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American Public Power Association Demonstration of Energy Efficient Developments (DEED) Project Final Report Project Title Power Bandit TM Safety and Energy Conservation Program General Overview The goal of this project is to provide students with information pertaining to the basics of electricity and natural gas, electrical and natural gas safety and energy conservation in the form of an animated, interactive CD in an effort to eliminate avoidable safety accidents. Hence, the problems that the Power Bandit will attempt to solve are the unsafe practices of students in hazardous situations and the negligent, wasteful usage of our limited resources. The need for a safety and energy conservation program is validated and magnified by information that attributes accidents by the general public relating to utilities and negligence of our resources to lack of knowledge and awareness of our actions. This program bridges that gap by providing an interactive CD with a super heroic animated character, Power Bandit what will educate young students (third through seventh graders) about the basics of electricity, natural gas and electrical safety, energy conservation and renewable energy. The CD has flexibility to be used in conjunction with the science curriculum currently established at schools. The Power Bandit Interactive CD utilizes a new cartoon like character to teach students about the basics of electricity and natural gas, electrical safety, natural gas safety and energy conservation. The goal of this project is achieved through the CD and the printable supplementary materials available on the CD for teachers. Purpose The Power Bandit’s purpose is to provide students with information pertaining to the basics of electricity and natural gas, electrical and natural gas safety and energy conservation. This will be accomplished through the utilization of a cartoon-like character that will travel in the Power Bandit Tracker 2.0. The CD introduction introduces the students to the Power Bandit, who steals energy through waste and inefficiency. The students are encouraged to learn about energy – its sources, distribution and safety. Then, through conservation, the students are encouraged to ‘beat the bandit’ and make the world a more energy efficient place. Utility Name and Address Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division 220 S. Main Street Memphis, Tennessee 38103-3917 Utility Description Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division (MLGW) provides electricity, water and natural gas to the City of Memphis and several surrounding counties. MLGW data for electric customers only as of December 31, 2003. Residential: Sales: $53,079,412 Customers: 353,721 Commercial: Sales: $45,530,902 Customers: 50,700 Industrial: Sales: $4,578,116 Customers: 234 Other: Customers: 16,755 Street Lighting: # of street lights in service: 90,170 # of leased outdoor lights in service: 37,291 Key Personnel and Contact Information Juanita Ford Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division 901.528.4433 Pam Moore Moore Syndication 205.871.8819 Description Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division (MLGW) and Moore Syndication (Moore) worked jointly to develop a new educational compact disc (CD) ‘Power BanditTM Safety and Energy Conservation Program’ that will teach students about the basics of electricity and natural gas, electrical safety, natural gas safety and energy conservation. This interactive CD features the character, Power Bandit. The Power Bandit is strong and bold with the power to steal energy through waste and inefficiency. Because the Power Bandit is a negative character, it is preferable that everyone can identify with energy waste or energy hazards and learn to avoid following the character’s bad behavior. The CD includes an opening page (introduction), four applications (games) and a minimum of four transitional pages. Also included on the CD will be a Teacher Resource Guide, Certification of Completion and supplementary letter for each student’s caregiver. After the introduction of the Power Bandit and the student’s mission, the students will be inside the Power Bandit Tracker 2.0. To progress pass this point, a message ‘To Tracker Control’ is displayed. The students must click on the tracker located in the middle of console. Inside Power Bandit Tracker 2.0 After clicking on the console, the students will be able to navigate the Power Bandit Tracker Control. The Power Bandit Tracker Control screen (see below) has four quadrants. The quadrants are labeled ‘Get the Basics,’ ‘Use Caution,’ Beat the Bandit’ and ‘Get the Power.’ The students can move the cursor and click on the appropriate quadrant or button to navigate to the desired area. There are also ‘Info’ and ‘Glossary’ buttons at the bottom of the tracker control. Clicking on the Info button provides copyright information and access to the Power Bandit Teacher Resource, a Certificate of Completion for the students and a letter for the students’ caregiver detailing information conveyed to the students through this project. Get the Basics After clicking on the Get the Basics quadrant, the students are given the choice of choosing five buttons – four launch short movies (‘Basics of Natural Gas,’ ‘Basics of Electrons,’ Basics of Magnetism,’ and ‘Electricity: Moving Electrons’) and one launches a Basics Quiz. The ‘Play Basics Quiz’ reviews the information presented in the movies. The movies are narrated by Professor C, who explains the mysteries of each form of energy in that respective movie. The movies can be stopped at any time by clicking on the red square. It can be started again by clicking on the green triangle. The students can quit the movie and go back to ‘Get the Basics’ by clicking on the ‘X’ in the upper right hand corner of the screen. Basics of Natural Gas Movie – Content of this movie include: Natural gas is an important form of energy. It is a fossil fuel formed from decaying plant and animal life. Natural gas forms deep inside the Earth as animal and plants were covered by sediments. Coal and petroleum are other types of fossil fuels. Natural gas is extracted from the ground by drilling deep into the Earth. Once it is removed, impurities are removed. Natural gas is a flammable and odorless gas called methane. An odorant, ethyl mercaptan, is added to natural gas so that is can be detected by smell. Ethyl mercaptan smells like rotten eggs or a skunk. Natural gas is distributed to the places it is burned through a series of pipes and tanks. Basics of Electrons Movie – Content of this movie include: Ancient Greeks believed that everything was made of tiny particles which could not be divided. They called these particles atoms. Today, we know that every element is made of a different type of atom. Atoms can combine to form everything in the universe – solids, gasses and liquids. Atoms are composed of smaller particles called protons, neutrons and electrons. Every atom has a center, or nucleus, composed of at least one proton and often neutrons. All atoms have at least one electron which orbits the nucleus. Electricity is the movement of electrons. Atoms of some materials allow electrons to move from the orbit of one atom to the orbit of a second, and so on. These types of orbits are said to be loosely held. Materials whose atoms are loosely held are called conductors. A stream of moving electrons is called electricity. Basics of Magnetism Contents of the movie include: Magnetism is a force essential to understanding electricity. Magnets can attract or repel other magnets and attract certain other materials like iron. All magnets have poles at the ends, a north pole and a south pole. The north and south poles of different magnets will attract each other. Opposite poles attract. Two north poles or two south poles will repel from each other. No matter how many times you split a magnet, it will always have a north and south pole. The Earth acts like a giant bar magnet. This magnet is buried through the center of the planet. The south pole of the Earth’s magnet lies under the north pole of the Earth. A compass needle always points north. The needle is really a magnet. It is attracted toward the Earth magnet’s south pole, which lies near the north pole. (Recall opposite poles attract.) A compass needle can be moved if another magnet or piece of iron is near. This is because the magnetic attraction of these objects is greater than the Earth’s magnet. Objects containing iron-like a paper clip – will not attract another object containing iron on its own. However, if the paper clip touches a magnet first, it becomes magnetized and will then attract a second paper clip. When the magnet is removed from the first clip, its magnetic properties vanish. This is because the iron objects contain tiny magnetic particles, called domains, which are arranged in a random pattern. When the object comes into contact with a magnet, the domains line up, and the iron object temporarily becomes a magnet. When the magnet is removed, the domains return to their random pattern and the magnetic properties go away. Magnets have an area around then where their magnetic forces work. This area is known as a magnetic field. A magnetic field can pass through other materials like paper, glass, water, etc. Electricity: Moving Electrons Contents of this movie include: The electricity that we use is made by a machine and sent to us by wires. The key to making electricity is magnetism. Danish scientist Hans Christian Oerstead discovered that a magnetic field exists around wire carrying electricity. This was followed by a discovery by French scientist Andre Ampere that a loop of wire carrying an electrical current acts like a magnet with a north pole and a south pole. Increasing the number of loops increased the strength of the magnetic field. A coil of wire (many loops) carrying electricity is known as a solenoid. William Sturgeon found that the strength of a solenoid magnetic field can be greatly increased by placing an iron core inside the coil. A coil carrying an electrical current with an iron core is called an electromagnet. Michael Faraday discovered the mechanical properties of a wire carrying an electrical current. He found that a wire stretched between the poles of a horseshoe magnet moved when current was switched on. Reversing the flow of current through the wire reversed the direction the wire moved. This discovery led to the invention of the electric motor. Faraday’s subsequent experiments showed that a magnetic field can move electrons inside a conductor. This process is called induction. An electric generator produces an electrical current through the process of induction. Alternating current is a stream of electrons moving in two different directions in a wire. Play Basics