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Page no. AC Supply ......................................................................... 44 All Electronics .......................................................... 16, 44 AXYZ Automation ...................................................... 9, 23 Badger Graphic Supply ........................................ 16, 44 CrossTec ............................................................................ 44 80/20 Inc. .......................................................................... 44 Energy Concepts, Inc. .................................................. 22 ETCAI .................................................................................. 44 Gibson Tech Ed .............................................................. 44 Graymark International ................................................. 26 Hobart Institute of Welding Technology .................................................................. 44 John Deere ......................................................................... 4 Kelvin .................................................................................. 44 MicroKinetics ................................................................... 44 Satco ................................................................................... 44 Seven Corners Hardware ............................................... 7 Sun Equipment Corp. ........................................... 20, 40 Tech Directions Books & Media ............................... 8, 10, 12, 13, 39, 43, 50 Test Equipment Depot .................................................... 6
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contents
December 2006 Vol. 66, No. 5
ROBOTICS Sci-Fi to Reality—Mobile Robots Get 17 From the Job Done By Harry T. Roman Mobile robots are often designed for hazardousduty operations or broad-area inspection or surveillance. Here’s background on this cuttingedge technology, plus ideas for helping students explore robotics field.
PRE-ENGINEERING Team Approach Simulates 21 Design Real-World Engineering By Stephen Portz An activity that realistically models industrial engineering design provides excellent experience for technology students.
COMMUNICATION Teachers and Parents 24 Connecting Through the Internet By Darby Tobolka A user-friendly web site and system for regular e-mailing gets parents involved—and improves student performance.
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DRAFTING/DESIGN/CAD Architects Draft Their Future 27 Aspiring By Kelly Leffler Drafting students at Tri-County Career Center in Nelsonville, OH, gain real-world experience through collaboration on house-building and renovation projects.
CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION + 1 = 3—Cross-Discipline Collaboration Really 29 1Adds Up! By Mindy Breen A department of engineering and design revises its capstone course to enable several disciplines to effectively collaborate on a converged learning activity.
CAREER DIRECTIONS Security Specialist By Pam Moore 32 Information Everything you need to know about careers for page 27
CONTENTS
information security specialists—wages, responsibilities, necessary skills, career advancement and more.
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SPECIAL FEATURE 34 e-gallery Make classroom and lab purchases easier by referring to our gallery of leading companies available on the Web.
COLUMNS 5 Technically Speaking Susanne Peckham
6 Direct from Washington Anne C. Lewis
ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECTS 50 Introduction Rocket—A Dynamic Instructional Tool 51 Combustion By Lance Brand and Mike Fitzgerald This dramatic teacher-built and -demonstrated project introduces the process of combustion, along with Newton’s laws of motion. Vocabulary development and extension activities included.
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production By Larry Roberts The mass-production system allows industry to produce many products at the lowest possible price. This unit gives educators two massproduction activities, plus related math exercises and study questions.
CONTENTS
9 The News Report Pam Moore
11 Technology’s Past Dennis Karwatka
14 Technology Today Alan Pierce
15 Mastering Computers Reid Goldsborough
16 Mastering Computers 2 Reid Goldsborough
38 Product Central 42 Free for the Asking 45 More than Fun About the cover: Prototype for a robotic hand, which might be able to duplicate about 64 percent of the dexterity of the human hand. (See page 17.) Photo courtesy of Harry T. Roman. Cover design by Sharon K. Miller.
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technically speaking Susanne Peckham
[email protected] I recently read an interesting article about the “rebirth” of America’s first career-tech institution, the Worcester (MA) Technical High School. Its story gives an indication of the positive evolution of the CTE field. Opened in 1908 as the Worcester Trade School, the school got its start in a single building with 50 students. Founded by the man known as the “father of the modern trade school movement,” Milton Higgins, it aimed to address growing need for skilled workers in the local manufacturing, textile and abrasives industries. Now, jump forward almost a century to last August, when Worcester Technical High School opened a new, state-of-the-art 400,000-square-foot complex that provides first-rate education to 1,600 day students and an additional 3,000 during after-school hours. The facility features 100 classrooms, 25 learning centers, meeting rooms, many shops, support areas, retail stores, a restaurant, a bank, automotive repair and a health clinic. Construction of the new facility cost around $60 million, with an additional $30 million for equipment. The school has had strong support from the community, with more than $4 million in private donations coming from individuals, foundations and local businesses. The balance was covered by the city of Worcester, state and federal assistance and business partners, including Cisco Systems, Toyota, Dell and Lincoln Electric. Worcester Technical High School uses the small-learning-community model, organizing instruction around four career academies: Design and Engineering; Information Technology and Business Management Services; Construction Technology; and Health and Human Services. Admin-
A Prakken Publications Magazine Tech Directions (ISSN 1062-9351) is published monthly, except June, July and December, by Prakken Publications, Inc., 832 Phoenix Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48108. Executive, editorial, and advertising offices are at PO Box 8623, Ann Arbor, MI 48107-8623, telephone 734-975-2800; fax 734-975-2787. Vol. 66, No. 5. Customers will also receive one electronic issue in December. Turalee A. Barlow Alice Fecho
Board of Directors George F. Kennedy Susanne Peckham
Janice E. Knope
Publisher George F. Kennedy Assistant Publisher & Business Mgr. Turalee A. Barlow,
[email protected] Managing Editor Susanne Peckham,
[email protected] Assistant Editor Pam Moore,
[email protected] Art, Design, and Production Mgr. Sharon K. Miller Advertising Sales and Marketing Mgr. Alice Fecho, 800-5309673 x208,
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TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
istrators have strengthened academic content by aligning the curriculum with the Massachusetts Common Core of Learning and Curriculum Framework and aligning technical programs with state and federal career-tech requirements. Improvements to curricula and facilities are paying off in impressive student outcomes: Over 96 percent of students are employed upon graduation, over 73 percent go on to college and 97 percent of seniors pass the competitive state graduation exam. Worcester Technical High School’s story demonstrates the potential of up-to-date, academically rigorous, adequately funded CTE. And thinking of other up-to-date, state-of-the-art matters, welcome to the first online issue of Tech Directions! We hope you’ll like the additional features and content that electronic publishing lets us offer. You’ll find live links in all ads and articles, longer versions of your favorite columns and more feature articles than usual, plus two fully formatted hands-on projects, ready for you to copy and use. And, oh yes, see page 45 for details on the rewards involved in the hunt for that wily Dingbat. . . . We’re excited about our first venture into the world of online publishing and hope you’ll like the results! Please let us know what you think of it by responding to our survey at www.techdirections.com/decsurvey.html
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Michael Fitzgerald, Technology Education Specialist, Office of Career and Technical Education, Indiana Dept. of Education, Indianapolis, IN Tom Frawley, Technology Education, G. Ray Bodley High School, Fulton, NY, and journal editor, New York State Technology Teacher Paul Koontz, President, Denford Inc., Medina, OH Ed Prevatt, School Specialist, National Center for Construction Education and Research, Gainesville, FL John Roccanova, Technology Education, Webutuck Central School, Amenia, NY Larry Roberts, Technology Education, Highlands Middle School, Kennewick, WA Mark Schwendau, Technology Instructor, Kishwaukee College, Malta, IL PEER REVIEW BOARD Gregory G. Belcher, Ph.D., Asst. Professor, Technical Teacher Education, Pittsburg State University, KS Daniel M. Claiborne, Ph.D., Chair, Department of Industrial and Engineering Technology, Murray State University, KY Sam Cotton, Ph.D., Asst. Professor, Ball State University, Muncie, IN Ronald F. Gonzales, Ph.D., ASE, Program Chair, Technology Teacher Education Professor, Brigham Young University, UT Robert T. Howell, Ph.D., Asst. Professor, Technology Studies, Fort Hays State University, KS Robert D. Mordini, Ed.D., Asst. Professor, Technology Studies, Fort Hays State University, KS Richard Phillips, Ed.D., Division Chair, Technologies Division, Mountain Empire Community College, VA Joseph Scarcella, Ph.D., Professor of Education, California State
University, San Bernadino Mark S. Schwendau, M.S.,Technology Instructor, Kishwaukee College, Malta, IL Bert Siebold, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Industrial & Engineering Technology, Murray State University, KY Chris Zirkle, Ph.D., Asst. Professor, College of Education, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH Subscriptions: individuals: $30 per year; $55 two years; Canadian and foreign: add $10 per year. Canadian GST #R126213487. Single copies $5. Group rate for students in teacher-training institutions available upon request. Periodicals postage paid at Ann Arbor, MI, and additional mailing offices. Printed in U.S.A. POSTMASTER: Please send change of address information to Tech Directions, PO Box 8623, Ann Arbor, MI 48107-8623. Manuscripts should be addressed to: Editor, Tech Directions, PO Box 8623, Ann Arbor, MI 48107-8623. Manuscripts become property of Tech Directions upon letter of acceptance to author and signed copyright release form. Payment made on publication. Articles indexed in Education Index. Microfilm copies of back issues available from ProQuest Information and Learning, www.il. proquest.com. ©2006 by Prakken Publications, Inc.
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direct from washington Anne C. Lewis
[email protected]
Necessary Skills The workplace skills that ACT and Achieve, Inc., deem necessary for high school graduates seem rational, especially if young people are to have options after graduation. Still, they overlook a fundamental reality. They are not necessary skills for most young, new hires. This is such an important issue that I separated it from Paul Barton’s policy paper for the Educational Testing Service, reported on in my column in the November issue, to give it more emphasis. Studies that began in the 1970s revealed that most young people going directly into the labor force, either as graduates or dropouts, hold down “youth jobs” that do not necessarily lead to careers. Some current evidence indicates that the hiring for
WASHINGTON
“adult jobs” now takes place at even later ages, well into the 20s. (Economists in other reports have described this as “churning around” in lowerlevel jobs until workers have learned to survive in the work environment.) Barton cites one U.S. Department of Labor study that found a higher rate of hiring of under-20 workers in office jobs, probably because high schools offer classes in typing and office assistance work. This is one clue for schools trying to respond to labor market skills for their students. “Where students have been prepared in high school with a specific skill that is in demand,” Barton says, “employers may hire them, since employers prefer workers who are already trained.” Another clue for high school officials is the author’s point that the
years immediately after high school could be used to prepare young people for “adult jobs.” The time could be spent, Barton says, “strengthening skills or extending time in school and potentially, as a result, in school-employer programs that strengthen employment skills through actual experience.” Such programs would allow employers to identify academic weaknesses for schools and build better connections for school-to-work transitions. Turning to more recent longitudinal studies, Barton found that grades in high school initially did not significantly impact either young people’s chances of being hired or of earning more money. However, differences do appear over time. At about age 22, the pay rates start to separate a bit, and those with higher scores on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery start to have higher earnings. Anne Lewis, one of the country’s most respected writers on education policy, works in the Washington, DC, area.
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There are several explanations for this: Higher scorers may have taken initial jobs that offered greater training opportunities, or students with good grades may have characteristics that allow them to rise faster in a workplace. Also, as they mature, higher scorers likely migrate from youth jobs to more adult employment. Barton chides the American Diploma Project’s declaration that large percentages of employers found young new hires unprepared. The same report, he notes, also indicates that employers do not rely very much on new high school graduates. It is hard to understand, he says, “how a high proportion of employers could respond in polls about the qualifications of those high school graduates for entry-level jobs or for advancement in their companies.” The fact that few employers request high school transcripts is proof enough. An attempt in the late 1990s to encourage employers to ask for high school transcripts resulted in only about 5,000 agreements by businesses, and the national campaign fizzled several years ago. So, how should schools change to serve graduates who do not go on to college immediately? Barton points out that, for a great many teenagers, “the age of perceived economic adulthood is well beyond the age for which the public provides free academic preparation.” On the other hand, what youth are really capable of is a different story. He concludes his discussion of this issue by noting that the military takes recent high school graduates, trains them for jobs that need to be filled and often puts them in very responsible positions. (“High School Reform and Work: Facing Labor Market Realities,” Educational Testing Service Policy Center)
more than 1,800 students, Eduventures issued a report comparing “certificate consumers” with others enrolled in continuing and professional education programs. According to the data, certificate students are 36 percent more likely to be career changers, 13 percent less likely to be primarily motivated by improving job performance and 31 percent less likely to be primarily motivated by personal enrichment. Those enrolling in certificate programs also are less likely to work full time and are slightly younger and
more transient than those in continuing education programs. They also are more likely to be female, single and without dependent children. Entertainment, business management and international finance are the three most popular certificates reported in the study. A “strong majority” in the survey indicated they would like to have their certificate count towards a future degree. University officials were not surprised by the survey results. Career changers want a quick turn around, commented David Overbye, dean of
“Career Changers” and Certification Certificate programs are growing in higher education, and the biggest demand for them is coming from career changers, most often females with no dependents. After surveying
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curriculum at DeVry University, which offers a number of graduate certificates and enrolls a high percentage of students not long out of college. “They are typically in their mid- to late 20s, with a sense of urgency,” according to a quote in Inside Higher Ed. “Give me the essential elements of the field as quickly as possible to get my foot in the door, and once I get a job with better pay and a tuition refund, I can go back and get a full degree on the company nickel.” Dave Szatmary, vice provost for educational outreach at the University of Washington Extension, said that the field of study is not as important in helping students decide on what pathway to choose as are the circumstances. A degree can be taken to another institution or part of the country, he said, “while a certificate usually has its greatest credibility in the community where you studied.”
Addressing the Dropout Rate As new methods of calculating the public school dropout rate reveal how extensive and stubborn the actual figures are, policymakers are proposing all kinds of solutions, from extending No Child Left Behind into the high school grades to relying more on alternative and/or small schools. It is significant that the 3.2 millionmember National Education Association has put its backing behind a 12-point plan to reduce school dropouts that recognizes the value of career-related programs. The 12 steps—chosen because “they are the most promising based on a wide range of experience and data”—include: ● Mandate high school graduation or its equivalent for all those under age 21. ● Expand students’ graduation options through creative partnerships with community colleges in career and technical fields and with alternative schools, to give students another way to earn a high school diploma. ● Increase career education and workforce readiness programs in schools so that students see the
WASHINGTON
connection between their school coursework and careers after graduation. To ensure that students have the skills they need for those careers, integrate 21st century skills into the curriculum and provide all students with access to 21st-century technology. ● Involve the entire community in dropout prevention through familyfriendly policies that provide release time for employees to attend parentteacher conferences; work schedules for high school students that enable them to attend classes on time and be ready to learn; “adopt a school” programs that encourage volunteerism and community-led projects in school; and community-based, real-world learning experiences for students. The full plan is available at www. nea.org.
Support for CTE As if to underscore what policymakers in Congress and many states are saying, statistics and experts quoted in a recent Christian Science
Monitor article confirm that a trend is underway to help young people gain entrance to careers other than through college degrees. Much of the pressure for a “rebirth” of tech-ed, according to the article, is coming from companies that are desperate for employees with specific skills. Typically, these are applied skills that a four-year college degree does not assure. The article says that instead of the old wood and metal shop training, today’s fields of study are more likely to be crime forensics, composite-plastic fuselage design, robotics, nanotechnology, radiological diagnostics, 3-D animation and industrial maintenance technology (or keeping high-tech systems in modern buildings running). Leaders in the renaissance of career education, according to the article, are North Carolina and California, both of which depend on their community college systems for re-tooling of occupational skills training.
