Part I: An Engineer Does What?

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An Engineer Does What?

What is the PURPOSE of this activity?

To discover the similarities and differences between Science and Engineering processes.

Initial Thoughts: (what do you think are the similarities and differences):

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Part I:

Below you will find descriptors, about science, engineering, or both. Think about each carefully and then categorize the statements in the column where it best fits. Then, discuss with your partner. Use pencil because you will most likely have to erase and replace after discussing with your partner. You will fill out this table again once we learn about the

differences….so for now, do NOT worry about being wrong and do not look up answers… just base it off of your thoughts and discussion.

-Conducts Experiments -Explain Nature

-Runs tests or trials -Requires creativity and innovation -Works with restrictions -Write down everything -Solve Problems -Invent or redesign things

-Help Society -Communicate findings

-Repair things -Work in teams

-Use Math -Seek to understand the world

Science Both Science and Engineering Engineering

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Part II:

Directions: Read the information below on the Scientific Method vs. Engineering Method and underline and/or highlight important concepts/terms. Then, look at the diagram and the table below and then go to the 2 links to learn more about the two methods and to answer the 4 questions.

Reading: Both scientists and engineers contribute to the world of human knowledge, but in different ways. Scientists use the scientific method to make testable explanations and predictions about the world. A scientist asks a question and develops an experiment, or set of experiments, to answer that question. Engineers use the engineering design process to create solutions to problems. An engineer identifies a specific need: Who need(s) what because why? And then, he or she creates a solution that meets the need.

While scientists study how nature works, engineers create new things, such as products, websites, environments and experiences. Because engineers and scientists have different objectives, they follow different processes in their work.

Scientists perform experiments using the scientific method; whereas, engineers follow the creativity-based Engineering design process. Both processes can be broken down into a series of steps as seen in the diagram and table below.

With your team, look at the diagram and the table and discuss the similarities and differences between the Scientific Method and the Engineering Method.

The Scientific Method The Engineer Design Process

State your Question Define the problem

Do Background Research Do Background Research

Formulate Hypothesis, Identify Variables Specify Requirements

Design Experiment, Develop Procedures Create Alternate Solutions, choose the best one and develop it Test your Hypothesis by conducing Experiment Build a prototype

Analyze your results and Draw Conclusions Test and Redesign as necessary

Communicate results Communicate results

Now, go to the following links to read more detail on The Scientific Method vs. The Engineering Design Process to answer the following 4 questions on the next page. Make sure to click on the Key Info tab for each site and scroll down to see the detail under the steps for each.

http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_scientific_method.shtml#overviewofthescientificmethod http://www.sciencebuddies.org/engineering-design-process/engineering-design-process-

steps.shtml#theengineeringdesignprocess

http://www.stemjobs.com/whats‐the‐difference‐between‐a‐scientist‐engineer/

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Questions:

1. What are two similarities in the Scientific Method and the Engineer Process?

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2. What are two differences?

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3. What does iteration mean? (hint, it is under the Engineer process Key info tab)

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4. What does “fair test” mean? (hint, it is under the Scientific method Key info tab)

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Now, that you have read about Scientific Method and Engineering Method….complete the table again with your partner.

Use the websites and reading from previous page to assist you.

-Conducts Experiments -Explain Nature

-Runs tests or trials -Requires creativity and innovation -Works with restrictions -Write down everything -Solve Problems -Invent or redesign things

-Help Society -Communicate findings

-Repair things -Work in teams

-Use Math -Seek to understand the world

Science Both Science and Engineering Engineering

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Name: ______________________________________________Per.___________

Activity: CELL TOWER CHALLENGE

Students will assume the role of a team of engineers working for EAE, a fictional engineering firm hired by a cell phone company to design a new cell phone tower. Students need to prepare a proposal for the phone tower, understanding that the contract would be awarded to the team who maximized height while minimizing cost. Budgeting should be an exciting new challenge for the teams! Students are allowed to “buy” as much spaghetti, string, and tape as their $100,000 budget allows. Winning team gets 5 bonus points!

Challenge: Design the tallest cell phone tower with the least cost. Your group’s budget is $100,000. Spaghetti costs

$10,000 per noodle; string costs $1,000 per 15 centimeters; and tape costs $1,500 per 5 centimeters.

Brainstorm: Sketch your idea and label the parts

Budget:

Items Amount (be specific) Cost

Spaghetti String

Tape

Total Cost: _______________________ (must be below $100,000)

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Design and Remodel Reflection

Design or Modification Why did you make that change?

Did it work? Explain. Are you going to keep it? Yes/No (ex) We created a triangle

as a base.

We made that change to create stability for our tower.

Yes/No because _______________

Yes/No

Final Design: label parts and include measurements (cm or m)

Analysis Questions:

1. What steps did you and your partner take during the tallest cell tower challenge?

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2. How did you and your partner experience success?

