Module: Cardiovascular
Mannequin Madness
Grades: 3-5
By: Margaret Young and Kelly Greene
Principal Investigator: Dr. Pat Cowings
Overview
Imagine that you are an astronaut trainee. How can you train yourself
to function even if you are dizzy or sick? Since many astronauts get motion
sickness during the first few days of space flight, research at NASA is
helping astronauts to minimize the decreased mental and physical performance
that accompanies motion sickness.
Mannequin Maddness is one of three related STELLAR activities
in which students imagine they are astronaut trainees and do "astronaut"
performance tests that would help them function even if they became dizzy
or got motion sickness during space flight:
Shazam!-reaction time; test of how quickly they can react to a given
stimulus. They react as quickly they can to catch a falling stick.
Smart and Snappy-dexterity; test of dexterity with non dominant hand.
Students pluck a rubber band as fast as they can.
Mannequin Madness-spatial recognition; test of their ability to distinguish
left from right. Student "astronauts" are asked to identify
which hand of a mannequin is holding a certain symbol. The mannequin may
be upside down, sideways, or backwards so students have to adjust their
minds accordingly.
In all the tests, astronauts train themselves to be aware of their body's
natural response to stress and to stay calm, alert, and focused under
extreme conditions that exist on a real space mission.
Key Questions
- How do NASA scientists prepare astronauts to react quickly under stressful
conditions?
- What basics skills do astronauts use?
- How is your reaction time affected when you are asked to operate under
stressful conditions?
- Can you train yourself to react as quickly under stress as under optimal
conditions?
Time Frame
Preparation: 30 minutes
Conducting the experiments: five 30 minute sessions
Discussing the results of the experiment: 15 minutes
Materials
For the whole class:
- series of graphics of the sailor pattern. Front and back views (photocopy
masters).
- overhead and 10 transparencies or 10 pieces of stiff cardboard
- Optional: Video or photographs of astronauts floating in different
orientations
For each student:
Getting Ready
1. Review the section "Background for Teachers" at the
end of this document.
2. Make 5 copies of each of the mannequin sailor patterns (5 front
view and 5 back view-total of 10 pictures). For transparencies, cardboard
frames make them easier to handle.
 3.
Draw or stamp a star, apple, or square in either the right or left
hand of each mannequin. Make an identical object in the box below the
mannequin. Use a stamp or draw one of the other objects in the empty hand.
Each mannequin should be different.
4. Alternate the mannequins in a random pattern of the following
orientations: facing front, facing back, upside down facing front, upside
down facing back, sideways facing front, sideways facing back. Number
the sheets 110.
5 Transfer the pictures to transparencies or mount them on a stiff
board.
6. For each child, make one photocopy each of the "Student
Response" sheet and the "Graphing" sheet.
Classroom Activity
DAY ONE
1. The purpose of the tests. Tell the students that they
will be doing some astronaut training exercises. Display one of the mannequin
sailor pictures. Ask, "Which hand of the mannequin is holding the
same object as the one below the mannequin picture." Explain that
students will try to quickly identify which hand of the mannequin holds
the correct object regardless of how the mannequin is oriented. Show examples
of different orientations of the mannequin. Ask, "Why would astronauts
need to be able to understand and manipulate the orientation of images
they see? (Optional: show photographs or video of astronauts floating
in different orientations.) How does a person like you use this skill
in everyday life?"
2. Conduct the test. Distribute response sheets and pencils.
Display each of the ten mannequin sailor pictures for a few seconds in
random order. As each mannequin is displayed, the students must record
on their response sheet which hand of the mannequin holds the symbol pictured
below the mannequin.
3. Scoring and recording. Have students score their response
sheets and record the number of correct responses in their science journals.
(Optional method of scoring: Have each student place a check above their
response, "left" or "right" on their sheet. While
going through the mannequin pictures as a class and agreeing on the correct
responses, have students circle the correct response on their sheet. Scores
may then be tallied by counting the number of circled responses with check
marks above them.)
DAY TWO
4. How did you feel about the tests? Ask students to comment
on their experience taking the test. Was it difficult or frustrating?
Did you notice any physical response to taking the test such as sweaty
palms, or other signs of nervousness? Was there any strategy students
used that helped them to quickly identify which hand was holding the correct
symbol? Comment on the need to stay relaxed and alert during the test.
Also ask students to be aware of their physical response to taking the
test.
5. Repeat the tests. Repeat steps 2 and 3 above. Conduct
the experiment, score the response sheets and record the scores. (Note:
Display the mannequins in random order, not in the same order for each
trial of the test.)
DAYS THREE , FOUR AND FIVE
6. Strategies for improving. As appropriate continue to
discuss strategies for improving students success in identifying the hand
of the mannequin which holds the correct symbol.
