 At the beginning of the event, each team will receive an identical bag of materials.  They will have 40 minutes to build a structure/device that can be tested  The materials and structure will not be announced until the competition starts

 The team can only use the materials that were given to them by the judges  There are two scoring dimensions › Primary:The main measurement that determines the winner › Secondary:The measurement used to break ties

 Students may bring: › 1 pair of scissors › 1 ruler › 1 pair of pliers  Nothing else will be allowed

 Bridges  Towers  Cantilevers

 Longest/tallest  Longest/tallest to hold a certain load  At least a certain height/length that can hold the most

 This event is hard to coach, because it is hard to teach students to think outside the box  You can teach them: › Good engineering principles › Good building techniques › How to work together (to an extent)  Learning to think creatively requires practice and lots of it

 Tension : the member is being “pulled” on

 Good Tension materials: › Straws › String › Pipe cleaner (wire) › Paperclips › Paper

 Compression :the member is being “squished”

 Good Compression Materials: › Straws › Toothpicks › Popsicle sticks › Cups › Rolled up paper

Legs Load Platform Cross Bracing

Counter Balance Table Load Applied Here

Good: Doubled up straws for legs Triangles for bracing Bad: Not level

Good: Very level Triangles for bracing Bad: Legs are single straws instead of double

Good: Very level Triangles for bracing Multi-strawed legs Bad: Added extra materials just to use them

 Conserve materials in case you have to reuse something  Cut tape in half  Unravel string  Bring good tools (especially scissors)  Practice, practice, practice  Practice with different materials  Save straw wrappers