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3. What challenges did you and your partner face? What did you do to overcome it?

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4. Compare and contrast the scientific process and the engineering process. Give an example of when the scientific process will be used versus when an engineering process will be used.

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Balloon Cars!

Can you design a car that is propelled forward by an inflated balloon? This project allows students to explore physics and engineering concepts while designing and building their own balloon-powered car out of basic office and craft supplies.

The goal is to see who can build the car that will go the farthest.

DAY #1

Background Information: Directions: Take 5 minutes to read and highlight/circle/underline the following information The engineering design process is a process that real-world engineers follow when they design and build something. It involves designing, building, testing and iterating on this process. There is no single "right answer" in an engineering project. Students will probably not build cars that work perfectly on the first try, and the cars will all look very different, and this is perfectly okay and expected. Real-world engineers rarely get things perfect on the first try, which is why they design and test things multiple times. This process is different from the scientific method, which students are more familiar with. What is the difference between the Engineer Design Process and the Scientific Method? Let’s refresh our memories!

The engineering design process is a series of steps that engineers follow to come up with a solution to a problem. Many times the solution involves designing a product (like a machine or computer code) that meets certain criteria and/or accomplishes a certain task.

 The primary steps of the engineering design process are to:

o Define the Problem o Do Background Research o Specify Requirements o Brainstorm Solutions o Choose the Best Solution o Do Development Work o Build a Prototype o Test and Redesign

 Engineers do not always follow the engineering design process steps in order, one after another. It is very

common to design something, test it, find a problem, and then go back to an earlier step to make a modification or change to your design. This way of working is called iteration, and it is likely that your process will do the same.

The Scientific method, on the other hand, is a way to ask and answer scientific questions by making observations and doing experiments.

 The steps of the scientific method are to:

o Ask a Question

o Do Background Research o Construct a Hypothesis

o Test Your Hypothesis by Doing an Experiment o Analyze Your Data and Draw a Conclusion o Communicate Your Results

 It is important for your experiment to be a fair test. A "fair test" occurs when you change only one factor (variable) and keep all other conditions the same.

While scientists study how nature works, engineers create new things, such as products, websites, environments, and experiences. If a project involves making observations and doing experiments, you should probably follow the Scientific Method. If your project involves designing, building, and testing something, you should probably follow the Engineering Design Process.

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ENGAGE:

1. What is Newton's third law of motion?

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2. When you inflate a balloon, what happens when you let it go?

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3. What would happen if the balloon was attached to a small toy car?

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4. What are 3 main steps of the engineering design process?

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5. Is there a single "right answer" to an engineering problem or could there be multiple solutions? Explain!!

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EXPLORE: Balloon Cars!

The purpose of this project is design a car that is propelled forward by an inflated balloon. The goal is to see which group can build a car that will go the farthest. This project allows students to explore physics and engineering concepts while designing and building their own balloon-powered car out of basic office and craft supplies.

For inspiration, we will watch these videos first. Feel free to search and view additional videos later on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ax9_NLBtCwo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzY9RH_JnL0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8hu5Y-9AZ8

Materials:

The goal of this project is to let students creatively design and build their own car by choosing their own materials. Thus, there is not a specific set of materials required for each group. Listed below are a variety of materials for students to consider. Students are expected to keep costs down (max $5) by using recycled materials from home. Each student will be responsible for bringing an agreed upon material to class.

Car Rules:

1. Must be powered by a single, 12 inch balloon (balloon provided by teacher in class) 2. You can build your car out of anything

3. Your car must have at least 3 wheels. A wheel is anything that it round and goes around. You may not use a wheel from a toy car.

4. Groups may only spend a maximum of $5 on the car. Recycle things from home!

Required Parts of Car:

1. Wheels: round objects like CDs, plastic bottle caps, the plastic rolls from empty clear tape…

2. Axles: straight, sturdy items like wooden pencils, wooden grilling skewers, straws…

3. Body: construction materials for the car (rinsed-out plastic bottles, milk cartons, juice boxes, cardboard, popsicle sticks) 4. Balloon to propel car forward

Optional Materials: Scissors, Rubber bands, Construction paper/ printer paper, Fasteners (paper clips, binder clips…) , Tape, Arts/crafts materials so students can decorate their cars (pipe cleaners, googly eyes, puffy pant, candy…whatever your heart’s desire ;) )

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Brainstorming your Car:

When conducting a scientific experiment, students are given a step by step procedure to follow. There is a variable and all other aspects are controlled. However, since this is an engineering based project, students have the freedom to design their cars without following a required procedure.

Below are some pictures that might help guide you in your design.

Figure 1: An example of a propulsion system for your car… a balloon wrapped around the end of a drinking straw.

Figure 2. Two examples of wheel-axle systems.

