Aviation History
Name:_____________________
Questions
1. Before reading the Wikipedia article, just look at the Table of Contents on the front page. What can you tell from this? About when was the airplane invented?
2. Give an example of a lighter-than-air aircraft and a heavier-than-air aircraft. Why is this a good distinction to keep in mind? Which kind of aircraft came first?
3. Name two important experimenters active between 1880 and 1900, and why they were important for the history of modern aviation.
4. Most likely you have never heard of many of the people or machines in the Wikipedia article. What was most surprising to learn, and why?
5. Think: why was photography important to the history of aviation? What about oil?
6. Finally, notice the structure of the article. (The Table of Contents will be helpful again.) How is it organized? How does it compare your group's Group Project?
Comment
I will talk about an article by Gary Bradshaw. Bradshaw thinks most "Pioneer Era" inventors (like Langley, Maxim, Stringfellow, and Ader) used a design-space search, but that the Wrights used a function-space search. Without knowing what he means, can you see a difference in the Wright's approach, that might help explain their success?