Looking for a unique holiday gift? We’ve got you covered! A planer so huge that 18 men can stand on it with room to spare! A turbine so massive that it dwarfs a mechanic! These posters picturing awesome machines are fascinating! Choose from 8 striking vintage images of machine tools used during the booming industrial period of the early twentieth century.
Only $12.95 for each 18" × 24" poster. Better yet, buy the complete set for only $79.95 (a savings of $23.65!) and keep some for yourself! Visit www.techdirections.com/ postersmactrade.html to view and order all posters or call 800-530-9673 x200.
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the news report Pam Moore
[email protected]
Toyota TAPESTRY Grants Do you have a great idea for a science project but lack the funds to implement it? Here’s some grant information that just may solve your dilemma. Toyota and the National Science Teachers Association are awarding grants to K-12 science teachers for innovative projects that enhance science education in the school and/
or school district. Toyota TAPESTRY awards 50 large grants of up to $10,000 and at least 20 mini-grants of up to $2,500. Grants will be awarded in three categories, including environmental science education, physical science applications and literacy and science education. To apply, teachers must write a proposal and fill out an online application. Visit www.nsta.org/programs/ tapestry for complete details. Deadline for proposals is January 18, 2007.
Pitsco Aces New Learning Center On the golf course, Tiger Woods strives for the lowest scores, but when it comes to education, he empowers students to achieve the highest scores possible. So it’s only natural that the new Tiger Woods Learning Center (TWLC) is geared toward one outcome—student success. When it was time to choose a curriculum, TWLC administrators wanted one that was hands-on, career-based, engaging and inspiring. The perfect fit turned out to be Syner-
THE NEWS REPORT
gistic Learning Systems and LEGO Education, both members of the Pitsco family of companies. “Pitsco always looks to align itself with educational groups that have the students’ best interests in mind,” said Pitsco’s Director of Education Matt Frankenberry.
Free Drill Sharpener Professional Tool Manufacturing, LLC, designer and manufacturer of the Drill Doctor brand of high-quality drill bit sharpeners, is serious about educating students about the tools necessary for a solid workshop as well as teaching manufacturing skills. So serious that the company is donating a free Drill Doctor drill bit sharpener to technology and industrial arts teachers nationwide. All Drill Doctor machines sharpen 3/32" to 1/2" twist bits, including high-speed steel, carbide, tin-coated and masonry bits. For more information, visit www. drilldoctor.com.
Test Prep Help The Number2.com web site offers students access to free online test preparation courses for the SAT, ACT and GRE. By creating an account, students can access a customized course that includes tutorials, practice sessions that adapt to each their ability level, vocabulary quizzes and more. Check it out!
Free CAD Resources Autodesk, Inc. has launched a new web site that provides access to free software, resources and a network for students and teachers in architecture, design and civil and mechanical engineering programs. Along with free downloads of Pam Moore is assistant editor of Tech Directions.
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Autodesk software (subject to terms and conditions), visitors can also get advice from Autodesk staff, have access to software tutorials and share information and brainstorm ideas with their peers. A free design library with plug-ins lets users modify and customize their Autodesk software. Sound too good to be true? It’s not! All you need to join is a schoolissued e-mail address from a college or university. Visit http://students5. autodesk.com/?lbon=1 today and sign up.
ExploraVision Competition Want a unique way to spark your students’ creative thinking and hone their problem-solving skills while incorporating the National Science
Education Standards into your curriculum? Enter them in the ExploraVision competition! Designed for K-12 students, the competition encourages kids to create and explore a vision of future technology by combining their imaginations with the tools of science. Teams select a technology and explore what the technology does, how it works, and how, when and why it was invented. Then they project what that technology could be like in 20 years from now by conveying their vision through a written description and simulated web pages. The four first-place teams win $10,000 savings bonds and secondplace winners receive $5,000 savings bonds. Visit www.exploravision.org for contest details. Deadline for entries is January 30, 2007.
Home of Our Own This free software, created by the National Association of Home Builders, challenges students to work within a budget and schedule to design and build a house, starting with the selection of the site and ending
THE NEWS REPORT
with the sale of the house to a qualified owner. For more information visit www.HomesofOurOwn.org.
Calculus Resource Page This Hofstra University web site goes into graphic detail about everything a growing mathematician needs to know about calculus. It also features an online tutorial. Visit www.people.hofstra.edu/faculty/ Stefan_Waner/RealWorld/index.html to get the math help you need.
Unusual Scholarships Help Pay for School The high cost of earning a degree is keeping many students from attending college. But what many cashstrapped students don’t know is that there are several unusual scholarships that can help pay the way. For instance, did you know you could get a scholarship for being left-handed? And there’s another one for people who have an unusual last name.
Visit www.forbes.com/home/careers/2006/09/13/education-collegescholarships-lead-careers-cx_mf_ college06_0914 weird.html to find out more about the quirky and rewarding world of offbeat scholarships.
LA Career Planning Site The Louisiana Department of Labor recently launched an online information repository to help teens start their career planning. The Louisiana YouthWorks web site at www.ldol. state.la.us/Youth_Portal/YP_ Menu.asp contains resume-building tools, job-hunting tips, skill level assessments, wage information, job forecasting and a complete list of the state’s postsecondary schools and training institutions.
Events Dec. 7-9. National Science Teachers Association’s Western Area Conference, Salt Lake City, UT. www.nasa.org.
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technology’s past Dennis Karwatka
[email protected]
Edwin Albert Link
Died: September 7, 1981, in Binghamton, New York
Computer-simulation games allow people to experience the sensation of flying high-speed airplanes and racing automobiles while avoiding the dangers involved in real-life experience. Modern full-size simulators train ship captains, locomotive engineers, astronauts, and pilots of commercial and military aircraft. The use of simulators began in 1929 when Edwin Link built the first trainer to provide ground instruction for new pilots. Commonly called the Blue Box—because it looked like a small blue box-shaped airplane—the Link trainer introduced flying to a half million World War II pilots. Link’s family moved from Indiana to Binghamton, NY, when he was six. His father had purchased a bankrupt player-piano company in Binghamton. Proving to have excellent business skills, Link’s father formed the successful Link Piano and Organ Co. Link pianos soon appeared throughDennis Karwatka is professor emeritus, Department of Industrial and Engineering Technology, Morehead (KY) State University.
TECHNOLOGY’S PAST
Link Flight Simulation Div.
Born: July 26, 1904, in Huntington, Indiana
out New York and Pennsylvania. Then, Link’s parents separated and Link traveled with his mother to Illinois and California. He attended a series of vocational high schools where he studied carpentry, metalworking, and drafting. Link left school at 18 and Link Flight Simulation Div. went to work back at his father’s company where he helped build, repair, and install air-operated theater organs. Link quickly learned about the compressors, valves, and bellows that would later make up the major operating components in his trainer. Link took his first airplane ride in California as a teenager, and he quickly became hooked on aviation.
The pilot of the plane was Sydney Chaplin, owner of an airfield and brother of the actor Charlie Chaplin. Link wanted to learn to fly, but the local airport charged an exorbitant $25 to $50 per lesson. Also, experienced pilots were often reluctant to trust their expensive machines to untrained pilots. To make up for his lack of flying time, Link repeatedly taxied a friend’s airplane up and down the runway to get a feel for the controls. World War I pilots used the same technique, calling it the “penguin system.” Before long, Link began wondering if he could construct a stationary device that would respond like an airplane while remaining safely on the ground. In 1927, Link started building a flight trainer in his spare time in the basement of the organ factory. What he completed a year and a half later almost looked like a toy. His trainer was a small blue stubby airplane placed on top of a box and connected to the box by a large universal joint. A compressor in the box controlled air flow into four large bellows originally made for player pianos. Two of the bellows caused the tiny mock airplane to pitch up and down, and the other two caused it to move from side to side. An electric motor simulated the third dimension of flight, yaw, in which a plane turns around a vertical axis. The motor
Link trainer as it looked during the World War II era
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They showed
us the light . . . they taught us to fly . . .
Technology’s Past Poster Series
D Patent drawing shows how Link’s trainer used compressed air. allowed a student pilot to turn the trainer in a complete circle. The trainer’s cockpit had standard airplane controls. The control stick varied air flow into the bellows through valves connected by a series of pulleys and levers. The rudder pedals controlled the electric yaw motor. Once in the trainer, the student pilot moved the controls and the stubby airplane responded just as a real airplane would. A fully instrumented dashboard gave simulated readings for altitude, air speed, and turn-and-bank angle. An instructor at a desk outside the box had a duplicate set of instruments for use in monitoring every move the trainee made. For naviga-
TECHNOLOGY’S PAST
tion training, the pilot homed in on radio signals simulated by the instructor and transmitted over the headphones. Link filed for a patent on the flight trainer and went into production in his father’s factory. Unsure that he would find a large enough market in flight training, he considered an alternative use for his invention. Link titled his patent: “Combination Training Device for Student Aviators and Entertainment Apparatus.” Since his family’s business involved entertainment, Link gave serious consideration to using his invention for recreational purposes. Several amusement parks and penny arcades bought early trainers. F
ress up your classroom with the faces of American history! These stunning posters give your students a glimpse of the people and the inventions that changed our lives forever. The men and women whose visions and strong will provided the groundwork for our modern-day comforts leap off the pages of history and into the lives of your students!
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A fully licensed pilot, Link opened a flying school with his older brother, George. His trainers allowed the brothers to teach people to fly for as little as one-third of what their competitors charged. Student pilots learned to fly in a simulated environment that duplicated a real airplane. The school turned a profit until the full force of the Great Depression made private flying a luxury that people could do without. The flying school went bankrupt, and for a while Link earned a living barnstorming, flying freight, and even flying an illuminated airborne sign. His big break came in 1934 when the Army Air Corps received a contract from the U.S. Post Office to fly mail over 14 air routes. Air Corps pilots lacked experience in instrument navigation, and they flew an aging fleet of reconnaissance planes and bombers. During foul midwinter weather, six planes crashed during one week, killing all six pilots. Another four were lost on a single day in March. The losses prompted the Air Corps to ask Link to demonstrate his trainer at the Newark airport that spring. As it turned out, the day was foggy and generally unfit for flying. Nonetheless, Link flew in from Binghamton, landing his Cessna without mishap. He told the officials present that he used the trainer to maintain his flying skills. The Air Corps immediately ordered 6 trainers at $3,400 each, and they took delivery on June 23. Japan bought the next 10, providing fuel for speculation that Japan’s attack pilots who bombed Pearl Harbor had trained in Link trainers. Link formed the Link Aviation Co. in 1935. It quickly became a major manufacturer of aircraft equipment. At the beginning of World War II, 35 countries were using Link trainers. At the end of the war, trainers left Link’s factory at the rate of one every 45 minutes. Link loved aviation as a profession, but he also loved spending time outdoors on weekends and on vacations. In 1944, he designed and built a sectioned canoe that could be disassembled and carried in a private airplane. Link called his creation the Linkanoe, and he sold about 4,000
TECHNOLOGY’S PAST
during its three-year production run. Link never graduated from high school, but he received five honorary college degrees. He also received many awards from such organizations as Philadelphia’s Franklin Institute, the Smithsonian Institution, the Royal Aeronautical Society of London, and the International Oceanographic Foundation. He and his wife, Marion, established the Link Foundation in 1953. It made more than 120 grants to qualified organizations “interested in the mastery of the air and sea, and the development of energy resources and their conservation.” Following retirement from his company in 1954, Link began a second career in oceanography. From the deck of his research ship Sea Diver, he led many teams in exploring ocean depths around the world. Among his inventions were a submersible vessel, a submersible decompression chamber, an underwater television propulsion device, a heated diving suit, and an inflatable underwater living chamber. He held a total of 35 patents. In 1979, his submersible Deep Diver conducted the first underwater survey of the sunken Civil War ironclad USS Monitor. At his death, Link had homes in New York and Florida, and he was well known for his contributions to ocean explorations. Link may have finished his productive life with wet feet, but he started with his head in the clouds. References and Resources Linkanoe by Philip Carew, Roberson Center, Binghamton, New York, 1986. The Story of the Link Orchestral Organ, Roberson Center, Binghamton, New York, circa 1968. “The Plane That Never Leaves the Ground” by James I. Killgore, in American Heritage of Invention and Technology, Winter 1989. “Edwin A. Link, 1904-1981,” in The Link Log, September 1981.
This month’s column is reprinted from Technology’s Past Vol. 1. For more details, see the ad at right.
Technology’s Past NOT YOUR DULL HISTORY BOOKS!
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Unlike some books that just present the facts, author Dennis Karwatka profiles more than 150 “celebrities” of the applied science and technology fields from a human-interest slant that your students will love. Did you know that Nikola Tesla had a pigeon obsession? Or that Alexander Graham Bell was an artist before he was an inventor? Interesting facts like these are included in real-life biographies. Easy-to-follow explanations of inventions and technical processes along with many illustrations make reading and learning enjoyable. Save 20% off the list price! Each volume only $23.96
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$44.92 for both books! For details and to order, visit www.techdirections. com/bookshistory.html Tech Directions Books & Media
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technology today Alan Pierce
[email protected]
Time and Place Shifting TV If you have young children and a DVD player in your car, you already know that a video system can turn a car ride from agony into a pleasant experience. Today, many adults are using this same technology to turn public transportation commutes into a more pleasant experience. If you already watch video on an iPod or other portable device, you can expand your viewing experience by place shifting your favorite TV shows to the player of your choice. Time shifting television viewing can be much more fun if you also place shift the viewing experience. Instead of renting or purchasing videos for your next commuter trip, why not transfer your favorite TV shows to your portable player? Doing so is not as hard as you might think. Your computer can easily serve as your transfer device, and the Pinnacle HD Pro Stick ($129) is the perfect device for performing the transfers. The HD Pro Stick plugs into your computer’s USB 2.0 port. Pinnacle PCTV Media Center software completes the installation and turns your computer into a fully functional digital video recorder (DVR). To start digital video recording, you need to attach an external antenna to the Pro Stick. If you have fantastic TV reception in your area you can record using the portable antenna supplied with the unit. If not, you will simply attach the Pro Stick to your cable, satellite or home entertainment system. Having done so,
TECHNOLOGY TODAY
you are ready to pause a live TV broadcast, schedule a future recording or archive TV shows for future enjoyment. To take advantage of an electronic programming guide, you
Use Pinnacle’s HD Pro Stick to transfer TV shows to your portable player . . .