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Figure 3: Two examples of completed balloon cars. (Left) A car with CD wheels, pencil/paper axles, and a paper and tape body. (Right) A car with bottle cap wheels, skewer/straw axles, and a plastic bottle body.

Research, Discuss and Sketch your initial ideas

1. First, assign jobs to your team members based on their unique skills. Each student should design/be in charge of the following: The Wheel-Axle System, Designing the Body, Attaching the parts, Creative/Aesthetic appeal

Assigned Student Roles:

Wheel Axle System: _____________________________ Attaching Parts: __________________________

Designing the body: _____________________________ Creative/Aesthetics: __________________________

2. Second, conduct research to help your team come up with an optimal design. Students may watch videos on youtube or read information online. Each member should spend 20-25 minutes researching on their own so that they can have valuable information to share with their group when they start sketching their design.

3. Now, discuss with your group members and sketch of the parts

Wheel Axle System Body

How to Attach the parts (diagram) Aesthetics

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Sketch of the Car (above parts put together)

Based on the design, assign materials for each partner to bring to class for Day #2, Building day Student #1: ____________________________ Student #3: __________________________

Student #2: ____________________________ Student #4: __________________________

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DAY #2 EXPLORE & EXPLAIN: Building, Testing, Revising & Remodeling your Car

Using the agreed upon design (see sketch from day #1), build your car! And record the mass _________________ (g)

Testing your Car:

Blow through the straw to inflate your balloon. Put your finger over the tip of the straw to seal the air in, place your car on the floor, and release your finger. Ideally, your car should move forward, but there might be some problems. Maybe it is too heavy, maybe the axles get stuck and do not rotate, or maybe the seal between the balloon and straw is not good enough so air leaks out. This is okay! Remember that there is no single "right answer" to an engineering design problem, and things do not always work on the first try. Identifying these problems, fixing them, and testing again is part of the engineering design process.

Describe any problems with the design: _________________________________________________________________

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What could help? ___________________________________________________________________________________

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Revised Design #1: (Might be very similar but with some tweaks. Or it might be completely different!)

Before you test it, what was changed in the design? Why did you think it will help?

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Data Table: Distance Revised Design #1 Traveled Trial Distance 1

2 3

Average

Do you think it can still use some tweaks? Draw a revised Design #2 and label what you changed.

Mass of Car (g)

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Revised Design #2: The OFFICIAL DESIGN! Ready for Class Competition!

Before you test it, what was changed in the design? Why did you think it would help?

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Data Table: Distance Revised Design #2 Traveled Trial Distance 1

2 3

Average

Did the revisions help? If so, why do you think so? If not, why do you think so?

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EXTEND & EVALUATE: Fill out with your teammates. One person writes.

1. What design factors in your first model do you think hindered the distance traveled? Why do you think so?

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2. Which factors in your final revision helped? Why do you think so?

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3. What kind of energy did you witness when the balloon was inflated with its rubbers stretched and with compressed air inside?

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4. When the balloon was released and air was expelled out of the back and the car moved forward, which of Newton’s Laws did you witness? Explain.

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5. As the car moved forward, what kind of energy conversion occurred? ___________________________________

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6. If we added mass to the car, how do you think it would affect the distance traveled?

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7. If we added mass to the car, how would you revise your car design in order to accommodate the added mass?

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Mass of Car (g)

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Teeny Tiny Towers Competition Name:_______________________________Per.____

Challenge:

Given a piece of paper and some tape, construct the tallest, free standing tower

possible. The winners will receive 5 extra credit points for the class competition or 10 extra credit points for the tallest out of all of the classes.

Materials:

1 piece of white paper, 30 cm of tape Directions:

1. Obtain your materials.

2. Discuss your design with your lab partner.

3. Make a sketch of the initial design.

4. Build the tower you have sketched following the rules. . Once you start

constructing your initial design, you might change it before you complete the build. This is part of the engineering process ( test & rebuild). However, the team must still use the original materials

5. At the end of the competition make a drawing of your final tower and record the height Rules:

1. Given a piece of paper and some tape, the challenge is to work with your partner to construct the tallest free-standing tower possible.

2. No scissors or other devices may be used to construct the tower. Hands only.

3. Your structure cannot be attached to anything other than the floor or table, and it cannot lean against anything.

4. The height of the structure will be measured from the floor/table to the highest point of the structure.

5. The structure must stand on its own long enough to be measured (30 seconds). You cannot hold up or support your structure while it is being measured.

6. The tallest structure will be declared the winner.

7. Towers must be constructed within the 20 minute time limit.

Design:

Initial Tower +2 Final Tower +2

Height:________________cm +1

Questions:

1. My favorite part of the activity was_______________________________________________________

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2. This activity helped me develop my team building and cooperation skills because________________

_________________________________________________________________________________+2 3. I was surprised when__________________________________________________________________

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