Nick

Electrical Devices and Their Uses in the Exploration of Mars
Electrical devices have enhanced our lives since the beginning of their creation, and the most frequently asked question is. How do they work? There are two types of electrical signals in electrical devices; analog and digital signals. These two signals vary in the pace of the information they are receiving. In an analog device, such as a regular clock, have a slow, steady electrical pace and show all of the information second by second so you know the exact time. In a digital clock with a digital signal, the minutes and hours change suddenly and you cannot know the exact time when the time is going to change. Electrical devices have changed over the years being analog or digital but they have changed with their electrical components on the inside. Modern methods of making devices such as computers use semiconductors because they can be easily changed to be a conductor or an insulator with the use of impurities, rather than having to use different insulators and conductors. Semiconductors have two types which are p – types and n – types. An n – type semiconductors gives electrons at one end of a diode and a p – type attracts them and passes them along to the next electrical component. Another electrical component called a transistor is used as a switch that can block or allow the flow of electricity and either amplifies the electrical current or diminishes it. Transistors are also small circuits that are used to reduce the size of circuits in an object.

In early space exploration, robots were commonly used instead of man – operated craft. This was because less fuel was needed and no life supporting items such as food and oxygen were needed. Electrical devices, even in a man - operated craft because the electrical devices give the ability to send data back to earth and provide a way for communication. Electrical devices play a large part in space travel and space exploration. For example, without electrical devices running the space shuttle it wouldn’t even be capable of taking off. Also, the use of rovers on Mars is vital because of the harsh climate of Mars. Sure you could outfit a suit for a human to wear to Mars but it would be much simpler to create a small robot that could sustain the intense cold and heat on Mars. If you were to travel to Mars the electronic devices would be the only way of capturing life, if there is any, on Mars and reporting it to earth with proof so that if there is a failure of returning to earth, the mission was already complete. The signals in these electrical devices would also be of use on Mars when recording data with the analog signal because it would slowly and smoothly record information. Other components such as diodes and transistors would keep the shuttle or rover moving by pushing along the current and blocking or allowing the current to enter certain loads that are needed.

Ms. Mc - Great overview of electronics and how we might use them on a mission to Mars to search for life. One small correction: in your first paragraph, ICs are the miniaturized circuits and not transistors. Keep up the good work! 10/10

Entry #2

HIstory and Explanation of Rockets
Rockets are one of man’s greatest inventions and were used since 100 B.C. The earliest model that introduced the idea of rockets was a Greek named Hero of Alexandria that made a sphere rotate over a kettle by the propulsion of the escaping steam created by the evaporating water. When the water was evaporated by the fire, the steam would enter through one tube in the cylinder and come out the other causing the sphere to rotate. The next discovery of a rocket – like invention was created by the Chinese. The invention was basically an early version of a firework that they used on their arrows to catch enemies on fire. The arrow would be launched after being lit and would cause the simple gunpowder to explode and propel the rocket.

Early rockets have used steam and explosives as their propellants that were solid and worked somewhat efficiently. However in the 1900’s Robert Goddard discovered that liquid propellants worked much better than the solid propellants. The liquid propellants were much more flammable than the solid ones and caused the gases to escape much faster, propelling the rocket even farther. In the early inventions in rockets, the inventors had not yet discovered that their ideas were a part of such a massive discovery. Unlike those inventors, Robert was the first to launch an actual rocket at a small scale that ignited the development for rockets around the world. Over the years more and more upgrades were made to the rocket making it more efficient and making the rocket at a larger scale. These only flew a few feet up into the air and were short flights, but on October 4, 1957 the first rocket propelled satellite was sent into space and was called Sputnik by the Soviet Union (which means satellite). This event sent the U.S. to create N.A.S.A and a satellite named the Explorer I, which was sent into space on January 31, 1958. Rockets have developed over hundreds of years from the most basic designs turning into very complex ones. Rockets have contributed a great deal to the world in exploration of space and are important and powerful inventions.

