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. Teh act of copying properties of familiar objects - organisms - or environments in order to realize specifice benefits afforded by those properties.






2. There are five ways to organize information: Category - time - location - alphabet - and continuum.






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






4. 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.






5. A tendency to see objects and patterns as 3D when certain visual cues are present.






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






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






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






9. 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.






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






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






12. A term used to describe a set of data - that when plotted - forms a symmetrical - bell- shaped curve.






13. A phenomenon of memory in which items presented at the beginning and end of a list are more likely to be recalled than items in the middle of a list.






14. 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.






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






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






17. 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.






18. Tendency to form an overall positive impression of a person on the basis of one positive characteristic






19. 1) Physiological 2) Safety 3) Love 4) Self-Esteem 5) Self-Actualization


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






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






22. Teachers treat students differently based on their expectations of how students will perform.






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






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






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






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






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






28. 80% of the effects generated by any large system are caused by 20% of the variables.






29. A tendency to prefer faces in which the eyes - nose - lips and other features are close to the average of a population.






30. A method of reorganizing information to make the information simpler - more meaningful and easier to remember. (ie. First Letter - Keyword - Rhyme - Feature Name)






31. An activity will be pursued only if its benefits are equal to or greater than the costs. (ie. How much reading is too much to get the point of a message?)






32. Designs should help people avoid errors and minimize the negative consequences of errors when they do occur.






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






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






35. A property of visual equivalence among elements in a form.






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






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






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






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






40. The tendency to perceive objects as unchanging - despite changes in sensory input. (such as perspective - lighting - color or size)






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






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






43. The time required to move to a target is a function of the target size and distance to the target.


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






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






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






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






48. The act of measuring certain sensitive variable in a system can alter them - and confound the accuracy of the measurement.






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






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