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Welcome to Week 4 Physics!
This week you are learning review Ohm's Law and learning how Electrician's apply it. You will be an Electrician that has been hired by Coasterville to wire their new rollercoaster ride. Your goal is to create and build a circuit that could be used for a roller coaster using series and parallel resistors in the most efficient way possible. The circuits are the foundation of the roller coaster's electrical wiring and the owner of the amusement park is concerned about using the best choice for a circuit design.
Overview
Overview
Audience
Your audience will be the amusement park owner and the Coasterville Board of Directors. The owner will need to be convinced that your prototype is the most efficient choice in order to build the new roller coaster for Coasterville. You will need to also write a persuasive letter to the owner and the Coasterville Board of Directors to persuade them as to why your circuit design is the most efficient.
Situation
Roller coasters are considered the "scream machines" of amusement parks. They are the rides with the longest lines and the quickest run. What most people don't know is that these speed driven machines have no engine! They are powered through the internal electric circuit designs as well as friction and compression. In this task, you will be working to create the most efficient circuit design and a circuit prototype in order to power the roller coaster. The foundation of a roller coaster is the circuits on which it is built. These circuits are essential in order for the electricity to flow through and power the roller coaster. The electricity flows through resistors in order to effectively power the roller coaster. This is an important aspect to remember when creating your circuit. Electricity is a type of energy that is fueled by charged particles such as electrons and protons in one of two ways, statically by gathering charge or dynamically as a current. Voltage, current, and resistance are related through Ohm's Law which states that the current through a conductor between two given points is directly proportional to the potential difference (voltage) across the two points. In this task, you must create a circuit design and present it to the amusement park owner in order to prove that your circuit design is the best choice for his roller coaster. You will need to be able to defend why your circuit design is the most efficient choice. You will also write a letter to the owner with your circuit diagram and the explanation of why your design will work most efficiently. The amusement park owner will need to use your information to communicate ideas with their board of directors.
Step 1: Review
Step 1: Review
Before you pick your product, spend about 30 minutes today reviewing Ohm's Law and how to create a circuit diagram. To the left you will find videos to support your learning.Below are some review questions to guide your note taking.
What is Ohm's Law?
Write down the equation to Ohm's Law and label each variable.
What is a circuit?
What are the symbols you need to know in order to draw a model?
What is a series circuit? What is a parallel circuit?
What is the difference between a series and parallel circuit?
Step 2: Research & Choose a Product
Step 2: Research & Choose a Product
Below are the three products you can choose to create. There is a description of each task and the rubric above it. In order to develop your product you will need to do some research to inform your design. Read through the articles and watch videos to learn more about rollercoasters and feel free to look for additional resources to support your learning. If you need some guidance for your research, there are guiding questions after the resources.
Resources
Resources
Video: The Physics of Rollercoasters
Article 1: NY Times- Rollercoaster Design
Article 2: World's Biggest Rollercoaster
Article 3: How Rollercoasters work
Research Questions
Research Questions
Circuit Diagram
Circuit Diagram
How does the roller coaster design impact the design of the circuit?
How will you place the resistors and why?
Why did you choose those values?
What are the values of resistors?
Sales Pitch Demonstration
Sales Pitch Demonstration
What are some important considerations for creating your circuit?
Why did you choose the resistors and values and why did you place them where you did?
Why is your design the best and most efficient?
Persuasive Letter
Persuasive Letter
What are some important considerations for creating your circuit?
How does the roller coaster design impact the circuit?
Why is your design the best?
Where will you place the resistor in the circuit design, and why?
Circuit Diagram
Circuit Diagram
You must create a circuit diagram in order to demonstrate your circuit design to the owner and the Board of Directors of Coasterville. Specifically, you need a minimum of 5 resistors. In your diagram, you must include the values of the resistors, why you chose those values, and the reason you chose to place them the way you did. Also, calculate the change in energy from one system to the next as the change in energy happens from one resistor (component) to the next.
Sales Pitch Demonstration
Sales Pitch Demonstration
You must create a sales pitch and demonstration in order to show how your design works. This persuasive presentation should convince the owner and Coasterville’s Board of Directors that your circuit design is the most efficient. You should explain why you chose the resistors and values and why you placed them at various locations in the circuit design to maximize the movement of the roller coaster.
Persuasive Letter
Persuasive Letter
You must create a persuasive letter in order to communicate how your design works. This letter should also convince the owner and Coasterville’s Board of Directors that your circuit design is the most efficient. In your letter, you should explain why you chose the resistors and values and why you placed them at various locations in circuit design. Your explanation should show an in-depth understanding of the design problem and all the factors involved in creating the best solution.
Step 3: Design & Create
Step 3: Design & Create
Brainstorm Ideas
Brainstorm Ideas
It's time to think about product development. You will begin with ideation, which is the start of the creative process. During the ideation phase, you will brainstorm with your group about all the potential ways you could approach this product. Remember, the more creative and innovative your ideas are at this stage, the better! Your group will need to check and make sure that each of your initial ideas are meeting the requirements related to the goal, audience and product description. What are the directions or criteria that need to be followed? Who is your audience and what will they need from this product?
Analyze & Decide
Analyze & Decide
As you discuss the possibilities during your brainstorming, you will narrow the ideas down to those that seem like they would best solve the problem or address the challenge. Once you have narrowed down to two or three ideas, grab some paper and a pencil and make an outline or sketch a plan for each one. What will the product need to include? How will you best use the information that you found in your research to create it? What would the product look like based upon each idea?
After outlining your product ideas. Discuss with your group and decide on ONE that you would like to move forward with. When you have selected one idea, you will move on to the creation phase, keeping in mind that you may go through several rounds of creation and revision before you are ready to present.
Create & Revise
Create & Revise
It is possible that while you are creating the first version of your product, you will develop more questions that need to be answered before you can continue. If so, you may need to do additional research. Reflect on how any new information affects your product and make revisions as needed.
Your group should also be looking at the rubric during the creation phase. Here, you can practice thinking critically and collaborating with your peers to understand what needs to be included in your product. Then, you should reflect on whether or not your initial work meets those criteria. If you realize that it does not, you may need to go back and make additional revisions.
As you work through the process of creating and revising your product, communication with your teacher and classmates will be very valuable. Asking for help and discussing your product with others can help you clarify whether or not your product meets the goal of the task and is appropriate for the audience.
Remember, creating this product is a fun opportunity to apply what you have learned about important topics in a more creative and independent way.
Step 4: Reflect
Step 4: Reflect
Congratulations - You finished! Now take some time to reflect on the process. Look at the questions below to guide your reflection.
What classroom content did you use to create your products and solve the issue/challenge?
What skills did you use (21st century skills) to work through the task and finish the project?
What problems did you encounter while you were working on this task? How did you solve them?
What did you learn were your greatest strengths? Your biggest areas for improvement?
What part of your work are you most proud of? What would you do differently next time? Why?
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