__**Chinese Flaming Arrow**__

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Ms. Mc - another great entry, Nick! Very clear, concise summary of the history of rocketry and great drawings. Please include a Fig. # with your drawings/photos. 15/15

Mission to Mars Video: Rocket Simulation
1. Click on Green Flag to start 2. Make your that your volume is on 3. Enjoy Mission to Mars Rocket Simulation

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On the model rocket the launch lug holds the rocket onto the wire so that it shoots directly into the air. The nose cone is do help the rocket break through the air and hold the engine and recovery systems in. The body tube gives the rocket mass and holds all of the components such as the engine. The fins help the rocket be aerodynamic and the rocket motor propels the rocket. The recovery system removes the nose cone and deploys the the wadding which slowly brings the rocket to the ground with a parachute.

//Ms. Mc: 17/20 Good but you didn't define motor mount and the wadding is the fire proof material that keeps the parachute from being burnded by the gun powder. Please be sure to read over your entries for errors before posting.//

Test Data and Introduction
The purpose of this experiment was to find out if there was a relationship between a model rocket’s mass and its apogee in flight. The model rocket on the launch pad was still because the force of gravity and the launch pad were equal. Then when the engine is ignited the thrust of the engine works against gravity and the rocket lifts off the launch pad. The rocket stayed in powered flight for a few seconds then when the engines stopped, inertia carried it for a while longer until gravity and air resistance stopped at the apogee of the flight. Then the rocket arced and fell to the ground by the force of gravity. It was hypothesized that there was a relation to the mass of the rocket and how high it flew because the rocket tested was the lightest out of the rest.

In this scatterplot graph there was an inverse relationship between the model rockets’ masses and their apogees. As the rocket mass increased, the apogee decreased because the engines couldn’t push the rocket into the air. As seen in Table 1, there was one outlier in the data for the model rocket that weighed 41.5 grams which was measured to have an apogee of 69 meters. The model rocket masses ranged 41.5 to 45.4 grams which isn’t a large distance in mass. Since the apogees of the rockets fluctuated, there were other variables such as wind and human error that affected the data. The apogees decreased in the graph as the mass increased which meant that the heavier the rocket was, the smaller its apogee was. According to the data plot, the hypothesis wasn’t proven to be true because the lightest rocket flew the second lowest. However, it was taken into account that there could have been an inaccurate angle measurement or there was a gust of wind when it flew. The model rocket that flew the second shortest might also have been too light because the heaviest rocket was flew the lowest out of all of the model rockets. This experiment included only seven model rocket tests which also means that there may not have been enough data to truly say that there is or is not a relation between a model rocket’s mass and its apogee.



Table 1. The mass of model rockets in relation to their apogees.

4/21/2011

Quarks and Galaxies

Quarks are the small particles that make up protons and electrons. As seen in figure 1, There are up (u) and down (d) quarks in protons and neutrons.

Figure 1. Quarks in a Neutron.

Galaxies are formed by exploding stars. Stars have cauldrons in their centers and produce all kinds of materials but mostly helium and hydrogen. the start run out of hydrogen to produce energy, they implode then explode sending the materials flying out into space. The materials then start to rotate around the star by the force of gravity creating a galaxy. (As seen in figure 2)

Figure 2. A galaxy.

//Ms. Mc: There actually are 6 types of quarks (-1). Please be sure to read over your entries for errors before posting and put a little more effort into your responses (-1). For example, your caption titles could be a little more detailed and your responses are very short. 8/10//

Challenge #1: Driving Course
The driving course challenge was designed to test our ability to program the robot to turn and move. The robot starts and moves forward for about a foot, turns right and moves straight for another half a foot. Then the robot turns left and goes in reverse for about three quarters of a foot and spins around twice. Then a smile is displayed on the screen and a clapping sound is made to finish.

The first movement block activates the servomotors c and b and the robot to move 3.5 rotations of the wheel with 75% power. The next block then activates the motors turning the robot 90 degrees to the right and also moves it 1.5 rotations forward at 75% speed. The following command then turns the robot 90 degrees to put its back to the line. The subsequent block then activates the motors to move the robot in reverse at 75% power for 1 rotation. The robot then turned around twice a total of 720 degrees. The next block activates the screen and displays a smile on the screen. The next block tells the robot to wait for 3 seconds with the smile displayed and then the block after tells the robot to keep the smile on the screen forever. The last block then activates the robot’s speakers and plays a clapping sound finishing the program.



Figure #1. First 8 blocks of code that move the robot and display a smile on the screen.

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Figure #2. Last 2 blocks of code that tell the robot to play a clapping sound.