Will It Conduct?
By engaging in the science and engineering practice of making observations and measurements to produce data, students make sense of the phenomenon of electricity. Applying the disciplinary core idea of measurement, students build their own simple conductivity tester and explore whether given solid materials and solutions of liquid are good conductors of electricity. While exploring the phenomenon of electricity, students also apply the crosscutting concept of standard units.
Students explore conductivityCopyright https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin_effect#/media/File:Bundle_conductors.jpg
Electrical and computer engineers design circuit boards that serve as the "brains" of the computers, toys, cars, planes and appliances we use every day. Engineers are well versed in which materials and solutions are the best conductors and insulators, and when designing, they match a material's properties and characteristics to the situation. Through the appropriate selection of materials for microchips and parts, engineers design devices and appliances that we rely upon every day.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Predict whether an object is likely to conduct electricity.
- Construct a conductivity tester to determine whether their prediction was correct.
- Compare and order objects and materials based on their relative ability to conduct electricity.
- Understand that engineers must appropriately select materials for microchips and parts in order to design devices and appliances that we rely upon every day