1. Project Summary - What students are going to do and why they are doing it

Who they are

What they could do

San Diego Zoo Bioinspiration Center

Critique designs and feasibility plan.

Lead a tour of the Zoo’s Bioinspiration Center and/or workshops on biomimicry.

Entrepreneur

Provide feedback on feasibility of design and suitability for investment

Intellectual Property expert

Critique the suitability of the design to the problem and the potential novelty.

What

How

When

Examples of biomimicry

Weekly challenges to find a problem that can be addressed by a solution in nature or find a solution in nature and determine what problem sit could solve.

Weeks 1-4

Understand the science of nature

Journal club Tuesdays - review in-depth articles about scientific phenomena that inspire engineering designs

Weeks 1-4

Feasibility report development

Using examples in class, students will take on different roles to develop feasibility plans, with frequent revision based on peer and expert critique

Weeks 5-7

Design sketches and prototypes

Using examples in class, students will take on different roles to develop designs, with frequent revision based on peer and expert critique

Weeks 5-7

Crash course in pitching

In class activities requiring students to receive information, identify key points and pitch to a new audience.  

Weeks 7-9

Skill

How Assessed

Observation

Brief, in-class and outdoor activities to see how observant students are being. Include visit to the zoo - look at animals and plants to see nature’s solutions. Also observe through lab work such as dissections and labs used by scientists and inspired by nature, eg PCR (Taq polymerase).

Collaboration and critique

Students will work in small teams and will evaluate each other’s performance, contribution, effort throughout the project.

Public speaking / pitching

Students will pitch to a panel of experts. Quality of the pitch will be assessed by experts, using a pre-determined rubric.

Applying knowledge to new situations

Feasibility plan will show how suitable the design is to the problem and how feasible it is. Ultimately this will be assessed by the expert panel, and the teacher reading the feasibility plan.

Problem solving / critical thinking

Students are finding new solutions to problems.

Use scientific evidence to support an argument

Defense of design suitability during pitch

Design experiments to test hypothesis

Students will identify ways to test the feasibility of their design - surveys/interviews, physical tests using prototypes etc

Content

How Assessed

Content for each group may be slightly different, depending on the scientific phenomenon that inspires them

Feasibility report will include detailed evaluation of scientific information about the natural phenomenon that inspired them - what makes it unique and suitable to the problem.

Student understanding of their concept should also be evident in their pitch to the panel - scientific understanding will form part of the assessment rubric.

Physics / engineering concepts

Students will be introduced to mechanical engineering concepts and design process when creating their sketches and feasibility plans.

Ecology and Conservation

Week

Activities

Deliverables

1

Observation activities

• Hook: guided tour at SD Zoo

• walking field trips for deep observation of natural world around us

• quick activities to determine how observant we are in the classroom.

Class discussions

2

Group Challenge #1: Comparing nature’s solutions. Students dissect a fish, a squid and a crab, looking specifically at floatation mechanisms. At the end of the week, students present a comparison and propose ways to improve on nature.

Short presentation to class

3

Group Challenge #2: present class with an example of biomimicry and have them identify the life forms/processes it is mimicked after. Spend one day at SD Safari Park observing nature’s solutions. Eg, energy preservation or production.

Short presentation to class

4

Group challenge #3: present class with a “solution” in nature, for example the hippo secretes a gelatinous liquid that protects it from the sun. Or, pistol shrimp clap their claws so fast, it creates a cavitation bubble underwater, producing >200 db of sound (160db bursts a human eardrum) and >4000 degrees C heat (near the temp of the surface of the sun). Give them one week to find a solution in nature and present to class at the end. Students will also perform PCR experiments based on the discovery that Taq polymerase is an enzyme found in thermophilic bacteria that is heat stable and facilitated one of the most influential discoveries in biology.

Short presentation to class

5

Get in working groups and start research to ideas for final product. Each person in the group must come up with an idea and pitch at the end of the week to rest of the class and seniors. Vote on which one is most feasibile to move forward with.

Pitch to class and senior engineering class

6

Work on sketches and feasibility report for critique

First draft feasibility report due with sketches

7

Work on feasibility report and sketches for critique by external experts

Work on prototypes - students have access to a 3D printer at HTH, but could also use other materials.

Second draft feasibility report, including sketches, due

8

Crash course in pitching

Finalize prototypes

Rehearsals

Final feasibility report due

9

Pitch week

Pitch and prototypes