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






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






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






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






5. A Gestalt principle of organization holding that aspects of perceptual field that move or function in a similar manner will be perceived as a unit






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






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






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






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


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






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






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






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






14. 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.






15. 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.






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






23. 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.






24. There are three ways to organize materials to support a load or to contain and protect something: Mass structures - frame structures - and shell structures.






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






33. The use of more elements than necessary to maintain the performance of a system in the event of failure of one or more of the elements.






34. 80% of the effects generated by any large system are caused by 20% of the variables.






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






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






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


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






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






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






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






42. 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.






43. 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.






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






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






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






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






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






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






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