. . . and to transfer home video recordings to DVDs.
will also need a connection to the Internet. Let me emphasize that you will need a superior TV reception area to effectively use the antenna that comes with the unit. When I tested the unit with its own antenna, I only received two channels one day and none on subsequent attempts. However, cable reception was fantastic, and I found it very simple to program the unit to schedule a recording. I could also set the unit to turn off my computer after it completed recording a time-shifted show. However, note that you can’t program it to turn
on your computer just before a show airs. Also, the electronic programming guide that is pulled in from the Internet proved less user friendly than the one you find on a Tivo or Replay digital video recorder. Still, not only can you record shows when they are broadcast, but you can also transfer previously recorded Tivo or VCR recordings to your computer for shifting both the time and place you will view the show. A word of caution here: One hour of TV with commercials will consume about 1.6 gigabits of hard drive storage. If you decide to take advantage of the unit’s ability to time shift and record HDTV, disk usage for storage will certainly go up. I didn’t test any HD capabilities. Once a show is recorded, you can fast forward to skip commercials. You can directly record a show to a DVD or, better yet, set the file format so you can transfer the show to your iPod or other portable device for future viewing. If you decide to archive the show to DVD after you have recorded it to your computer, you can use video production software such as Ulead VideoStudio to edit out the commercials. The cables supplied with the Pro Stick also allow you to capture video from your VCR, Tivo, Replay or even your camcorder. Note that this flexibility makes the Pro Stick perfect for transferring your old home video recordings to DVDs.
Recalling the Facts 1. Describe digital video activities that you can do using the Pro Stick. 2. The Pro Stick comes with an external antenna. What conditions are necessary for its successful use? Alan Pierce, Ed.D., CSIT, is a technology education consultant. Visit www.technologytoday.us for past columns and teacher resources.
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mastering computers Reid Goldsborough
[email protected]
Traveling with Technology, and its Glitches Airline rules continue to change, regarding carry-on toiletries as well as carry-on laptop computers. Some airlines banned the batteries of some laptops because of the risk they might explode mid-air. As of this writing, rules for each were easing. But other perils threaten those who travel with electronics. One company that offers rescue services to travelers whose laptop or PDA conks out is Rescuecom, at www.rescuecom.com. The company offers some general technology tips to make your trip successful. “Traveling can be stressful, and technology should make your trips easier, not add to that stress,’’ said David A. Milman, founder and CEO of Rescuecom. Milman has several helpful suggestions.
Travel Tips
e Check the airline’s rules. Airlines such as Virgin Atlantic, Qantas and Korean Air banned certain Dell and Apple laptop batteries on their flights because of concerns about overheating and potential explosions. e Load up. Don’t get caught without a needed program. Make sure you have all of the programs you’ll need installed and working properly. e Power up. Fully charge your laptop before traveling. Bring all of your chargers and adapters, not only for your laptop but also for your handheld, cell phone and other electronics you pack. You might also want to have spare batteries, and make sure you charge and pack them as well.
e Look for outlets. Save your battery power for when you need it. Some airplanes provide electrical outlets, accessible with an adapter. MASTERING COMPUTERS
The same applies for some hotel lounges and coffee shops.
e Check with your hotel. More and more provide high-speed or wi-fi Internet access, but not all do. Visit your hotel’s web site or phone to confirm. e Check with your wireless phone/PDA provider. You want to make sure you’ll have voice and data access along your route. Several cellular phone providers, for instance, have come out with internationally compatible cell phones in recent years (most using the GSM standard), but many phones only work in the U.S., so you may have to rent a phone if you’re traveling abroad. e Protect your data. In case of theft, encrypting and password-protecting your sensitive files will ensure that your data is safe. Don’t conduct confidential business over a wi-fi connection in the airport or at your hotel, which may not be secure. One option for conducting important business through e-mail while on the road is to have your IT department or computer support consultant set up a virtual private network. e Consider a USB “thumb drive.” These handy little drives, about the size of your thumb, are becoming more and more popular for storing and transporting presentations and other important files. If you’ll have a laptop waiting for you at your destination, you can save space by traveling without one. Make sure that you also encrypt and password-protect sensitive data stored there. e Have fun. Movies, games and audio books can make a long flight or unexpected layover less stressful.
e Respect others. Use of noisereducing headphones when tweaking a presentation or watching a movie in flight will prevent you from disturbing others. Repair Options If your laptop or Blackberry does act up while on the road, you can try to sleuth the problem yourself, call upon a tech-savvy colleague, access your school’s IT department remotely or see if the hotel you’re staying at has an IT person who can help. Another option is to use a computer repair company such as Rescuecom. Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Syracuse, NY, it has 95 franchises around the country. Those franchises are concentrated on the East Coast and in California, but the company also has a fair number in the Midwest and Texas and a sprinkling in larger cities elsewhere. The company provides 24/7 emergency on-site service, which you can access with a contract or without by phoning 1-800-RESCUE7. The company’s main selling proposition is its fast response time. If you request and pay for it, Rescuecom will guarantee a one-hour response. You can also use an online repair service. PlumChoice Online PC Services, at www.plumchoice.com, can solve computer problems remotely by viewing your computer screen through the Internet and controlling your keyboard and mouse, while you watch. To take advantage of it, of course, your computer and Internet connection can’t be completely trashed. If you’re working on a critical presentation and experience a computer glitch late at night, solving it quickly can mean the difference between a successful trip and wash-out. Reid Goldsborough is a syndicated columnist and author of the book Straight Talk About the Information Superhighway. For more on computers from Reid Goldsborough, visit www. techdirections.com/computing. html
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mastering computers 2 Reid Goldsborough
[email protected]
Putting Words on Pages What’s the future of print? Two recent books, plus recent events, shed some light. It’s no secret that the Internet has changed things, and pundits love holding forth on the meaning of the information age. William Sonn’s 2006 book Paradigms Lost: The Life and Deaths of the Printed Word provides the rich back story leading to the present changes.
Earliest Records Since Homo sapiens became Homo sapiens, around 160,000 years ago, we’ve etches lines and images in dirt and stone. Scholars don’t all agree on this date or other details, but the big picture is as illuminating as it’s true. The first of the epochal changes was the invention of writing, coded pictures of abstract signs. This was the brainchild of the Sumerians in ancient Mesopotamia—current-day Iraq—around 3100 B.C. The Sumerians used it to keep records of sheep and taxes as humankind was first grouping itself into civilization. After the Sumerians’ clay tablets came the Egyptians’ papyrus, with the larger surfaces giving rise to more expansive writing about weightier topics like religion, astronomy and medicine. The Canaanites, Phoenicians, Greeks and Romans all advanced both the technology of knowledge and, in today’s lingo, the content itself. But it was across the world where the Chinese invented paper, around 300 B.C. It wasn’t until the invention of the printing press by the German Johannes Gutenberg around 1440 that things really got going, allowing for the widespread dissemination of information and the democratization of literacy. The cost of producing the printed word became cheaper still around 1810 when the printing press
MASTERING COMPUTERS
first became steam-powered, also in Germany.
The Electronic Revolution Other advances ensued until 1944 when the first large computer, the work of J. Preser Eckert, came into being in a basement at the University of Pennsylvania. It was designed to calculate artillery trajectories. The Internet, made possible by computers, also had its genesis through war. In the early 1960s, the Rand Corporation’s Paul Baran warned the Pentagon that it should decentralize its computing and communications capabilities in the event of a nuclear war with the Soviets. By 1969, the same year we first walked on the moon, we were communicating remotely by computers, all four of them. Today, millions of us communicate, access information and publish news and views with the help of the Internet. The relative cost of doing all this is so low that it’s toppling multibillion-dollar old-media institutions and threatening the printed word itself. Newspaper chains, for one, are under attack, forced to break up and sell off individual papers by investors who feel profit margins aren’t high enough. The venerable Knight Ridder, Inc., which had been the country’s second largest newspaper publisher, sold off all of its newspapers this year. One positive side to this is that individual papers such as the Philadelphia Inquirer are returning to their roots, taking on local owners and vowing to better serve local readers. But the global village still connects us all. Unless newspaper news and opinion, which still costs, differentiates itself from Internet news and opinion, which is largely free, print readership will no doubt continue downward. Some print publications have already figured out how to survive and
prosper in the Internet Age, leveraging their expertise and professionalism and providing the kind of quality information you can’t get elsewhere or can’t get as conveniently elsewhere. Readers, pressed for time, value publications that respect their time. Despite the electronic onslaught, print retains some advantages. A magazine, book or newspaper won’t crash or run out of battery power. It doesn’t require anything else but itself to make itself useful. It’s easy. Recognizing the utility of print, Aaron Shepard has just written and published, in print, a book about printing and publishing your own book. Perfect Pages: Book Design, Typography, and Microsoft Word, or How to Use MS Word for Typesetting and Page Layout in Formatting Your Books for Desktop Publishing, Self Publishing and Print on Demand is the long title of a 138-page soft-cover book. Available among other places at Amazon.com, the book covers such topics as page size, margins, headers and footers, fonts, lists, graphics, tables, text boxes, covers and choosing and working with a printing service. The writing is clear and succinct. If you want to do it yourself, this book will hold your hand through the process. Shepard is also a children’s book author. His company, Shepard Publications (www.shepardpub.com), primarily publishes his own work, in print. Paper may come from trees, but it’s not dead yet.
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From Sci-Fi to Reality—
Mobile Robots Get the Job Done By Harry T. Roman
[email protected]
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OBOTS are simply computers that can interact with their environment. Some are fixed in place in industrial assembly plants for cars, appliances, micro electronic circuitry and pharmaceuticals. We have all seen pictures and news broadcasts showing robots welding and painting cars, rapid and highly accurate robots assembling delicate parts on circuit boards and perhaps even watched those one-armed wonders testing electrical components and parts. Another important category of robots is the mobiles, machines that can be driven to the workplace, often designed for hazardous duty operation or broad-area inspections and surveillance. Many mobile robots had their genesis as far back as the 1950s, with robot designers inspired by science fiction movies and stories, especially the futuristic work of science fiction writer Isaac Asimov. By the early 1980s, mobile robots had emerged as an important new branch of remote inspection activity. Today mobile robot design and production represents a $100+ million industry and growing. This article will give you background on mobile robot technology, along with ideas for helping your students explore the robotics field.
dexterity over a distance without being there—that is teleoperation. Mobile robots generally possess the following four subsystems: ● A propulsion system for moving the robot around, which may include wheels, treads, legs or, in the case of a water-borne machine, thrusters. Air-borne robots that have propellers and wings for flight also exist. Some complex machines often combine wheels and tread combinations to increase their mobility over a variety of terrains. ● A communications package so a human operator can interact with and control the machine. This is usually
Anatomy of a Mobile Robot Mobile robots belong to the category of tele-operators, or remote manipulators. These machines can project action at a distance, through the use of an operator and base station that commands and controls the robot. This is actually somewhat the opposite of television, which brings remote pictures to us. Teleoperation allows us to bring our actions to a remote place. Photo 1—Underwater vacuuming robot can clean the bottom of When NASA controls a robotic device by radio on swimming pools as well as inspect oil storage tanks. Mars, that is tele-operation. When you drive a small radio-controlled car, that is also tele-operation. If you use accomplished via a hard-wired cable or tether, bringing a hand griper on the end of a stick to reach up to grab the machine both electrical power and electronic commusomething off a high shelf, that is also tele-operation. Get nications capability. If radio or microwave control of the the picture? When you project your senses or your manual robot is desired, then an on-board battery supply powers the machine, which means a limited operating time. Harry T. Roman is an electrical engineer, inventor, writer ● A sensor package or suite of sensors for the robot to and technology education supporter, East Orange, NJ. use once it arrives at its intended location. Almost all
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robots have cameras and lights to let the operator “experience” the environment. Some have microphones that allow for hearing what’s going on. Nuclear power plant robots generally have radiation detectors. And hazardous duty machines constantly monitor the surrounding environment for dangerous vapors and fumes. ● A work or mission package that allows the robot to perform predetermined tasks. Some work robots can saw pipes, drill holes, lift heavy objects and perhaps scoop contaminated spills and perform an on-the-spot chemical analysis. The Martian surface rovers scoop soil for analysis. In the future, mobile robots will increasingly possess “brains on board,” capable of taking somewhat independent action while at the work site. Perhaps two or more machines will interact in a cooperative manner to complete tasks. Or we might see human-robot teams emerge where robots assist humans who are fully suited in protective outfits while in a hazardous work environment.
A Roster of Applications People now use mobile robots in a wide variety of applications. Work situations may be quite different from one another and thus mandate specific design concerns. The actual conditions the robot must operate under determines the materials of construction of the robot, its communication system, how it moves about, its energy needs, how many different mission packages it might carry and the sensors it will use. Here is a list of where mobile robots already have found application: ● Nuclear power plants ● Oil storage tank inspections ● Mapping contaminated land areas ● Oceanic exploration and cable trenching ● Undersea wreck sites ● Pipeline internal inspections ● Tank or basin sediment vacuuming ● Military surveillance, combat and ordnance retrieval ● Drone aircraft patrol ● Fire fighting ● Space and planetary exploration ● Human rescue in hazardous areas ● Forest management ● Large area surface cleaning ● Underwater pool cleaning ● Detecting corrosion in metal surfaces
ROBOTICS
You may have seen early robots that can vacuum floors or mow lawns. These represent the first attempts to bring mobile robots out of the commercial sector and into the home. With today’s busy working parents, an automated home robot might have particular appeal! From 1984 through 1994, I led a team of engineers and robot vendors that designed some of the first robots for use in the electric utility environment. These robots (see photos) performed a variety of tasks and produced significant cost savings. For every dollar our team spent on a robot, that robot returned three dollars in savings. In my lab, we worked with robot designers to create the machines we needed and to test them thoroughly before shipping them to company work locations. We also trained our company workers regarding how best to use the robots when they arrived. Here are some of my mobile friends. Photo 1 shows an underwater vacuuming robot used to
Photos 2 and 3— Versatile pipe-crawling robots are used in various industries to inspect the insides of pipes to detect damage, blockages and corrosion.
clean the bottom of small storage tanks and pools. We modified this device in a variety of ways to service a number of applications. Its most versatile application involved modifying the robot to serve as a vehicle for inspecting an oil storage tank. In this application, the robot can be lowered directly into a large oil storage tank, like those seen
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at tank farms. Here the robot does three very important things: it ultrasonically inspects the metal floor of the tank to detect any corrosion damage that could lead to leaks; it cleans and vacuums the floor of the tank to remove debris and corrosion forming microbiological species; and it provides a visual inspection and map of the floor bottom.
mine which ones may need immediate attention or welding, or are experiencing corrosion that could lead to failure. Photo 5 demonstrates how it might be possible to build a robotic hand capable of performing a number of essential work activities. Such a device might be able to duplicate about 64 percent of the dexterity of the human hand. Photo 6 shows a heavy-duty robot capable of being immersed in large open settling ponds and basins for the purpose of vacuuming out sediments and cleaning the impoundment. Here the robot is emerging from its completed task. The photo shows me crouching down to observe the robot being washed of any entrained materials.
Engaging Your Students
Photo 4 (above)—Robotic inspection system is used to inspect utility boiler tubes to detect corrosion and damage.
