Explorations In Engineering: The Daredevil Design Project

In any engineering endeavor, time is spent building a model, and testing that model to ensure that it is an accurate representation of the final product. So far, you have built and tested a model of the Daredevil Design Project, and now you need to know if the data you found will accurately predict future events using the ramp.

This is where the applets ProMotion or JavaScript ProMotion and DataFlyer come into play.

We will first use the DataFlyer applet to determine a relationship between the height from which the marble is dropped (H) and the distance from the origin (X₁) that the marble lands.

Open the DataFlyer applet and enter your data (Sample Data) from the Data Table in the Data section in ordered pairs: H, X₁.

When you click the 'Plot Data' button it may not appear that your data has been graphed, but the window is not appropriate for the data. You can either click the 'Auto Scale' check box or use the 'Set Window' button to make appropriate adjustments.

Enter 1.0 * x + 11 into the 'Set Function' box.

You can now use the purple and green slider bars to modify your equation and ultimately minimize the 'Sum of squares of deviations' located above the graph. When this number is minimized the equation on the screen will be the best relationship between drop height and horizontal distance traveled.

We are now ready for our first challenge! Choose a horizontal distance that is somewhere in the middle of your data. For this data 100 cm was our target distance. Record this value in the X₁ box on your Data Table:

Now use the relationship found in DataFlyer to predict what height (H) will cause the marble to land on your target. You can use the black slider bar to move the point along the line until the second value in the data point is close to your target distance and record the corresponding height.

Now it is time to test your prediction! Measure distance X₁ from your origin and create a visual target in line with where the other marbles have landed. Now measure height, H, from the table and mark where to drop the marble. See what group has the most accurate prediction before moving on to the next challenge, getting a marble in a raised target.