Research Matters
An engineer wants to design something to help people hear birds on a nature walk. What should the engineer do FIRST?
A. Build the device
B. Learn more about how hearing works
C. Choose the color of the device
D. Test the device
B. Learn more about how hearing works
*Before building, it helps to understand the problem and how hearing works so the design meets people’s needs.
Why would an engineer study an older hearing device?
A. To learn from the earlier design
B. To avoid testing her own design
C. To copy the device exactly
D. To prove the older device was bad
A. To learn from the earlier design
*An engineer studies an older device to learn what worked and what did not before designing a new one.
A group tested four paper airplane designs. Which design flew farthest? (Given: A 18 m, B 24 m, C 21 m, D 16 m) Choose the correct design letter.
B. 24 m
*Design B traveled 24 m, which is the farthest of the four listed averages.
A class has identified the problem of carrying books and discussed ideas. What should they do next?
A. Choose materials and begin building without a plan
B. Learn more about the problem and possible solutions
C. Stop working on the problem
D. Test a design they haven't built
B. Learn more about the problem and possible solutions
*After identifying the problem and discussing ideas, the class should learn more about the problem and possible solutions so they can choose a well-informed plan before building.
Why should engineers keep careful notes while testing a design?
A. So they can repeat the test and remember what happened
B. So nobody can copy their design
C. So they don't have to test the design again
D. So they can make the design look better
A. So they can repeat the test and remember what happened.
*Engineers should keep careful notes so they can repeat the test, remember what happened, and explain results to others.
Why might an engineer study animals when designing a device that helps people hear?
Possible Response: An engineer might study animals because animals can give ideas about solving problems. For example, birds or other animals may have ear shapes or behaviors that inspire ways to collect or focus sound.
When studying a past device, what should engineers look for? Select all that apply.
A. What worked well
B. What did not work well
C. What could be improved
D. What the device looked like only
E. How the device solved a problem
A, B, C, E.
*Engineers should look for what worked well, what didn’t, what could be improved, and how the device solved the problem. Looking only at appearance (D) is not enough.
How do you know which paper airplane design is best from the distances listed? (Explain using the numbers.)
Possible Response: I know Design B is best because its average distance (24 m) is larger than A (18 m), C (21 m), and D (16 m). The best design is the one with the largest measured distance.
Put these steps in the correct order (write the correct sequence): Design a solution; Learn more about the problem; Test the solution; Identify the problem.
1) Identify the problem; 2) Learn more about the problem; 3) Design a solution; 4) Test the solution. Explanation: Engineers first define the problem, research, design, then build and test.
Four students tested speaker designs with distances 4 m, 7 m, 5 m, 9 m. Which one performed best? State the design number and the distance.
Possible Response: Design 4 performed best with a distance of 9 m. (Design numbers correspond to the table where design 4 = 9 m.)
Choose three things from this list that an engineer should learn BEFORE designing a hearing device: Where birds make sounds; How birds use their hearing; What makes sounds easier or harder to hear; What color the device should be; How sounds travel; How much the device weighs. (Student: pick three and explain one choice.)
Possible Response: How birds use their hearing; What makes sounds easier or harder to hear; How sounds travel. Explanation: Knowing how birds use hearing helps decide which sounds matter. Knowing what makes sounds easier or harder to hear (like background noise) helps choose sensitivity and filters. Knowing how sounds travel helps decide microphone placement or shape.
An old hearing device made sounds louder but was large and hard to carry. What could an engineer do with this information? (Choose and justify one improvement idea.)
Possible Response: The engineer could try to make a smaller, easier-to-carry design that still makes sounds louder. For example, keep the amplification mechanism but use lighter materials or foldable parts to reduce size and weight.
Two students test cups to see which holds the most water but use different cup sizes, different water amounts, and only one trial each. Is this a fair test? Explain why or why not.
No.
*This is not a fair test because the students used different cup sizes, different amounts of water, and only one trial each. For a fair test, the students should keep everything the same except the one thing they are testing (the cup).
A student built a bird feeder without researching or planning; no birds used it. Identify TWO steps she should have taken before building.
Possible Response: Two steps she should have taken before building:
What is one clear way to show test results so people can compare designs? Give one advantage of that method.
Possible Response: A clear way is to use a bar graph. Advantage: It visually compares numbers so people can see which designs performed better at a glance.
You are trying to hear a quiet bird in the woods. Name one thing that could make this problem difficult and one thing you would want to learn before designing a solution.
Possible Response:
Mia studied three older devices — one easy to carry, one made sounds louder, one uncomfortable to wear. Which information would be MOST useful when designing a new solution and why?
Possible Response: The most useful information is which parts of each device worked well and which could be improved (B). Explanation: Knowing functional strengths and weaknesses lets you combine good features (easy to carry) with strong features (makes sounds louder) and fix problems (uncomfortable parts).
What could the students change to make the cup test more fair? Give two specific fixes.
Possible Response: Two fixes to make the test fair:
An engineer studies older umbrellas and notices some broke in strong winds. How could this information help her design a better umbrella? Give two specific design changes to try.
Possible Response: Knowing umbrellas broke in strong winds tells the engineer to strengthen the frame and choose flexible but strong ribs (metal or reinforced fiberglass), and/or design vents to let wind pass through. Explanation: Stronger frame prevents breakage; vents reduce wind forces.
You have numeric test results for four designs. Describe a simple plan to turn those numbers into a bar graph (what to put on x-axis, y-axis, and bars).
Possible Response:
Explain how learning that different birds make different sounds could help an engineer design a device to find or identify birds. Give two specific ways this info might guide the design.
Possible Response: If engineers learn different birds make different sounds, they can (1) design filters or settings to pick out specific frequency ranges for certain birds (so the device highlights the bird’s call), and (2) include directional microphones or algorithms that help locate a bird by recognizing unique sound patterns. This helps with both identifying and locating birds.
Design idea: A student’s “sound-catching” headphones were uncomfortable when wearing a long time. Describe two specific design changes you would try to make them more comfortable and explain why each would help.
Possible Response: Two changes to make headphones more comfortable:
Four speaker designs recorded sound distances of 4 m, 7 m, 5 m, 9 m. What is the BEST way to communicate these results so others can easily compare the designs? Explain why that choice helps.
Possible Response: The best way is a bar graph. A bar graph shows each speaker design on the horizontal axis and the sound distance on the vertical axis, making it easy to compare bar heights and see which design gives the longest distance.
Explain why engineers test each bridge design multiple times when measuring how much weight it holds. Give two reasons and relate them to making a fair test.
Possible Response: Reasons to test multiple times:
After testing, an engineer finds one part of a design does not work well. What should the engineer do next? Outline three steps the engineer should take to improve the design and explain why each step matters.
Possible Response: Three steps after finding a part does not work well: