Section 3.1

Data Collection

You will be performing two experiments to generate data. The first will be a measure of reaction time. The second is a measure of the accuracy of a team performing a task.

Experiment 1

1. Person A will hold a ruler in a vertical position with the smaller numbers on the ruler toward the floor. We will be using the centimeters side of the ruler.
2. Person B will place her/his fore-finger and thumb around the base of the ruler at the measurement 0.0 (make sure that Person B is not touching the ruler).
3. Person A will drop the ruler and Person B will catch the ruler between her/his fore-finger and thumb (Person A be careful not to tip off Person B as to when you will drop the ruler. On the other hand, faking or intentionally using deceptive methods are not allowed.)
4. Person C will record the results of the experiment (the number of centimeters). You will perform 10 trials of this experiment.
5. Now, rotate Persons A, B, C and do 10 new trials.
6. Finally, rotate one more time and do 10 new trials. At the end of this last rotation, each person in the group should have had their "reaction time" measured.

Experiment 2

1. Take out a blank piece of paper. Place a dot at the very center of the paper.
2. Person A will start by holding a pencil at her/his side with her/his eyes closed.
3. Person B will guide the movement of the pencil held by Person A by a set of verbal instructions . For example, the first instruction might be, "O.K. lift the pencil over the paper." Person B will continue to direct until she/he is satisfied that the pencil is approximately 12 inches above the point on the paper. Note: Person B should not touch Person A or the pencil, and the use of any instruments like a ruler is not allowed.
4. When Person A is satisfied, then she/he will say, "Drop!"
5. When the pencil lands it will make a point on the paper (hopefully). Person C will measure the distance from this point and the dot at the center of the paper.
6. Perform 10 trials as before and rotate.

What techniques would you use to describe your data? Utilize these to make a presentation of the data collected.

Collect the data gathered by other groups. How is the data similar? How is it different? Attempt to describe the data collected by the entire class.