Using CyclePad-an “articulate” software laboratory-in thermodynamics education

Summary form only given. In this paper, the authors discuss the learning and curriculum development issues surrounding integrating a design-based software program into engineering classrooms. They are working with a program called CyclePad in which students can construct thermodynamic cycles (these are the processes that underlie heating and cooling systems, power plants and steam engines). CyclePad belongs to an emerging class of educational software called “articulate virtual laboratories” (AVLs). AVLs provide a design space in which users can construct and analyze virtual artifacts. The “articulation” provided by an AVL gives the supports and scaffolding needed to help students with the design process. These supports provide information to the student such as the reasoning which CyclePad uses to arrive at numerical values, the modeling assumptions underlying a design or a list of the user´s design assumptions which are contradictory. Additionally, the program has an economic model to help students understand the real-world costs of building systems. This paper discusses the design of the curricular activities and an initial study to determine what students can learn from using CyclePad in a thermodynamics curriculum