Quiz This quiz reviews information presented in the Basics movies. To play, the student first chooses a player by clicking on one of the three individuals at the bottom of the screen. The next screen asks the player to type in his or her name. At this point the student then clicks the “Start Game” button. Round 1 will ask nine questions. Point values for each question appear on a grid on the right side of the screen. Players click on a point value to receive each question. They must type answers in the field on the screen. To do this, click inside the answer field and a blinking cursor will appear. The next step is to click the ‘Submit’ button. Some of the answers require a word to be typed in the field, while others require a ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ Students are congratulated if their answers are correct and points are added to their total. If incorrect, the correct answer is indicated and points are subtracted. (A negative score is possible.) When Round 1 is completed, players can move on to Round 2. The final score is indicated at the end of Round 2. At any time, players can begin playing the game again by clicking on the “Reset Game” button. Use Caution Clicking on the Use Caution quadrant brings up the Use Caution (safety) screen. The screen displays nine graphic symbols for electrical safety rules. Nine additional symbols representing natural gas safety rules will appear when the ‘Gas’ button is selected. An ‘Electric’ button can take students to the electrical safety graphics. As a student moves the cursor over a graphic, a safety rule appears. Electrical Safety Rules: Avoid contact with overhead lines. Stay away from padmount transformers bases. Don’t use electrical appliances near water. Stay away from downed power lines. Stay away from substations. Don’t stick metal objects into a toaster. Don’t climb transmission towers. Replace worn or frayed appliance cords. Don’t stick foreign objects into electrical outlets. Natural Gas Safety Rules: Beware of carbon monoxide produced by faulty appliances. A blue flame indicates that a gas appliance is operating properly; report and correct appliances displaying orange or discolored flame. Turning a burner’s flame so high that it comes up around the side of a pot is dangerous and wastes energy. Never use a gas oven as a clothes dryer. Keep toys and flammable objects away from a gas stove. Don’t turn on an electrical switch if you smell natural gas (mercaptan). Children should never operate gas fireplaces. Call before you dig to locate buried gas lines. Power Bandit Feud The Power Bandit Feud tests students’ knowledge of safety. It is an electronic game where point values are given for choosing the most likely answers to the questions. There are three rounds to the game. Running point totals are kept. Start the game by clicking on the button, “Press Here to Begin Round.” The students can then click in the answer box and type answers. Second and third rounds are initiated in the same manner. The answers to the game are listed in the Power Bandit Teacher Resource PDF file under Power Bandit Feud. Beat the Bandit This section teaches energy conservation. Clicking to the Beat the Bandit quadrant takes the student to the Tracker radar. Blips on the radar screen represent the locations of the Power Bandit as he wastes electricity. Clicking on each different radar blip takes the student to a different location of energy waste. Once a location is chosen, a picture of the location appears on the left hand side of the screen. A description of the energy waste and steps to reduce the waste are listed on the right. The Power Bandit locations are the refrigerator, bathroom shower, light switches, exterior doors, bathroom sink, water faucets and the trash can. After viewing the recycling page, there is a “More Energy Saving Tips” button. This energy savings tips button lists 24 additional energy saving suggestions. Clicking on the “Match the Objects” launches a memory game. The control buttons are listed on the right of the screen. “Start” begins the game, and “stop” pauses the game. The students’ time, number of attempts and number of objects found are tracked and listed in the appropriate box. “High Score” ranks scores of previous games played. Twelve images of the Power Bandit appear on the game board. Clicking on a bandit image reveals a hidden picture underneath. Pictures are the locations of energy waste discussed in the Tracker Radar. Students attempt to match pairs of pictures. They are scored based on elapsed time and the number of attempts it takes to solve the puzzle. Get the Power Clicking on this quadrant of the Power Bandit Tracker takes the student to the Get the Power Screen. This section discusses how electricity is generated and distributed. Three buttons at the top of the section are labeled “Generation,” “Distribution” and “Solve the Puzzle.” Selecting “Generation” takes students to a screen containing general information about electricity and pictures depicting three different energy sources for generating electricity – wind, water and steam. Clicking on each picture displays an explanation of how these different generating plants operate. Content included in the generation section includes: Energy is produced by converting some form of energy into electricity. Three things are needed for this – a coil of wire, a magnetic field and a source of mechanical energy. A