Class Summary

This was by far my favorite class this trimester. It was very hands on and at the same time I was able to learn a lot. My biggest complaint would be all of the paperwork. I spent as much time working on unnecessary paperwork that I felt did little to enhance my learning experience. Other than that the class was structure great, with a good progression of projects.
Of the 3 main projects that we did, my favorite was definitely the mouse-trap powered vehicle. The design process was open ended with a simple goal, and there was plenty of time to fine tune our vehicle. But I feel as if the MPV project could be improved in the future by giving the students better mousetraps, the mousetrap the me and Michael Chen were given was not nearly powerful enough for our origonal design, and so we had to scrap it and start again.

This class has taught me much about technology and building. I learned much about the design process, trial and error, and testing. I also learned about the various tools and machines we used, like the chop saw and belt sander. In the future I can use these skills as a possible career, or even if I need to make something at home. I am glad that I took this class and look forward to taking other classes in this series in the future.

Seismograph

Intro to Project
The purpose of the project was to make a seismograph capable of detecting small and large tremors made by shaking a table. There were no size or material restraints.

Tech Concepts
For this project we used tech concepts like inertia for the measuring of movements. 

Learning goals
The learning goal of this project was how best to make something with no requirements, only an end goal.

The Seismograph
For our seismograph, we decided to make the arm long so it would be able to make small detections. We therefore made the whole project long and heavy so only our extended arm would move in relation to the table. It worked decently, but because there was roughly equal weight on the front and back of the arm, it didn't move as much as we'd wanted it to.

+ Feedback
This was a good project to do, although not as good as the others. As the trimester has gone on they have become more and more open ended, and this is by far the most open. However, there wasn't much creativity involved in designing and it was relatively easy to build.

Redesign
If we were to do the project over we would make the arm shorter and more sensitive by putting the weight mostly in the front of the arm.

Tech resources
In this project we used technological resources such as

Tools

Machines

People

Energy

Time Information

Biggest Challenge

Our biggest challenge was balancing the weight so the arm moves smoothly. We solved this by adding large binder clips to the back end of the arm, evening out the weight

What Was Learned

We learned about the Richter Scale, how seismographs work, and how inertia affects seismographs.

Popsicle Stick Bridge

Intro to Project
The purpose of this project was to build a trussed bridge out of 120 Popsicle stick that could hold as much weight as possible. It also had to be between 16-20 inches long and the sides had to each be at least 4 inches long.

Tech Concepts
For this 3rd project, we delved deeper into forces (compression, tension, torsion, and shear). Also we looked at the different types of bridges and the pros/cons for each of them. In the end we used a trussed bridge because it was the easiest to make and the easiest to build.

Learning Goals
The central learning goal in this project was that sometimes multiple tests aren't possible, so you have to think it thorough and do good on the first.

The Bridge
For our bridge, we decided to make our bridge as small as possible, so the sticks could be used for strength instead of for unnecessary length. We also decided upon focusing on making the sides as strong as possible, then making a strong bottom, then a decent top to hold it together. To make it we  first made the sides, then connected with the top then put sticks across the bottom. It worked very well, and held 165 lbs.

+ Feedback
I liked this project a lot, although not quite as much as the MPV. Putting together the bridge proved a difficult challenge, but once we got it, it was very rewarding. It was highly important to build it exact, everything needed to line up. IT was tons of fun, and the best part was testing it with the weights instead of the bridge tester.

Redesign
If we had to do the project over again, there is absolutely nothing that I would change. Our bridge worked very well and held the most weight in the class.

Tech resources
In this project we used technological resources such as

Tools

Machines

People

Energy

Time Information

Biggest Challenge

Our biggest challenge was figuring how to best put together the bridge, we knew that if it was poorly constructed then no matter how good our design was then it would perform poorly.

What Was Learned

In this project we learned about the different types of bridges, their pros and cons, and when each of them would be used.