Unit Overview/Summary: Summary The unit organizes performance expectations with a focus on helping students …
Unit Overview/Summary: Summary The unit organizes performance expectations with a focus on helping students build understanding of traits of organisms. Instruction developed from this unit should always maintain the three-dimensional nature of the standards and recognize that instruction is not limited to the practices and concepts directly linked with any of the unit performance expectations. Connections between unit Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCIs) The idea that the sun is a star that appears larger and brighter than other stars because it is closer (ESS1.A as in 5-ESS1-1) connects to the idea that there are observable patterns – such as different positions of the sun at different times of the day, month, and year – caused by the orbits of Earth around the sun and of the moon around Earth, together with the rotation of Earth about an axis (ESS1.B as in 5-ESS1-2), as both address the appearance of objects in the sky based on our position relative to other objects in the solar system and universe. Unit Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs)Instruction leading to this unit of PEs will help students build toward proficiency in elements of the practices of analyzing and interpreting data (5-ESS1-2) and engaging in argument from evidence (5-ESS1-1). Many other practice elements can be used in instruction. Unit Crosscutting Concepts (CCCs)Crosscutting concepts have value because they provide students with connections and intellectual tools that are related across the differing areas of disciplinary content and can enrich their application of practices and their understanding of core ideas. As such, they are a way of linking the different domains of science.Instruction leading to this unit of PEs will help students build toward proficiency in elements of the crosscutting concepts of Patterns (5-ESS1-2) and Scale, Proportion, and Quantity (5-ESS1-1). Many other crosscutting concepts elements can be used in instruction. All instruction should be three-dimensional.
Students are introduced to the idea of improving efficiency by examining a …
Students are introduced to the idea of improving efficiency by examining a setting that is familiar to many teenagers fast food restaurants. More specifically, they learn about the concepts of trade-offs, constraints, increasing efficiency and systems thinking. They consider how to improve efficiency in a struggling restaurant through delegating tasks, restructuring employee responsibilities and revising a floor plan, all while working within limitations and requirements. Finally, students summarize and defend their suggested changes in argumentative essays.
Students use simple household materials, such as PVC piping and compact mirrors, …
Students use simple household materials, such as PVC piping and compact mirrors, to construct models of laser-based security systems. The protected object (a "mummified troll" or another treasure of your choosing) is placed "on display" in the center of the modeled room and protected by a laser system that utilizes a laser beam reflected off mirrors to trigger a light trip sensor with alarm.
We design and create objects to make our lives easier and more …
We design and create objects to make our lives easier and more comfortable. The houses in which we live are excellent examples of this. Depending on your local climate, the features of your house have been designed to satisfy your particular environmental needs: protection from hot, cold, windy and/or rainy weather. In this activity, students design and build model houses, then test them against various climate elements, and then re-design and improve them. Using books, websites and photos, students learn about the different types of roofs found on various houses in different environments throughout the world.
Is the food chain shown above accurate? Does the first link depict …
Is the food chain shown above accurate? Does the first link depict a producer, the second link a herbivore, and the third link an omnivore / carnivore? Students must correctly determine whether a species is a producer or consumer, and what type of consumer; herbivore, omnivore, or carnivore. Students are provided with a list of Sonoran Desert species and asked to construct, within their groups, several food chains. These food chains are then be used to construct a food web. In order to complete this activity, students must first research the individual species to understand their feeding habits.
Students work in pairs to create three simple types of model bridges …
Students work in pairs to create three simple types of model bridges (beam, arch, suspension). They observe quantitatively how the bridges work under load and why engineers use different types of bridges for different places. They also get an idea of the parts needed to build bridges, and their functions. The strength of model bridges is mainly a factor of the quality of materials used, and therefore they do not provide a clear visual representation of tension and compression forces involved. Yet, students are able to see these forces at work in three prototype designs and draw conclusions about their dependence on span, width and supporting structures of the bridge designs.
Critical review of works, theories, and polemics in architecture in the aftermath …
Critical review of works, theories, and polemics in architecture in the aftermath of WWII. Aim is a historical understanding of the period and the development of a meaningful framework to assess contemporary issues in architecture. Special attention paid to historiographic questions of how architects construe the terms of their "present." Required of M.Arch. students.
