Juniors and Seniors Take On a Towering Challenge in STEM and Physics
The annual International Bridge Building Contest has a new pool of competitors right from our STEM Research and Design and Physics classes.
The STEM and Physics teachers arranged a unique opportunity for students to practice engineering skills in a national bridge building contest. “The Physics Department decided to do the bridge contest instead of the usual Exploravision assignment so that we could challenge our students in a new way,” said Physics teacher Sister Janice Shaw.
The 2022 International Bridge Building Contest will be held on Saturday, May 7th in Covington Township, Pennsylvania, USA. The contest consists of designing, constructing, and finally testing the most efficient bridge possible within the specifications. The bridges are modeled after real-world bridges, and participants were given a packet including the history of bridges, modern bridge design, and a step by step guide on how to complete the daunting task.
This was the first year in our school’s history that students constructed bridges out of wood instead of paper. While this doesn’t sound like a huge change, many students can assure you that it made the project much more of a challenge.
“It really was hard to draw a two-dimensional blueprint. It took three tries, and even then I still had to change things around during the building process,” senior Valeria Fanilla said.
The process begins with drafting a blueprint of the side view, top view, and the inside view of the bridge. It was no simple feat, with students analyzing the best kind of bridge designs and trusses to add to their finalized blueprint.
“I was very impressed to see that the designs were not just beautiful, but they could also sustain a significant load,” STEM teacher Mrs. Dania Rovirosa said.
With little over a week to work on it, many students reported pulling all-nighters in order to complete their bridges before the due date, December 3rd.
“I was so happy and impressed with how they turned out. We are planning on continuing this in years moving forward, and hopefully expanding it throughout the science department,” Physics teacher Sister Janice Shaw said.
Last Friday, students took turns placing their bridges in a machine which places pressure on certain points on the wood until it snaps. The machine reports back the amount of weight it can hold, which contributes to the students’ overall grade. The top three bridges that held the most weight will be rebuilt and move one step closer towards the International Contest. The students moving forward to regionals in January are Catalina Jaramillo, Katheryn Ortiz, and Margaux Courtney.
Mia Michele Aviles is the Editor in Chief of the 2021-2022 Grotto Newspaper. Mia is a third year Journalism student, as she began taking Journalism her...
