Overview
Students will run this required activity, called a “mini-mission,” using practice data. This activity will help students to prepare for the live event.

Scenario
Specialized teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center are preparing to stage a fire and rescue drill at the space shuttle’s launch pad and bunker. Teams of emergency personnel must continually practice to maintain heightened levels of readiness in case of an actual emergency. All aspects of an emergency must be considered: evacuation and rescue of the astronauts and support personnel and an accurate identification of the source of the fire to choose the correct suppression technique. Following a drill, assessments are made of the efficiency of drill procedures, and recommendations to improve performances are made.

• Your students join as members of emergency fire drill teams and use the data provided to evaluate the situation and make recommendations.

Recommended Preparation
Organize your class into teams of 6-8 members each. For each team assign students to roles of Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide Specialists. For this mini-mission it is recommended to have 3-4 students on each function to work collectively on the data.

The students will practice calculating measures of central tendency and plotting box-and-whiskers graphs. No individual tasks are assigned to members of the teams.

For homework have students read:

• Overview of Teams
• Specialist instructions for their area (carbon dioxide or oxygen).

Duration

10-15 minutes: Organize students into teams and give directions.

30-35 minutes: Run the mini-mission.

Materials Needed

• One computer per team with the fire simulator displayed on the screen. You may find the link for this tool under Scope and Sequence - Lesson 6 - Student Resources on the web site, or by clicking here.
• Practice data graphs for the mini-mission available under Scope and Sequence - Lesson 6 - Student Resources on the web site, or by clicking here. You will need to print as many pages as teams you have.
• Practice data answer key for the teacher.

Student Tasks

1. Oxygen Analysis: 3 to 4 people—Receives the oxygen data, calculates the measures of central tendency:  mean, median, and mode (if applicable). Graphs the results using a box-and-whiskers plot. Then compares the results with the initial conditions. When both of those measures match, it means that those conditions represent the real conditions in the bunker.

2. Carbon Dioxide Analysis: 3 to 4 people—Receives the carbon dioxide data; calculates the measures of central tendency: mean, median, and mode (if applicable); graphs the results using a box-and-whiskers plot. Then compare the results with the initial conditions. When both of those measures match, it means that those conditions represent the real initial conditions.

Note: One student from either group should be in charge of entering the information into the computer with the fire simulator once you distribute the slips.

Run the Mini-Mission

1. Organize the students into teams of 6 to 8 students. Assign half of them to be Oxygen Specialists and the other half to be Carbon Dioxide Specialists.
2. Review the mini-mission scenario with the students.
3. Distribute the set of data containing the actual conditions of the room as detected by the sensors. Have the students represent this data using a bright color, e.g., red.
4. When the students have successfully completed the calculations and box-and-whiskers plot worksheet for the sensor’s data (available under the Overview of Teams O2 and CO2), you can distribute the data labeled Possible Conditions 1. This data represents possible initial conditions that could have caused the fire. The students will need to plug this info into their fire simulator. Then they will need to calculate and graph all the measures of central tendency for the results given by the fire simulator and compare them with the data from sensors to see if they match.
5. Repeat with the data labeled Possible Conditions 2.
6. Check their calculations and understanding of the process when they finish and provide additional help if needed.
7. Ask the students to identify which set of initial conditions caused the fire. Ask them to give explanations.

Room Conditions: Sensor Data

To: Carbon Dioxide or Oxygen Specialist

Fire Simulator Parameters: Possible Conditions 1

To: Carbon Dioxide or Oxygen Specialist

Fire Simulator Parameters: Possible Conditions 2

To: Carbon Dioxide or Oxygen Specialist