There is still a lot we don't know or understand about flutter and predicting it, that's why we still have to do flight testing. Even then we occasionally don't get it right, and sometimes when we get it wrong we loose a vehicle (and sometimes a test pilot). One nice thing is the planes we mess with here are pretty slow and the danger from flutter goes up FAST with speed. If you are flying and feel a buzz in the airframe, the best thing you can do is pull the throttle back and SLOW DOWN!
Seeing that you have teachers in the family explains a lot about your explanation. Teachers are the experts in taking complex subjects and making them easier to understand for the rest of us. NASA engineers are about the worst.
Hank
My wife started out as a teacher too. I know "the look" when I start getting too technical.