Photo 5 (right)—Robotic hand similar to this may be able to simulate many human hand movements. This improved robot is now produced by a Maryland company and used throughout the world. Photos 2 and 3 show early pipecrawling robots used to inspect the interior of large pipes to detect damage, blockages and corrosion. Today, these robots come in a wide range of sizes, some small enough to fit into a 2"-diameter pipe. These machines have found application in the oil, natural gas, water, sewer, chemical and nuclear industries. A number of firms are ready and able to send robot technicians to company sites to conduct routine and emergency inspection services. This is one of the most versatile robot applications today. Photo 4 shows a robot inspection system designed to inspect large utility boiler tubes in power plants. This robot can sample and inspect six tubes at once and deter-
ROBOTICS
Let’s explore some ways to engage your students in robot-related classroom activities. Have them do some simple patent searches at www.uspto.gov, the web site for the U.S. Patent and Copyright Office, using the simple search term “robot” to see what they find. After exploring what inventors are currently working on, the students can refine their searches using such terms as “mobile robot,” “hazardous environment robot” and other descriptors. Jobs in the robotics field will likely increase as more robotic devices come into use, and you and your students can conduct research on robotics careers. What are the job skills necessary to sustain work as a robot designer, a robot repair technician or a robot software programmer? Are there special schools where students can obtain these skills? This activity will fit nicely with your schools-to-career efforts. Students can choose a specific robot application area and explore them in greater detail—describing the various kinds of robots now being developed and in general use. Are the robot designs mostly adaptations from other applications, or has the technology developed specifically for this application? How long has each particular type of robot existed? One of my favorite exercises is to establish robot design teams of four to six students and challenge them to design a specific type of robot—perhaps a robot to assist a handicapped person or a fire-fighting robot. Each member of the team assumes a different role. One would lead the team, and another might serve as the design engineer.
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Other members of the team might concern themselves with marketing the robot; determining what its selling price might be; determining how the robot would interface with humans; and examining issues about the robot’s impact on society. Each team would submit a detailed written report, make an oral presentation on their robot’s final design and application and field questions from fellow classmates. You can acquire a great deal of information about various robots directly from the manufacturers of robots. Students can write to the companies they learn about through web site searches and perhaps interview company engineers/designers about the robot products. Afterwards, students can report what they learned to the class. Many educational catalogs offer robot kits that students can assemble. A great team activity, students can build and operate robots, demonstrate Photo 6—Immersible heavy-duty robot vacuums and cleans their operation and explain the prinlarge ponds and basins. ciples of operation and special features. Science fiction literature has had a profound impact on students to read some aspect of this literature and perrobot technology and development. You can encourage haps even have them write their own original stories about robots. Consider assigning some of the great writers of American science fiction like Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Lester Del Ray, Robert Heinlein and Ray Bradbury. Their works are available in most libraries and on the shelves of major bookstores. Students should also delve into the works of Joseph Engelberger, considered the “father of robotics.” Engelberger installed the first industrial robots and went on to outline the mobile robotics field as well. Many robot arm and accessory designs have found application for amputees. This has greatly influenced the field of prosthetics, where injured people have been fitted with robotic-type devices to restore their ambulatory and dexterous capabilities. Walt Disney pioneered the use of robots in the entertainment field at his theme parks. His human-like robots, dubbed “audioanimatronics” technology, continue to mesmerize audiences with their fluid human movements. Here is a fun area for study, along with the robotic devices in Hollywood movies. The first use of a realistic robot servant in science fiction movies came in Forbidden Planet. This 1950s classic is worth watching—maybe as a class— to see how robots mirror how we view our world. Various world cultures view technology through different eyes. A great example of this is to study how American and Japanese robot designers envision their machines. Americans tend to build robots that do not resemble human form, but the Japanese do. Why might this be so? As you can see, there are many ways to get your students learning about—and experiencing—the important field of robotics.
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Design Team Approach Simulates Real-World Engineering By Stephen Portz
[email protected]
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What kind of work they REATING acdo? What kind of educativities that tion and skills does their model engiwork require? How do neering design pay structures comas it appears pare? in industry provides great I use this time to experience for technoldiscuss with students ogy students. Design in different types of degeneral creates an elegrees, certificates and ment with special regard experiences that qualify to its form and function. workers for different Engineering design inindustrial positions. I volves doing that, and also discuss how to going beyond to produce determine a living wage an efficient product that and how to calculate a addresses its intended yearly wage based on an purpose. The activity I hourly rate and vice describe here teaches versa. engineering design conDesigners at work on reverse engineering a product I organize students cepts. It can also serve as world engineering design activity is into groups of three or four and have a lesson within an integrated techthat most students lack a level of them determine who will serve each nologies course to give students a specialization and competence that function on the team. We make placrealistic sense of work in the field of distinguishes them sufficiently from ards that identify particular jobs to engineering. their peers. How can you put a team place in front of each student. Every Engineering design teams stand at of specialists together to model an team has a project manager, a dethe core of product development in engineering design team, when everysigner, an engineer and a technician. our nation’s industries and conseone has about the same levels of For groups of three, the project manquently represent a compelling area expertise? ager and the engineer can serve the of study in technology programs. The trick involves reverse engisame role. Engineering design brings together neering—working backwards and skills of creativity, inventiveness, structuring the activity so that each communication, teamwork, mind’s Individual Roles student functions in a designated eye development and continuous ● Project manager—Keep the tarrole. By having a product already product improvement. A typical deget product that everyone will try out constructed, and then rationing out sign team may consist of engineers, of sight. Begin the activity by calling the information that you give team technicians, inspectors and designproject managers from all the teams members, you can create in each ers, along with marketing, financial for a conference on the product. student an artificial level of experand administrative support personIntroduce the product and explain tise. nel. that the product manager’s role calls The challenge in simulating a realfor interfacing with corporate headGetting Started quarters and department administraStephen Portz teaches engineering In leading into the activity, take tors to discuss the products your technology, Space Coast Junior/Senior time to explain the traditional roles of division will produce. The product High School, Cocoa, FL. each of the design team members. manager then works with the design
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paper and point out to the designers that a good working drawing should give technicians all the information they need to construct the product. Designers are the only team members who may draw. Once they leave the target product display table to communicate to the team, they may not go back to see the target product. Designers may not take part in constructing the product.
Side view of the target product
Inner workings of the target product, for the benefit of the engineers
engineer may demonstrate the parts being used and show their arrangement. However, like the product manager, the engineer may not assemble pieces or make drawings. ● Designer—Designers come up next. I suggest setting up in a way that allows the designers to move around the target product, spending as much time as they desire drawing it. Provide graph
● Technician—The technician is the only design team member allowed to construct the team’s product—and he or she may not see the target product.
Teams compete with each other to assemble a functional product in as short a time as possible.
Additional Tips You must guard against espionage, which I’ve found can be a problem. I put up cardboard project board (science fair type) shields as needed. This allows teams to work in secrecy
team to help them develop the product with this big idea in mind. The project manager must also make sure team members stay busy and have a sense of making important contributions to the team. In other words, they play the role of boss and of a cheerleader who helps the team stay focused and mentally productive. Project managers will see the product more than any other team member, which simulates their understanding of the company’s goals for the product. Project managers must understand that they will direct the other employees, but they may not take part in making drawings or construction. ● Engineer—Engineers have intimate knowledge of how things work, mechanical principles and forces, along with an understanding of strengths and properties of materials. For this activity, the engineer will be the only team member who sees the target product under power. The engineer should pay particular attention to the drive train and the size and coordination of the gears. The
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Assembly of the product and to progress toward their own objective, rather than get distracted by the efforts of other teams. Each team receives a modeling kit like the one used to create the target product. While those team members who may view the project perform their work, technicians keep busy by inventorying and getting acquainted with the kit. If your students seem to have a hard time working under these constraints, you may need to allow all the engineers to have another peek at the target product. Also, as the project nears completion and undergoes fine tuning, you may want to permit an open shop arrangement, in which project managers can come and go at will to view the target product.
Evaluation The conclusion of the activity begins with determining how long it took each team to finish and rank ordering the times. A team is considered finished when their product proves functionally correct, as variations of the design that do not affect its workings may be permissible. Some teams may even improve on the target product. The instructor must determine how aesthetically picky he or she wants to be. It is important to not just measure performance by speed of
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completion alone, although this does give some measurement of how well the team and each member performed. You may want to collect all iterations of your students’ attempts to reproduce the target product and show them at all one time to demonstrate the varied ways the teams solved the problem. In a post-activity survey, ask students to identify difficulties encountered and discuss group dynamics. What aspects of the activity were the most difficult and why? What could the team have done better to succeed? If you received an assignment similar to this again, what would you do differently? Before having students complete the survey, emphasize that effective problem solving concentrates on methods and strategies—not on personnel. In this way, the survey does not become a blame game that gives students the impression that success or failure rested on whom they had doing what, but more on working together and contributing personal best efforts. If the survey results indicate that students reflect well on the activity and demonstrate an understanding of the team concept, they have captured the point of the lesson and that should also carry significant weight in your final evaluation.
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Connecting Teachers and Parents Through the Internet
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ONSIDER this scenario:
Teacher: “Jim, did you remember your release form today?” Jim: “No, but I know it’s OK for me to go because my mom said so.” Teacher: “OK, I will call her again! Please tell her to call me, or fill out and return the release! It is due tomorrow, and I will give you my last copy to take home again.” After finishing up a long day, and planning and preparing for the next day, the teacher remembers to call Jim’s mother about his permission form. Teacher: (beep) “Hello, Mrs. Marshall, this is Jim’s teacher again. I was wondering if you received my last messages about the field trip on Friday. Jim’s release never made it back to school, but he says he is going. I am sorry to say he may not go until I get the release that is due tomorrow. I would really like Jim to attend so please contact me. My conference time is 10:40-11:30. Thank you, have a good evening!” Situations like this used to arise often with my students. I got tired of writing notes that never made it home, and of students losing schoolwork and homework. I spent hours Darby Tobolka teaches at Whitestone Elementary, Leander, TX.
COMMUNICATIONS
By Darby Tobolka
[email protected] calling their homes, copying notes and looking for more copies. I needed a new strategy to address communicating from school to home. The result: I created a user-friendly web page and e-mail system. I updated the site and sent messages out weekly to help keep families aware of happenings at school.
How I Got Started Teachers play an important role in the lives of their students, but not nearly as important as parents. Parents are a child’s first teacher. As the school year progressed, I noticed students “forgetting” to turn in their folders, both homework and daily conduct folders. Notes I sent did not reach home. There was a gap in communication. As part of a graduate program for beginning teachers, I conducted an action research project on the following question: What influence does technology have on parent involvement and communication with their child’s school? To address this question more thoroughly, I developed the following sub questions: ● What are the benefits of communicating through a web site and weekly e-mail? ● How will using e-mail influence a parent’s attitude toward involvement and parent communication? ● How does this ongoing involve-
ment motivate students in their regular school work?
Literature Review Teachers are called on more every year to communicate with parents regarding academic progress, behavior and school events. In many households, both parents work, so calling home or scheduling a personal conference may not prove convenient. Educators must use the appropriate method for contacting each student’s household. I felt concerned that parents were not involved enough in my students’ learning at the school, and I found that I was not alone. Several researchers have cited this problem. For example, Lewis (2003) found that “parental involvement was not only positively correlated to academic achievement, but also took precedence over household income as a determiner of student success. Results from Herbert Walberg’s 1984 study identified parental involvement as having a greater impact on student achievement than socioeconomic status.” Improving communication to the home is a challenging yet rewarding task. With support from home and school, the possibilities of student achievement greatly improves. I found another researcher who agreed with Lewis. Blackerby (2004), a principal, conducted a communica-
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tion study in his own school. He sent home several surveys to determine parents’ preferences in communicating with the school. He reported that “the parents who provided an e-mail address on the survey showed a higher tendency to use e-mail to communicate with the school.” He found that parents showed a strong interest in communicating through e-mail. Researchers have found that parents like the convenience of elec-
Research Procedure I collected both quantitative and qualitative data during a six-week project. Before the study, I held a tutorial in the computer lab so that parents could learn how to easily access my web site and e-mail messages. During the study, I collected data using parent surveys, student interviews, e-mails, and checklists and observations. Parent pre- and post-surveys. Before
Parental involvement was
not only positively correlated to academic achievement, but also took precedence over household income as a determiner of student success.
tronic communication. Nelms (2002) was interested in the effects of her teacher-created web site on parent communication. She states that parents used the web site as a way of staying informed about students’ educational experiences and as a source of one-to-one correspondence. Using web pages and e-mails to help communicate is becoming increasingly popular with many different educators. Hernandez and Leung (2004) also note that teachers can provide a service to parents by helping them become more Internet savvy. While conducting my literature review, I came across an article that discussed old methods of communication that had failed as well as new methods that might work. I found this article so intriguing that I used it to help guide my own research. Huseth (2001) created a web site that not only gave curriculum and class information, but also reported on student performance in the classroom. She also developed a weekly e-mail program. Her work and research inspired me to improve my own school-tohome communication.
COMMUNICATIONS
and after I conducted my study, I posted a survey on my web site so that parents could answer the questions and submit their answers to me. The responses went to my e-mail inbox for me to review and take notes on. The post-survey had a comment box so that parents could leave additional thoughts or suggestions. Student interviews. During the study, I questioned students individually about their use of the web site I had created. They talked about their use of the web site at home, in the computer lab at school and how much they liked using it. I also asked if they would like their parents to be more involved with our class and school. E-mails. At the end of each week, I sent an e-mail to each student’s parents about behavior concerns, missing work, homework, returning folders and how our week in class went. I also used e-mail to send quick notes and reminders home. Checklists and observations. I kept two checklists, one to aid in my inspection of daily conduct folders and the other for weekly homework folders. Daily conduct folders called for a
signature on each calendar day that a student was in school. Students turned in completed homework folders each Friday. Each section had to be complete to receive a check on my checklist.
Data Analysis An analysis of the data collected revealed parents’ appreciation and student excitement regarding the web site and e-mail program. Parent pre- and post-surveys. I began by reviewing the pre- and postsurveys posted to my web site. Many parents expressed concern about the homework folders and students’ incomplete work. I found that parents who had access did use my web site and weekly updates to communicate with their child about our days in school. Many parents commented that they found it convenient to contact me through e-mail. Most parents felt that more home involvement would motivate students to do their best in school. Additional comments ranged from asking if other teachers would communicate this way in the future, to telling how much they enjoyed using the web site and receiving the informative weekly e-mails. A few simply said “thank you.” Student interviews. While scanning the results of my student interviews, one thing stood out. All my students said they wished their parents could come to the school more often and get more involved in our class. Many stated they would be more motivated in their regular school work if their parents offered more assistance. I found this touching since I wanted the same thing for each one of my students. E-mails. In response to my weekly e-mail messages, parents would send back thanks and any questions they had about the week’s notes. A few parents e-mailed me when their child was absent so I could prepare work for them. Most showed great interest in missing work and classroom behavior. They told me of their attempts to correct problems we encountered daily in class, and I saw some improvement. Only one student’s parents failed to respond
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their folders signed each week. My students liked to check the bulletin board to see if we had reached our goal. I would also walk around to monitor my students.
