Whole Life Concept Report

Prepared by: John Moore

Whole Life Concept Project

Chris McDaniel
11/8/2014

I have neither given nor received any unauthorized help on this assignment, nor witnessed any violation
of the UNC Charlotte Code of Academic Integrity.

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Introduction
As I begin my whole life concept report I believe it is only appropriate to introduce
myself. My name is John Thomas Moore and I am currently a freshman attending the University
of North Carolina at Charlotte in pursuit of a mechanical engineering degree with a focus in
energy production and a minor in mathematics. In this report I hope to accurately convey my
personal reasons for becoming a mechanical engineer and what my long term goals are and
why. I hope to pinpoint my own personal passion for the career path I have chosen and its
intended application in my global community, economy, and environment. After identifying the
goals for my future I will identify the knowledge needed to achieve these goals as well as the
skills needed to apply this knowledge to my long-term goals. Also included will be research
supporting my reasoning for selecting the career that I did. Moreover, I will address some of the
issues that I plan on tackling during the span of my career.
Passion
To first address the inner circle of the whole life concept model, my passion lies in
energy production, specifically renewable energy, as well as sales. Since I was a small child I
have always had a fascination with energy production, specifically electricity and the methods
used to produce it. I first began questioning my parents and absorbing their limited knowledge
on the subjects and the methods used for energy production. I also frequently questioned my
uncle who just happens to be an engineer who now works as a consultant on energy
production. With this limited knowledge I had on the subject, I began to let my mind roam free,
constantly brainstorming and devising new methods of energy production. I began inquiring this
subject in elementary school and never seriously considered a career in energy production until
I reached high school and realized how large the market was. Once in high school, I began to
realize the rising demand of innovation in renewable energy technology and became transfixed
on that subject which leads to where I am today, studying mechanical engineering with a focus
in energy production.
As I stated above, I also have a passion for sales. Throughout my high school career, as
I began to realize the way that sales work on the micro and macro scales, I became addicted to
finding deals, making deals, and bartering trades. It doesnt matter whether a product is $10,000
or $1; I refuse to purchase the product or sell the product unless the price is right. Some might
suggest that these two passions I have listed arent compatible but I personally believe that one
day I can combine the two and start my own business. I have no idea what type of business I
want to start, but I believe as my knowledge in engineering increases eventually I will be
competent enough to create a business that will thrive in the economy of the future.
Community service on a global scale has also been a passion of mine since high school.
Throughout my schooling I was educated more and more on the world around me and how
many people around the globe are living in poverty. The more I learned about the privilege that I
have as an American, the more I began to want to help those around the world in need of the
things I take for granted daily, such as food, fresh water, and many other necessities to live a
healthy lifestyle. Slowly this charitable mindset became a passion of mine which is what I
believe separates me from the majority of my peers. To sum all three passions into one, I hope
to use my knowledge as a mechanical engineer to start my own business and hopefully grow
the company to be so successful that I can afford to do international projects helping those in
need all around the world.

