Wednesday, December 08, 2010
Take home exam info and background

Four page PDF take-home test summary and checklist nicely condensed.

Wing your way to: Flocking.html - the actual questions page.

  1. NEW: Flocking birds, schooling fish, migrating wildebeests: Jurassic Park has flocking dinosaurs on land and in air. Netlogo Flocking model explorations and take home final exam questions and activity.

  2. Create some beautiful and symmetric pattern using the NetLogo software package and what you have learned this semester. It should have a user interface so other people can try it out and play with it. You should put some instructions about how to use it and what to try in the Information portion. We will publish your project up to your sunny.uni.edu account on Wednesday during the final exam period, which is a hands-on class in StudioIT 1. Here are a few examples of just having fun with NetLogo:

      3. Note that we will publish your NetLogo pattern up to your UNI web site on sunny.uni.edu and include a Flash created intro to the page that uses a special effect from a famous movie to add pizzazz to your page.

      I will walk you through publishing your NetLogo up to sunny.uni.edu, so do not worry about that at all. It is simple when we do it step by step as a class! Be sure to bring your project with you or email it to yourself. All you will need is the .nlogo file.

    1. Dancing turtles with choreographed patterns. Just for fun and beauty.
    2. An Octet of Js, or hitting the JUMP SHOTs in basketball. Try this code out in NetLogo to see it.
    3. Airplanes, Odd and Even, circling too advanced, but useful to get ideas.

  3. Read the material here on Ghostbusters, programming, modeling and problem solving and answer the following questions:

    1. See the Flocking.html
    2. take home test page for
    3. the Ghostbusters questions...
    4. Watch out for slimers, Mr. Staypuft, etc.

  4. Read the material here about the waggle dancing bees problem solving and modeling approach. Answer the questions on the other web page: Flocking.html

    I will create a model of the waggle dancing bees concept using NetLogo for demo on Wednesday (maybe) but certainly for next spring 2011 semester. Its to be a central idea and metaphor in this class.

    What do Waggle Dancing Bees have to do with Simulation and Modeling? Watch this video tutorial after you carefully read the above link. (Lack of time - will be ready for Spring 2011 semester).

    1. See the
    2. other take home test
    3. web page - Flocking.html
    4. for the few simple waggle dancing bees questions.

  5. Handout on last day of class: The steps of the Modeling and Simulation process are analogous to the Ghostbuster's four phases or four steps of the problem solving process. Here is the handout on the steps of building and testing a simulation model. I have asked a few questions about it for the guided take home exam task. You will find them on the Flocking.html other take home test web page. They are very specific and directed. 

    
----------------------------  ----------------------------------------- 
  *** GREEN HANDOUT ***          waggle.txt and ghost.txt links
----------------------------  ----------------------------------------- 
Modeling/Simulation handout     Four step programming/problem solving 
----------------------------  ----------------------------------------- 
1. Analyze the problem         1. Understand the problem.  Focus on WHAT.
                                   Dr. Peter Venkman symbolizes this 
                                   phase.  The listening attitude.
                                   Most intuitive, brain-storming 
                                   Ghostbuster.

2. Formulate a model           2. Develop a PLAN for HOW to solve it.
                                   Recipe = Algorithm = step by step
                                   series of instructions for HOW to
                                   get from the given to the goal.
                                   Dr. Raymond Stantz symbolizes step two.

3. Solve the model             3. Code it.  Translate the PLAN, the HOW, 
                                   into NetLogo or VENSIM or Photoshop
                                   or Excel or After Effects or Flash.
                                   Dr. Egon Spengler symbolizes this.
                                   Most technically focuses Ghostbuster. 

4. Verify and interpret        4. Test and debug your program.  Adjust
      the models solution.         it so it works and does what you
                                   wanted to do.

  6. Decentralization concepts from the Turtles, Termites, and Traffic Jams book.

    See the other take home test web page (Flocking.html) for these questions. Summarized lists from the 3 groups are below here. They were scanned in. Utilize them for your review and developing your thoughts and answer.

    1. Group 1 - Devin, Steffania, Katie, Lindsay
    2. Group 2 - John, Dalyn, Alex, Kaila
    3. Group 3 - Blake, Justin, Abby, Troy

  7. SKIP THIS: - Read the Polya handout. There will be a study guide in SPRING 2011 for how to apply it to Ghostbusters, modeling and simulation concepts, and the Waggle Dancing bees available here. IGNORE THIS POLYA reading.

  8. SKIP THIS: There will NOT be 12 questions from the Turtles, Termites, and Traffic Jams textbook. Not enough time to develop them and you have enough questions on the take-home test to help you consolidate the concepts and experiences of the class. IGNORE THIS - no T, T, and TJ 12 Q's.

Four page PDF take-home test summary and checklist nicely condensed.