Description

Presenter: Ronald Song

Notes

• Purpose of project
  • Started as a maker project for 4th year thesis for automation
  • potential for a11y needs
  • Want to make it low cost and based on open source technology
• Basic problem
  • the lab equipment often aren't accessible
    • e.g. small, slippery, small/hard to read labels, etc.
  • the producers of the equipment are most concerned with precision and accuracy
    • assumes an able bodied individual
  • Need to retrofit the equipment, e.g. using a magnifying glass
  • Existing accessible equipment is very expensive
  • You could also hirer a lab assistant to run the experiments, however, the question is whether or not the student is actually learning, because they can only observe.
• Maker Revolution
  • parts tend to be inexpensive, flexible, and open source
• Universal Design in Chemistry
  • Most experimental procedures are designed for able students
  • Needs a paradigm shift from learning through physically doing to allow automation
    • e.g. turning a knob on a piece of equipment → interacting with something to adjust the setting on the equipment
    • The learning experience doesn't necessarily come from turning the knob, but from analyzing the data