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Impact
The first of my three impact goals involves a lot of my intentions from the previous
section. My largest, most far-out goal involves doing oversea service projects. I am not exactly
sure what kind of service I want to provide, but as of right now I foresee either supplying some
type of affordable renewable energy technology to underprivileged communities or supplying
underprivileged communities with some method of water filtration. Reportedly, 2.6 billion people
around the world have inadequate water sanitation (Shah). This is nearly 40% of todays total
population, which I cant even fathom. On top of that, 1.6 billion people are living without access
to electricity (Shah). Originally I wanted to provide poor communities with electricity, but not
having fresh water is a much larger issue; therefore, I would most likely focus on doing that with
a future service project. It would be plausible to suggest that if I would be able to do service
projects like these overseas, underprivileged communities could be supplied with both
renewable energy technologies as well as proper water filtration methods.
Another goal I have set in my mind over the past couple years was to push residential
solar nationwide. A year or two ago, my family purchased about 25 solar panels, exclusively for
residential use. These panels run net-zero, meaning that my family has to pay for none of the
electricity they use over the year because the solar panels deliver at least that much power back
to the grid. We paid a private company for the panels as well as the installation services for the
panels. I wont mention the overall price paid for the rig, but I can say that after 8 years of
energy production the panels will have paid for themselves and after that my family will be
receiving free energy for as long as the panels themselves last.
My first proposition is for anyone that can afford a rig like this; it is definitely beneficial to
invest in residential solar panels immediately. Investing in solar panels for ones house is going
to yield far more money than leaving ones money in a bank to collect interest. It is also going to
be a much more secure investment than putting ones money in the stock market, solely
because the sun is always going to come up tomorrow, if it doesnt come up your money is
irrelevant.
My second proposition is for the large scale electricity providers around the country. I
believe these large utility providers should start programs that offer residential solar at
discounted rates. By this I mean the power company would pay to install a solar panel rig on a
customers property and the customer would sign a contract with the power company to set the
cost of their monthly power bill at a lower rate than it usually would be. Currently there are thirdparty companies offering this type of incentive but I dont believe any large scale utility providers
are doing this currently. The two types of payment options are PPA and lease options. A PPA
option, known as a power purchase agreement, allows a homeowner to purchase all of the
energy produced by a system installed on their property at a mutually agreed rate that would
generally be lower than their typical rate. PPA contracts are also generally long-term contracts
up to 20 years. The lease option allows the owner of the property to pay pre-established
monthly rates that have nothing to do with the output of the solar panel rig but are competitive
with the property owners actual monthly electric bill (Lee).
This is an obvious win-win situation for both the customer and the utility provider. The
owner of the property on which one of these solar panel systems are installed will get a lower
electricity bill than they regularly would each month. The electricity provider will obviously be
making a great amount of money after the solar panels pay for themselves. They will have
homeowners paying for electricity that they dont even have to produce! I also imagine that the
companies will be able to install the systems at a much cheaper price than what my family paid,
due to the eliminating of the middleman as far as solar panel markups and installation costs. I
have no actual data on what it would cost to install these systems at a baseline level that these
companies could manage, but I imagine a system installed directly by a utility company could

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potentially pay for itself in 4-5 years. I may be missing some information on why the large utility
companies havent begun doing this yet, but to me all I see is dollar signs with this idea.
The main reason I suggest this, rather than large solar farms, is that these solar farms
are such a waste of precious space in world with an ever expanding population. Thousands
upon thousands of acres of precious land are being reserved for nothing but one of the least
space-efficient methods of creating energy known to date. The amount of land reserved for
these inanimate panels around the planet is an absolute waste. Placing all of these panels atop
houses rather than wasting so much virgin land only seems logical to me. I feel that pushing the
residential solar movement is in our societys best interest and I am genuinely passionate about
the potential within this business proposition.
One of the greatest threats against our planet continues to be global climate change,
which is one of the main reasons I am so passionate about renewable energy. Due to the
exponential increase in carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere, within the next 20 years it is
predicted that there will be no ice left in the arctic and should the global average temperature
exceed 2 degrees, up to 30% of the species on the planet will face extinction (Climate Change).
Therefore, my goal heading into the future is to put the biggest dent I can into our carbon
dioxide emissions and reduce global warming as much as I can. I realize I am only one person,
but I believe that with enough passion, knowledge, and creativity I can make a noticeable
difference in the world.
Knowledge, Application, Skills and Abilities
However, these goals are not going to be achieved without the acquisition of the correct
knowledge, skills, and abilities. To be successful in completing these goals it is definitely crucial
to immerse myself in the science and mathematics of energy production and heat transfer.
Energy production revolves around heat simply because heat is energy and engineers cant just
make estimations when it comes to the production of electricity. The production of energy
requires precision in many aspects but mainly mathematics. Being experienced and
knowledgeable in the realm of mathematics is an essential because one small miscalculation
can cost a company millions of dollars.
To become an engineer it is also essential to be creative and think outside the box.
Engineering generally revolves around innovation. Innovation is defined as introducing new
things or ideas according to dictionary.com. Basically, taking something known and making it
better, more efficient, and new again. To do this an engineer must have the mental capacity to
think outside the box and be able to recognize what consumers want and be able to produce
ideas that can save companies money. I believe this is a skill I have always had but I believe
that I can definitely cultivate my own creativity over the next several years before I enter the
business world and begin my career.
While being innovative is an important aspect of being an engineer it is also important to
have superior problem solving skills. While being an engineer, one must use his or her creativity
to form solutions to problems that may be both foreseen and unforeseen. Before deciding to
become an engineer, personally, I considered myself to be an excellent problem solver, not in
the sense of solving problems that already have answers, but solving problems that dont have
answers. Although I am confident in my abilities I must continue to not only cultivate my
creativity but also my ability to think outside the box to solve problems that others cannot in the
business and industrial world.
As I mentioned earlier, my prospective major is mechanical engineering with a focus in
energy production. About a week ago I was an undecided engineering major but just recently I
declared mechanical engineering. I was also looking at electrical engineering but I feel that
mechanical engineering is the best choice for me because I like working with things that have
moving parts rather than circuit programming and things of that nature. Obviously, working with

