Bean+Passes

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1. How does the number of beans being passed change as your finger combinations change?

The number of beans being passed changed as the finger combinations changed. When we used our thumbs, the number of passes increased. Every time we didn't use our thumbs, the number of passes decreased. Using our thumbs made it easier to grab the bean quickly enough to give it to the next person. But when not using our thumbs we had a harder time to grab and let go of the bean. Some finger combinations were easier to use than the others.

2. What are some conclusions you can develop from looking at this data?

I can conclude that it is neccessary for humans to have thumbs. This was a lab,that modeled how humans use thumbs. Looking at this data, it is clear humans need thumbs in order to survive. This relates to our everyday activities such eating, writing, typing, and more. Without thumbs, it would be much harder to do these things, and our day would process slower than usual. Just like the passing of beans in our lab.

3. What might 2 or 3 sources of error that occurred during this experiment?

Some sources of errors that occurred were things like dropping the beans. This happened when we didn't use our thumbs, the beans would slip off our hands and cause delays in the rotation. Another error was losing count of passes per minute. Sometimes when the passing got distracting, we lost count of the passes per minute. Last but not least, the most addictive error was to switch fingers. Every time we didn't use our thumbs, we wanted to switch fingers, because it felt awkward. My group mostly made errors with switching fingers.

4. HOW DOES THIS LAB DEMONSTRATE “ADAPTATIONS”?

This lab demonstrates adaptation because we were used to using our thumbs, and when we did not use them, it was difficult. Even though throughout the day, we use all of our five fingers (UR1-UR5), we tend to use our thumb the most. Especially when we grasp objects. The bean passing showed how without the thumb, the project was a little difficult because it was not easy to grasp. Overtime humans got used to using a thumb. And adaptation is when "the population gets better suited to its habitat." In this project, we were used to using our thumbs.