Hi Frank

A prototype is a just a simulation of the actual product which doesn't
really have to be working.  In the past when I had coached a team, kids had
acted out the solution in some scenarios where the kids did not actually
have the expertise to build the real thing. In one of the projects they
created a vacuum from watching youtube videos to simulate their product
which makes it cool for judging. If its a product then it can be built
using styrofoam/thermocol which looks like the actual product but might not
have all moving parts but could have some moving parts like say a moon
landrover. Prototype could be built on wheels but the antenna/solar panel
would be fake and had to be manually moved etc..

Its always cool to see a working gadget as Judge but then again certain
things can only be conceptual. I would add to say of i was judging and I
had 2 teams where both had a good concept and 1 team that had a working
prototype it would have an advantage over the other team :(

Thanks
Amit Govil
Ex-coach (Doggy Dooers/ Recycling Simplified)

On Mon, Oct 29, 2018 at 1:43 PM Frank Levine <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> I have a coaching question for the group and I'd be interested to hear
> some perspectives from current and former coaches.
>
> My team has opted to tackle a very difficult, and currently unsolved
> problem this year.  They learned about this problem when they interviewed
> their expert sources and decided to give it a shot.  I'm all for tackling
> hard problems.
>
> What's happened since then is that they have done a ton of research.  I
> feel like they understand the problem very well and I've been working with
> them about how to articulate what they've learned.
>
> Their 'solution' to the problem is much more theoretical than we've done
> in previous years.  Due to the nature of the problem, they can't really
> build or test anything without a NASA sized budget.  Once of the keys to
> their solution involves some college level electrical engineering knowledge
> that they don't have.  They know what they want to do, but they lack the
> tools to be able to do the calculations to figure out the particulars of
> the design.
>
> As a coach, how should I coach them through this?  My gut says that they
> should just lay it out there for the judges and hope they appreciate the
> difficulty of the problem, but I'd hate for them to get low marks on their
> project for not having a rigorous design.  I could find an Electrical
> Engineer to help them with the calculations, but I feel like that goes
> against the 'kids do the work'.
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Frank Levine
>
> ------------------------------
> To UNSUBSCRIBE or CHANGE your settings, please visit
> https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-l.html and select "Join or
> leave the list".
> VADCFLL administrative announcements are sent via VADCFLL-ANNOUNCEMENTS-L.
> Visit https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-announcements-l.html to
> subscribe.

-- To UNSUBSCRIBE or CHANGE your settings, please visit https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-l.html and select "Join or leave the list".

-- VADCFLL administrative announcements are sent via VADCFLL-ANNOUNCEMENTS-L. Visit https://listserv.jmu.edu/archives/vadcfll-ANNOUNCEMENTS-l.html to subscribe.