Designing episode content for Design Squad, a new educational engineering children's television program : the human powered water pump as a design challenge
Name
77550221-MIT.pdf
Description
Full printable version
Size
3.99 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
b0972fb08fceebb87d0941d1d7ef3dba
Author(s)
Sadler, Joel A
Tomczak, Mika A
Advisor(s)
Daniel D. Frey.
Date Issued
2006
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
In recent years, problems have emerged in the realm of engineering and engineering education in the United States. Technology literacy is low, there are insufficient numbers of engineering students, and there are misconceptions surrounding the engineering profession. To remedy these problems, WGBH Boston and MIT have created a reality-style engineering-based television program for 9- to 13-year-old children, entitled Design Squad. One episode of the show will challenge the 8 child contestants to build a human-powered waterslide pump, to be used at a community swimming pool. 'Two potential design solutions are proposed for the design challenge: a ball-and-chain pump and a positive-displacement plunger pump. The design process of each solution and an evaluation of each solution's feasibility are presented. Criteria for a successful episode of the show are discussed in relation to the challenge. Prototype experimentation and analysis suggest that the human-powered waterslide challenge will invoke an engaging episode of Design Squad.
Description
Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2006.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 53).
Subjects
Mechanical Engineering.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering
Terms of Use
M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.
Persistent DSpace Link