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renewable energy I will need to have knowledge of how electricity is produced and distributed to
the consumers, but that is not my main priority.
Reflecting on my major since Ive begun college and doing this reflection I have begun to
have some doubts about being able to finish this major and get a degree. Its not that Im not
passionate about being an engineer; its just that currently my workload is stressing me out
much more than it should be and I have hardly any time away from schoolwork. Currently I am
typing this 3,500+ word essay and I have 3 essays, a lab report, and stacks of miscellaneous
assignments that I will most likely complete at ungodly hours in the morning to finish as well.
Coming into college I planned on setting time apart to get work done, instead I have to set time
apart to not work and attempt to clear my mind of the stress that is weighing me down. Im not
even exaggerating when I say that I have had to skip dinner and bathing to complete
assignments for this major. The amount of essays that I have to write on a weekly basis is
borderline senseless and I have yet to mention Im only enrolled in 13 hours of classes this
semester. This doesnt give me hope for the upcoming semesters considering the courses most
likely get harder every year.
However, I did say doubts. I still plan on powering through all 127 credit hours and
getting my degree in mechanical engineering. I may be frustrated with the amount of work I
have to do for my major, but I believe it will definitely be worth it in the long-run. Another thought
I have had since beginning college here at UNCC is whether or not the diploma is actually worth
the money. I feel like I honestly have enough knowledge, business sense, and determination to
make a respectable living without having a 4-year college degree. That being said, I feel that
getting an education in engineering is definitely worth the money in the long run, and I feel that
UNCC will provide me with the resources I need to make an impact on the world. With an
engineering degree, my opportunities are going to be nearly endless and I believe that once I
have graduated I will be able to accomplish any goals I set my mind to.
The courses required for me to get my mechanical engineering degree look to be very
beneficial to my desired field. Courses like thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer
will undoubtedly provide me with the fundamental academic knowledge needed to be successful
in my career of choice. Also, the colleges engineering program has close ties to Duke Energy,
whom I consider a top 3 job prospect for me personally. I believe this connection could
potentially give me the resources needed to achieve my desired impact.
I also plan on using resources outside of academics to broaden my skills and abilities.
Currently I work for a company that requires me to be outgoing socially and go out of my way to
assist others without being asked. My job also requires me to know my surroundings like the
back of my hand in order to give assistance to anyone that may be in need of directions. This is
a skill that will definitely be useful in the business world, especially when trying to grind my way
up the chain of command at whatever company I work for.
Another way I have learned skills useful to me going forward is by doing volunteer work
each summer over the past 5 years. I have been volunteering as a dining hall worker at a
summer camp since I was 13 years of age. This taught me great work habits and began to
teach me how to work with others that dont exactly mesh with me. Over the course of my time
volunteering at this summer camp, I have definitely learned how to work with people that I dont
particularly get along with as well as people that dont like to pull their own weight in work. I feel
that I will most definitely have to work with people that dont blend well with me and that dont
have the same work ethic as me during my career as an engineer so I know that these were
valuable skills for me to learn early. Having this ability to work with all types of people will
unquestionably be useful to me when trying to accomplish my major career and charitable
goals.
To cultivate my non-academic and non-technical skills I plan on eventually joining some
type of club or group that focuses primarily on public speaking. I am usually extremely confident
about my public speaking abilities until I actually get in front of a large audience and I begin to

