June’s
Curriculum
2014-2015
SHPE Jr. Chapter Engineering Competitions*
FIRST Robotics Competition: http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/frc
FIRST Tech Challenge: http://www.usfirst.org/roboticsprograms/ftc
Google Science Fair: https://www.googlesciencefair.com/
Intel International Science and Engineering Fair:
http://www.intel.com/about/corporateresponsibility/education/isef/index.htm
MIT THINK scholars program: http://think.mit.edu/
National Youth Cyber Defense Competition: http://www.uscyberpatriot.org/
Northrup Grumman High School Innovation Challenge:
http://www.northropgrumman.com/CorporateResponsibility/CorporateCitizenship/Education/HSIC/Pages/default.
aspx
REAL world design challenge: http://www.realworlddesignchallenge.org/index.php
Siemens Competition in Math, Science & Technology: http://siemens.collegeboard.org/
TEAMS (Tests of Engineering Aptitude, Mathematics and Science): http://teams.tsaweb.org
Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVision Science Competition: http://www.exploravision.org/
*Further information on the above Engineering Competitions, other competitions and resources are
available online at http://www.shpefoundation.org/shpejr/shpe-jr-chapter-curriculum/ under June
2015
SHPE Jr. Chapter Engineering Competitions Table
Contest
Format
Eligibility
Application timeline
Prize
MIT THINK
Scholars Program
Students submit project
proposals for any field of
science, tech, or engineering.
Finalists are funded to build
out their projects.
Teams of 1-2 students
enrolled in public,
private or home school.
Students must be U.S.
residents.
Applications begin in fall
thru the end of the year.
Scholarships of $500-$1000, plus $2000 to build
project and mentorship from MIT students.
Finalists get a paid trip to MIT.
FIRST Robotics
Competition
Large-group teams raise
funds, design a brand, and
build a robot to compete
against their competitors’
robots.
Teams of any size
(average is 25) plus two
adults.
Registration opens in
May, first event is in
Sept. Some grants are
available for
registration.
Scholarships to a variety of sponsoring educational
organizations, ranging from $1,000 to full tuition.
In addition, teams can register to compete for a
variety of awards.
First Tech
Competition
Students build a robot that
competes against robots built
by other teams.
Teams of 1-15 students
in grades 7-12 plus two
adult mentors.
Registration begins in
May, design challenge in
announced in Sept.
Some grants are
available for
registration.
Scholarships to a variety of sponsoring educational
organizations, ranging from $1,000 to $20,000.
Google science
Fair
Science fair, submitted online.
Finalists present at Google in
CA.
Full-time and homeschooled students of
any nationality (except
for students in countries
sanctioned by the U.S.)
between the ages of 14
and 18.
Project submissions are
due in May 2016. Exact
date will be announced
on the website.
Several different awards are given, some require
separate submission. Scholarships and grants
ranging from $5000 - $50,000.
Intel
international
science and
engineering fair
Students participate in
affiliated science fairs and
then must be selected for
participation in the
competition in May.
Students grades 9-12,
teams of 1-3. Students
must adhere to ethics
rules outlined on the
website, based on their
research topic.
Students should
participate in affiliated
science fairs during the
2015-2016 school year.
Cash and grant awards from $100 to $75,000
June 2015 Jr. Chapter STEM Activity
Design from Nature: Biomimcry
Some simple advice:
• Be prepared. Test-drive the activity beforehand.
• Have all the required materials on hand.
• Keep students on track.
• Keep an eye on the clock and follow the time
frame.
• Be flexible and creative.
• Have fun!
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Goal:
Students think about some designs that have evolved in nature to solve
certain problems. They consider how biomimicry might offer solutions to a
problem in their community. They then make two drawings of their design
from two different visual perspectives, and present their drawings to the
larger group.
Engineering/STEM areas:
Materials science, engineering design, biomimcry
Learning objectives
•
Understand what biomimicry is
•
Understand how engineers use nature to inspire design that can
address issues in the community
•
Practice presenting ideas to others in the form of a poster
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Time:
45 - 60 mins
Suggested group size:
Pairs
Materials:
•
•
•
•
•
Student Resource Sheets (in lesson)
Student Worksheets (in lesson)
Paper or poster board for each pair, large enough for pairs to show their
drawings to the larger group. (See Instructor Resource for suggested ways pairs
can display their work)
Drawing pens or pencils for each pair, with a variety of colors
Tape (if you’ll be taping drawings to walls for a gallery walk)
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Before the activity:
•
Read through both the student and instructor resources so you have the
background information
•
Research and write a paragraph about a situation in your community that could
be addressed with a biomimicry engineering solution.
•
Decide how you want students to display their work and get paper or tagboard
of an appropriate size
•
Make enough copies of the Student Resource so that each student has one
•
Make one copy of the Student Worksheet per group, plus a few extras
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Engineers can learn from solutions
found in nature.
Biomimicry is the practice of looking at
solutions that have evolved in nature and
using them as inspiration for ways to solve
problems in our human world.
Most of the time, nature relies on solutions
that are sustainable, resilient, and which
use resources efficiently. Engineers can
try to transfer those qualities to an
engineering solution. If they succeed, they
create a project that’s highly desirable
because it can save money and resources
while accomplishing a complex task.
The Eastgate center in Harare, Zimbabwe, is
modeled on the structure of termite towers. The
towers contain tiny vents that the termites open
and close, maintaining a constant temperature
inside. Engineers used a similar idea to create a
passive cooling system for the Eastgate center.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Engineers can be inspired by a single feature
of an organism, or by an entire system.
