By Rachel Phillips
Physics students spent class time shooting homemade catapults and trebuchets onto a bulls-eye for extra credit last Tuesday, October 30.
Introduced in late September, Physics students had over a month to built their devices; they could work in teams of two to build and shoot the catapult. Scoring systems varied by teacher, but all students who built catapults competed for extra credit.
Partners Brenda Erickson (‘14) and Erica Davis (‘14) said, “It took us about two weekends to build the catapult.”
The purpose of the assignment was to teach real-world calculations and application of a conceptual physics problem.
Julie Nguyen (’13) said, “My favorite part of the process was learning that I was not very good at making things, but then it was still fun to try.”
Jessica Pham (‘13), however, felt that finally shooting the pumpkin was the most rewarding experience. “Launching it was probably my favorite part, just to see how far it went. I thought I’d do pretty well, since mine was pretty big compared to everyone else’s.”
The Annual Pumpkin Catapult Competition is a tradition that will carry on for years to come, but, for now, the Physics students will return to studying until the next extra credit opportunity – the tower-building competition.
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