Conclusion
directly to my e-mails. However, I did notice that things I mentioned in my messages improved as time went by—so the messages were getting through. Overall, parents reported that they found the e-mails helpful and informative. Checklists and observations I created one table with students’ names and the sections of homework, and another table just with names and days of the week. I used one checklist to mark off the students who had each section of their homework completed and the other for those who got their conduct folder signed. Then, I created a graph of the checklists so students could see how many completed all their homework and had
COMMUNICATIONS
The results of my action research project suggest that electronic communication improves students’ interest in their coursework and provides their parents with more knowledge about daily class activities. I found that parents felt more involved in their student’s school activities and more connected to me. Students increasingly felt that it was important that they turned in their work and homework—they all wanted to have positive notes about their week sent home. I think the project results support the idea that using technology to communicate from school to home can be a positive and rewarding experience. It also helped me learn how to look at my own classroom, find an area that needed improvement and structure a study to find ways to facilitate improvement.
References Blackerby, J. M., Jr. (2004). Effective communication: Opening lines of communication with e-mail. Action Research Exchange, 3(1). Hernandez, S., & Leung, B. P. (2004). Using the internet to boost parentteacher relationships. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 40(3), 136-138. Huseth, M. (2001). Using technology to increase parent-to-teacher communication. Learning and Leading with Technology, 29(2), 6-9, 16-17. Huseth, M. (2001). Teacher relationships. Kappa Delta Pi Record, 40(3), 136-138. Lewis, A. R. (2003). Using communications technology and parental involvement to improve homework completion and quality. Action Research Exchange, 2(1). Nelms, E. (2002). The effects of a teacher-created web page on parent communication: An action research study. Action Research Exchange (1), 2.
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Aspiring Architects Draft Their Future By Kelly Leffler
[email protected]
I
BEGAN teaching drafting and design four years ago at TriCounty Career Center (TCCC), which serves eight school districts within the three counties surrounding Nelsonville, OH. Over the course of my teaching, I have become an avid supporter of the career and technical education (CTE) approach, which offers immediate hands-on learning that complements students’ chosen fields of study. Since I attended a comprehensive high school and a college that relied on theoretical content derived from textbooks, I did not fully appreciate what I had learned until I started applying learned theory to real-life situations when I got my first job. As the drafting instructor at TCCC, I am proud and pleased to give students real-life drafting experiences that Kelly Leffler is a drafting instructor, Tri-County Career Center, Nelsonville,OH.
DRAFTING/DESIGN/CAD
applies learned theory. One of the best experiences my students have had involves taking part in building a custom home.
How We Got Involved At the end of my first year, Connie Wilburn approached me. She had contracted with the senior carpentry class to build a house for her during the 2003-2004 school year. She asked me to combine two floor plans into one. I agreed to work with her and produced the preliminary rough draft over the summer. When school started in the fall, I found my time for working on the plans limited so I decided to involve my students—a growing number of whom show an interest in the field of architecture—in the task of finishing the plans. This activity proved a great teaching tool for my aspiring architects. In several meetings with my students and me, Mrs. Wilburn presented new ideas for her house. My
students and I would then discuss how we could realistically apply the ideas to the house plans. During this process, the students learned a great deal about customer relations, construction details, stair layouts, window and door details, problem solving and dimensioning techniques related to architecture design. By the end of the school year, we had a complete set of plans that the senior carpentry class could use to construct the house.
Carpentry House Project Each year, the senior carpentry class at TCCC builds a custom house within a 25 mile radius of the school for someone in the community. Anyone who wants to have our students construct a house signs up on a waiting list. The carpentry class charges the homeowners $1.50 per square foot for labor plus a mileage charge. The homeowners, of course, must provide materials. Usually the electri-
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dents a list of items that they need to discuss with the homeowners, such as window and door sizes, siding material, roofing material and so forth. Students conduct research on the Internet to find a variety of materials so they will have choices to discuss with visiting customers. Some of my students continue to work on Architectural Drafting house plans for future Since the first experience proved a senior carpentry houses. success, I decided to have subseOthers have completed quent students also produce authenplans for houses built by tic house plans. When I receive calls area contractors. I also from someone interested in having a Students Calvin Smith and Daniel Cavinee take have a student who comhouse designed, I invite them to the measurements on the garage foundation while pleted a set of plans for a school to discuss their ideas with my Dustin Milam checks the blueprint. large pole barn currently students and me. under construction. After this initial contact, I do not Getting New Students Another class project we took on take part in the meetings between Started involved a porch remodel for a the homeowners and students. I At the beginning of the school couple in the community. I took my offer advice when asked, but I let the year, I take my new students on frejunior class to the home and assigned students and homeowners discuss quent field trips to the senior carpenthem to work in teams. One team and work out the details of the try house. This reinforces what I used GPS units and a transit to sketch house. This helps build confidence teach in the classroom and lets the out a plot plan of the house and in the students and teaches them students see firsthand how a house is porch. Another team took charge of valuable customer relations skills built. I encourage my students to talk to the carpentry students, and I hand out worksheets for my students to complete while at the job site. The worksheets ask questions regarding header sizes, floor joist size and oncenter spacing, sill plate size, door and window sizes and so forth. I give the students a copy of the plans for the house and ask them to verify room sizes, door and window locations and other details. These activities provide a great learning experience for my students. They come away with a much better understanding of house construction, which results in their eventually producing a better set of house plans. All these projects have turned into Connie Wilburn’s house, which was designed by the drafting class and built by great learning tools. My students like the senior carpentry class from Tri-County Career Center working on a set of plans for structures that they know will be built. developing the floor plan layout. They enjoy getting out and looking at that will benefit them in future caAnother developed sketches and the locations and getting a feel for reers. measurements for the elevation how a project will be laid out. And I monitor the progress of the stuviews. The students then returned to their experiences also give them dents on a daily basis, have weekly class and developed a complete set something that will greatly enhance meetings to discuss the timeline of of plans from their sketches using portfolios they can use when looking the project and answer any questions AutoCAD. for employment after school. that students may have. I give stucal trades class gets involved in wiring the house. The carpentry class completes all phases of the construction process except foundation, insulation installation, drywall and HVAC work. The homeowners have the foundation constructed in the summer before school begins. Area contractors install the insulation, hang and finish the drywall and install the HVAC system.
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1+1= 3 Cross-Discipline Collaboration Really Adds Up! By Mindy Breen
[email protected]
T
HE Department of Engineering & Design (E & D) at Eastern Washington University (EWU) offers a bachelor of arts degree in visual communication design and bachelor of science degrees in me-
take TECH 490 Senior Capstone as a graduation requirement. Our recently revised capstone curriculum enables the department’s multiple disciplines to effectively collaborate to create a very successful converged learning experience. In this article, I’d like to
Photo 1—Lava lamp and tabletop basketball game are two products designed and created by the production group.
chanical engineering technology, manufacturing technology, construction technology, design technology, electrical engineering, computer engineering technology and electronics technology. All students in the department Mindy Breen is an assistant professor of visual communication design, Department of Engineering & Design, Eastern Washington University, Cheney.
CAREER-TECHNICAL EDUCATION
share information on the functioning and benefits of converged learning with other technology and career educators.
Refining Collaboration Modeling Josef Albers’ synergistic theory 1+1=3 (Tufte, 1990), disciplines in the department join together to blend expertise and create an experience more comprehensive than any could provide alone. The course structure draws on the
strengths of each discipline, combining distinct experiences into a unified curriculum. Students complete most departmental coursework within a declared discipline with little or no interaction with peers in other disciplines. The capstone curriculum departs from traditional practice in other E & D classes. In the past, the department’s seven majors participated in a single interdisciplinary capstone laboratory class. Students, working in teams, conceived, designed, produced and promoted a product. Teams consisted of students from every major combining and applying skills to a single task. While this was an interdisciplinary approach—integrating material from multiple disciplines—it was not the best possible learning experience for E & D students. Course evaluations reflected student dissatisfaction with course structure, and student work often fell below course expectations. Department faculty identified two problems with the existing capstone curriculum: (1) depth of experience was lacking in work groups and (2) the scope of work was too broad for a meaningful learning experience. To address these issues, the faculty revised the TECH 490 Senior Capstone’s curriculum to take better advantage of the multidisciplinary nature of the E & D department. The department’s solution called for separating the capstone class into two sections separating the B.A. degree from the B.S. degrees. One section would address the visual com-
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Photo 3—Big Sky Sweep promotional pieces, including poster, postcards and packaging
Photo 2—Auras Lighting promotional pieces, including postcards, poster, packaging and stationery munication design field (B.A.), and the other section would address students in technology and engineering fields (B.S.). The cross-disciplinary—rather than interdisciplinary—approach involves valuable interaction across disciplines but does not attempt to integrate very different skill sets. Instead, the B.A. students and the B.S. students collaboratively apply their specific knowledge to a problem-based learning exercise. Created along disciplinary boundaries, the two work groups bring about greater and more successful collaboration between the disciplines. The new work groups include a greater number of students from each major, creating a deeper experience base and condensed disciplinary makeup. We also divided course content into two spheres: production and promotion.
Production We assign the production elements
CAREER-TECHNICAL EDUCATION
of the course to the B.S. degree students. The requirements for the production group include producing 15 identical products, generating documentation of the entire process and conducting a formal presentation to the E & D faculty and industry representatives. The production group has responsibility for selecting the product idea and designing the product. The design process starts with developing design criteria, one of which requires an EWU theme. The production group must research, plan, evaluate and document their production process. Three production runs of five products each make up the final stages in the production group’s process. Finally, the group presents its product and process at the conclusion of the quarter. The production group receives its evaluation
based on the final products, group report, presentation and peer evaluations.
Promotion The B.A. in visual communication design students have responsibility for the promotion tasks in the course. The promotion group’s requirements include producing a body of visual work for the production group’s product, generating documentation of the entire process and giving a formal presentation to the E & D faculty and industry representatives. Required promotional pieces include logo and tag line, corporate stationery, ad campaign, direct mail pieces, poster, web site, promotional video, graphics for product and prod-
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The success of the collaborative endeavor depends on the diverse disciplinary backgrounds of the students and their ability to bring that experience into a teamwork environment. Roland Barthes (1977) suggests that effective collaboration between disciplines happens when the isolation of individual disciplines is transcended in the interest of a greater objective. Recognition of common goals, coordinated efforts and outcomes based on shared responsibilities by all participants are essential to the success of the student groups.
Evidence of Success Photo 4—Lava lamp EWU logo uct packaging. In addition to the promotional pieces, the group also has responsibility for documenting the creative and corporate process. The promotion group submits a process notebook containing all documentation as part of its final presentation. The promotion group receives evaluation based on promotional pieces, process notebook, presentation and peer evaluations.
Cross-Disciplinary, Collaborative Learning The cross-disciplinary TECH 490 Senior Capstone exposes students to a real-world learning environment, with the division of disciplines and tasks into production and promotion closely resembling industry practice. The promotion group performs the function of an outside vendor to the production group or, conversely, the production group is the promotion group’s client. The production group models a “manufacturing company” that designs and produces a marketable product, and the promotion group takes on the role of an “advertising agency” that promotes the product. This authentic experience gives students the opportunity to participate in the partnership of production and promotion, while strengthening their particular role in the relationship.
CAREER-TECHNICAL EDUCATION
The quality of class projects shows evidence of the synergy and creativity that the cross-disciplinary collaboration fosters. Since our curriculum revision, the products designed, produced and promoted by capstone students have grown more complex and sophisticated. Projects from years before the revision included items such as a desk organizer, a business card holder with digital clock and a checkerboard. The new dual-work-group projects have included items such as a lava lamp and a tabletop basketball game (Photo 1). Products now have product names (e.g., Auras Lighting and Big Sky Sweep) and identities, and they feature a recognizable EWU graphical element (Photos 2, 3, and 4). In addition to stronger project work, student course evaluations have also been increasingly positive. Cross-disciplinary collaboration offers significant benefits for students, instructors and the department. These efforts prepare students for real-world interactions and industry experiences. TECH 490 Senior Capstone’s broad and interactive approach has the potential to better prepare students for the increasingly complicated problems and issues of today’s complex world of business and industry. By seeing the interrelated play of discipline-specific knowledge, students can see how their skills fit into the comprehensive scheme of authentic practice. In addition, the
capstone class creates a sense of collegiality, opportunities for networking and experiences that embody cross-disciplinary concerns. Successful course outcome demands real interaction across work groups. Students must navigate disciplinary boundaries and draw on multiple perspectives for a meaningful exchange of ideas and a necessary relation of skills. The exchange of knowledge across work groups, from production to promotion and vice versa, creates the opportunity for new levels of productivity in the shared learning environment. After participation in cross-disciplinary collaborative learning experiences, students return to their own disciplines enriched by the experience (Morreale and Howery, 2002).
Conclusion The revision of the TECH 490 Senior Capstone curriculum has brought us from a class that integrated all disciplines to a class that logically and strategically established collaboration among disciplines. Thus far, after three quarters of the new curriculum, student work, comments and course evaluations indicate that the collaborative class provides creative, productive, rewarding and relevant experiences. In addition, we’ve seen that the revised curriculum fosters the successful interaction of multiple disciplines resulting in new levels of synergy and productivity. The E & D department’s new cross-disciplinary approach to collaborative learning creates an environment in which individual methodologies coalesce into a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. K References Barthes, Roland. (1977). Image music text. London: Harper Collins. Morreale, S. P., & Howery, C.B. (2002). Interdisciplinary collaboration: Down with the silos and up with engagement. Retrieved May 1, 2005, from http://www.aahe.org/ interdisciplinary.pdf. Tufte, Edward. (1990). Envisioning information. Graphics Press.
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career directions INFORMATION SECURITY SPECIALIST Recent movies and real-life stories in the media have shown how easy it can be for unscrupulous but clever people to break into computer systems. Once inside, they can introduce viruses (destructive programs), steal valuable data (such as credit card numbers) or simply wipe out important data. Add to that the possibility that terrorist groups might target vital computer systems, and you can see why computer security is one of today’s fastest growing occupational areas. An Internet security specialist (ISS) is the security guard and detective of the high-tech world. As a security guard, an ISS must be constantly on the lookout for suspicious changes to programs and system files. As an investigator, an ISS must gather data, such as logs of commands entered into the computer by a suspect. He or she must know the common behavior patterns of teenage computer “crackers” and experienced spies, or “hackers,” and respond appropriately in a variety of situations. Essential skills include attention to detail, the ability to recognize patterns (what should or should not be there), the ability to interview and investigate as necessary and a willingness to confront wrongdoers. Breaking into the field is a matter of trust. Your personal integrity and reputation are extremely important, as are communication skills, people skills and teamwork skills. Being an ISS is a tough job, but it can also be an immensely rewarding career with terrific prospects.
Wages
$$$$
Internet security specialists are among the highest paid of all IT professionals. On average, they earn about 20 percent more than other IT workers. Entry-level workers can expect to earn $40,000-$50,000 annually. Average salary range is $50,000-$80,000. Experienced consultants make up to $150 an hour or more. Large corporations with sensitive data, such as phone companies, utilities and banks generally pay top wages. Government positions pay somewhat less but offer more job security. Benefits usually include paid vacation and sick days, medical insurance and bonuses.
