CAM II: Optimization Egg Catcher Problem

During the experiment many intuitive ideas of optimization were exhibited. The
main principles found to most prevalent were the concepts of the tradeoff between
efficiency and effectiveness, algorithmic evaluation and constraints. These
principles further indicated the vast applications of optimization as the concepts
appear in many areas of industry, finance and in this case engineering.
We now relate our understanding of these principles to the experiment and
investigate where and why the appeared.
Efficiency and Effectiveness:
Optimization requires one to examine what tradeoffs can be made to ensure the
best possible return. These tradeoffs arise from constraints specific to the problem.
This experiment indicated the importance of deciding what materials would provide
a maximum way to stop the eggs fall while minimizing the forces applied to it as not
to break it. The compromise between these two objects will determine the
performance of the device thus an optimal deceleration needed to be found which
relied on the materials and structure of the egg capture. This illustrates the
importance of the concept a tradeoff in optimization.
Algorithmic Evaluation:
There where various combinations of materials and beyond that ways of arranging
these materials. To optimize a scenario where there are numerous combinations of
the variables concerned requires a method which examines each possibility to find
an optimal combination. This was discovered through the discussion of what
materials may provide better utility and examining all the different ways these
materials could be connected and used.
Constraints:
Constraints played a fundamental role in the overall outcome of the device as they
determined what solutions would be considered valid. Examples of constraints
imposed in the process included the number of materials that could be used, the
amount of time allotted for building the device and the conditions at which the egg
would break. Examining these limitations allowed us to develop a solution that was
legitimate under these conditions. Here constraints occur because optimization is
an applied subject which functions in the real world where constraints are an
intrinsic quality of the problems faced. This allowed us to further grasp the
applicability of the subject.
These ideas allowed us to learn a natural approach to optimization and the
processes involved in determining an optimal solution which will aid us when a
rigorous approach is taken to the subject.