Centroids

In engineering, we worked on centroids. The centroid is finding the geometric center of a shape. The team I was working with was Sam, Dylan and Daniel. We found the centroid of a block zig zag and a another weird shape we made.

Manilla Bridge Challenge

In this challenge our goal was to construct bridges using only manila folders. My team consisted of me and Marshall and although we didn't meet the length requirement our build was stable. The challenge was very fun!

Marble Drop Challenge

Our team consisted of me, Marshall, and Dylan. The goal of this challenge was to get a marble into a cup from the farthest distance using specific materials.

*waiting for pictures*

Mousetrap Racecars

Mousetrap Cars Challenge

These last few weeks we have been working on mouse trap cars, that had to move without being pushhed or pulled, and are moved by their own power. I was on a team with Jason, and these are our achievements.
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We have 12 achievements
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Brainiac:

• A really long car with small wheels to give more space for the mousetrap to pull
• A short stubby car with big wheels to make it have more traction and be lighter
• A triangle shaped car where the mousetrap hangs and pulls
• Big wheels on the back to have more traction
• A car with a propeller powered by the mousetrap
• A car made of cardboard so its lighter
• Using legos to make it lighter
• A triangle shaped car with a weight on it
• A car with a big tower on it with a weight hanging down

Visualize it!

Build it!

The cost of glory

4 x Yellow Beams

4 x Axles

4 x Wheels

1 x String

1 x Egg

2 x Padlocks

20 x Metal struts

2 x Pulley Wheels

4 x Connectors

1 x Lego Person

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43 Dollars

The Race

Our car went really slow and didn't go very far (around 6 feet) but its okay because our car was unique

Competitor

We competed!

Feedback
+ Our car was really unique, we didn't use the mousetrap to power it, only gravity
- We were really slow and didn't go very far
+ Our car looked really cool and was named Big Boy Butchy
- It was pretty much always falling apart

Re-Work
We changed the way the string wrapped around the axle, we changed it to the screw

Game Changer
If I could add a new rule, I would make it so the mousetrap could not be taped down so that there is more of a challenge.

Name it
Old School: Make your car move without the mousetrap powering it

Leave it Cleaner than you found it
We worked outside, and helped the other groups clean up their stuff while they helped us

Design/Build
The design/build process is the process of thinking of potential ideas, prototyping some, building a full scale, and re-iterating it to fix any problems.

4th Annual Cardboard Canoe Race

Here are the achievements we claim:



• Build It! - Build your watercraft. Your build must meet the standards of construction (100% covered in Duct Tape). Document it with a presentable photo.
• The Early Bird Gets the Achievement - Awarded to the team with the fastest build.
The Farthest - Awarded to the team that can travel the furthest (laps)
• The Longest - Awarded to the team with the watercraft that floats the longest (multiple teams may be awarded this achievement if multiple boats remain afloat at the end of our competition period).
• Balance Master - Awarded if you can have at least one person stand for 5 seconds in the boat (you must conduct this away from the edge of the pool so that non one falls over and hits their head) 
• Feedback - Generate ten items of feedback for your effort (from the design/build process and/or the actual product). Make sure you include at least one item of feedback in each of our four feedback areas (+, change, ?, !)

• + We floated for longer than we thought
• change- We need to make a faster way to navigate through the water
• ? We had a leak somewhere in our boat, but it did not affect our performance
• ! WE HAD A GREAT TIME DURING IT
• + our design lasted much longer than last year
• + we were able to stand in out boat
• ! OUR BOAT WAS DOUBLE LAYERED AND IT HELPED IN THE WATER
• change- rudder for better steering
• ? How can we use less tape and surface area for our boat but still have it as stable
• change- we need to make more sketches and do math for it

• How Low Did You Go? - How low in the water did your canoe sit (roughly)? Was it suprising how little your boat went down in the water? What is the unit weight of water in pounds? How much did your pilot weigh (roughly)? Use math to help explain the depth that your boat sat in the water.

We sank about 1 inch into the water. Our pilot weighed about 110 lbs.

• Define the Problem and Brainstorm Solutions - State the problem you are designing a solution for. List at least 20 ideas you have regarding your solution.
• Criteria & Constraints - List or reference the specified Criteria and Constraints you're designing for. List at least one implied criteria. List at least three implied contsraints. 
• Sketch Ideas - Draw 3 different sketches for possible designs. Label at least 3 key features for each sketch. Describe the feature's functionality so a viewer understands why the called out feature is important.
• Prototype Ideas - Craft physical prototypes (models) of each of your three sketches. Use a notecard or post it note to call out at least one key feature on each model. Post the images to your blog and describe the key feature that you've pointed out on each.

• (Make Your Own Achievement) - Make an achievement of your own design that you can award yourself for something awesome your team did.

"Show your stars and stripes!" -Make a team flag to go with your nautical masterpiece 

Train Parts

Foam Board Architecture

Mr. Pondrom requested a Jacuzzi, Spanish Long house with orange tiles. amd a basketball court.

Note: Mr. Pondrom loves America. 

Egg Drop Challenge

design for the egg drop challenge

We used:

Straws
Bubble wrap
Tape
String
Plastic Trashbag

 Our Design also fit into an altoids box!

-Create a sketch of one possible solution. Include labels.
-Create a sketch of another possible solution. Include labels.
-Create a sketch of a third possible solution. Include labels.

Generate a list of materials required for build day.

-Your materials fit inside a printer paper box
-Your materials fit inside a shoe box
-Your materials fit inside a cigar box
-Your materials fit inside an Altoids box

-Your materials weigh less than 500 grams.
-Your materials weigh less than 300 grams.
-Your materials weigh less than 200 grams.
-Your materials weigh less than 150 grams.
-Your materials weigh less than 100 grams.

Here's a video of our egg drop

-Your solution takes more than 2 seconds to hit the target!
-Your solution takes more than 3 seconds to hit the target!

-Your egg didn't break in any way! (awarded three times)
-You hit the butcher paper! (We did not hit it on the video, but we did after a re-drop!)

-Help set up the Bullseye.

Total Achievements claimed: 20

Egg Drop Challenge

     In this week's challenge we had to drop an egg down at least 15 feet, without it breaking. We made a parachute and a case so the egg would drop safely.

- What commercial most caught your attention this year? Use html code to embed the video on your blog. 
I thought this commercial was very funny.

- What about the commercial made it memorable? 
The goat scream makes me laugh every time I hear it.

- How much does it cost to air a commercial during the super bowl? 
Probably hundreds of thousands of dollars.

- What other expenses go into producing a commercial? What kinds of costs might these activities incur? (there's not a "right" or "wrong" answer for this, do some google research and justify a value) 
Other expenses may go into finding actors, animals, etc.

- How many "widgets" (whatever the company is selling) will the company have to sell to cover the cost of their commercial? Share some math that justifies your answer. 
I think that if 

- Do you think this add will cover it's costs directly (sell as many "widgets" as it cost to produce and air)? Does a superbowl add have value beyond direct sales that it generates?

Minecraft Screenshots

Architect Video Notes