A group of Independent Study students came together this past semester to answer a question students have been pondering for more than thirty years; how much weight can a tiny bridge hold?
The answer, it seems, is quite a lot! Students under the supervision of CT’s Pamela Rodig-Kirschke, Cara Larson, James Matthew, and Patrice Boyan formed an engineering club in Fair Oaks to study science in a hands-on environment.
Students worked with Pitsco engineering project kits and online engineering programs to design and build bridges out of light wooden dowels. While their materials are individually weak, the engineering club’s students used math and physics to design bridges that held much more than the sum of their parts suggested.
At the final test in mid-January, Christian Z.’s (CT Patrice Boyan) bridge held a whopping 100 lbs without breaking! This weight stands as a personal record for CT James Matthew who has been building bridges with students for over thirty years. #VisionsProud
The engineering club will continue to meet throughout the spring semester, designing and racing solar cars at Cosumnes River College at a SMUD sponsored event.
Special thanks to Mr. Matthew and the rest of the CT’s for coming together and bringing practical science to our students!