TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now

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published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
supported by the International Business Machines

In this lab activity for Grades 5-9, students work in teams to construct a simple telegraph using a battery, wires, and a bulb. By turning the switch on and off, learners "send" messages using International Morse Code. Students then repeat the process sending identical messages on cell phones. Which group can send intelligible messages most quickly? What is the time difference between the fastest Morse Code operator and the slowest texter? The driving question of the lesson: How has society been impacted by the contributions of early pioneers in electromagnetism and its applications?

This instructional module includes goals/objectives, Power Point introduction, problem sets, student guides, recommended reading, illustrated procedures, worksheets, and background information about the engineering connections. This resource is part of TryEngineering.org, a website maintained by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/

Subjects	Levels	Resource Types
Education Practices - Active Learning Electricity & Magnetism - DC Circuits = Instruments General Physics - Equipment = Electronic Equipment Other Sciences - Engineering	- Middle School - High School	- Instructional Material = Activity = Instructor Guide/Manual = Laboratory = Lesson/Lesson Plan = Student Guide - Audio/Visual = Image/Image Set

Intended Users	Formats	Ratings
- Educators - Learners	- application/pdf - application/ms-powerpoint - application/ms-word - text/html	Currently 0.0/5 Want to rate this material? Login here!

Access Rights:: Free access
Restriction:: © 2006 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Keywords:: Samuel Morse, applied physics, electronics, engineering activity, engineering labs, engineering lessons, signal processing
Record Cloner:: Metadata instance created July 27, 2012 by Gnana Subramaniam
Record Updated:: August 10, 2020 by Lyle Barbato
Last Update when Cataloged:: December 4, 2010
Other Collections:: The Physics Front

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AAAS Benchmark Alignments (2008 Version)

3. The Nature of Technology

3C. Issues in Technology

6-8: 3C/M4. Technology is largely responsible for the great revolutions in agriculture, manufacturing, sanitation and medicine, warfare, transportation, information processing, and communications that have radically changed how people live and work.

4. The Physical Setting

4G. Forces of Nature

6-8: 4G/M4. Electrical circuits require a complete loop through which an electrical current can pass.
9-12: 4G/H5c. The interplay of electric and magnetic forces is the basis for many modern technologies, including electric motors, generators, and devices that produce or receive electromagnetic waves.

8. The Designed World

8D. Communication

6-8: 8D/M1. Errors can occur in coding, transmitting, or decoding information, and some means of checking for accuracy is needed. Repeating the message is a frequently used method.
6-8: 8D/M2. Information can be carried by many media, including sound, light, and objects. In the 1900s, the ability to code information as electric currents in wires, electromagnetic waves in space, and light in glass fibers has made communication millions of times faster than mail or sound.

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<a href="https://www.compadre.org/portal/items/detail.cfm?ID=12305">International Business Machines. TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, December 4, 2010.</a>

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(Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, 2006), WWW Document, (https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/).

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TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, 2006), <https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/>.

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TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now. (2010, December 4). Retrieved April 24, 2024, from Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers: https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/

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International Business Machines. TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, December 4, 2010. https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/ (accessed 24 April 2024).

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TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, 2006. 4 Dec. 2010. International Business Machines. 24 Apr. 2024 <https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/>.

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@misc{ Title = {TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now}, Publisher = {Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers}, Volume = {2024}, Number = {24 April 2024}, Month = {December 4, 2010}, Year = {2006} }

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%T TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now %D December 4, 2010 %I Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers %U https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/ %O application/pdf

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%0 Electronic Source %D December 4, 2010 %T TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now %I Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers %V 2024 %N 24 April 2024 %8 December 4, 2010 %9 application/pdf %U https://tryengineering.org/teacher/electric-messages-then-and-now/

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TryEngineering: Electric Messages: Then and Now:

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