Novices to the design process often struggle at first to understand the various stages of design. Learning to design is a process not easily mastered, and therefore requires multiple levels of exposure to the design process. It is helpful if teachers are able to implement various entry-level design assignments such as reverse-engineering…

It is all about serving the customer. That is how capitalism plays out. It finds a market need and then creates a product or service to address that need. The Baby Boomer generation, all 76 million, will be retiring soon. Eventually, some may find it very hard to move about and do their routine food shopping. In this article, the author's…

All too often, one reads about high-speed police chases in pursuit of stolen cars that result in death and injury to people and innocent bystanders. Isn't there another way to accomplish the apprehension of the thieves that does not put people at such great risk? This article presents a classroom challenge to use technology to remotely shutdown…

For all students to become successful, productive citizens in the future, it is apparent that they must be well educated in technology. Those students who come from lower socioeconomic backgrounds have further to go in attaining that education because they often do not have the capabilities at home to practice technology nor do they have the…

With the increasing complexity of technology, it is important for each citizen to be able to make informed decisions about the technology that he or she uses. This article suggests that a proactive approach to advocating technological literacy is important in changing the greater public's misconceptions of what it means to be technologically…

The first poll in what has become a two-part series was commissioned by the International Technology Education Association (ITEA) in the spring of 2001 with the intent of finding out how Americans viewed technological literacy. Funding for this second survey was provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Aeronautics and…

Radio frequency identification, or RFID, is a generic term for technologies that use radio waves to automatically identify people or objects. There are several methods of identification, but the most common is to store a serial number that identifies a person or object, and perhaps other information, on a microchip that is attached to an antenna…

Details the kind of information technology-related experiences that all curricula should share. Gives examples from elementary and middle schools. Lists goals, subgoals, and activities from the National Educational Technology Standards for Students. (JOW)

In classroom settings, most problems are usually well defined, so students have little experience with open-ended problems. Technological design problems, however, are seldom well defined. The design process begins with broad ideas and concepts and continues in the direction of ever-increasing detail, resulting in an acceptable solution. So using…

Sound provides and offers amazing insights into the world. Sound waves may be defined as mechanical energy that moves through air or other medium as a longitudinal wave and consists of pressure fluctuations. Humans and animals alike use sound as a means of communication and a tool for survival. Mammals, such as bats, use ultrasonic sound waves to…

A technologically literate individual should be able to use, manage, and understand technological concepts and systems. A technologically literate individual should also have the capacity to design, develop, control, use, and assess technological systems and processes. These abilities are essential elements of the universals of technology, as…

"High technology" is merely the latest technological advances of the day in any technology area. Technology is divided into three broad categories: the physical, information/communication, and biotechnologies. The best way to clear up the confusion surrounding "high technology" is to substitute the term "advanced…

The figures in this report reflect the financial year, which ended on June 30, 2003. The balance shown is the result of specifically planned activities on behalf of the Board of Directors and the headquarters staff to balance the budget. The Board monitors the financial condition of the association and foundation on an ongoing basis through its…

Today's designers deal with a range of communication modes. These modes vary from hand gestures to sketches, physical models, and computer-generated images. It has been the norm to use these mediums throughout the process to visualize the intended design so that the potential users, designers, team members, and clients can understand the end…

In the case of cars and other engineered objects, humans go about the design process in a very intentional way. They pretty much know what they are aiming for. The activity described in this article demonstrates how a computer can simulate biological evolution and the laws of natural selection. The article is divided into the following sections:…