Introducing Optimization in Elementary Education: a Precursor to Multibody Dynamics (Resource Exchange)

Joselyn Busato; Elif Miskioglu; Kaela Martin; Davide Guzzetti

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Conference: 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Publication Date: August 23, 2022
Start Date: June 26, 2022
End Date: June 29, 2022
Conference Session: PCEE Session 4: Resource / Curriculum Exchange
Page Count: 3
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--40483
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/40483
Download Count: 194

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Paper Authors

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Joselyn Busato

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Undergraduate Student
Bucknell Class of 2024

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Elif Miskioglu Bucknell University

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I am an early-career engineering education scholar and educator. I hold a B.S. in Chemical Engineering (with Genetics minor) from Iowa State University, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from The Ohio State University. My early Ph.D. work focused on the development of bacterial biosensors capable of screening pesticides for specifically targeting the malaria vector mosquito, Anopheles gambiae. As a result, my diverse background also includes experience in infectious disease and epidemiology, providing crucial exposure to the broader context of engineering problems and their subsequent solutions.

These diverse experiences and a growing passion for improving engineering education prompted me to change career paths and become a scholar of engineering education. As an educator, I am committed to challenging my students to uncover new perspectives and dig deeper into the context of the societal problems engineering is intended to solve. As a scholar, I seek to not only contribute original theoretical research to the field, but work to bridge the theory-to-practice gap in engineering education by serving as an ambassador for empirically driven educational practices.

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Kaela Martin Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University - Prescott

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Kaela Martin is an Associate Professor of Aerospace Engineering at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott Campus. She holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University, a B.S. in Mathematics from Iowa State University, and a M.S. and Ph.D. in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering from Purdue University. Her research focuses on bridging the theory-to-practice gap in engineering education through new educational techniques.

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Davide Guzzetti

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Since 2019, Dr. Davide Guzzetti is an assistant professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Auburn University. Dr. Guzzetti’s research focus is astrodynamics and space mission design in complex space environments. He obtained a PhD in astrodynamics from Purdue University in 2016, and he holds a Master degree in space engineering from Politecnico di Milano, Italy. He is also an alumnus of the Italian honor society Alta Scuola Politecnica.

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Abstract

In preparation of the NASA Artemis mission to the Moon, our team has created a series of multi-body dynamics modules for undergraduates on trajectory design to meet the increasing need for expertise in this area. Additionally, we have created a complementary outreach activity targeted at elementary students to introduce them to key concepts relevant to both mission design specifically and engineering broadly. Optimization, the process of creating the most effective design under given conditions and constraints is important throughout engineering. For example, the trajectory of a spacecraft may be optimized to achieve the greatest distance with the least fuel consumption. Beyond space exploration, optimization is a useful topic to introduce to pre-college students that may not be included in their current curriculum. Optimization can be seen not only in engineering fields, but also marketing, architecture, medicine, and computer science. In this activity, participants can observe and experiment with the effects of optimization utilizing common household items. The targeted audience for this activity is elementary school students, specifically in third or fourth grade. The activity is appropriately simple to construct, uses common items, and takes less than a half hour to complete. The goal of the participant is to create a structure that can hold the most weight within the constraints of their given materials - the first trial using a sheet of paper, and then aluminum foil in the second trial - before it sinks in a bucket of water. After floating their boat on the surface of the water, participants place quarters inside their vessel and keep a tally of how many it can hold before sinking. From there, they examine the flaws and strengths of their first structure and attempt to create a more effective design in the second trial, using the foil. The process of placing quarters in the boat is repeated, and participants observe if they were successful in creating a vessel that can hold more weight. By observing the differences in how each material behaves on the water and the amount of weight that each can hold, participants are able to see that certain tools and materials are better suited for specific tasks than others.

Citation
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Busato, J., & Miskioglu, E., & Martin, K., & Guzzetti, D. (2022, August), Introducing Optimization in Elementary Education: a Precursor to Multibody Dynamics (Resource Exchange) Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--40483

TY - CPAPER
AB - In preparation of the NASA Artemis mission to the Moon, our team has created a series of multi-body dynamics modules for undergraduates on trajectory design to meet the increasing need for expertise in this area. Additionally, we have created a complementary outreach activity targeted at elementary students to introduce them to key concepts relevant to both mission design specifically and engineering broadly. Optimization, the process of creating the most effective design under given conditions and constraints is important throughout engineering. For example, the trajectory of a spacecraft may be optimized to achieve the greatest distance with the least fuel consumption. Beyond space exploration, optimization is a useful topic to introduce to pre-college students that may not be included in their current curriculum. Optimization can be seen not only in engineering fields, but also marketing, architecture, medicine, and computer science. In this activity, participants can observe and experiment with the effects of optimization utilizing common household items.
The targeted audience for this activity is elementary school students, specifically in third or fourth grade. The activity is appropriately simple to construct, uses common items, and takes less than a half hour to complete. The goal of the participant is to create a structure that can hold the most weight within the constraints of their given materials - the first trial using a sheet of paper, and then aluminum foil in the second trial - before it sinks in a bucket of water. After floating their boat on the surface of the water, participants place quarters inside their vessel and keep a tally of how many it can hold before sinking. From there, they examine the flaws and strengths of their first structure and attempt to create a more effective design in the second trial, using the foil. The process of placing quarters in the boat is repeated, and participants observe if they were successful in creating a vessel that can hold more weight. By observing the differences in how each material behaves on the water and the amount of weight that each can hold, participants are able to see that certain tools and materials are better suited for specific tasks than others.
AU - Joselyn Busato
AU - Elif Miskioglu
AU - Kaela Martin
AU - Davide Guzzetti
CY - Minneapolis, MN
DA - 2022/08/23
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Introducing Optimization in Elementary Education: a Precursor to Multibody Dynamics (Resource Exchange)
UR - https://peer.asee.org/40483
DO - 10.18260/1-2--40483
ER -