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






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






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






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






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






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






7. A space that has territorial markers - opportunities for surveillance - and clear indications of activity and ownership.






8. 80% of the effects generated by any large system are caused by 20% of the variables.






9. A ratio within the elements of a form - such as height to width - approximating 0.618.






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






11. The time it takes to make a decision increases as the number of alternatives increases.


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






13. 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)






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






22. 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.






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






32. A technique for bringing attention to an area of text or image.






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






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


35. 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.






36. Patients experience treatment effects based on their belief that a treatment will work.






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






38. A method of limiting the actions that can be performed on a system.






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






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






41. An original model on which something is patterned






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






43. A property in which a form is made up of parts similar to the whole or to one another.






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






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






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






47. 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?)






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






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






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