First published in 1981 by MIT Press, Continuum Electromechanics, courtesy of MIT …
First published in 1981 by MIT Press, Continuum Electromechanics, courtesy of MIT Press and used with permission, provides a solid foundation in electromagnetics, particularly conversion of energy between electrical and mechanical forms. Topics include: electrodynamic laws, electromagnetic forces, electromechanical kinematics, charge migration, convection, relaxation, magnetic diffusion and induction interactions, laws and approximations of fluid mechanics, static equilibrium, electromechanical flows, thermal and molecular diffusion, and streaming interactions. The applications covered include transducers, rotating machines, Van de Graaff machines, image processing, induction machines, levitation of liquid metals, shaping of interfaces in plastics and glass processing, orientation of ferrofluid seals, cryogenic fluids, liquid crystal displays, thunderstorm electrification, fusion machines, magnetic pumping of liquid metals, magnetohydrodynamic power generation, inductive and dielectric heating, electrophoretic particle motion, electrokinetic and electrocapillary interactions in biological systems, and electron beams. "
Students gain a deeper understanding of how sound sensors work through a …
Students gain a deeper understanding of how sound sensors work through a hands-on design challenge involving LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT taskbots and sound sensors. Student groups each program a robot computer to use to the sound of hand claps to control the robot's movement. They learn programming skills and logic design in parallel. They experience how robots can take sensor input and use it to make decisions to move and turn, similar to the human sense of hearing. A PowerPoint® presentation and pre/post quizzes are provided.
Bluetooth is everywhere—from smartphones to computers to cars. Even though students are …
Bluetooth is everywhere—from smartphones to computers to cars. Even though students are exposed to this technology, many are not aware of how they can use it themselves to wirelessly control their own creative projects! For this challenge, students build on what they learned during a previous Arduino maker challenge, Make and Control a Servo Arm with Your Computer, and learn how to control a servo with an Android phone (iPhones do not work with the components used in this challenge). By the end of the exercise, expect students to be wirelessly controlling a servo with a simple phone application!
The objective of this subject is to understand the nature of manufacturing …
The objective of this subject is to understand the nature of manufacturing process variation and the methods for its control. First, a general process model for control is developed to understand the limitations a specific process places on the type of control used. A general model for process variation is presented and three methods are developed to minimize variations: Statistical Process Control, Process Optimization and in-process Feedback Control. These are considered in a hierarchy of cost-performance tradeoffs, where performance is based on changes in process capability.
This class explores interaction with mobile computing systems and telephones by voice, …
This class explores interaction with mobile computing systems and telephones by voice, including speech synthesis, recognition, digital recording, and browsing recorded speech. Emphasis on human interface design issues and interaction techniques appropriate for cognitive requirements of speech. Topics include human speech production and perception, speech recognition and text-to-speech algorithms, telephone networks, and spatial and time-compressed listening. Extensive reading from current research literature.
This course will focus on fundamental subjects in convexity, duality, and convex …
This course will focus on fundamental subjects in convexity, duality, and convex optimization algorithms. The aim is to develop the core analytical and algorithmic issues of continuous optimization, duality, and saddle point theory using a handful of unifying principles that can be easily visualized and readily understood.
Students learn about using renewable energy from the Sun for heating and …
Students learn about using renewable energy from the Sun for heating and cooking as they build and compare the performance of four solar cooker designs. They explore the concepts of insulation, reflection, absorption, conduction and convection.
Student groups are given a set of materials: cardboard, insulating materials, aluminum …
Student groups are given a set of materials: cardboard, insulating materials, aluminum foil and Plexiglas, and challenged to build solar ovens. The ovens must collect and store as much of the sun's energy as possible. Students experiment with heat transfer through conduction by how well the oven is insulated and radiation by how well it absorbs solar radiation. They test the effectiveness of their designs qualitatively by baking something and quantitatively by taking periodic temperature measurements and plotting temperature vs. time graphs. To conclude, students think like engineers and analyze the solar oven's strengths and weaknesses compared to conventional ovens.
Students are given the engineering challenge to design and build doghouses that …
Students are given the engineering challenge to design and build doghouses that shelter a (toy) puppy from the heat—and to create them within material, size and cost constraints. This requires them to apply what they know (or research) about light energy and how it does (or does not) travel through various materials, as well as how a material’s color affects its light absorption and reflection properties. They build their doghouse designs and test them by taking thermometer readings under hot lamps, and then think of ways to improve their designs. This is a great project for learning about light and heat: energy transfer, absorption, insulation and material properties, and easily scales up/down for size and materials.
Students learn the meaning of preservation and conservation and identify themselves and …
Students learn the meaning of preservation and conservation and identify themselves and others as preservationists or conservationists in relation to specific environmental issues. They use Venn diagrams to clarify the similarities and differences in viewpoints. They see how an environmental point-of-view affects the approach to an engineering problem.
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