CAREER DIRECTIONS
Personal Characteristics/ Skills Required ●
Excellent credentials and trustworthy track record ● Strong interest in math, computer programming and electronics ● Good knowledge of computer languages, operating systems and networks ● Excellent oral, written and presentation skills ● Strong management skills ● Troubleshooting and problem-solving skills ● Pattern-recognition skills ● Ability to multi-task ● Strong work ethic ● Positive attitude
Training High School ●
Mathematics ● Computer science/programming Electronics ● Technology education ● English ● Business/accounting Hands-on experience is key and will likely help you land your first job. Spend time in the computer lab, learn how computers work and dabble with the latest technologies. Most IT professionals begin playing around with computers at a very early age as a hobby and turn their hobby into a career. ●
Postsecondary Because this is a new field, few colleges offer specific programs in Internet security. Some professionals recommend first obtaining an associate or bachelor’s degree in computer science, networking, programming or electronics. Others recommend going the route of certification. But it’s unlikely that someone fresh out of college will get a job as an ISS. You must first have several years of experience. Many specialists begin in PC technical support and move to systems administration or engineering. These jobs often include security responsibilities that then lead to positions focusing primarily on security.
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The Job The work varies depending on geographic location, size and type of company and the degree of sensitivity of the information being protected. Typical duties include: ● setting up automatic antivirus and security monitoring programs ● reviewing system logs for evidence of tampering ● scheduling and performing technical training ● designing and monitoring firewalls ● educating users about good security practices, such as choosing hard-to-guess passwords ● guarding against new kinds of computer viruses found in Internet documents and attached programs ● cooperating with law enforcement officials when investigating computer crime ● writing security policies and procedures Security specialists occasionally take courses to learn the newest hacking techniques so they can devise ways to protect their employers’ systems before the hackers have a chance to use them.
Working Conditions IS people work a 40-hour week in well-lit, climate-controlled offices. Additional hours may be required if a serious breach of security is detected and time is of the essence to fix it. The majority of a security person’s time is spent sitting at a computer, working alone. Security consultants travel frequently, and their work schedules do not necessarily follow typical 9 to 5 working hours.
Certification Whether certification is necessary is debatable. Some sources say a certificate is almost always a prerequisite for a job in Internet security; others say certification isn’t required. Certification does, however, demonstrate to employers predetermined acceptable levels of competency and experience. There are two types of certification: vendorneutral and vendor-specific. Vendor-neutral certification, such as Check Point Certified Security Expert (CCSE) and Certified Information System Security Professional (CISSP) encompass a broad scope of knowledge and are not tied to any specific technology vendor or product. Vendor-specific certification, such as Cisco Certified Security Professional (CCSP) and Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer: Security (MCSE) are offered by technology vendors and cover their products. Some certifications can be completed in a few days; others take years. Nearly all certifications require passing a challenging exam plus work experience. The International Information Systems Security Certifications Consortium (ISC)2 at www.isc2.org publishes an informative career guide that “decodes” the information security profession. It lists each type of security certification, has a state-bystate school and training facility guide and lists each professional association.
Employment Outlook Currently, the demand for highly qualified security people is greater than the supply. Employment opportunities are expected to increase at a rate of 20 percent a year for the next seven years. Complex computer systems, 24/7 Internet access and increasing computer crime all add to the demand. And, unlike other IT jobs, security positions are less likely to be moved overseas. American companies still want their corporate security to be looked after here at home. Candidates who have the right mix of technical and managerial skills will have the greatest advantage in the job market.
Professional services, including real estate, legal, engineering
●
Telecommunications
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Banking and other financial institutions
CAREER DIRECTIONS
Internet security specialists may move into supervisory or management positions. Those who work for small companies can advance by moving to larger firms with more sensitive data and more complicated security issues. With several years of experience, an ISS can become a consultant. Consultants may become sneakers or part of a tiger team. Sneakers and tiger teams are the best in the field—those who are called in to crack a system on purpose in order to find security holes, then patch them.
Alternate Job Titles
Where the Jobs Are ●
Advancement Opportunities
●
Government agencies ● Manufacturing ● Healthcare ● Education ● Insurance
K Computer security
specialist ● Security auditor ● Security consultant ● Security administrator ● Security analyst/engineer ● Chief security officer
Professional Associations Computer Security Institute www.gocsi.com The Computing Technology Association (CompTIA) www.comptia.org International Information Systems Security Certifications Consortium (ISC) 2 www.isc2.org
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e-gallery W elcome to techdirections’ portfolio of web sites from career/technical- and technology education-oriented manufacturers and vendors. Check out these web sites, where you’ll find descriptions and online ordering information on the products and services you need. Make classroom and departmental purchasing easier by referring to these cutting-edge companies—and tell them techdirections sent you!
Presentation Equipment Leaders
Mastercam CAD/CAM Software for Teachers & Students
Boxlight Corporation has been in business longer than any other brand in the projection industry. We are the first name in digital projectors. Introducing more new models of projectors than any other manufacturer, Boxlight offers the widest selection of presentation equipment. This award-winning company is renowned by professional presenters in virtually every field. The Boxlight name is synonymous with the highest standards of quality, innovation and customer service in the industry. www.boxlight.com.
www.MastercamEDU.com reflects our unique dedication to education. The site includes an Instructor’s Corner complete with curricula listings, technical teacher training options, success stories and more. Get your students motivated with our Wildest Parts and Innovator of the Future competitions. Find details on the Mastercam Certification program. And there are educational-specific downloads such as drivers, posts and student projects. Whatever you need for success in your lab you will find at www.mastercamedu.com.
Classroom Management Software Just Released—NEW CrossTec SchoolVue is PC classroom management software. Keep students on task by monitoring PCs and Internet activity, lock up computers during demos and block applications and URLs. Multi-task your efforts by projecting real-time demos and videos to students, record lessons or student sessions for playback, create and grade tests, remote control PCs and more. Works great over wireless and with OpenGL. Low price, free evaluation and personalized support. www.crossteccorp.com/schoolvue/index.html.
E-GALLERY
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DEPCO Offers VOLTS™ to Education
VOLTS™, an electrical design software used by industry, performs branch circuit analysis, dynamic panel layouts, automated panel schedules, conduit and feeder schedules, one-line riser diagrams, voltage drop calculations and various analysis and custom reports. VOLTS™ uses an intuitive interface that accommodates the requirements of electricians, designers, code inspectors and engineers at all levels of program literacy. FREE downloadable trial available. Call DEPCO at 1-800-7671062 today for more information! www.depcollc.com.
Electricity and Electronics Interactive Software
Interactive software makes learning electricity and electronics exciting. The material works with your current textbooks and curriculum. Programs include activities on dc, ac, digital, diode, transistor, op amp and power supply circuits. Challenging troubleshooting activities are included. All activities provide immediate feedback and grading. Random variable values are used to give variety to students’ learning experiences. Visit ETCAI Products at www.etcai. com for software descriptions and to download free trial software. Call 800-308-0154 to request a free trial CD.
Online Manufacturing Training Technical Literacy through Design
DEPCO is your source for Tooling University, a provider of online manufacturing training. Tooling U offers job-specific training programs ideal for industries such as manufacturing, aerospace, automotive, medical and oil and gas. Tooling University has defined class sequences for more than 20 job titles, including CNC Operator for the lathe and mill, CNC Programmer, Press Operator, Production Grinder, Quality/Lean Manager and Sales Engineer. For Web access to Tooling U, visit www.depcollc.com.
E-GALLERY
GEARS Invention and Design System provides tools to design and produce classroom engineering and robotic competitions. Working as teams, students create multiple design iterations using 3D solid models and then proceed to fabricate them into operational mechanisms using GEARS components. GEARS applies basic math and physics concepts to the development of solutions to challenging problems. Fundamentals of mechanics, electronics and pneumatics are introduced along the way. Visit www.gearseds.com.
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Graymark Educational Trainers
Creating educational pathways for students in construction and electronic technologies, Graymark International has been around for over 40 years and is continually forging the way for hands-on education. Use our easy-to-navigate web site at www.graymarkint.com to browse through our online catalog. Whether it’s electronic kits and projects for beginner to advanced students or trainers for classroom lab environments—order either online or by fax (714-544-2323) or phone (800-8547393).
Make Small Machines Safe
Lab-Volt Technical and Technology Training Programs
Lab-Volt Systems, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of technical hardware and courseware, and modular multimedia educational programs. On our web site at www.labvolt.com, you can: ● Browse by product line: including Tech-World Information Technology, Tech-World Manufacturing, TechDesign Technology Education and FACET. ● Browse by topic: including Automation & Robotics, HVAC and Electricity/Electronics ● Use our support tools, download product fixes, search our extensive knowledge base, request missing parts and more.
Construction Career Site
Safety—an easy word to say, but not so easy to implement in a school shop. Our product, the SENSING-SAFSTART, helps by making small machines, such as table saws, safer by preventing them from restarting after an electrical power interruption. You can go to our web site at jdsProducts.com for complete information. The SAFSTART is now on over 200,000 machines throughout the United States and Canada.
E-GALLERY
Check out our career web site, nccer.monster.com, for the construction industry. NCCER and Monster have teamed up to provide a one-stop online career resource center for the construction industry. In addition to a job search function and resume builder, this careers site includes up-to-date information on construction wages, top construction crafts, an industry career path and useful links for teachers and students researching careers.
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Electronic Equipment Supplier
Sun Equipment Corporation has been providing high-quality equipment to classrooms since 1988. We manufacture our own powered breadboards. We can offer this product to our customers at $59 per unit. Our low-cost and reliable products such as soldering tools, electronic educational kits, tool kits, jumper wires, breadboards and test and measuring equipment will fit any budget. Visit our web site at www.sunequipco.com for product information on mechatronics, electronics labs and more. Call 1-800-870-1955 to request a catalog today.
Free Pro/ENGINEER Schools Edition Software and Curriculum from PTC
Pro/ENGINEER 3D CAD software is the most robust and versatile parametric solid modeling solution. PTC prepares students for success in a technological world, providing FREE industry-leading Pro/ENGINEER Schools Edition software, training and curriculum to teachers worldwide. PTC: Helping Teachers Turn Today’s Students into Tomorrow’s Innovators. Contact us at
[email protected] or visit www.PTC.com/go/schools to learn more and to find a teacher training workshop near you.
E-GALLERY
Technology and Career/Technical Education Media
The Tech Directions web site presents a wealth of products that make teaching more effective and more fun for technology and career and technical educators. You’ll find a variety of projects, books, posters, videos and software that you and your students will love. Visit www.techdirections.com for details and to place orders.
Engineering Solutions for Educators
Technology Education Concepts, Inc. (TEC) is the educators’ choice for engineering solutions since 1987. Distributor of: Envisioneer—3D architectural, interior and landscape design software; KeyCreator—awardwinning CAD/CAM software that takes a “real geometry” approach to 3D modeling; SURFCAM—affordable 2-5 axis CAM machining software; and DELMIA—virtual digital manufacturing software. Other classroom solutions include GCC LaserPro laser engravers, Z Corp. 3D printers, TEC cutting edge milling and turning centers, and a complete line of textbooks and curriculum. 1-800-338-2238, www.TECedu.com
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product central Reading, ‘Riting, ‘Rithmatic . . . Robotics LEGO Education has partnered with National Instruments, Tufts University, Carnegie Mellon University and Vernier Software to produce a continuum of robotics sets, programming software, sensors and curriculum aimed at helping students learn essential science, technology, engineering and math concepts. LEGO MINDSTORMS Education NXT lets students build stronger and smarter robots that more closely mimic real-world machines, while preparing for careers in science, technology and engineering
New tools, equipment, and teaching aids to make you a more effective educator.
Easy-to-build physics projects If You Build It, They Will Learn is the perfect guide for physics teachers who want to use custom-made projects for demonstrating applied science. Devices such as Galileo’s Track, Coupled Pendulum and Gum-Wrapper Thermostat will help teach forces, energy, properties of matter and more. Step-by-step instructions, materials lists, illustrations, suggestions for demonstration and interactive questions for all 17 class-tested projects are provided. Browse sample pages at the NSTA Science Store web site at http://store.nsta.org or call 800-277-5300.
TIG torch packages industries. For more information, visit www.LEGOeducation.com or call 800-362-4308.
To ease ordering and inventorying, Weldcraft now offers six TIG torch pack-
Servo Wizard yields accuracy Techno’s new Servo Wizard Router was created especially for the technical education environment to train, prototype and machine 3D objects. The Servo Wizard is completely enclosed for noise and dust protection and is powered by servomotors to provide high-speed reliability without losing steps. Lead ball screws provide long lasting durability throughout the life of this industrial-grade machine. It's perfect for the educational market—from grade 6 through postsecondary. Local training, technical support and free Techno GCode software downloads available. Techno Inc. Education Division, www.techedcnc.com.
PRODUCT CENTRAL
ages that include all components necessary for TIG welding. Four torch packages for air-cooled applications range from 150 to 200 amps, and two water-cooled packages include either a 250- or 350-amp torch. Packages are available with WP17, W17VR, WP26 or WP26VR air-cooled TIG torches with rubber cables. Each package contains a 25-ft. power cable and cable cover, a power cable adapter and a 15-ft. ground cable. Contact Weldcraft at 800-752-7620 or visit www.weldcraft.com for further information.
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From art to part with one software package Mastercam X Art, an add-on to other Mastercam X products, delivers artistic
relief design and cutting. Students can quickly bring 2D sketches, clip art, photos and CAD files to life by crafting them onscreen and cutting them with specialized toolpaths. Users can also shape and change their model on-screen until it looks the way they want it. Features include an improved Art Manager, wrapping capabilities, new toolpaths, great visualization tools and instant editing features. The software can even track your model step by step, allowing for modifications at any time. For more information, please visit www.mastercamart.com.
AutoCAD fundamentals Practical AutoCAD 2007 presents information on the effective use of fundamental commands and features of AutoCAD 2007. The material is designed to address, not all there is to know, but all you need to know to operate AutoCAD 2007 efficiently. The book provides detailed illustrations with screen captures and AutoCAD drawings, command boxes that serve as quick references, and architectural and mechanical projects that may be used to build professional portfolios. A comprehensive CD-ROM complements the text. For more information, call 800-323-3471 or visit www.go2atp.com.
Electronics kit The SMT-210 Rework and Exploration Kit is an inexpensive training kit that incorporates a hands-on approach to learning the basics of Surface Mount Technology. The all-inclusive kit allows students to practice identifying components and handling and placing parts, as well as learning various soldering methods. When finished, students can test the circuits that they just soldered. “It's the best investment we’ve made,” says Matt Lord, electronic technology instructor, Lee County High Tech Center Central, Fort Meyers, FL. From Intellitronic Devices, LLC, 973-846-0074, www.intellitronicdevices.com.
