Divergent Thinking Lab 1 Water Balloon Drop Scenario

Divergent Thinking Lab 1 Water Balloon Drop Lab Scenario: You are on a planetary colonizing expedition

You are on a planetary colonizing expedition. Your mission is to get water balloon eggs to the surface of the planet without rupturing them. Due to improper force units used by engineers on Earth, the rocket does not have enough fuel to land safely; thus, you must drop the eggs from orbital distance. The gravity on the planet causes a drop similar to 12 meters on Earth.

You must build 10 to 12 protective devices using only the materials available on your rocket ship. To succeed, at least half of the water balloons must survive the fall; of those survivors, half must be female (red or yellow balloons), and half must be male (green or blue balloons). The atmospheric conditions are unknown, so parachutes may or may not work. Your device designs should include:

• One-third as parachute designs
• One-third as cushion-only devices
• One-third as combination drag and cushion devices

List the available materials you have for building these protective devices.

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This assignment involves designing, building, and testing protective devices to safeguard water balloon eggs during a high-altitude drop on an alien planet—an exercise in creativity, engineering, and teamwork. The task emphasizes divergent thinking by encouraging multiple design solutions within specified material constraints. It requires brainstorming various protective mechanisms—parachute, cushion, and combined drag-cushion systems—and justifying material choices. Group collaboration is essential in deciding how to allocate limited resources fairly. Ultimately, the success of the mission will be evaluated by the survival rate of the water balloons, their gender representation among survivors, and the reasoning behind which designs worked or failed based on the simulation outcome.

Paper For Above instruction

The challenge posed by the "Divergent Thinking Lab" centers on problem-solving in an experimental context simulating extraterrestrial conditions. In this scenario, students serve as engineers tasked with designing protective devices for water balloon eggs dropped from orbit—an analogy for engineering resilience under unpredictable conditions. This task involves multiple levels of creativity, resource management, and scientific reasoning, ultimately fostering innovative thinking skills necessary for real-world engineering and scientific missions.

The core component of this exercise requires students to develop diverse protective devices for variable atmospheric and gravitational conditions. The requirement to construct 10–12 devices with specific proportions for parachutes, cushions, and combination systems compels participants to think broadly about how materials can be used in unconventional, resourceful ways. For instance, parachute designs would exploit aerodynamic drag to slow descent, while cushion-only devices might focus on absorbing impact energy through material deformation. The combined drag and cushion prototypes could integrate both principles for enhanced protection.

Brainstorming four different device designs involves various considerations about how materials behave during free fall, impact absorption, and deceleration. A parachute design might employ lightweight fabric or plastic sheets to maximize air resistance; cushion devices could utilize soft padding materials or compressed air pockets; a combined system might include a parachute attached to a cushion to slow descent and soften impact. An outside-the-box idea could involve creating a device that uses magnetic or electrostatic forces to manipulate fall speed or a deployable protective shell that absorbs shock through crumpling mechanisms.

Material selection is critical to success. Common materials available aboard a spaceship might include lightweight fabrics, plastic sheets, foam padding, rubber, tape, string, or metal scraps. Each material's properties—such as tensile strength, flexibility, weight, and shock absorption capacity—must influence design choices. For example, lightweight fabric could serve as a parachute canopy; foam padding as cushion material; or a combination of materials to optimize protection and minimize weight.

The group planning phase involves collaborative decision-making about resource distribution, ensuring no single group monopolizes materials necessary for the mission's success. A fair allocation process aims to distribute materials equitably based on each design’s complexity and potential effectiveness, maintaining the overall quality of the protective devices. During the drop, one team member handles the deployment or placement of the device, while the other manages debris cleanup, emphasizing teamwork and execution under pressure.

The final assessment considers the results of the drop test. The key factors include the survival rate of the water balloons, the gender distribution among survivors, and the reasoning behind why certain designs succeeded or failed. Success indicates effective shock absorption, impact dispersion, or controlled descent, utilizing the chosen materials. Failures could result from insufficient cushioning, unexpected environmental effects, or device malfunction. Analyzing these outcomes offers insight into the principles of physics and material science applicable to aerospace engineering and disaster mitigation.

References

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