the near future. I plan on becoming a software developer and
one problem that I’m trying to contribute in solving is the advancement of AI. We have come a long way since scientists
first took on the challenge of developing AI, and we now have technology that are almost independent of the human
assistance which is incredible. There is still a lot to be accomplished in order to reach our goals which is to create an
electronic brain. One area that I want work on as software developer would autonomous driving vehicles. One the
major ethical dilemma that AI poses is the risk of it getting out human control. For many years people have been
scared of self-operated machines like robots trying to take over humanity. This makes AI a very controversial topic
amongst scientist and non-scientist on whether they should continue developing it or not.