Random Number Generator Project
Define A Problem
Generate concepts
In this project we were supposed to correctly arrange and solder the appropriate pieces to a circuit board to create a working Random Number Generator. The main goals of the project are to follow instructions to correctly assemble the necessary pieces and to use proper soldering techniques to adhere the pieces to the board.
Construct And test prototype
Evaluate the solution
Conclusion Questions
1. I do not think that the random number generator is completely fair because if it were, each number would have come up approximately 16.67% of the time. Instead, as demonstrated in the table, there was an obvious bias towards number 1, which came up 25 times out of 100, while the numbers 3,4, and 5 only came up 14, 14, and 13 times, respectively.
2. In the 1940s, Admiral Grace Hooper coined the term "debugging" when she discovered a moth stuck in a relay of her computer and remarked that she was "debugging" the computer to fix it.
Reflection
This project was very enjoyable and surprisingly easy to execute. The soldering part of the project was very manageable once I got the hang of it and after I used a soldering iron that was hot enough. The most difficult part of the project was in fact, keeping the components, specifically the LEDs and the IC sockets, in the board long enough to solder them on, as the different component sizes made it difficult to keep them in place. I did have to use the solder sucker several times to remove enough solder to place components flush against the board after being soldered on while lopsided. The only other difficult part was clipping the ICs into their sockets, as the ICs are designed to be wider than the sockets to ensure a tight fit. I did encounter a problem when I accidentally clipped an IC in the wrong orientation, which caused the RNG to not function properly. However, after being reoriented correctly, the RNG worked flawlessly. Although as discussed in the conclusion questions, the RNG is not completely random. Overall, this project was very fun and went on without too many difficulties and soldering is definitely something I would like to do again in the future.
1. I do not think that the random number generator is completely fair because if it were, each number would have come up approximately 16.67% of the time. Instead, as demonstrated in the table, there was an obvious bias towards number 1, which came up 25 times out of 100, while the numbers 3,4, and 5 only came up 14, 14, and 13 times, respectively.
2. In the 1940s, Admiral Grace Hooper coined the term "debugging" when she discovered a moth stuck in a relay of her computer and remarked that she was "debugging" the computer to fix it.
Reflection
This project was very enjoyable and surprisingly easy to execute. The soldering part of the project was very manageable once I got the hang of it and after I used a soldering iron that was hot enough. The most difficult part of the project was in fact, keeping the components, specifically the LEDs and the IC sockets, in the board long enough to solder them on, as the different component sizes made it difficult to keep them in place. I did have to use the solder sucker several times to remove enough solder to place components flush against the board after being soldered on while lopsided. The only other difficult part was clipping the ICs into their sockets, as the ICs are designed to be wider than the sockets to ensure a tight fit. I did encounter a problem when I accidentally clipped an IC in the wrong orientation, which caused the RNG to not function properly. However, after being reoriented correctly, the RNG worked flawlessly. Although as discussed in the conclusion questions, the RNG is not completely random. Overall, this project was very fun and went on without too many difficulties and soldering is definitely something I would like to do again in the future.