Bridge Building Competition
Our winner: Edna!
In May of 2015, the UFV Physics department was approached by a teacher at the Shxwetetilthet- Sto:lo Alternate School in Chilliwack to see if we would be interested in helping their students with a bridge building contest they were hoping to hold. The idea was for their students to design and build a small bridge out of Popsicle sticks based on a certain set of criteria (no more than 200 Popsicle sticks, and two glue sticks), and then hold a contest to see whose bridge would hold the most weight. A few members of the UFV Physics department (along with some folks at the Trades and Technology Center in Chilliwack) provided the space and equipment necessary to help the students test the strength of their bridges.
After a short tour of the facilities at the TTC, the students and their teachers met in one of the rooms to have their bridges tested by members of the UFV Physics department. In the end, 17 bridges were tested, with the most weight held by a single bridge being some 76 pounds before a catastrophic loss of structural integrity occurred (ie. it broke). This bridge was built by Edna, and she is shown here with her new UFV Physics sweater awarded to the maker of the strongest bridge.
The UFV Physics department hopes to be able to participate in more such events in the future to help encourage young students to take an interest in science.
Edna's Impressive Bridge