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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> spike [mailto:spike66@att.net] <br><b>Subject:</b> tests again<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>>…</span> In the real world, we all have access to externalized knowledge. The test is designed to show how effectively the technician can access that external knowledge pool out there on the internet.<span style='color:#1F497D'> </span>All suggestions welcome.<span style='color:#1F497D'> </span>Spike<span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>Something cool: Wondershare Quiz Creator lets you imbed photos and video in your quiz. That in itself allows a geek to write a test which nearly any geek would get immediately, but any non-geek could tap away on the internet for a week and come up blank. For instance, a good mechanical technician’s question would be<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoListParagraph style='text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1'><![if !supportLists]><span style='color:#1F497D'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>1.<span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'> </span></span></span><![endif]><span style='color:#1F497D'> What is this person doing?<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><img width=427 height=320 id="Picture_x0020_3" src="cid:image003.jpg@01CDE6DE.E57F0F10"></span><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>The answer would not be multiple choice, because that would make it too easy. The answer would be typed in on the keyboard: he or she is adjusting valves. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>Are there any mechanical geeks here who missed that one? <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>What I am toying with now is using one of Thune’s techniques to have a scaled score. For instance, if the word “valve” or “valves” does not appear in the answer, I see no way to award any points. But there should be a way to give a little more credit if the geek answered “Adjusting valve lash.” Even more if the response is “Adjusting exhaust valve lash, which you know is the exhaust valve because of discoloration.” Even more if the response is “Adjusting valve lash on one of the old BMW air cooled boxer twin motorcycles, which you know was built before 1993 because of the way those pushrods come in on the under-side of the cylinder.” Then of course you need to figure out ways to keep giving more credit if the geek can add comments such as, “…and the person in the photo needs to use a torque wrench unless he or she has done about a hundred of these things, otherwise he or she could undertorque that locknut and it can come loose, in which case he or she must start all over, and that’s the best case because if the locknut does come loose, often the valve lash closes instead of opens because of the way that head is designed, so the valve will fail to seat and it will burn the valve and it’s goodbye for about a hundred clams to the krauts for a new one, dammit.”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>So now the test taker must figure out a way to write software to read the answers and assign a point value.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>All suggestions welcome, about tests, not exhaust valves or German engineering.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:#1F497D'>spike<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></body></html>