Technology and the Diversity of Limits

You just solved a problem for Jason and Sam. Solving problems can be fun. Think about other problems you could solve. Maybe you want to invent a new way to clear the dishes off the dinner table. Maybe you keep losing things and want to find a better way to keep track of them. Or maybe your backpack is too heavy, like the one in figure 7, and you want to find a new way to carry it. How would you come up with a solution? Would your process count as doing technology?

Figure 7: What if your backpack were too heavy? What kind of solution could you come up with to help you carry it?

You will learn more about doing technology as you proceed through this Explain activity. You will also learn more about people who do technology. In the end, you might have some new ideas about technology and the problems you can solve. Materials

1. Set up your technology notebook to start this new activity. Hint

2. Obtain a set of Process of Technology Design cards from your teacher. Each card shows a different stage in the process of technology design.

3. In the Explore activity, you listed some things you thought people who do technology might do at work. Now read All in a Day’s Work to learn more about one person who does technology in her job. As you read the scenario, try to match what she is doing with the stages shown on the Process of Technology Design cards.

   All in a Day’s Work

   Traci Morgan (see figure 8) is an engineer. She does technology every day in her job. Morgan works to help food and drink companies make their products. She helps the companies figure out the best way to design their factories to make the food and drinks. She also makes sure that all the equipment works the right way.

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     Traci Morgan

     Figure 8: Traci Morgan is an engineer. She does technology every day in her job.

   Traci Morgan describes engineering as “helping people solve problems.” To do this, she has to look at problems in a different way. It is similar to being a private investigator. She has to work with clients to figure out what the problem is. Then she has to think of different ways to solve that problem.

   Sometimes Morgan helps companies make a brand-new product. Other times she helps them figure out how to make a product more efficiently. Think about someone making a cake in the kitchen. It might take an hour to make the cake. Now, imagine if the person had to make 500 cakes in an hour! What do you think could be done to help the person make the cakes more quickly?

   There are a number of steps that you would have to consider to make 500 cakes:

   • Decide where you will get the ingredients.
   • Determine how you will get the ingredients into the mixing bowl.
   • Specify how long you need to mix the ingredients.
   • Determine how you get the batter into the pans.
   • Determine how you cook the batter in the pans.
   • Determine how you take the baked cakes out of the pans and cool them down.
   • Decide how to wrap the cakes and get them to the store.

   In engineering, it takes several steps to solve any problem. The problem does not have to be about cakes. It could be about switching lights on and off, making toothbrushes, or bottling drinks. The next time you visit a grocery store, pick out an item and think about the steps that are needed to make it. How does it get packaged? How many people might be involved?

   To help you think about the steps that it takes to make a product, read about what Morgan does in her job. One client that Morgan has worked with has a factory that bottles drinks, such as the ones in figure 9. The factory was new, so Morgan first had to figure out how to get the drinks bottled. She had to discuss the problem that the client needed to solve to make sure she understood what needed to be done. Then she had to go to the factory to do her work. Her next job was to figure out how to help the factory get the drinks in the bottles as quickly as possible. To do this, she had to consider several steps. At each step, she had to think about different ways to make sure the equipment worked correctly.

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     Ray Cunningham

     Figure 9: How many steps do you think are involved in bottling these drinks?

   Once the equipment was in place in the factory, Morgan had to make sure it worked correctly. She decided to run water through all the pipes to check for leaks. She didn’t want to have any waste.

   Next, she had to make sure all the pipes were clean. It is important that nothing else get into the drinks. She ran a soap solution through all the pipes to wash them. After that, she used water to remove all the soap from the pipes.

   The next step was to take water samples. By doing this, Morgan could make sure that she washed the pipes long enough. She could also make sure that no soap solution was left in the pipes.

   After these steps, the equipment was ready for the drinks. All these steps just to get the drinks in the bottles! Morgan’s job was not finished, however. There were still steps to be taken to get the drinks into their final packages. What other steps would you have to think about to get the drinks ready for the store?

