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I used to think that art should last as long as possible because of its historical and cultural value. I believed that it would be waste to spend time and materials to create a piece of art that doesn't last for a long time. Now I realize it is more wasteful to make art out of unsustainable materials that clutter the world and never biodegrade. Art should be sustainable and eventually disappear to keep art ongoing, changing, and beneficial for the environment. Mycelium can look beautiful and has man different uses, and its biodegradability adds to its value.
Thank you for the educational and interactive lesson that taught me a lot more about the impact the environment and nature can have on art!!

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I used to think that we did not have a use for mycelium and that the mushrooms were the only valuable part of the fungus. Now I know that mycelium can be used for creating art, that we can produce cellulose from them , and can be used as a biodegradable alternative to other materials.

Thank you so much for the awesome lesson!

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I used to think our only alternative for plastics and sustainable resources were limited to wood based and other well known sustainable resources.
Now I know there is a whole different category of stronger, just as useful materials that can be used in art, design, science and just about every aspect of life that you need a strong, durable and easy to apply material.
Thank you so much for giving us this opportunity to learn and making it a hands one experience where we can apply the knowledge you gave us. I really appreciate to giving us the chance to implement our learning and I really enjoyed the activities.

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I used to think that biomaterials were something made in a lab that took years to grow.

Now I think they can come from many places and are applicable in many different contexts, as we have seen.

Thank you for creating an interactive lesson to learn about this topic that was informative but also fun.

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I used to think that materials for art and for everyday items should last forever, and that bio materials also needed to be made to last. Now I understand that we only have that mentality because of the permanent nature of the materials we use every day. I also learned that on average, single use plastics only have a 12 minute usage time. These products do not actually need to last, and we need to change our thinking to help protect the environment.

Thank you for traveling to come and teach us, and for letting us have a hands on experience with different bio materials. It was very interesting!

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I used to think that these materials weren't that useful for products and building things However, now I think that mycelium and other mushroom fungi are actually very resistant materials that are better thank bricks because they only have smaller cracks when put under pressure whereas brick just explode. This allowed me to know that not only is this a sustainable environmentally friendly material but it can also be very effective for infrastructure.

Thank you very much for teaching us about mycelium and sustainable materials that we can use for art and its effects that it can have on people. I thought that the classes were very engaging and I liked how you didn't just talk at us for 3 hours but rather got us to do activities. This made it much more interesting.

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I used to think that kombucha was merely a drink that helped to make the body stronger and only that. I also used to the think that mycelium was a very weak material that had no real practical applications besides decoration.

But, now I think that due to the kombucha's ability to be sustained it not only does us good as humans but it does a lot of well for the enviroment since it can be sustained and repleneshid and it is biodegradable and does a great favor for our enviroment. I also know think that with further r&d mycelium could benefit our society a great amount due to its durability and extremely low weight. With the proper application of skills it could even be used to help build the infrastructure for buildings which would be a great replacament for the non-sustainable materials that are used now.

Ms. Takara,

I am extremely thankful that you have taught us about this beautiful material that can be used so much to better our future. I would also like to thank you for inspiring me and my class to possibly become bioengineers and make the world a better place.

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I used to think that these organic and biodegradable materials, like mycelium, were just like any other organic material that couldn't be used for much. I thought that their uses were extremely limited.

But now I know that it can be used for so much more like in developments of technology and infrastructure - as well as in the creation of art. I understand that it's just as strong, in some cases even stronger, than the materials that we use today. The only difference is that mycelium is better for the environment.

Thank you so much for to Atlanta and teaching us how we can use these environmentally-friendly materials in our art. I really appreciate how all the activities that you had us do were interactive which made it much more interesting.

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I used to think that biodegradable materials that could be used to replace plastics for infrastructure and everyday objects were really important and should be implemented more. Now, I am much more knowledgable about the different types of biomaterials, their different functions, and the truly endless possibilities when working with mycelium in the science, art, engineering fields.

Thank you very much for teaching us about art with biomaterials! I really loved how interactive and engaging it was, as everyone was able to participate and be immersed.

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I used to think that a variety  forms of mycelium such as mushroom etc, can only appears on people's dinner tables served as food. and biodegradable materials can only produced in the science lab. However, your lessons has made me experienced another form of artificial art, and I also learned that this can also be used as a kind of construction material.

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I used to think that organic, biodegradable materials would not be a good idea, since they wouldn't be able to last for so long, but now I know that most materials that would be replaced by biodegradable materials would be plastics that would only be used in short term situations. Thank you for teaching me about how biodegradable materials can be useful in a real world context!

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I used to think that mycelium was only something you could eat, and never really knew it could be used for art purposes, let alone be used to build buildings. As you can imagine, I was very shocked to learn that it can be used for many different purposes besides consumption.

