Egg Drop- Iteration #1

Total Number of Achievements: 14

Idea Generation Achievements Brainstorming

-Our first sketch was of a cardboard box filled with foam, attached to a plastic bag (parachute)

-Our second sketch was of a tennis ball that we planned on putting the egg inside

-Our third solution was to attach a plastic bag to an easter egg basket filled with foam

- Being engineers, my partner, Christina, and I came to the conclusion that none of these were the right option for us. We very creatively decided to get a plastic bag and simply fill it with a bunch of crumpled paper. We put our egg in the middle and to everyone's surprise (but ours) it survived!

Material Size:

-Our materials fit inside a shoe box

Material Weight:

-Our materials weighed about 118 grams

Drop Accuracy:

-It hit the inside of the third ring

Egg Resilience:

-It didn't break!!!

-If I had to change anything, I might try coming up with a way to aim the bag for the target a little better. When we dropped it, we were more concerned with whether or not the egg would break and we didn't really think about aiming right.

Maybe we could have come up with a system to guide the bad to the center of the target.

-To make our solution lighter, I think replacing the printer paper we used with tissue paper would work. It would probably be just as effective and since tissue paper is lighter, it would still help the egg to survive the fall.

Ted: Ideas Worth Spreading

1) The TED organization is about spreading ideas to get important or simply interesting thoughts across. It's a chance for people to show off what they can do or know and hopefully make an impact on the rest of the world.

2) The purpose of their website is to act as an opener for ideas to start flowing. This is how people get their ideas to be noticed. It's a segue into the media, which is the most important part of making a difference--it's the path leading out to the rest of the world for everyone to see.

3) I think all of the topics listed in the sidebar are equally important to engineering. Engineering is the skillful or artful planning of something. It is typically linked to sciences, but it has so much to do with design that it can really be interpreted in many different ways

-Of the topics listed, I would probably say that Technology and Science are the two most related, followed by Global Issues, then by Design and Entertainment and Business

-Engineering is the fundamental key in life. It is used to come up with new technologies relating to anything, and of course elaborate plans are carried out with global issues that revolve around the mind of an engineer--thinking of every possible outcome of events before coming to a final decision as to what to do

-Engineering revolves around the 12 Principles of Design, allowing the thought process to be overall creative; and business also takes a lot of careful planning and thinking, although most people would overlook the connection to engineering -It's all about creativity, which is why it is linked to everything on this planet; it's like the backbone of society.

4) Three videos that really stood out to me:

-Cynthia Breazeal: The rise of personal robots--this caught my attention because of the simple fact that technology is becoming increasingly more advanced. I'm fascinated by the mechanics of such a topic as robots.

-Moshe Safdie on building uniqueness--I, personally, love architecture and anything realted to seeing new designs inspires me. I enjoy seeing new models and being able to see the major connection between art and engineering.

-Charity Tillemann-Dick: Singing after a double lung transplant--I thought it was amazing that dreams and aspirations were so closely related to the techonolgy used to make a transplant. Engineering became so important in trying to find solutions so that Charity could continue to do what she loves.

5) Rachel Armstrong: Architecture That Repairs Itself?

- Rachel Armstrong says we need to outgrow architecture made of inert materials

- make architecture that grows itself

- proposes a not-quite-alive material that does its own repairs and sequesters carbon

6) To get involvoed in this field (architecture) you would need to:

- go to a four year college and major in architecture or civil/structural engineering

- take design and engineering classes and understand the fundamentals

- apply for internships and work your way up to land a job in architecture

Reverse Engineering: Functional Analysis

1. The primary function of my mechanical object is to cut paper in any shape.

2. Scissors have a mechanical lever to bring the two sharp blades together to slice paper. Its axis of rotation is found right above the plastic handles, giving it a torque force.

3.





4. The mechanical components visible are the handle that creates a lever and the blades that come together in precision.

5. The hidden mechanical components of the object are are torque and the exersion of force from your hand to the object.

Second "Opt In": The Revolution Will Be Televised

Part 1

Q - What technologies facilitated the regime change we witnessed in Egypt today?

-Three are:

1. online media

2. satellite television

3. "check-ins"

-Online media was created as simple communication between people (facebook, twitter, etc.), not really for anything other than letting friends know what's going on with them. It started to be used as a way to spread enthusiasm for the protest and knowledge about what has happened. Ignorance became virtually extinct because of it. There was no more hiding behind it.

-Television did the same in spreading information about the current situation. Human rights started to emerge and this lead to greater passion in protest.

-Lastly, check-ins are used to earn points and communicate with friends through mobile devices. This allows for protestors to coordinate plans and important information about nonviolence.

Part 2

Q - List each of the items displayed in the image. Make your best guess about how they could be repurposed to support peaceful demonstration in the face of an authoritarian regime.

-jacket, gloves, goggles, shoes, spray paint, rose, lid, and scarf.

A jacket would simply be used to keep warm during a peaceful demonstration and the gloves as well.

The shoes would be used to walk long distances if that's what the protestors decide to do.

Spray paint could be used only for picket signs so that the police don't get angry about defacing public and private property, causing violence.

I think the rose could be used just as a symbol of peace.

The scarf would also be used as warmth and the goggles could just protect against wind or something similar, depending on weather.

Reverse Engineering : Mechanical Product- Visual Analysis

Scissors.

Top: Front:

Side:

Visual Analysis:

-The scissors have two blades that are attached to two pieces of plastic at the end, where you put your fingers to hold them. They are smooth in texture, yet sharp. The blades are long and fit together perfectly for nice pieces of cut paper.

Functional Analysis:

-They are useful for people of all ages, excluding infants and small children because they can be dangerous depending on how they are used, although the purpose of them is to cut things like paper.

Sketch:

Graphic Design: What's Going on in This Add?

From The 2007 Green Book
- This is the "ultimate touch-free urinal," created to save water, sewer and maintenance costs. It was designed to provide cleaner restrooms and avoid odor.
-Christina and I noticed that the advirtisement did a great job of showing that the project is better for the environment. It targets all society members and the message is short and to the point. Also, the pictures stand out enough without hindering the overall completeness of the add.

1. Trends are whatever it is that is becomming popular--anything that spreads around, attracting people. It's important to identify them because it's the main way to target certain audiences. It won't sell if it isn't interesting.

2. People always want what is convenient and what is easy to use. They want change all the time with any main objects that they use. It's only natural to want to advance.

3. A potential audience is identified by age, gender, race, anything that distinguishes a certain group of people.

4. You have to know what attracts an audience before creating something. What will scream that it is needed? That's what you have to consider. You just have to make people feel like what they have isn't enough and make them think that they really need what you want to sell. That's why it's important to have a tartget. Find out what they want or need and create something embodying it.

Opt In: Adds

-The cost/benefit decision on hosting adds is to gain money, having commercial companies pay for space on a site. This can potentially repel some viewers of the site.

-The goal of my blog is to show what I know. Hosting adds would not support that goal because I have no intention to make money; I take an interest in engineering because I enjoy it, not because I want to make a profit. Adds would detract from my blog because it would make it look more like a corporate idea than an interesting one about facts.

-A person makes money off of adds on blogs by hosting them. When people click on them, they get more views and that causes commercial companies to pay. I guess the conditions that would support monetizing my blog would be trying to advertise something having to do with engineering and certain ideas I might, in a rare circumstance, come up with.