Test your basic knowledge |

Design Principles

Subject : engineering
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. There are three ways to organize materials to support a load or to contain and protect something: Mass structures - frame structures - and shell structures.






2. A Gestalt law of organization; elements arrange in a straight line or a smooth curve are perceived as a group - and are interpreted as being more related than elements not on the line or curve.






3. The use of simplified and incomplete models of a design to explore ideas - elaborate requirements - refine specifications - and test functionality.






4. A phenomenon of memory in which information that is analyzed deeply is better recalled than information that is analyzed superficially.






5. A phenomenon in which mental processing is made slower and less accurate by competing mental processes.






6. A sequence of numbers in which each number is the sum of the preceding two.






7. A technique of combining many units of information into a limited number of units or chunks - so that the information is easier to process and remember.






8. The visual clarity of text - generally based on the size - typeface - contrast - text block - and spacing of the characters used.






9. A tendency to interpret shaded or dark areas of an object as shadows resulting from a light source above the object.






10. When participants realise the aim of the study and may change their behaviour to help or disrupt the study.






11. A phenomenon of visual processing in which certain line orientations are more quickly and easily processed and discriminated than other line orientations.






12. A method of presentation in which information is presented in descending order of importance. (Critical information presented first).






13. The tendency for people to perform better or worse based on the expectations of another.






14. Using more elements than is necessary to offset the effects of unknown variables which may cause a system failure.






15. A phenomenon of memory in which noticeably different things are more likely to be recalled that common things. (AKA Isolation/Novelty Effect)






16. The debgree to which prose can be understood - based on the complexity of words and sentences.






17. A diagram that describes the general pattern followed by the eyes when looking at evenly distributed - homogeneous information.






18. An ability to detect threatening stimuli more efficiently than nonthreatening stimuli.






19. A technique for preventing unintended actions by requiring verification of the actions before they are performed.






20. A tendency to interpret ambiguous images as simple and a complete unit - versus complex and incomplete. (Gestalt principle of perception).






21. An original model on which something is patterned






22. A tendency to see people and things iwth baby- faced features as more naive - helpless - and honest than those with mature features.






23. The designs that help people perform optimally are often not the same as the designs that people find most desirable.






24. A method of creating imagery - emotions - and understanding of events through an interaction between a storyteller and an audience.






25. The usability of a system is improved when similar parts are expressed in similar ways.






26. Elements perceived as either figures (objects of focus) or ground (the rest of the perceptual field)






27. The relative ease with which a destination - idea - or concept may be reached.






28. An action or ommission of action yielding an unintended result.






29. Memory for recognizing things is better than memory for recalling things.






30. Elements that are connected by uniform visual properties - such as color - are perceived to be more related than elements that are not connected.






31. The use of pictorial images to improve the recognition and recall of signs and controls.






32. A method of managing system complexity that involves dividing large systems into multiple - smaller self- contained systems.






33. A technique used to modify behavior by reinforcing desired behaviors - and ignoring or punishing undesired behaviors.






34. Beauty in design results from purity of function. Interpreted in 2 ways: A description of beauty or a prescription for beauty.






35. People understand and interact with systems and environments based on mental representations developed from experience.






36. Adjusting parts of a device in relation to each other to create a sense of unity and cohesion.






37. The process of organizing information into related groupings in order to manage complexity and reinforce relationships in the information.






38. A technique that influences decision making and judgement by manipulating the way information is presented.






39. The process of using spatial and environmental information to navigate to a destination.






40. The distressing state of thought caused by recognizing an inconsistency between behavior/thought and value/belief.






41. A strategy for managing information complexity in which only necessary or requested information is displayed at any given time.






42. The ratio of relevant to irrelevant information in a display. The highest possible signal- to- noise ratio is desirable in design.






43. It is often preferable to settle for a satisfactory solution - rather than pursue an optimal solution.






44. A state of mental focus so intense that awareness of the 'real' world is lost - generally resulting in a feeling of joy and satisfaction.






45. A technique of composition in which a medium is divided into thirds - creating aesthetic positions for the primary elements of a design.






46. Hierarchical organization is the simplest structure for visualizing and understanding complexity.






47. All products progress sequentially through four stages of existence: introduction - growth - maturity - and decline.






48. A process in which similar characteristics evolve independently in multiple systems.






49. A technique used to teach a desired behavior by reinforcing increasingly accurate approximations of the behavior.






50. Repeated exposure to stimuli for which people have neutral feelings will increase the likeability of the stimuli.