HOW TECHNOLOGY SHAPED OUR WORLD Three book series is great for teaching the history of technology Building Civilization: The Growth of Production Moving Civilization: The Growth of Transportation Connecting Civilization: The Growth of Communication Author Dennis Karwatka brings to life the fields of production, transportation and communication. Each book features an overview of the technology’s history plus biographies of its key players. Inventors and inventions like Edwin Link and his flight trainer and the Mack brothers and the first American trucks will inspire your students. Vintage photos and drawings make reading interesting.
Buy them today and save 20% Only $27.96 each!
Save 25% on the set Get all 3 for only $78.64! Call 800-530-9673 x200, fax 734-975-2787 or order online at www.techdirections.com/bookshistory.html Tech Directions Books & Media
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Tiling books Education series mills The Flashcut CNC 6000 Series Educational Mills are perfect for teaching machining and CNC automation—at an affordable price. Students can use the system to create anything from simple 2D profiles to complex 3D shapes out of almost any material—quickly and accurately. The 6000 series mills come with a full enclosure to keep chips and noise
away from your classroom. All series mills are available in servo and microstepper versions and employ FlashCut's intuitive windows-based control software, allowing students to see their part on the screen as they are cutting it. Call Flashcut CNC at 888-883-5274 or visit www.flashcutcnc.com.
Published by Taunton Press, these books give detailed information on all procedures for all aspects of tile work. Tiling: Planning, Layout & Installation features articles reprinted from Fine Homebuilding magazine on such topics as kitchen projects, bathroom projects, cutting ceramic tile, grouting, working with glass tile, replacing broken tile and installing radiant heat under tile. Working with Tile, written by professional tilers, covers tiling floors, fireplace surrounds, backsplashes, countertops, tub surrounds and showers; installing a shower pan; glass tile; and a variety of tile repairs. For information, call 800-283-7252 or visit www.taunton.com.
Teaching solutions for future designers The reasonably priced TurboCAD Student Edition is a universal tool for learning basic and advanced
computer-aided design. It provides students with clear, wide-ranging instruction in mechanical, architectural and artistic design. Each module includes 22 interactive lessons that can be teacher-led or selfpaced, allowing each student to progress at their own speed. A perfect addition to your course syllabus. Site licenses available. From IMSI Education, www.turbocad.com, www.imsisoft.com.
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Mapper brings 3-D graphing to life Data acquisition subsystem Powerful DYNOmite “Pro” Data Acquisition Subsystem houses all the electronics necessary for serious dynamometer programs— all in one rugged, forced air-ventilated NEMA enclosure. This “testing lab on wheels” accepts a wide array of DYNOmite acquisition boards and controls for sampling 100+ channels of engine information. It can control up to four simultaneous servo devices and on-board atmospheric compensation. The DYNOmite “Pro” subsystem supports modular field upgrades. To add more channels, simply plug in additional modules. For more information contact Land & Sea, Inc., 603-329-5645, www.land-andsea.com.
Nanomanufacturing video Molecular nanotechnology promises to usher in the next Industrial Revolution. This new video highlights the current, nearterm and future applications of this technology. The video shows how nanotechnology is transforming the way we manu-
facture products using innovative top-down fabrication and bottom-up assembly techniques that use matter to build complex products with atom-precision. Great for pre-engineering classes! From the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, www.sme.org.
PRODUCT CENTRAL
Pitsco's new Coordinate Cartography Mapper lets students create 3D contour maps of landforms while learning the Cartesian coordinate system. Simple to use and durable, the Mapper offers both 2D and 3D mapping activities. Students measure and plot the depths of the Mapper’s 100 holes on either a mountain landform or a valley landform. The Mapper meets the needs of several subjects: graphing coordinates in math classes, programming coordinates for milling projects in technology classes and learning topography in geography classes. To learn more, visit www.shop-pitsco.com or call 800-835-0686.
Job-winning resumes The Encyclopedia of Job-Winning Resumes, Third Edition includes more than 400 resume examples that show how to personalize your resume according to your own unique career situation. Expert advice about what information to include, what to omit, what to emphasize and what to tone down is included, along with sample resumes to help new graduates enter the workforce quickly and easily. Whatever your age, industry, career, level of experience or education, you’ll find the resume template you need. From New Page Books, 800-CAREER-1, www.newpagebooks.com.
Got a product we don’t know about? We want to feature the latest and greatest products for technology, applied science, and career/technical teachers. To do that we need to know what you make, use or recommend. Send product information, including graphics, to: Assistant Editor, Tech Directions, 832 Phoenix Dr., Ann Arbor, MI 48108.
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free for the asking Think Junk Yard Wars in the classroom Computer service tech training This colorful brochure describes CompTIA A+ certification—a vendor-neutral certification for entry-level PC technical knowledge. Inside the brochure, you’ll find topics covered in both the core hardware exam and the operating sys-
Colorful brochure describes Inventa—a very affordable K-12 technology program that engages students in a series of design challenges that bring out their ingenuity while developing problem-solving skills. Unlike other construction kits, students actually measure, cut and join junk materials to create great designs. All projects integrate math, science, technology and language arts—making academic subjects more meaningful. The program is designed for use in technology classes, enrichments programs and pre-engineering courses. To learn more, download the Inventa PowerPoint presentation from the Valiant USA web site at www.valiant-technology.com.
tem technologies exam, certification benefits, industry viewpoints and authorized service centers. Visit www.comptia.org or e-mail
[email protected] for further information.
Automotive education According to the Department of Labor, there will be 35,000 automotive technician job openings each year through 2010. The Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES) process provides all of the tools necessary to prepare your automotive students for these jobs. More than applied academics and career training, the program offers a paid internship under a trained senior technician. It also includes job shadowing, employability skills training, safety and environmental certification and links to educational programs. Nearly 10,000 young people have been placed in participating dealerships across the nation through AYES. To learn more about the program or how to get your school involved, call 888-339-AYES or e-mail
[email protected].
FREE FOR THE ASKING
Student Inventors Wanted! Don’t miss this year’s techdirections Inventors Challenge! Get your students involved in brainstorming useful ideas for used plastic bottles. For details, visit www. techdirections.com/contest, or see page 27 in the September issue of Tech Directions.
Deadline: February 1, 2007
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CNC technology catalog Free stopwatches with balance orders Adam Equipment will supply a set of five stopwatches to any educational institution that orders three of its school balances. The stopwatches (valued at over $50) are large and rugged— perfect for use not only in the science lab, but also for math, physical education and cross-curricular activities. Schools may purchase any combination of three Adam education balances all on one order by December 31, 2006. Adam’s most popular balances are the TBB Triple Beam, the AQT Compact and the ACBplus Portable. Visit www. adamequipment.com/education for full details on this promotion.
Techno Inc.’s new catalog, the H850 Techno Book of CAD/CAM & CNC is a great introduction to CNC technology as well as a comprehensive reference guide for relevant industry advances. The 152-page catalog informs CNC users about what to know, what to ask, what is available and how to determine which CNC machine and accessories are best suited for their particular production. The updated Technical Section covers CNC machines, work envelopes, drive components, fixturing and more. The CNC Router chapter has a flow chart of steps to follow when choosing a machine to fit specific application requirements. Visit www.technocnc.com or call 800-8193366 to request your free catalog.
Web site features tech ed resources Pitsco's new web site, www.catalog.pitsco.com, is loaded with free content and resources for teachers and students. Topics are centered around STEM—science, technology, engineering and math. Resources include visual aids as well as content. For example, a section on alternative energy discusses hydroelectric, wind, geothermal and solar energy and shows pictures of how those technologies have been implemented. Great for use in the classroom!
Celebrate Black History Month! Inspire your students
with posters of African Americans who have had a major impact on the course of American history, from the research lab to the battlefield to the courtroom. These posters will help educate your students as well as perk up dull classroom walls. Each poster provides brief biographical information and a timeline of key life events—all designed around a stunning image of these notable black Americans.
Technology’s Past series includes: George Washington Carver Lewis Latimer Garrett Morgan
Black History Pioneers series: W.E.B. DuBois Frederick Douglass Martin Luther King, Jr. (Portraits) Martin Luther King, Jr. (March) Thurgood Marshall Rosa Parks Sojourner Truth Harriet Tubman Booker T. Washington Malcolm X The Buffalo Soldiers (lPlains) The Buffalo Soldiers (Uniform) Montgomery Bus Boycott The Tuskegee Airmen
Each 18" × 24" glossy poster is only
$12.95
Save over $50! All 14 Black History Pioneers posters $127.95 Add 3 Technology’s Past posters $29.95
To order: Online: www.techdirections.com/posters.html ● FAX: 734.975.2787 Phone: 800.530.9673 ext. 200 ● Mail: Tech Directions Books & Media, PO Box 8623, Ann Arbor, MI 48107
FREE FOR THE ASKING
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monthly marketplace INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES FOR ELECTRICITY & ELECTRONICS
New! FCAW, GTAW, GMAW & SMAW Curriculum on DVD State-of-the-art, multimodule curriculum based on AWS S.E.N.S.E. Close-up views of the puddle from the welder’s perspective. Computer graphics and 3D animation illustrate key concepts.
Hobart Institute of Welding Technology 800-332-9448 • Fax 937-332-5200 www.welding.org www.tools4schools.com Tools, Equipment, Furniture and Supplies for Industrial and Technology Education.
Add interactive training without changing your curriculum or textbooks! Immediate feedback encourages students to learn quickly. Activities are included for both circuit analysis and troubleshooting. Students get a “hands-on” feel for troubleshooting by making measurements and determining circuit faults on simulated circuits. Parameters are changed each time an activity is used. Students can’t simply memorize answers. Material is available on topics from Ohm’s law to op amps. A free trial CD is available.
ETCAI Products 800-308-0154 ■ Fax 662-224-0084 www.etcai.com ■
[email protected] PO Box 190, Ashland, MS 38603
Free Catalog 1-800-328-4644
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techdirections advertisers! They make your subscription to techdirections possible!
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more than fun
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Sudoku Mania!
These number puzzles are one of the hottest puzzle trends around. Share them with your students and enjoy them yourself.
He’s Baaack! After much begging and pleading, our old friend the Dingbat has finally agreed to come out of seclusion and welcome readers to our electronic issue. Yep, we’re pulling out all the stops for our digital issue! We’ve not only managed to convince the Dingbat to make a special appearance, but also to clone himself and hide in eight different locations. Why? So we can give away eight prizes—that’s why! All you’ve got to do to qualify for a prize is find all eight Dingbats that look like this . Then, e-mail
[email protected] with Dingbat Contest in the subject line. Tell us each of his eight hiding places and your name will be entered in our random drawing to win one of eight prizes, including a $200 cash prize, two $100 cash prizes, two $50 cash prizes, a Materials Science Technology course donated by Energy Concepts and two Tech Directions On-Demand Super Sampler CDs worth $139 each. There’s no telling where our wiley friend will hide, so it’s your job to scour the pages of this issue and find the little bugger. Entries must be received by December 31, 2006. Good luck!
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Employees of Prakken Publications, Inc., advertisers, and their families are not eligible. Contest open to U.S. residents only, age 18 or older.
Complete the grid such that every row, every column, and the nine 3x3 blocks each contain the digits from 1 to 9. No mathematics is required, just plain old logic.
Puzzle 1
4 2 2 6 4 3 9 9 8 3 9 7 5 3 4 9 8 1 2 3 6 4 2 7 9 3 9 5
8 6 5 2 3 9 2 1
© Kevin Stone [www.brainbashers.com]
Puzzle 2
7
8
3 8 2
“It’s our new radar. I call it “the bat on a stick.”
We will pay $25 for brainteasers, one-period challenges, and puzzles; $20 for cartoons; and $5 for jokes and humorous anecdotes used on this page. Preferable theme for all submissions is applied science, technology, and technical education. Send contributions to “More Than Fun,” PO Box 8623, Ann Arbor, MI 48107-8623.
MORE THAN FUN
1 7 5 8 6 4 8 3 6 5 2 9 5 1
8 2 4 5 6 1 7 5 3 6 5 9 1 7 7 4 9
© Kevin Stone [www.brainbashers.com]
Answers on page 48. For more cool puzzles, visit brainbashers.com
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more than fun
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HVAC Terms Puzzle
ACROSS 1 Heat added to a vapor after all liquid has been vaporized. 5 Any pressure below atmospheric pressure. 7 Mass or weight per unit of volume. 10 The transfer of heat by a moving fluid. 11 A device used to open and close an electrical circuit. 12 A tube filled with a liquid used to measure pressures. 13 Two metals with different rates of expansion fastened together. 14 To elevate a fluid from one level to a higher level. 16 A form of energy causing the agitation of molecules within a substance. 17 The transfer of heat without an intervening medium. 21 A depression or dip in refrigerant piping in which oil will collect. 22 The course of operation of a refrigerant back to a selected starting point in a system.
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23 A substance which produces a refrigerating effect while expanding or vaporizing. 24 The transfer of heat from molecule to molecule within a substance. 25 The reduction of volume of a vapor or gas by mechanical means. DOWN 2 The temperature at which molecular activity theoretically ceases. 3 Refers to the temperature surrounding a body or unit under test. 4 Heat that produces a change of state without a change in temperature 6 The process of controlling the temperature, humidity and distribution of the air. 8 A condition where a substance
changes from a solid to a gas without becoming a liquid. 9 The slope of a pipeline for the purpose of improving drainage. 11 A vessel for holding refrigerant liquefied by the condenser. 15 Device installed in hot gas line to silence discharge. 18 A measurement of heat intensity. 19 A condition of stable equilibrium of a vapor and a liquid. 20 A unit used to measure high vacuums. 24 Ratio of work performed as compared to the energy used.
Answer on page 48.
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Welding Terms Puzzle
2
8 9 14 15 16 18 20 21
ACROSS A gas that has been heated to the point where it will conduct electricity. A cleaning method using pressure and a stream of abrasive. A weld between two overlapping pieces of material. A weld where the edge of two pieces come together. Non-metalic solid coating that forms on top of the weld bead. The part of an oxygen torch that directs the flow of the gas. Metal Inert Gas. Gasses mixed with oxygen in heating and cutting operations. A process where metals are joined
MORE THAN FUN
using a filler metal that melts at a temperature above 450 degrees C. 23 A welding process where similar materials are joined with a heating process caused by an electric arc.
7 10
11 1 3
4 5
6
DOWN Term for a general-purpose arc welder. A material such as sand, silicon or crushed stone used for surface cleaning. A device used to heat metal for forming and bending. A vertical weld where the welder starts at the top and works downward. Steel with less than 0.15% carbon.
12 13 17 19 22
The part of an oxygen torch that directs the flow of the gas. The percentage of time during a 10minute period that a welder is rated to run for. A tool or device used to hold pieces in place for welding. A container used to store and transport compressed gas. A means of delivering filler metal to the weld. The waste metal created by the action of a plasma cutter. A safety device worn over the face to protect a welder’s eyes and face. Tungsten Inert Gas.
Answer on page 48.