Now I know that the material can replace single use plastics and many other non eco-friendly resources that we currently use on a daily basis. Mycelium can also replace concrete and bricks and can be used to build buildings. As seen in the video you showed us, it is actually stronger than concrete, meaning it is overall a more safe source to be used for buildings. Overall, I learned that mycelium can be used as a sustainable resource for a variety of different uses.

Thank you so much for taking your time to teach us about sustainable resources we could use for art as well as resources we can use to replace our single use plastics and even to build our buildings. I truly enjoyed learning about how artists can also impact the science community as that was something I never really thought about.

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I use to think that mycelium and mushrooms were something you could eat or where just there to provide habitats for other organisms. I never use to think much about about mycelium because it wasn't a part of my daily life.

Now I know that mycelium can be used to make a variety of things. It is the future of construction but also many other things that could help support in the future.

I really appreciate that you came and taught us a lot about our future and mycelium along with other renewable materials. It is important to know that we have a way to sustain ourselves in the future and that green materials and energy are a part of this. I would suggest for next time maybe to use rags instead of all those paper towels and find even more ways to make these projects and workshops even more sustainable. Thank you again.

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I used to think that the only type of biodegradable materials were things like bioplastics, e.t.c. Now, I know that mushrooms can be used to construct many things, and can be formulated to become a sustainable material.

Thank you so much for taking some time out of your schedule coming to visit us! I really enjoyed learning about the links between science and art, and how they can both advance each other.

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I didn't used think anything really, so now I see that mycelium is a much stronger substance than it's given credit for. Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to visit our school and teach us about bio-plastics and their properties.

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I used to think mycelium was gross now I think it’s sustainable and really cool thanks for showing me this

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I used to think that no matter what there was always an artificial aspect to art, now i see that art can be very natural

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I used to think that mushrooms were only part of ecosystems and didnt really serve a purpose to us as humans other than for food.

Now I think that mycellium has a lot of different uses and will be a huge part of building and plastic in the future.

Thank you for taking the time to teach us about such an interesting topic and for showing us how we can get involved. Im really excited to learn more about the applications of this and to see how it is implemented in the future!

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I used to think that mycelium and mushrooms in general didn't serve any use other than as a decomposer. I valued them, but it was something I was never going to know much about, nor something I had much interest in.

Now, thanks to our three lessons with you, I understand that fungi and mycelium are so much more interesting than I thought, and they can be used for sustainable art in amazing ways.

Thank you for giving me a new spin on natural art, I'm looking forward to learning more about it and maybe making some kombucha!

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I used to think that the future of materials lay in outer space or further from us, but now I know that mycelium is already a developed technology that can easily be the future of so many industries.

Thank you for showing me how I can take my learning from the classroom home and grow my own.

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I used to think that mushrooms did not have much purpose except to eat and grow as a food source. I was surprised at first about hearing about Mycelium because I really did not understand its uses and what it was. I did not comprehend until recently that mushrooms are a very useful material   with many benefits.

I now think that there is an endless possibility of uses for Mycelium. In art and engineering Mycelium can grow in a number of different ways taking the shape and form of any design that you can dream of. I also have understood how incredibly strong Mycelium is. Is infrastructure allows it to take pressure and force in a better way than the traditional brick making it a useful asset for building. Because Mycelium is strong and malleable I am sure that there are many uses which are yet undiscovered. On top of all these benefits it is also sustainable which makes it great for our environment and a future world where sustainability is key.

Ms. Takara

Thank you so much for taking the time to teach us how to use this mycelium to make art in ways I had never imagined before. I really enjoyed the hands-on aspect of the lesson because I felt involved and it was very interesting to me. By not only learning but applying the skills you taught us it really helped solidify my understanding. Thank you so much for being an amazing and interesting teacher. I also really liked how you explained the scientific aspect of the project as this was really interesting to me.

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I used to think that, plastic was the only solution and that there wasn’t any other environmentally friendly option. I used to think that although plastics were bad, there was no other possible solution at this point in time.

I now think that  Mycelium and mushrooms are the future for redesigning containers and I believe more technology needs to be put into this so that we can be more environmentally stable.

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I used to  think that mushrooms were a rather useless material. I previously believed that mushrooms were only decomposers and never really viewed them as an art medium.

Now I know that mushrooms are an incredibly versatile art form which can be used for a variety of things. It is the future of design and eco friendly projects

Thank you so much for teaching me the values of understanding my environment and to take advantage of what I have in front of me.

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I used to think ...that mycelium was beautiful (still do) :)
Now I think...it is also a multi-purpose & sustainable material - that is actually incredibly strong.

Thank you for taking the time to thoughtfully work with my students and get them working with their hands immediately. Love that their experience was so tangible.