Chapter 2Shawn Frayne

Who is Shawn? An inventor Works in Amy Smith’s lab Went to Haiti and tried to make pellets

out of recycled paper, sawdust pellet, and briquette made of juiced, dried sugar cane stalks.

Explains Engineer’s Design Process and Appropriate Technology

What is the engineering design process? It is an approach to solving problems

involving a series of steps.

Did Shawn’s team follow the steps in order? No, Shawn used the design process as a

guideline, rather than as a rule.

What’s the difference between criteria and constraints? Criteria are desired features. Constraints are limitations in developing

or using the technology, such as costs, time, and materials.

How many prototypes did the team build? How many were successful? Three. Only one met their criteria for success.

Was Shawn surprised with the result? What do engineers think about failure?

No, he was not surprised. In the eyes of an engineer, failure

provides new and valuable information.

Why is communicating the solution an important? If a new technology is not

communicated, no one will know about it.