Last time we saw some analogies between Pune traffic and electronics.
- Imagine its 8AM on a weekday. The IT parks and companies and schools and what not feel a very desperate need for some people to come over and occupy their seats and so some work so that the organizations could sustain and hopefully make some money to live out their lives (yes organizations behave as self-serving organisms!). On the other hand the people residing in Kothrud for example feel some form of similar desperation to reach in the required zones (organizations) in time so that they may be able to live happily ever after. The requirement of both groups for each-other exist purely for their own satisfaction, irrespective of higher goals, mostly. Also one does only care for the other as far as their survival is concerned, and nothing more.
- Now at 8AM, the mobile group makes this whole drama to get into their cars and bikes and buses and move over to the awaiting arms of the organization, all at the same time because its convenient for all organizations and people to work synchronously in a city, why – i don’ t know. Its just like that i guess. Anyways, all these lacs of people moving about from one end of the city to another, criss-crossing each other, this road or that road, non-linear paths, honking and exchanging pleasantries to as many one can find involved in similar goodness – all for the sake of meeting the desperation of both the organizations and individuals.
- On the way the mobile group bumps into fixed or moving objects, creating vibrations to both the interactive parties. Most of the times they don’t bump in, nevertheless the pressure of reaching a certain place in time and uncertainty of road ahead cause frantic adjustments in the movements, keeping everyone in an alert dynamically changing state. If the dynamic state is essential to the flow of this group.
- Also the roads are too important on the way!! Pune has nice roads, except many are under perennial construction and especially with the synchronized mobility choose to attain a life of their own. And they also have some rough surfaces, all in the best interest of the mobility (used here like ‘ nobility’ ) so that they don’ t slide off too quickly or reach their destinations before time!!! So these roads too modify the movement of the people, taking toll on their energy and draining it as the humbum and noise of the traffic. The noise and mystery of traffic jams pass on to other members of the mobility way way remote from the starting point of jams, as if reflection has taken place.
- Sometimes, bikers in Pune decide enough is enough and discover new roads no one knew ever existed. If a pioneer discovers a part, a whole group of ardent followers are developed within a fraction of a second following the path of their true leader until they find another leader opening another path for them. Who says we have no leaders, we have plenty, only they are busy discovering paths on the blocked roads!
- And then there are the mandated traffic signals that try to regulate the different current flows into different paths, keeping one flow from obstructing other flow and avoiding traffic jams. Pune’s bikers however know with mysterious precision when a signal need not be taken seriously, like total stop or total start, especially during peak hours. This infact has a new effect that the traffic never stops completely, just varies in speed through a signal, everyone just adjusting to each-other so much so that the traffic remains optimized all the time, even while criss-crossing at right angles! What a splendid example of an ecological balance!
- There are one way streets where only a few obey the direction while the others obey their perception of dynamic directions. However these streets do help maintain and distribute traffic in certain ways.
- Also there are dividerless roads in plenty where opposite moving traffic interact almost while touching their counterparts, the line between them having a life of its own. When a signal is in force, the bikers and cars crossover the divider lines and huddle up as if the watching a signal turn green is the most interesting sight they will ever seen in their lives!
- While the people move about, their movement creates an immense effect on the sides of their paths. New shops and restaurants and vehicle repair workshops crop up, catering to this mind-boggling every day activity thousands are involved in. While some of that immense activity is just the useless noise and confusion and humbum, there is a significant part of it that is useful for another ecological activity – the roadside business. So any traffic movement can be associated to carry with it the side forces that help carry on the movement.
- Somtimes the reverse happens. A immense roadside activity attracts non-desperate people to move over from far off places to these roadside places, leading to another form of ecological movement.
- Most importantly, many companies to which these people move to survive on the manufacturing the mode of transport required for their movement. Kind of a self-serving cycle of events, feeding into one another.
The above could just be the case of electrons (people). The desperation being the voltage, the number of traffic size being the current, the roads and obstructions being the resistance, the signals being the transistors. The huddling up or swelling of traffic at a signal or slow road being the capacitor effect. One way street being a diode and so on. A more conventional and beautiful explanation is given in this video:
Once explanations are out of the way, we could proceed to some experiments. The ideas is what activity one can do that will A) Excite and B) Inform? The former is especially important since after the previous explanations their minds would have totally gone switch-off and so that needs to be revived.
- Lets begin with a diode. What is a diode and why it is important could be explained. Give students an LED each and ask them to look at it. Also observe some aspects of it, especially the leg length. Explain them the concept of current flow, and how high current could damage the diode. How does a diode gets damaged?
- How to restrict the current? Give them the largest resistor, and make them figure out the resistance of the resistor. Color codes and all.
- Connect all of them in the set direction, so that things glow of not glow with the battery one.
- Now change the resistance and see what happens.
- Explain the concept of bread board, to ease the process.
- Explain the concept of a multimeter to ease the process.
- Can you add switches to the circuit so that its not always on and save battery?