Introduction
For the mathematics component of STEMIE the focus has been on developing dynamic spreadsheets. With calculations by hand, every time you want to change a value, you need to go through the whole calculation again. Why dynamic spreadsheets however, when you change one of your values, it automatically updates your answer. This happens because the calculation is defined by in what cells (rows and columns) your values are found, and not by the values themselves. An example of this can be found below for a simple average calculation.
The power of these dynamic spreadsheets is in their ability to adjust to change. If they are designed correctly, you are able to enter any data and look at the impact it will have. This allows you to make informed decisions and predict future outcomes so that it can be mitigated.
Some of the previous focus areas for the spreadsheets for STEMIE have been
Some of the previous focus areas for the spreadsheets for STEMIE have been
- creating catering tender for a mission to Mars which considers the amount and cost of food for such a journey as well accounting for contingencies
- Creating budget spreadsheets that allow for costs and/or income to be adjusted to look at the impact on profit. The focus of one of these has been on making a movie and the other has been based on running a carnival
- A spreadsheet looking at the food production by a particular food source in a farming environment (plants or animals), and looking at how particular afflictions (weather or disease) influence these numbers.
- Creating a predictive spreadsheet for power use in 2030 based on current usage and trends.
Assessment
Science Inquiry Skills Task - Dynamic Models and Simulations using Excel
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Individually you will design a dynamic spreadsheet using Excel in line with the criteria and theme outlined in the STEMIE booklet for that semester.
You complete the following tasks
As a set of two tasks (paired with the science task) the science inquiry skills tasks have a maximum page count of 6 pages |
Other Information