Building Bridges

vLiverpool participates in the annual Build 'Em and Bust 'Em competition at the MOST

On Saturday, November 6, students and families from a very wide range of districts in Central New York participated in a bridge building competition at the MOST in Syracuse. The Build ‘Em & Bust ‘Em Bridges Challenge is an annual competition that has been going on for 21 years and it is one of five student STEM competitions. Students from counties such as Broome, Cayuga, Chenango, Cortland, Jefferson, Madison, Onondaga, Tioga and Tompkins have been preparing their bridges for this competition for over two weeks!

Participants were given 15 pieces of balsa wood, each two feet long and one-eighth of an inch thick, and glue to use to construct their bridges. These bridges would later be tested by adding weight to the bridge to observe how many times its own weight the bridge can withstand before collapsing. When weight is added, one side of the bridge experiences tensional stress which extends the bridge, and the other side experiences compressional stress. This stress causes the bridge to become weaker and that is where the failure occurs.

The bridge's efficiency was also tested by using a ratio of how much weight the bridge held in comparison to the mass of the bridge. Before testing, the bridges had to be tested by a wooden platform to make sure the bridges fit the requirements of the competition. The bridges had to have a length of 250-300mm, a width of 50-75mm and a height of less than 100mm. According to Davie Jordan, a volunteer at the pre-inspection station, “if the bridges do not meet the requirements, they’ll still break them. They just won’t be eligible for the efficiency awards.”

We talked to Stephanie Herbert, the marketing and communications coordinator at the MOST, about the competition. Stephanie said that the Build ‘Em & Bust ‘Em competition “bridges connections, not only between schools, but also between parents and teachers and kids because they can all come together and collaborate on the project.” This competition is a great way for students to explore the aspects of STEM and to learn about the designing process and experience the testing of their bridges.

Participants were broken into three categories: fourth through sixth graders, seventh through eighth graders, and freshmen through seniors in high school. The first place team for category one is team 2099-Bridge of Peace. Their bridge held 10.5 grams and had an efficiency rating of 2170. The first place team for category two is team 2048-OHMS Team 2. Their bridge held 15.3 grams and had an efficiency rating of 1248. Lastly, the first place team for category three is team 2115-The Positive Protons, whose bridge supported 11.3 grams and had an efficiency rating of 1806.

According to one of our Liverpool students, Darshith Muthikuri, “This was a very fun competition, and I plan to do more like this in the future”.

By: Ashlyn Brown and Bella Melfi