Program Information

Series: NASA Connect
Program: X-Plane Generation
Segment Number: 2 (Watch entire program)
Duration: 00:02:25
Year Produced: 2000
Description:

NASA Connect segment exploring a web activity involving the design of a scale model. The video involves students in this activity to build, test, and record data according to the web activity.

NASA CONNECT™ is a series of Emmy®-award-winning, math-focused programs. Each program supports the national math, science, and technology standards and has three components that include (1) a 30-minute television broadcast; (2) a companion educator's guide; and (3) an online activity that further explores topics presented in the broadcast. These programs establish a connection between the math, science, and technology concepts taught in the classroom to those same concepts used everyday by NASA researchers.

For more information visit: http://connect.larc.nasa.gov/

Transcript

Well, we sure have seen
and heard a lot
about how proportionality
is used in science.

Now, bringing it
to your computer desktop
is NASA's educational
technology program manager,
Dr. Shelley Canright.

NASA researchers are constantly
testing new technologies
and designs for X-planes,
using everything
from scale models
to full-size flying machines
that carry people.

These researchers evaluate
their designs
by using a basic formula
of building, testing,
and recording the results.

I'd like to introduce
a class of eighth grade students
from Talladaga County
Central High School
in Talladaga, Alabama.

They're undertaking
their own investigation
into scaling
and proportionality,
using a unique
model design challenge
posted at the
NASA Connect website.

Let's see what they're doing.

Welcome to Talladaga County
Central High School,
Talladaga, Alabama.

(girl)
We went to Norbert's Lab
and visited the NASA Langley
Research Center
Kids Corner
Model Shop website.

We reviewed the activity intro,
collected our materials,
and went to work
building the Egret,
a paper airplane model.

We used the Model Shop
extra activity
to build the Egret 2X.

We had to come up with ways
to scale up the design plans,
determine the best materials
to use
to build the model airplanes,
test fly it,
and record the results.

We learned that changing
the scale of a working design
is possible.

Making the model bigger
reveals some design problems
which were fun to solve.

We even planned to increase the
size of the model three times
to see what happens.

We were also able
to find information
about aerospace careers
and to see how NASA uses models
in their research.

Jennifer, as the students
from Talladaga, Alabama,
have learned,
design and testing
with scale models
brings its own set of unique
challenges and questions.

From Norbert's Lab,
viewers can try their hand
at being a design engineer.

I encourage our viewers
to visit Norbert's Lab
at the NASA Connect website
and to test their skills
at building the Egret 2X
and other
paper airplane models
that are available
from a specially created
online Aeronautics Model Shop.

Virginia Standards

6th Grade SOLs » Science » 6.1
6th Grade SOLs » Computer-Technology » 6.4
6th Grade SOLs » Computer-Technology » 6.6
7th Grade SOLs » Computer-Technology » 7.4
7th Grade SOLs » Computer-Technology » 7.6
8th Grade SOLs » Computer-Technology » 8.4
8th Grade SOLs » Computer-Technology » 8.6