CST300: Major ProSeminar, Week 7

Part 1: Final Video Research Planning

Our team is working on a video project about how search results work. To stay on track, we held our weekly team meeting where we reviewed upcoming deadlines and outlined what needed to be done. After the meeting, we used Discord to post the deadlines and keep communication open. That way, if anyone needed to suggest revisions or ask for clarification, everything was easy to access in one place.

This week, we finalized our research and wrote the script for the video. Next, we’ll move into the recording phase so we can start adding visuals and editing everything in time for the final deadline next week.

Overall, the process has been smooth. We’ve communicated well and stayed organized, but if we were to do it again, I think we should have done more research earlier and started recording this week. That would have given us more time to refine the final product and avoid feeling rushed at the end.

Part 2: Lecture Reading Reflections

This week, I watched a TED talk by Yoshua Bengio, a key figure in AI research. He spoke about how fast AI is developing and raised concerns about its growing ability to act independently. One point that stood out was his idea of “Scientist AI,” which focuses on understanding the world instead of making decisions. He also made a strong case for better regulation, saying that a sandwich currently has more oversight than AI. That comparison really stuck with me.

We also reviewed presentation skills, including how to use visual aids effectively. I learned that visuals should support what’s being said, not take over the presentation. For example, slides should highlight key points, not be read word-for-word. Charts, maps, and images can help keep the audience engaged, as long as they match the message and don’t become a distraction. This is something I’ll keep in mind as we record our final video. Our goal is to explain how search engines work clearly, so using clean, simple visuals will help make the topic easier to follow.