generator is a machine that uses magnetic fields and coils of wire to convert mechanical energy into electricity. A wind powered generating plant has a large fan attached to the generator shaft. Blowing wind turns the fan and the generator shaft. Hydroelectric generating plants use the weight of falling water to turn a fan (turbine) and the generator. Steam plants heat water to produce steam. Then the steam blows a fan which spins the generator. There are two primary heat sources that steam plants use to heat the water: fossil fuels and nuclear fuels. Clicking on the “Distribution” button reveals a diagram of the electrical distribution system. Students can click on the shaded portions of the system diagram and an explanation appears that describes each element of the system. System components described include step up substation, transmission lines, step down substation, distribution lines, pole mount transformers, padmount transformers and the electric meter. Selecting the “Solve the Puzzle” button launches an electronic jigsaw puzzle. Pieces are dragged into proper position by clicking and moving the mouse. The completed puzzle is a picture of the Power Bandit. After the completion of all of these activities, the teacher can go to the Info button located in the center of the tracker console at the bottom of the screen and print an “I’ve Beaten the Bandit” certificate for each of the students along with a letter to their caregiver discussing the Power Bandit’s lessons. The “I’ve Beaten the Bandit” Certificate is illustrated below. Diagram Below is a flow chart of the Power Bandit CD. Flash Introduction Front Page Inside Power Bandit Tracker (Console) Info. Dates Basics of Natural Gas Basics of Magnetism Get the Basics Basics of Electrons Beat the Bandit Electricity: Moving Electrons Play Basics Quiz Match the Objects Glossary of Terms Use Caution Electric Natural Gas Get the Power Power Bandit Fued Generation Distribution Solve the Puzzle The original grant application listed 04/04 as the proposed start date and 08/04 as the completion date. The contract was not executed until December 8, 2004 thereby commencing the grant. In a letter dated January 13, 2004, based on the contract execution date, a new completion date of May 30, 2005 was requested. Therefore, the dates for the project were December 8, 2004 through May 30, 2005. Alternatives Supplementary materials in the form of workbooks and activity handouts could also provide educational basis for electrical and natural gas awareness and education. Results to Date First Quarter Activities during the first reporting quarter included: Conducting relevant research and gathering information for inclusion on the CD Preparing the CD introduction and project scope and Preparing task management schedule. Second Quarter During the second quarter, activities completed included: Establishing creative direction for project, including the introduction animation and main interface design, and Conceptual design process including main interface design, key layout, graphic design and illustration of Power Bandit’s character along with the key scenes, and Developing verbiage content to be used in games and transitional pages. Third Quarter Activities completed during the third reporting quarter included: Acquiring graphic files and preparing the structural organization of all files, Producing/designing graphics and artwork, Creating sub-pages, Integrating graphic user interface, Creating interactive games, Flash programming, Optimization, including testing on multiple applications to verify functionality on various platforms, Performing final testing on available platforms, and Performing final check for accuracy of information. Status This project is complete. Applicability The Power Bandit Safety and Energy Conservation Program can be used by all publicly owned utilities due to the focus of the program. This program focuses on safety and energy conservation, which are priorities of publicly owned utilities. Publicly owned utilities have a responsibility to educating their customers (the public) about safety as it pertains to their services, as well as energy conservation, which, in essence, teaches our customers to lower their utility bills. Future Plans We hope to distribute at minimum of one CD to each school located within our service area. Equipment The Power Bandit CD will utilize Flash animations and will be compatible with most computers. The contractor (Moore Syndication) will supply all hardware and software required for the development and completion of this project. Budget Funding Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division APPA/DEED Moore Syndication (in-kind) TOTAL FUNDING $10,015 $15,000 $ 3,684 $28,699 Cost Phase I Phase II Phase III Phase IV Deliverables TOTAL COST $ 4,167 $11,791 $ 7,500 $ 2,751* $ 2,490 $28,699 * Phase IV cost exceeded the budgeted amount as a result of enhancements (videos instead of dialogue) that were made to the Power Bandit CD. Additional Notes & References In the original grant application, it was proposed that the project would include an interactive CD, teacher’s guide and lesson plan. In an effort to minimize cost, the teacher’s guide, lesson plan and a certificate of completion for the students were included on the CD. The aforementioned modification was noted in a letter dated January 10, 2004, which accompanied the first quarterly report for this project.