The purpose of this activity is to demonstrate Newton's 3rd Law of Motion, which is the physical law that governs thrust in aircraft. The students will do several activities that show that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

To explore different ways of using solar energy, students build a model solar water heater and determine how much it can heat water in a given amount of time. Solar water heaters work by solar radiation and convection.

Student teams learn about and devise technical presentations on four reproductive technology topics pregnancy ultrasound, amniocentesis, in-vitro fertilization or labor anesthetics. Each team acts as a panel of engineers asked to make a presentation to a group of students unfamiliar with the reproductive technology. Each group incorporates non-lecture elements into its presentation for greater effectiveness. As students learn about the technologies, by creating a presentation and listening to other groups' presentations, they also learn more about the valuable skill of technical communications.

Students learn about trigonometry, geometry and measurements while participating in a hands-on interaction with LEGO® MINDSTORMS® NXT technology. First they review fundamental geometrical and trigonometric concepts. Then, they estimate the height of various objects by using simple trigonometry. Students measure the height of the objects using the LEGO robot kit, giving them an opportunity to see how sensors and technology can be used to measure things on a larger scale. Students discover that they can use this method to estimate the height of buildings, trees or other tall objects. Finally, students synthesize their knowledge by applying it to solve similar problems. By activity end, students have a better grasp of trigonometry and its everyday applications.

Students develop an understanding of visible air pollutants with an incomplete combustion demonstration, a "smog in a jar" demonstration, building simple particulate matter collectors, and exploration of engineering roles related to air pollution. In an associated literacy activity, students learn basic marketing concepts and techniques, and the principles of comparative analysis, while creating an advertisement for a hybrid vehicle. Note: You may want to set up the activities for Air Pollution unit, Lessons 2 and 3, simultaneously as they require extended data collection time and can share test sites.

Students experience the engineering design process as they design and construct lower-leg prostheses in response to a hypothetical zombie apocalypse scenario. Like the well-known Apollo 13 story during which engineers were challenged to fix the crippled spacecraft with limited supplies in order to save astronauts' lives, in this activity, students act as engineers during an imaginary disaster in which a group member's leg was amputated in order to survive a zombie attack. Building on what they learned and researched in the associated lesson, they design and fabricate a replacement prosthetic limb using given specific starting material and limited additional supplies, similar to how engineers design for individuals while working within constraints. A more-advanced scenario challenges students to design a prosthesis that is able to provide a more-specific movement function.