7. Repeat the tests. Repeat steps 2 and 3 above.
Wrap-up Session
1. Graph. Ask each student to graph their test results.
Did everyone's score improve over the course of the five test periods?
Did the strategies you discussed in class seem to help you improve your
test scores? Were you able to stay relaxed and focused during the test
period? Do you think this helped to improve your test score?
2. Discuss. As a class, discuss the results. What factors do you
feel were most influential in maximizing your test score? Once again,
challenge students to speculate why astronaut trainees would be expected
to improve their ability to manipulate in their head the images they see.
Challenge students to think of scenarios in which an astronaut would be
expected to manipulate the orientation of an object in their head under
less than optimal circumstances. Are there experiences in your life when
you need to understand and/or manipulate the orientation of objects you
see?
3. Effects of stress. Ask the students to imagine that
they are astronaut trainees and scientists. Explain that astronauts train
to stay calm and to be aware of their body's natural response to stress
to be in control under extreme conditions that exist on a real space mission.
Tell the students that they will conduct the tests again, but under some
stressful circumstances to be like the stress of space flight.
First, conduct a brainstorm session in which students make up ideas to
create more stressful situations for test subjects in the classroom. Some
possibilities are to conduct the test: while very hungry or full, at the
beginning or end of the day, after spinning around in circles, after strenuous
physical exercise, after waking up, while someone is calling your name
repeatedly, after taking a difficult test. etc. Have them pick one of
the ideas for stress (such as spinning around in circles) and do the tests
as described in step 2, after the students have acted out the chosen form
of stress.
Have students try to answer the question, "Does stress or the conditions
in which the tests if taken affect the results of the test?"
More Activity Ideas
1. Compare your results with data collected from test subject
of various ages. Does age seem to affect spatial recognition abilities?
2. Create your own experiment to assess your classmates' ability
to manipulate objects they see in their head. One way to do this is to
have each student draw a picture of 4 or 5 very similar objects. Then
below these drawings, make a duplicate of one the objects but draw the
duplicate so it is upside down, backwards, or turned on its side. Collect
each student's test question and organize them into a test sheet with
many different questions. Administer the tests to the students. Are there
some pictures that are harder to re-orient than others. Does adding stress
to the test conditions (such as severely limiting the time available to
take the test) affect your test score? Review ways to stay calm and yet
alert as you take any test.
Background for Teachers
Prerequisites:
Student must be able to see drawings presented in front of the class.
Students must be able to score their tests and graph the scores they
receive over the course of five days of testing.
Students must be able to distinguish left from right.
Vocabulary:
- stress- a physically or mentally disruptive influence.
- stressor-anything that causes stress.
- orientation-individual awareness of the objective world in
relation to the self
- mannequin-a full or partial representation of the human body
- manipulate-to operate or control (specifically by skilled use
of the hands)
-
Skills:
- test taking and scoring
- graphing and analyzing test scores
- ability to manipulate the orientation of visual images
- understanding and using the scientific method
Concepts:
Many variables affect an individual's ability to manipulate the images
they see. Astronauts are expected to understand and manipulate images
they see under extremely stressful conditions. In order to assess an individual's
ability to perform under stress, researchers must first determine how
well the test subject can perform under optimal circumstances. The researcher
may then create a less than optimal condition in which to conduct the
test again. An individual may learn to control their ability to manipulate
images they see by practicing this task under stressful conditions. Also,
by staying calm and being aware of the body's response to the stressful
situation, an individual can develop skills that reduce the negative impact
of extreme stress on their ability to understand and manipulate visual
images.
Additional Background information:
A variety of tests are used by NASA researchers to assess astronauts'
ability to understand and manipulate the orientation of images they see.
Likewise there are a wide variety of stressors that could potentially
decrease an astronaut's ability to do this during a space mission. Because
so many astronauts experience motion sickness during space flight, researchers
at NASA focus on reducing the negative impacts that being dizzy and nauseous
has on an individual's performance. The subject might be asked to perform
a test after being shaken up or spun around in a special chair, or after
taking medicine to counteract the motion sickness but with side effects
such as drowsiness.
In tests conducted at NASA, astronaut trainees were asked to identify
which hand of a mannequin held a particular symbol. One difference between
the experiments conducted at NASA and that described above, is that the
mannequin sailor images used at NASA were displayed on a computer screen
rather than on an overhead transparency. Also astronauts entered their
responses using a computer keyboard instead of using pencil and paper
as you have been asked to do.
One of the most important aspects of this astronaut training is the use
of biofeedback. Researchers find that being aware of physical responses
to stress, such as increased breath or heart rate, sweating, or unnecessary
muscle tension, can greatly reduce the negative impacts of stress on the
individual's ability to recognize and manipulate visual images.
Edited by: Gregory Steerman, Alan Gould, Lawrence Hall of Science, U.
of Calif.
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