Purpose: In this activity, students will be introduced to basic strategies and tools used to imagine and construct future worlds. These worlds will be used as a framework for imagining boundary-pushing transit solutions that harness renewable energy to deliver safe and innovative transportation solutions that meet the needs of its users.

Instructions:

Part 1: In pairs, students look through the inspirational images from the slides above.

Part 2: Next, envision your own future world think about what the logistics of it would look like (using the questions below as a starting point). 

Part 3: Create a collage of your future world using magazine and printed images, or using a digital photo-editing software. The more details, the better. 

Part 4: Design a morning storyboard (template attached) for a student like you living in the future world. How would they get from point A to point B in this world? How would their daily tasks be impacted by a futuristic transportation system? 

Things to consider:

• Is there access to water? Fresh water? Salt Water? 
• How is water utilized or not utilized in this world? 
• What is the landscape like?
• What is the climate? Is there extreme weather?
• What kind of animals and plants live here? 
• What kind of government exists in this world? 
• Who holds power and resources here? What resources are the most valuable? 
• What forms of entertainment exist in this world? Is art important here? 
• What kind of foods and drinks are most consumed here? Why? 
• What do people do for work here? What are the most common professions? 
• What technology do people use to communicate? Do our current communication tools work in this world? 
• How do people get around? What forms of transportation are most useful? 
• What powers technology in this world? Water? Wood? The Sun?

DELIVERABLE:

All work should be added to the Responses tab in the form of a slide deck. It should include the following:

1. Your future world collage.. 
2. The storyboard developed from your future world. You are welcome to sketch it or develop it digitally. There are many templates on Canva that are helpful for this. 

Prompt

Research is a crucial part of the studio process and can help you generate lots of new, creative ideas and solutions. To get as much access to useful information as possible, we'll each take on a small portion of the research and then move on to brainstorming!

Work in small teams and choose from the following list: solar, wind, hydropower, geothermal, biomass, or tidal. 

Each group will have about 20 minutes to research and learn about their renewable energy system. Then, you will share your knowledge with the rest of the class. This will be a casual share-out. This research will be quick and collaborative. 

Instructions

Research your selected energy source. 

• Great resource: http://www.landartgenerator.org/LAGI-FieldGuideRenewableEnergy-ed2.pdf
• Another great resource (with more resources at the bottom): United Nations: Renewable Energies
• There are a few high-quality videos linked in the Resources tab above.

Next, in your groups, you will make a poster of your energy system to share out to the class. On a larger piece of paper (at least 11 X17), make a poster that includes:

•  3 key takeaways (useful information, things you didn't know before).
• A sketch or diagram of how the system works, describing how the energy source works. Try to make your drawing clearly convey the process of energy generation and transmission. Use arrows, labels, and colors to add to your sketch.

Share your poster with the class.  Then, together, reflect:  How does this research inform your ideas about the future of transit and personalized mobility? What are you most excited about for the future of transit? Are there opportunities you think should be explored? 

Deliverables

Post your an image of your poster in the Responses tab above. 

Prompt 

As a studio, we will take a look at some of the most interesting transit systems around the world. Then, in groups, you will select a transit system to provide an in-depth analysis of your findings to the rest of the class. You may choose an example from the presentation above or find a different system that interests you.. 

What does it means for something to be "in transit"? Can it be more than simply getting from point A to point B in our day-to-day life?

Instructions

In teams, you will create a slideshow that contains the following information about your transit system:

• Where is it located? Is this method used elsewhere in the world?
• How does the transit system relate to the area and its unique setting/environment? (write 2-3 sentences)
• What is awesome vs. awful about this transit system? 
• What are potential ways that this transit system can be improved? (Be imaginative!)

Deliverables

Make a post in the Responses tab (above) with the following requirements:

1. Images of the transit system you've researched (include captions describing the images)
2. Answers to the 4 questions above in the text field

Each group will present their findings to the class. Please plan to have each group member participate in the presentation. 

Prompt

Now that we've brainstormed and sketched and prototyped and FINALLY landed on a solid idea, it's time to delve into the realm of iterative design.

Iterative design is when you take your initial idea, get feedback, and improve upon that idea and your prototype in a cycle that can happen an infinite number of times (until you hit your deadline, of course!)

For this project, we will be making iterations that focus on FORM and FUNCTION. 

Instructions

Discuss the following questions with your partner:

How can you improve the FORM of your design?

• Can you add another level of elegance, refinement, or more creativity to your design?
• Does the shape of each component of your design have anything to do with its function or use?

Important: Make sure you really examine the full range of materials available to you in this studio and make thoughtful choices about which materials you're using and why.

How can you improve the FUNCTION of your design?

• Does it move in the way you want it to?
• Does your prototype work the way you want it to? What are some mechanical kinks that you need to work out?
• Can you find additional precedents* for the type of mechanisms and functionality that you are incorporating into your design? Do a quick search to see if there is a project like yours out there. What inspiration can you gather from it? 

Deliverable

Create a post in the Responses tab that includes 3 photographs of your final prototype that clearly communicate how people engage with it 

Description 

A concept thesis is an important step in starting a collaborative partner project. We will use this time to combine ideas and arrive at the conceptual directions of our project.

Instructions 

Start by talking to your group, and sketching ideas to show each other your ideas. Then, together, decide on the main idea and form of your project. Once you have decided on the direction of the project, move on to writing the project thesis and a project name (these can evolve or change as you progress through the activities, but are important for kickstarting collaborative work from a common understanding. 

Deliverables

At the end of this activity, each partnership should have a draft of a project name and a draft of a project concept thesis sentence. Combine these into a single post and add it to the Responses tab above. Add any sketches that you think will clarify your idea.

Prompt

Cardboard lends itself to different mechanisms compared to wood and acrylic. This mechanism combines aspects of the parallel linkage and eccentric cam. It also uses the springiness of cardboard as the returning force to bring the flag back down.

Learning Goals

1. Understand the basics of the cam and linkage mechanism. 
2. Apply your understanding of the mechanism to create a unique prototype. 

Instructions

Part 1: Template model

Using the template file (attached to this post), you will recreate the cam and linkage cardboard model. To complete the activity, you will need cardboard, scissors or exacto, and a dowel or a pencil. 

Part 2: Build your own version

Once you’ve completed the model, modify the pre-existing elements in at least one of the following ways:

a) change the movement of the mechanism, 

b) customize components, 

c) introduce a new add-on feature, 

d) propose a novel application.

Deliverables

Take photos of all your work. In the caption, make sure to describe the prototypes and explain your work process. Post your answers to the following reflection questions in the Responses tab above:

1. Did you find having a template useful? 
2. If you were to repeat this exercise, what would you do differently vs. the same?
3. Describe the parts you've modified from the original template. 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesmorris/2022/11/29/is-it-finally-time-for-high-speed-hyperloop-transportation/?sh=257ab09148c9">https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesmorris/2022/11/29/is-it-finally-time-for-high-speed-hyperloop-transportation/?sh=257ab09148c9

https://intrans.iastate.edu/news/green-transportation-innovations-autonomous-pods/">https://intrans.iastate.edu/news/green-transportation-innovations-autonomous-pods/

https://rednuht.org/genetic_cars_2/