Ever notice how a mosquito can bite you without
you even knowing it? Engineers studied the
mosquito’s stealth jab to design needles that offer
a less painful poke.
Entire ecosystems can inspire solutions,
too. Agricultural engineers are learning
from the midwestern prairie ecosystem
how to create farm fields don’t require
fertilizers and pesticides, but still yield
the same amount of food. Farmers and
engineers in other climates can learn
from these solutions about how parts of
their own farm ecosystems are
interconnected.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Activity procedure
•
Start the discussion by asking students to think of things that happen in nature that would
also be nice if humans could do them. If necessary, give examples like insects flying really
fast or plants harnessing the sun’s energy.
•
Explain that engineers look at nature all the time for inspiration and for efficient solutions to
problems. Nature is a good place to look for solutions because natural systems evolve to
use resources efficiently and to withstand and adapt to environmental pressures.
•
Introduce the example of the Eastgate Center as biomimicry in architecture and go over the
information in the Student Resource.
•
Then introduce the issue in your community (or in the current news headlines or even a
current movie). This issue could be a systemic problem, such as building a new water
treatment plant, or a more specific issue, such as designing new street lights. Or it could
relate to the natural climate, for example designing a swimming pool that doesn’t evaporate
water in a desert environment, or a car engine heater that will help a car start in a cold,
wintry environment.
•
Ask students for some suggestions of natural phenomena to look at for inspiration.
Examples could be: how a lake ecosystem processes waste from lake animals, how an
electric eel generates electricity, how desert insects protect their insides in the heat, etc.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Activity procedure (cont’d)
•
After hearing some student ideas, group students in pairs and make sure each pair has a
set of drawing utensils and paper, tagboard, or posterboard.
•
If students have access to the internet, give them 10 minutes or so to research their idea
(i.e. to learn how lakes balance the environmental effect of fish waste, etc.). If students don’t
have access to the internet, have some information on hand that they can refer to. (See the
Teacher Resource for ideas about how to choose an issue and background information.)
•
Give student pairs about 20 minutes to devise a solution inspired by the natural world. They
should write a short paragraph describing their example, and make sketches of it from two
different visual perspectives. They can draw their sketches and write their paragraphs
directly onto the paper or tagboard, or they can practice first in the Student Resource.
Remind them that this is just a quick draft, so they don’t need to be perfect, but they need to
be clear enough for others to understand their ideas.
•
Display the posters in a way that works best in your environment. Invite students to do a
gallery walk and look at each pair’s posters. If there are a few minutes at the end, invite
students to ask questions about each other’s posters.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Assessment
•
Students create posters displaying their ideas. The posters need to include:
•
A paragraph describing how the design works and what element of nature
it draws on
•
Drawings of the design from two different visual perspectives
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Vocabulary
•
•
•
•
Adaptation – A strategy or characteristic that an organism has evolved in response to a
pressure from its environment. For example, birds that gather nectar from deep inside a
flower will have long beaks.
Biomimicry – Using the characteristics of living things or natural systems as inspiration
for the design of human-made products or systems.
Nature (natural) – An object or system that has not been created by humans.
Sustainable – Describes an object or system that uses resources in a way that doesn’t
deplete them or change them permanently. A sustainable process is one that can
continue in a cyclical way because it doesn’t significantly alter the environment that
allows the process to go on.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Extensions
•
Using the drawings and ideas they created, tell students to answer the following
questions:
•
Is your solution sustainable? In what way?
•
What problems can you imagine might be created by your idea?
•
How practical is your idea? Could it be manufactured for a reasonable price using
easily obtained materials?
•
Have students research a particular characteristic or adaptation of an animal to learn
how that characteristic comes about. For example, a hummingbird’s super-fast wing
movements or a whale’s ability to hold its breath under water for a long time. Then have
students apply the characteristic they researched to address an issue in the human
world.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Teaching tips
•
If you know your students, take the reins on pairing students with each other. Be mindful
of students who seem to work together well, and those who distract each other. Try to
pair students that have complementary personalities.
•
Circulate around the classroom as students are working and be sure to keep them on
track, answer questions, and encourage students who are less assertive.
•
If a pair of students seems stuck on ideas, give them some hints or point out some
features of an organism that they might give special consideration to.
•
Encourage students to think about their audience (other classmates) as they’re creating
their poster sketches. If something is unclear to you on their poster, let them know and
challenge them to make it clearer.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Takeaways:
•
Humans look for solutions to many of the same problems that nature has solved:
Humans are organisms, and need to solve many of the same problems other organisms
do: access to food and water, protection from the environment, communication with
others of the species, etc.
•
Adaptations found in nature can inspire ideas for many engineered designs:
The mosquito probe can inspire needles, the design of nests, dens, and hives can
inspire architecture, and even the workings of ecosystems can provide examples for
improvement in human systems.
•
Communicating your ideas to others is an important engineering skill:
Being able to share your ideas in a clear and engaging way is an integral part of the
engineering design process.
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Resources and bibliography:
Biomimicry in Engineering
http://tryengineering.org/lessons/biomimicry.pdf
Biomimicry: Nature as Model, Measure, and Mentor
http://tinyurl.com/pyrupa8
Biomimicry Examples
http://biomimicry.org/biomimicry-examples/
Biomimicry Resource Toolkit for K-12 educators:
http://ben.biomimicry.net/curricula-and-resources/youth-curricula/resource-toolkit-for-k-12educators/
Biomimicry for Education:
http://biomimicry.info/index.htm
Design from Nature: Biomimicry
Questions about the activity?
Contact Robin Marks
Discovery Street Science
discoverystreetscience@gmail.com