   Once the drinks were bottled, Morgan worked with the client to make sure the results were satisfactory. She and the client talked about whether the equipment worked well. They talked about how quickly the drinks were being bottled. They also made sure that all the drinks tasted right.

   Finally, Traci wrote a report on what she had done. That way, other engineers could see the work she did.

4. The stages of technology design follow an orderly pattern. Based on the scenario, put the Process of Technology Design cards in an order that would make sense.

5. Read The Process of Technology to help you put the cards in the correct order. If you need to, you can rearrange the cards as you read.

   The Process of Technology

   People who do technology try to find solutions to problems. Sometimes they try to prevent problems from happening. These people include engineers, scientists, architects, and designers.

   As you went through this chapter, you saw some examples of technology. Contact lenses, factory equipment, and a tool for turning a light switch on and off are all types of technology. What is technology, then? Technology is anything that helps people solve problems. Hint

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     Figure 10: Contact lens. Contact lenses are an example of technology. They solve the problem of not being able to see well. To solve this problem, contacts extend the limits of a person’s vision.

   Technology can help people change their limits. For example, some people wear glasses or contact lenses, like the contacts in Figure 10. These devices allow people to change the limits of how well they see. In the Explain activity, you designed a solution that changed Sam’s limits. You extended his reach so he could turn the light switch on and off.

   When people do technology, they are using the information they have to solve problems. They might do this by developing a tool that changes human limits. Doing technology can also be called engineering.

   Scientists, engineers, and other people who do technology have a process they follow to solve problems. First, they have to identify the problem. People who do technology need a clear idea of what problem they want to solve.

   Next, people who do technology come up with ideas about how to solve the problem. It is important to come up with several possible ways to solve the problem. Engineers have to consider many factors. They have to think about cost, materials, time, space, and safety. What is the next stage? Each idea they come up with must be carefully tested. Each plan is drawn or written down, which makes it easier to explain the ideas to others.

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     Bureau of Land Management / New Mexico

     Figure 11: Engineers must evaluate their solutions. To do this, they collect data, or evidence.

   Engineers and designers carry out each idea and see how well each one works. They evaluate the pros and cons for each idea to see which one provides the best solution. To do this, engineers collect data, or evidence, as in figure 11. They analyze the evidence and ask questions about how well each idea worked. From this process one idea will be the best one for solving the problem.

   The final stage of the process of doing technology is to share the results. Sharing information is important in science and engineering. People who do technology write or tell about their own process. They communicate with words, pictures, and diagrams. They tell people about the problem and how they solved it. They also share how the solution works and whether they did anything to make it work better.

   Sometimes even a good design might not work. Were all students in your class successful with their designs in the Explore activity? Solving one problem might create another problem. For example, imagine a factory. Maybe the factory has new equipment that helps it make its products more quickly. But when the new equipment is running, the engineers and designers find out that the factory produces a lot more pollution. Now they must plan a solution to a new problem, and the design process starts all over again.

6. Draw a diagram in your technology notebook to show how you ordered the stages shown on the Process of Technology Design cards. Next to each stage, make a brief note about what a person would do during that stage.

7. Work on your own in this step. Think about this process for solving problems. In your technology notebook, write a few sentences describing whether you think this is a good way to solve problems. Explain your answer.

8. Discuss with your partner your ideas about the process of doing technology. Use the following steps to help you discuss your ideas.

   1. Share your ideas with your partner by reading your answer to Step 7. Do not add any additional explanation.
   2. Ask your partner for advice on how you could improve your answer.
   3. Work by yourself to revise your answer based on your partner’s feedback. Remember to think about whether the advice was good. You do not have to make all the changes that your partner suggested if you disagree with your partner’s advice. Make any changes in a different-colored pen or pencil. Hint

9. The strategy you used in Steps 7 and 8 is called the Think-Share-Advise-Revise (TSAR) strategy. Read How to Use the Think-Share-Advise-Revise Strategy to learn more about it.

10. You may be interested in learning about another example of doing technology. If so, read the sidebar The LEGO Group’s Success Story. As you read, try to identify each stage of the technology design process. Sidebar

11. Participate in a class discussion about the steps in the process of doing technology.