Trebuchet
communication
* during this stage we were in contact with Claudia and other engineers in Paraguay talking about the next upcoming fair, and the experiments needed to fit their criteria (sometimes it would be more chemistry, sometimes it would be more physics or biology)
* we would also talk about location of fair, (time and travel distance effects the experiments we would create)
(for this example, we were asked to create something that accurately represents a good physics experiments but also incorporated gravity as the little kids were learning about that)
* during this stage we were in contact with Claudia and other engineers in Paraguay talking about the next upcoming fair, and the experiments needed to fit their criteria (sometimes it would be more chemistry, sometimes it would be more physics or biology)
* we would also talk about location of fair, (time and travel distance effects the experiments we would create)
(for this example, we were asked to create something that accurately represents a good physics experiments but also incorporated gravity as the little kids were learning about that)
brainstorming ideas
* during this stage we (and most of the time Mr. VK) sat together and brainstormed different kinds of science experiments that went along with the guidelines
* this is where we would use our resources (and many many brainstorming webs/flowcharts)
* we would go through hours of brainstorming before choosing the right experiments we wanted to send
(for this example we chose a catapult/trebuchet, which perfectly represents physics and gravity)
* during this stage we (and most of the time Mr. VK) sat together and brainstormed different kinds of science experiments that went along with the guidelines
* this is where we would use our resources (and many many brainstorming webs/flowcharts)
* we would go through hours of brainstorming before choosing the right experiments we wanted to send
(for this example we chose a catapult/trebuchet, which perfectly represents physics and gravity)
making experimental procedures
* during this stage we would have to research experimental procedures from the resources Mr. VK gave us
* we then, would learn the experiment ourselves so we could fully explain it to anyone who had confusion
* after that, we would make our own procedure as simple as possible
(for this example the trebuchet procedure were very complicated, it took us two weeks to make our own and create an online sketch to send)
* during this stage we would have to research experimental procedures from the resources Mr. VK gave us
* we then, would learn the experiment ourselves so we could fully explain it to anyone who had confusion
* after that, we would make our own procedure as simple as possible
(for this example the trebuchet procedure were very complicated, it took us two weeks to make our own and create an online sketch to send)
sending for approval
* during this stage we sent the experiments over to Paraguay with a description of what we think would work and what we were unsure about
* they would look over our blueprints and respond with feedback (it is very hard for them to get some materials that we don't know about so this is where we would get emails with what we need to change so they could actually complete the experiments successfully)
(for this example, they didn't have some spacers, and connecting things)
* during this stage we sent the experiments over to Paraguay with a description of what we think would work and what we were unsure about
* they would look over our blueprints and respond with feedback (it is very hard for them to get some materials that we don't know about so this is where we would get emails with what we need to change so they could actually complete the experiments successfully)
(for this example, they didn't have some spacers, and connecting things)
adjusting from feedback/ materials, measurements, scaling
*during this stage we would read the emails or have the google hangout information for what to fix and we would fix it
* it was very hard for us sometimes to find replacements for things that were hard to get
(for this example, the spacers holding the trebuchet together we decided to use skateboard wheels because we learned many skateboards were available in Paraguay, also we had to scale down the trebuchet because they couldn't carry it in the car with the measurements we gave them.)
*** keep in mind every experiment we sent had to be converted to their units of measurements
sending for one last approval
* during this stage we sent the next draft of our lab reports and would wait to see what final things we would have to touch
* they would respond telling us that everything was okay, or we would have to fix a few more things
* sometimes they also just needed clarification of some things (the language barrier was huge in this)
* during this stage we sent the next draft of our lab reports and would wait to see what final things we would have to touch
* they would respond telling us that everything was okay, or we would have to fix a few more things
* sometimes they also just needed clarification of some things (the language barrier was huge in this)
adjusting if need be, final touches
* ^according to the previous step we would adjust as necessary
(for this example, we had to clarify the final building steps of the trebuchet because they couldn't really understand the last part)
receiving proof of completed projects
* during this stage, we would receive pictures they would send to us to show their version of our experiments before they would bring it to the fair