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Answers HVAC Terms Sudoku Puzzle 1
1 7 9 4 2 6 3 5 8
5 2 8 3 7 9 6 4 1
4 6 3 1 8 5 7 2 9
6 4 1 9 3 8 5 7 2
9 5 2 7 6 1 4 8 3
8 3 7 5 4 2 1 9 6
2 9 4 6 1 7 8 3 5
7 8 6 2 5 3 9 1 4
3 1 5 8 9 4 2 6 7
2 8 4 1 5 6 9 7 3
4 9 1 7 2 5 3 6 8
8 7 5 6 3 4 1 2 9
3 2 6 9 8 1 7 4 5
Puzzle 2
5 3 8 4 1 2 6 9 7
7 4 2 3 6 9 5 8 1
1 6 9 5 7 8 4 3 2
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9 1 7 8 4 3 2 5 6
6 5 3 2 9 7 8 1 4
Welding Terms
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Learning can be fun! Let us show you how! Gliders! Egg Bungee Jumps! Boomerangs!
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Enhance your curriculum with these hands-on, affordable activities that make learning fun! Our On-Demand Classroom Projects will help students really understand the principles of technology and applied science. And we’ve done all the prep work for you! Simply print and use them in your classroom! Guaranteed to score big points with your students!
Limited Time Offer
152 On-Demand Classroom Projects for only $495!
l
Save over 50% on our entire collection*
*Entire collection includes all projects produced through May 2006. Offer expires May 31, 2007. Money-back guarantee if not completely satisfied.
Please send me: $ Entire Collection CD ............................................... $495.00 Shipping and handling ............................................................. FREE Total ........................................................................................ $495.00
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Or visit www.techdirections.com/projectCD.html to order online.
On-Demand Classroom Projects On the following pages, you will find two complete On-Demand Classroom Projects. Written by teachers for teachers, these inexpensive, ready-to-use projects save you time and help your students really understand the principles of technology and applied science. Over 150 additional projects are available at www.techdirections.com/ projects.html for only $6.95 each. Check them out today!
Combustion Rocket .............................51 Thrill and amaze your students while introducing them to the process of combustion and Newton’s laws of motion with this dramatic teacherbuilt and -demonstrated rocket made with inexpensive materials. Vocabulary development and extension activities included.
Click here to download this project.
Assembly Line Activities ..................... 61 Activities allow students to experience the assembly line mass-production process as they work individually and in teams to assemble simple parts and paper trucks. Worksheets with math-related exercises and study questions included.
Click here to download this project.
See page 49 for an On-Demand Classroom Projects
SPECIAL OFFER that you can’t afford to miss! ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECTS
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! A Dynamic Instructional Tool
By Lance Brand and Mike Fitzgerald
[email protected]
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HIS activity demonstrates how rocket propulsion involves Newton’s laws of motion and the three key ingredients needed to produce combustion: fuel, oxygen, and spark. In essence, it serves as a content organizer that teachers can use to introduce the process of combustion and Newton’s laws. In the activity, the teacher constructs a simple model rocket and demonstrates how combustion occurs. An empty two-liter plastic soda bottle serves as a container, into which the teacher puts two drops of lighter fluid or two drops of 90 percent isopropyl alcohol. The teacher then traps oxygen inside the container with a rubber plug, into which two solid conductor wires have been inserted. The conductor wires, measuring 10' to 20' in length, lead to a gas grill igniter to which they are soldered. No direct contact with a spark is needed to ignite the fuel—pressing the button on the gas grill igniter generates the spark. When the spark occurs, the bottle explodes, producing a very dynamic demonstration of combustion! Note that students should never reproduce the demonstration themselves without thorough and exacting supervision. Lance Brand teaches physical science at Delta High School, Muncie, IN, and Mike Fitzgerald is a Technology Education Specialist, Office of Career & Technical Education, Department of Education, Indianapolis, IN.
techdirections ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECT / COMBUSTION ROCKET © 2006 PRAKKEN PUBLICATIONS, INC.
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! Propulsion Sir Isaac Newton’s scientific work led to advances in physical science that teachers worldwide demonstrate in their classrooms today. His key contributions are known as Newton’s laws of motion. Teachers can apply Newton’s three laws of motion to show how rocket propulsion occurs. In 1687, Newton described the following laws of motion: Law 1. An object at rest tends to stay at rest. An object in motion tends to continue moving in a straight line until an outside force acts on it. Law 2. Force = mass × acceleration. Law 3. For every action, there is an opposite and equal reaction. We can trace the basic principles used in spacecraft design back to Newton’s laws of motion. For example: The first law describes rocket propulsion. The second law can be used to calculate how much energy a spacecraft would need to escape Earth’s gravity. The second law can also serve to describe how a spacecraft accelerates in space. The third law can explain how a rocket engine operates within a spacecraft. Because of these concepts in the study of motion, we can explore a wide variety of the actions and reactions that are used in contemporary spacecraft design.
techdirections ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECT / COMBUSTION ROCKET © 2006 PRAKKEN PUBLICATIONS, INC.
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! Construction Details 1. Locate all necessary materials. You can purchase rubber stopper plugs from a science supply catalog or hardware store. You’ll find a grill igniter, soldering irons, solder, solid conductor wire, and lighter fluid at a hardware store or home supply warehouse. 2. Strip the solid conductor wires and solder them to the two leads on the gas grill igniter. You may need to modify the igniter to produce appropriate surface area for the connection. 3. Strip the other end of the wires. 4. Drill two holes approximately 1/2" apart through the rubber stopper plug. Use the diameter of the wire to select an appropriate drill bit size.
Tools and Materials Two-liter plastic soda bottle #3 rubber stopper plug Gas grill igniter 20' of solid conductor wire Soldering iron Solder Lighter fluid or 90 percent isopropyl alcohol Fluid dropper
Key rocket components and fuel
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! 5. Friction fit the wire through the plug, leaving approximately 3/8" of wire exposed. 6. Test the igniter to be certain of a spark jump. Adjust as necessary for spark jump.
Soda bottle rocket assembly diagram
7. Put two drops of fuel in a plastic two-liter soda bottle and plug the bottle with the igniter assembly. 8. Establish an appropriate safety distance, safety procedures, and firing range. Wear safety glasses. 9. Test the model combustion rocket! *Note: We recommend that you use a new two-liter bottle for any subsequent demonstrations. The combustion process can cause weakness and deformation of the bottle. Needless to say, take extreme care to prevent injury to all observers.
Warning: Use no more than 1-2 drops of fuel!
Rubber stopper size #3 to fit a 2-liter bottle
The gas grill igniter (right) and modified stopper plug (below)
techdirections ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECT / COMBUSTION ROCKET © 2006 PRAKKEN PUBLICATIONS, INC.
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Stripped conductor wire set 1/2" apart for spark jump
COMBUSTION ROCKET! Safety Procedures 1. Establish a safe zone to prevent accidents or injuries. 2. Safety glasses must be worn during all demonstrations. 3. Never point or aim the device at an observer. 4. Always use a new plastic bottle for each experiment and discard the used container. 5. Never press the gas grill igniter while holding the spark jump leads. 6. Never allow students to use the combustion rocket demonstrator without extremely close supervision.
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! Print Resources
Internet Resources 4-H and Ohio State University Free rocketry simulation—rocket altitude, speed, design, and so forth. A very fun online rocket design simulation. www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~rockets/ index.html American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Free membership to educators, scholarships, grants, professional information, and contacts. www.aiaa.com National Association of Rocketry (NAR) Membership information, publications, research, student involvement programs, educational services program. www.nar.org/index.html Tripoli Rocketry Association, Inc. Membership information, publications, insurance, launch schedules, research, clubs, LDRS (Large and Dangerous Rocket Ships) event information. www.tripoli.org Additional Sites www.spacefoundation.org/index.shtml http://education.nasa.gov http://teacherlink.ed.usu.edu www.grc.nasa.gov/Other_Groups/K-12/ index.htm www.bsu.edu/academy/webwings
Agle, D.C. (1999). Heros of space. Santa Monica: Intervisual Books. Berry, C., Glines, C., & Zubkoff, H. (1994). Flights: American aerospace beginning to future. Montgomery: Community Communications. Cannon, R. (1999). Estes: Elementary mathematics of model rocket flight. Penrose: Estes Industries. Bunch, B., & Hellemans, A., (1993). The timetables of technology: A chronology of the most important people and events in the history of technology. New York: Simon & Schuster. Challoner, J. (1995). Make it work: Flight. Ocala, FL: Action Publishing. Fales, J., Brusic, S., & Kuetemeyer, V. (1993). Technology: Today & tomorrow. Peoria: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill. Farrar, P. (1990). Bernoulli’s principle. Muncie, IN: Center for Implementing Technology Education. Fitzgerald, M., & Seymour, R. (1998). Rocketry. Center for Implementing Technology Education. Harms, H., & Swernofsky, N. (1999). Technology interactions. Peoria: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill. Hynes, M., & O’Connor, V. (1997). Mission mathematics: Linking aerospace and the NCTM standards. Reston, VA: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Mahoney, S. (1995). Dynamic flight testing. ITEA technology festival. Nashville, TN. National Congress on Aviation and Space Education. (2000). Touch the future: Curriculum resource guidebook. Pierce, A., & Karwatka, D. (1999). Introduction to technology. Peoria: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill. Rodriguez, C. (1998) Aviation science activities. Presented at the Great Lakes Aviation and Space Conference. Lafayette, IN. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Rockets: A teacher’s guide with activities in science, mathematics and technology. (1999). EG-1999-06-108-HQ. Soman, S., & Swernofsky, N. (1997). Experience technology. Peoria: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill. Wilson, J. (2001, July) Two hours to Tokyo. Popular Mechanics, 64-67. Wolverton, M. (2001). The airplane that flew into space. American Heritage of Invention and Technology, 1320. Wright, T., & Smith, B. (1998). Understanding technology. Tinley Park: Goodheart-Willcox.
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! Student Quiz 1. Describe a rocket propulsion system.
2. List the three components needed to produce combustion.
3. Describe Newton’s laws of motion as they relate to this demonstration.
4. Describe how aerodynamic drag affects rocket propulsion.
5. Describe how thrust is produced within a rocket engine.
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! Vocabulary Development air frame _______________________________________
payload ________________________________________
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engine _________________________________________
rocket _________________________________________
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propellant ______________________________________
combustion ____________________________________
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Newton’s first law of motion _____________________
spark __________________________________________
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Newton’s second law of motion __________________
fuel ____________________________________________
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Newton’s third law of motion
oxygen _________________________________________
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acceleration ____________________________________
aerodynamics __________________________________
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! Vocabulary Development, page 2 propulsion _____________________________________
lift _____________________________________________
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thrust __________________________________________
drag ___________________________________________
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nozzle _________________________________________
gravity _________________________________________
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COMBUSTION ROCKET! Extension Activites 1. Research and create a timeline of the history of rocketry. 2. Research and report on the early development of modern rocketry. 3. Develop a poster demonstration of the combustion process. 4. Research and report on the development of high-power rocketry as a hobby through the Tripoli Rocketry Association and the Natitonal Association of Rocketry. 5. Investigate and demonstrate to your classmates an experiment based on one of Newton’s laws of motion. 6. Investigate the NASA student involvement program and report to your classmates on how they can get involved with aerospace technology. 7. Make a crossword puzzle or word search using related vocabulary for your classmates to solve.
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production By Larry Roberts
[email protected]
M
ASS production is a system by which many products can be produced at a reduced cost for a company. It is also a way to improve the quality of the items. As a factory worker, you may be on an assembly line doing the same job minute after minute, hour after hour, day after day, year after year, until you retire or change jobs. In this problem, students will be asked to simulate such an experience with the other members of their group. For these activities, break the class up into groups of five. For Activity 1, give each group a tray of 100 bolts, 400 washers, and 100 nuts.
Larry Roberts has won numerous awards for his excellence in teaching and programs at Highlands Middle School, Kennewick, WA.
ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECT / ASSEMBLY LINE ACTIVITIES © 2006 PRAKKEN PUBLICATIONS, INC.
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production
Mass Production Activity 1 Student Instructions 1. Set up an assembly line where each person in the group assembles only one part of the unit. The first person puts one washer onto one bolt. He or she passes it onto the next person. The second person puts another washer on the bolt, as do the third and fourth persons. The fifth person puts on a nut. 2. Start by having your group assemble 10 units. Record the time it takes to assemble them. Do this twice and calculate the average time it takes your group to assemble 10 units. Divide your average time by 10 to find the time it takes the whole group to assemble one unit (individual unit time). 3. Take the average time it takes your group to assemble one unit and multiply it by 100 units. Calculate the expected time it will take your group to assemble 100 units.
ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECT / ASSEMBLY LINE ACTIVITIES © 2006 PRAKKEN PUBLICATIONS, INC.
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production
Mass Production Activity 1 Worksheet 1. Time it took to assemble 10 units First time __________ Second time ________
2. Average time it took to assemble 10 units ________ First time + ________ Second time = ________ ÷ 2 = __________ (average)
3. Time to complete 1 unit (individual unit time) Average ______ ÷ 10 = _________ individual unit time
4. Expected time to assemble 100 units Individual unit time _________ × 100 = __________
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production Mass Production Activity 1 Questions Answer the following questions in complete sentences. 1. Did you meet or beat your expected time to complete 100 units? Why did or didn’t your group meet the expected time?
2. Was the expectation of completion time realistic? Why or why not?
3. Were there any production slow downs and what caused them?
4. Was your job getting boring? Why or why not?
5. Was another student’s production speed frustrating anyone?
6. List five ways an employer could keep employees from being bored by doing mass production. a. b. c. d. e.
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production
Mass Production Activity 2 Student Instructions 1. This time your group will assemble a truck in a mass production line. 2. Complete as many trucks as your group can in 30 minutes. Switch jobs every 10 minutes. 3. Before starting, each student will choose to color, cut, and fold one of the following parts. The truck should be assembled in the order shown. Hood and front fenders Cab Box Bed liner Wheels 4. Each student must determine how much time he will spend coloring his part, keeping in mind that he must also cut, fold, and assemble it with glue without slowing down the assembly line. 5. Remember, quality also counts. You may want to a have a group conference before starting. 6. Groups may rough cut and stack 10 truck patterns before starting assembly.
ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECT / ASSEMBLY LINE ACTIVITIES © 2006 PRAKKEN PUBLICATIONS, INC.
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production
Mass Production Activity 2 Questions Answer the following questions in complete sentences. 1. How many trucks did your group complete in 15 minutes?
2. Did switching jobs make the mass production any less boring? Why or why not?
3. How much time was lost when switching jobs?
4. What did your group talk about while assembling the trucks?
5. Would you like to work on a factory assembly line? Why or why not?
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Assembly Line Activities Introduce Mass Production—Truck Pattern Tab
Roberts’ Wagon
Cab
Don’t color this square.
Tab
Tab
K
Tab Wheel location
4x4
Don’t color this square.
4x4
Don’t color this square.
ROBERTS
Tab Tab
Don’t color this square.
Box
Hood and front fenders
Tab
Bed liner Tab Note: Don’t color any tab.
Wheels ON-DEMAND CLASSROOM PROJECT / ASSEMBLY LINE ACTIVITIES © 2006 PRAKKEN PUBLICATIONS, INC.
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