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stutter and get a big lump in my throat. Becoming a better public/presentation speaker will be a
crucial skill in my desired field, especially if I plan on going before large companies trying to
convince them to invest their money in my ideas. Confidence is key when speaking, and I could
definitely use a confidence boost when public speaking.
Reflection and Conclusion
Wrapping up, my passion can be summarized as the passion to innovate in the realm of
energy production, specifically energy production by way of renewable resources. I plan on
using this passion to reduce the emission of greenhouse gasses and provide foreign,
underprivileged communities with technologies that they need.
Looking back I believe that I have formed a solid whole life concept model including my
passions, the knowledge I will need to carry out these passions, ways to apply this knowledge,
and what methods I would like to use in order to impact my society and planet using this
knowledge. Having this much organization when preparing for my future is incredibly useful for
many reasons. Firstly, the whole life concept model has helped me realize what exactly I am
passionate about. Secondly, it is important because it has helped me realize the many varieties
of ways I can impact my society locally and globally. Before this project I had tunnel vision to
one or two types of community service projects I wanted to do in the future. Lastly, it is
important to me because it gives me milestones to shoot for and more than one final goal to
accomplish.
This assignment has also made me more confident that I have chosen the correct major.
The reflection done within the project has reassured me that I am in the correct spot. It has
influenced my plans for the future in the fact that my view for possible community service
projects has become much broader than what they were previously. Also my perception of
engineering has changed from strictly related to making a large sum of money, to making a
large sum of money in combination with having a job I find fun and intriguing.
Overall I continue to grow more committed to my education in engineering every day. I
have become more committed to mechanical engineering since beginning this project simply
because this project has reassured me that mechanical engineering is the engineering
designation for me. The only reason I may have lost any commitment to my engineering degree
is the fact that I am beginning to realize the amount of time it takes to do all of the schoolwork
involved but I have realized that it will be worth it in the long run. I have become more
committed to UNC Charlotte in the long run because of the connections that they have with the
energy production industry and the focus in energy they provide to mechanical engineering. To
me, having the focus in energy production will give me an edge over engineers from other
colleges that only have a generic mechanical engineering degree.
Altogether, this whole life concept project has given me confidence in my schooling
choices and college selection in general. I now realize what my long term goals truly are, rather
than just having a vague guess at where I want to be in 20 years. Also, since completing this
assignment I now know what I want to do to impact my planet in a positive way. Now I can run
full speed ahead into the rest of my scholarly career, as well as my actual career without any
doubts that I am going in the right direction. As of right now, I just plan on giving my greatest
effort to my education and networking myself as a productive engineer with unmatched
innovation and drive.

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References:

"Climate Change." - Our Green Energy. Accessed October 31, 2014.

https://www.ecotricity.co.uk/our-green-energy/energy-independence/climate-change.
Lee, April. "U.S. Energy Information Administration - EIA - Independent Statistics and Analysis."
Most New Residential Solar PV Projects in California Program Are Not Owned by
Homeowners. September 17, 2013. Accessed October 31, 2014.
http://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.cfm?id=12991.
Shah, Anup. "Poverty Facts and Stats." - Global Issues. January 7, 2013. Accessed October 30,
2014. http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats.