Forces of Flight
Project
THE PLAN: This week we will combine what we learned about gravity,
friction and pressure to create airplanes that fly really far. We will build and test-fly White wings
airplanes, record flight times, observe flight patterns and make necessary
adjustments to our planes. We will then
conduct final flights and report our results.
THE PURPOSE: This project will help us to link what we’ve learned in class
about forces and motion to the flight of the airplane. It will also require us to apply the same
processes that scientists do to solve problems and design effective
solutions.
THE PROCESS: These are the steps that we will follow in order to reach our
final goal:
1) Review
elements of technological design, scale and ratio.
2) Complete
forces and flight vocabulary.
3) View
video: Understanding Flight
4) Assemble
White wings airplanes in pairs.
5) Test-fly
planes, recording flight times and observations.
6) Make
necessary adjustments to airplanes.
7) Complete
final flights and flight reports.
THE PRODUCT: ALL PRODUCTS ARE DUE MONDAY, OCTOBER 20.
Provide your best effort, stay focused and create a smooth flying
machine! The farthest flying planes will
be displayed in Mr. Martella’s room. See the back side of this sheet for your scoring
guide.
PROJECT SCORING GUIDE
|
Process and Product |
Points |
|
The
final product indicates successful application of technological design. 1
2 3 4
5 6 7
8 9 10 |
|
|
The
final product and process used to get there indicated the desired
understanding of the forces of flight.
1
2 3 4
5 6 7 8
9 10 |
|
|
The
student correctly followed instructions in the assembly and flying of his/her
airplane. 1
2 3 4
5 6 7
8 9 10 |
|
|
All
parts of the assignment were presented on time and completed to the best of
the student’s ability. 1
2 3 4
5 6 7
8 9 10 |
|
|
The
student collaborated successfully with his/her partner towards a common
goal. 1
2 3 4
5 6 7
8 9 10 |
|
|
total |
50 |
TECHNOLOGICAL DESIGN
WHAT IS THE
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE?
Technology
and science have a special relationship.
We apply what we know about the world around us and modify what we build
to meet our needs and desires.
New technologies
are not invented or perfected on the first try.
They do not move from concept to reality in two simple steps. Take the common household cleaner 409, for instance. It got its name from the number of tries that
it took its inventor to get the formula right.
Yes—he tried, and failed 408 times before creating a successful
product!
This
exemplifies the need for a reliable, repeatable process for scientific
experimentation. This process is
commonly referred to as technological
design. The steps of technological
design are:
1. Identify and describe the problem.
2. Propose a solution to the problem (form a
hypothesis).
3. Construct the solution to the problem and
test it.
4. Evaluate the results of the test (explain
conclusions).
5. Report the results to the scientific
community.
In order to
successfully complete this project you will need to understand and apply these
steps of technological design.
Understand, as you experiment, that this is the same process followed by
scientists, engineers and others around the world.
Scale
Obviously,
it is impossible for us to build real airplanes to test the forces of flight in
our science class. Likewise, it is
difficult for scientists to test or explain results of some experiments without
“shrinking” things to a size that is more appropriate. We will be creating scale models of airplanes
to test the forces of flight.
A scale
model is a representation or copy of an object that is larger or smaller
than the actual size of the object. Very often the scale model is smaller than
the original and used as a guide to making the object in full size. Scale is
often represented as a ratio (such
as 1:64). Scale models are built or collected for many
reasons.
Professional
model makers often create models for the below professions:
- For engineers who require scale
models to test the likely performance of a particular design at an early
stage of development without incurring the full expense of a full-sized
prototype.
- For architects who require
architectural models to evaluate and sell the look of a new construction
before it is built.
- For filmmakers who require scale
models of objects or sets that cannot be built in full size.
- For salesmen who require scale
models to promote new products such as heavy equipment and automobiles and
other vehicles.*