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. Tendency to perceive a set of individual elements as a single - recogniable pattern - rather than multiple - individual elements.






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






3. The tendency to see attractive people as more intelligent - competent - moral and sociable than unattractive people.






4. A tendency to prefer environments with unobstructed views (prospects) and areas of concealment and retreat (refuges).






5. The level of control provided by a system should be related to the proficiency and experience levels of the people using the system.






6. The tendency for people to behave differently when they know they are being studied






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






8. Given a choice between functionally equivalent designs - the simplest design should be selected.


9. The usability of a system is improved when its status and methods of use are clearly visible.






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






11. Elements that are close together are percieved to be more related than elements that are farther apart.






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






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






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






15. Successful products typically follow four stages of creation: requirements - design - development - and testing.






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






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






18. 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.






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






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






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






22. A relationship between controls and their movements or effects. When th effect corresponds to the expectation - the mapping is considered to be good or natural.






23. Elements that are similar are perceived to be more related than elements that are dissimilar.






24. A preference for a particular ratio of waist size to hip size in men and women. Men prefer 0.7 in women. Women prefer 0.9 in men.






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






26. As the flexiblity of a system increases - its usability decreases.






27. People tend to prefer savanna- like environments to other types of environments. Open areas - scattered trees - water - and uniform grassiness rather than other natural environments such as desert - jungle - and complex mtns.






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






29. A process of repeating a set of operation until a specific result is achieved.






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






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






32. A technique used to asociate a stimulus with an unconscious physical or emotional response.






33. The ratio of face to body in an image that influences the way the person in the image is perceived. (High = intelligent / Low = physical)






34. The greater the effort to accomplish a task - the less likely the task will be accomplished successfully.






35. A method of illustrating relationships and patterns in system behaviors by representing two or more system variables in a controlled way.






36. 80% of the effects generated by any large system are caused by 20% of the variables.






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






38. A relationship between variables in a system where the consequences of an event are fed back in order to modify the event in the future.






39. The quality of system output is dependent on the quality of system input.






40. 1) Functionality 2) Reliability 3) Usability 4) Proficiency 5) Creativity. In order for design to be successful - it must meet ppl's basic need before it can attempt to satisfy higher- level needs.






41. An attribute of an object that allows people to intuitively know how to use it






42. A point of physical or attentional entry into a design. (Minimal Barriers - Points of Prospect - Progressive Lures)






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






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






45. The deliberate use of a weak element that will fail in order to protect other elements in the system from damage.






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






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






48. A tendency to assume that a system that works at one scale will also work at a smaller or larger scale. (2 kinds: Load assumptions and Interaction assumptions)






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






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