Name: ______________________________________ Date: ________________________

Student Exploration: Reverse the Field

Vocabulary: inversion, mean, retina

Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)

When you see an object, light from the object is focused on the retina, a thin tissue on the back
of your eye. This image is upside-down and reversed.

1. How do you think you are able to see a right-side-up image? ________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2. Suppose you wore a special pair of goggles that turned everything you see upside-down. Do
you think you would be able to adjust to this new reality? Explain why or why not.

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

Gizmo Warm-up
Normally, the cursor on a computer screen follows the movements
of your hand. If you move your hand to the right, the cursor moves
right. But what would happen if the cursor did the opposite of what
you intend? Would you still be able to use your computer? The
Reverse the Field Gizmo allows you to experience a situation in
which your mouse cursor does not react to your movements in a
normal way.

To start, see how well you can use your cursor in normal
circumstances. Check that test A is selected and press Begin test.
Type the word “gizmo” by clicking on the letters with your mouse.

1. How long did it take you to type “gizmo”? ________________________________________

2. Type “gizmo” four more times. What were your times? _______ _______ _______ _______

3. What do you notice about your times? __________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2019
 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity A:
 Click Reset clocks.
Adjusting to
 Check that the Goal is “gizmo.” If not, click
inversions
“Reload” or “Refresh” on your web browser.

Introduction: An inversion is a reversal of position and direction. The Reverse the Field Gizmo
allows you to work with situations in which the function of your mouse is inverted.

Question: How well do you adjust to inversions in mouse function?

1. Predict: The Reverse the Field Gizmo allows you to experiment with three different
inversions: left-right (test B), up-down (test C), and left-right-up-down (test D).

Which inversion do you think you will adjust to most easily? _________________________

Which inversion do you think will be the most difficult? ______________________________

2. Gather data: For each test, run six trials with the word “gizmo.” Record all times in the table.

Left-right Up-down Left-right-up-down

Trial
(test B) (test C) (test D)
1
2
3
4
5
6
Mean times

3. Analyze: What patterns do you see in your data? __________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

4. Calculate: Cross out the slowest time in each column. Calculate the mean for each test by
adding the remaining times and dividing the sum by five. Record the mean times in the
bottom row of the table.

(Activity A continued on next page)

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Activity A (continued from previous page)

5. Compare: Look at the results and mean for each test.

A. Which inversions yielded the best and worst individual times?

Best: __________________________ Worst: __________________________

B. Which inversions yielded the best and worst mean times?

Best: __________________________ Worst: __________________________

C. If possible, share your results with those of your classmates. Did they experience

similar results? Explain. ________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

6. Draw conclusions: Based on your data, which inversion was the easiest to adjust to? Which

was the hardest? Why do you think this was? _____________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

7. Think and discuss: Why do you think it is sometimes a good idea to drop the most extreme

result when calculating the mean of a data set? ___________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2019
 Activity B: Get the Gizmo ready:
Long-term  Click Reset clocks.
adjustments  Select test A.

Question: How well can we adjust to inversions that occur for a longer period of time?

1. Form hypothesis: Given unlimited practice, do you think you can function as well with an

inversion as you can without? Explain why or why not. ______________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2. List: Click Change goal. What word is your goal now? _____________________________

3. Gather data: With test A (no inversions) selected, type this word five times. Record the times
below, and circle your best time.

_____________ _____________ _____________ _____________ _____________

4. Select a test: Your challenge is to try to adjust to the most difficult inversion for you.

Which inversion will you try? __________________________________________________

5. Gather data: Click on your chosen inversion, and then type the word 30 times. Record your
results in the table. (Fill in each row from left to right, starting at the top.) Circle the best time.

6. Gather data: Now select test A and try writing the word five more times. Record the times:

_____________ _____________ _____________ _____________ _____________

(Activity B continued on next page)

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Activity B (continued from previous page)

7. Analyze: Consider your results in the three experiments.

A. Were you able to perform as well with the inversion as you were without? Explain.

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

B. How much did you improve over the course of 30 trials with the inversion?

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

C. Compare your times in question 3 to your times in question 6. How did practicing
with the inversion affect your ability to function without the inversion?

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

8. Think about it: Do you think you collected enough data to truly answer the question posed at
the beginning of this activity? In other words, how well do you think you would do given
unlimited practice for many days?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

9. Describe: Explain what it was like to type the word with an inversion. Did you have to use a
particular strategy to get to the next letter? Did that strategy change over time?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

10. On your own: If you like, continue to practice with the inversion until you can type the word
as fast with the inversion as without. Share your experiences with your classmates and
teacher.

2019
 Extension:
Get the Gizmo ready:
Design an
 Click Reset clocks.
experiment

Introduction: The Reverse the Field Gizmo can be used for a science fair project or other
experiment. The first step is to come up with an interesting question to investigate.

Choose a question
Here are a few suggestions to get you started. You can choose a topic from this list or come up
with a topic on your own.

 Which type of inversion is easiest to adjust to?

 Which type of inversion is the most difficult to adjust to?
 Does gender affect the ability to adjust to inversions?
 Does age affect the ability to adjust to inversions?
 How do various distracters (music, flashing lights, or background noise) affect a person’s
ability to adjust to inversions?
 How does putting someone in a stressful situation affect their ability to adjust to an
inversion?
 Do video-game enthusiasts adjust more easily to inversions?
 Which is better able to adjust to inversions, the right hand or the left hand?

Which question are you going to investigate? ________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

Design your experiment

The key to designing a successful experiment is to control your variables. Everything in your
experiments should be the same except for the one variable you are investigating. For example,
if you are comparing different inversions, then each subject should have the same goal word.

Before beginning the experiment, explain your project and experimental design to your teacher.
Ask if there is any paperwork that you need to fill out. (Many science fairs require specific
paperwork to be filed for any project involving human subjects.)

Briefly describe your experimental design: __________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

(Extension continued on next page)

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Extension (continued from previous page)

Carry out your experiment

A well-designed experiment isn’t any good unless you carry it out according to your plan. Gather
data from as many subjects as possible. In general, the more data you collect, the more reliable
your results will be. After your data has been collected, analyze the data using graphs and
tables. Draw conclusions based on your data, not on what you expected to happen.

In the space below, summarize your results and state your conclusions: ___________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

Present your results

The last step is to present your experiment in a clear and visually appealing way. Include tables
and graphs that show the trends in your data. If you are presenting at a school science fair, a
nice touch might be to include a computer in your display so passersby can test their own ability
to adjust to inversions. Good luck and have fun!

2019