CTRL+ESC: An escape/exit room to teach control and its relevance to an audience outside engineering
Magnus Axelson-Fisk, Maik Gentsch, Roxanne R. Jackson, Sophie Knorn, Steffi Knorn, Lars Paasche, Daniel Topalovic, Sergej Voit
Abstract
An escape/exit room (called CTRL+ESC) has been created at TU Berlin that aims to convey some basic understanding and awareness of automatic control. Participants are not required to have specific background knowledge of control or engineering at all such that CTRL+ESC is suitable to reach out to the general public as well as motivating local students at the university. Participants are required to solve around 10 puzzles, quizzes or riddles embedded in an overarching fictitious storyline. Each puzzle, quiz or riddle is associated to one concept in automatic control, which is briefly explained together with its importance and relevance in a brochure that participants receive after solving the puzzles. Spoiler alert: By reading this paper, some of the underlying secrets of puzzles in the scape room will be revealed and some hints will be given.