Construction
For the learning-by-doing activity, Construction, we were tasked to use a piece of paper attached to pegs to hold up a 2-liter bottle. We were given free reign over what method we used to support the weight of the bottle. Our group then used several iterations to increase our creation’s efficiency. We decreased the amount of paper and pegs used to support the bottle with every iteration. The pictures above are the iterations we used during this activity. We achieved a 93% efficiency before the paper we provided eventually broke down. The efficiency of our creation is calculated using the equation [(cm-ym)/cm]x100. Cm represents the maximum weight of the materials we were provided, and ym represents the weight of the material we used in each iteration. Our final iteration used 1.31 grams of paper to support the two-liter bottle. This ended up being less paper than I thought possible. While our numbers and results could be impressive, some groups achieved even greater efficiency levels with their paper. The tensile strength of the paper was shocking to me as the paper is regarded as a relatively weak material. This activity was ultimately very eye-opening and fun as I did not expect the results we got and the connections it allowed me to draw to actual material science in construction.