In the morning, Garret directed the students to a fluid experiment. The experiment involves filling a tube up with water, and then draining the water with a hole on the bottom of the tube. The goal of the experiment is to figure out how fast the water flows through the tube by using modeling techniques.
First, the students observed the behavior of the experiment. For example, the liquid seems to flow faster at first, and then gradually slows down when the water level reach the bottom of the tube. Based upon these observations, the flow of the tube is then modeled with the Vin Sim software with an exponential fit. The data were collected by groups of students with parameters of how high the initial water level was, and then how fast did it take for the water to drain.
The fitted model seem to be a bit off, when it is applied to predict new information about the experiment. Garret then proceeded to use conservation of energy to derive a new model based upon a differential equation with the difference proportional to the square root of the initial hight, rather than just directly proportional. Using the new model, students predicted a few test cases, for example, given the amount of the time it takes for the water to drain, how high should the water level be.
In the afternoon students practiced using the Agent Sheet software. The inspiration came from a model of predator prey behavior on Shodor's Interactivate website. With instruction, the students practiced building the basic levels of the model, by including the prey (rabbits), as well as the food for the prey (grass).
The Agent Sheet software involves using objects, known as agents to perform actions. There important aspects of programming involved in using the software, includes input and output variables, if statements, "and" "or" logic operators, and loops, which were run after each "turn".