Title of project: Trebuchet Projectiles
Introduction: The purpose of this project was to learn basic physics and teamwork skills. One of the essential questions is “how do you throw an object as far as possible with a trebuchet?”. During the course of the project, we learned how to determine how fast an object will accelerate as it falls. We used three steps: a small prototype, then a full-sized trebuchet and then refinements of our design through trial and error. The first tests of our trebuchets were kind of scary. It broke on the second shot because we used too much weight.
Response to questions:
A. We used proportions and talked about how to get the most potential and kinetic energy out of our trebuchet. We started the project by talking about velocity and acceleration. Acceleration describes both the gaining of speed as well as the loss of speed. To create the most potential and kinetic energy with your trebuchet you must have the correct proportions with your arm and your counterweight arm. We used a good amount of math to determine this proportion that has applications to real life.
The hardest part about this project was the proportions and finding out what does what. Every little thing you move can change the amount of energy generated by the trebuchet. We also used math to predict the distance our projectile would go. We used the length, height, and weight to determine how far our projectile would travel. The release angle of the projectile is important because it affects the speed and velocity of acceleration.
B. In a community of learners, we all must work together to create the best product. We use each other's creative ideas, and we support them. We also can use each other critical thinking to figure out the best way to piece a project together. We all have our unique piece of creativity, and we should all put that into our project.
Some of the ways I have put these things into my project is when we were working on the prototype. I was able to use my critical thinking along with my group's trebuchet to come up with a successful trebuchet. After making and completing our prototype, we then used more critical thinking to come up with a more efficient final product. Our initial trebuchet didn't work as well as we thought it would be so we redesigned some parts to make it work a little better.
C. Something that challenged me during this project was my group. I found it hard to work with my group and get things done. There were times when my group didn't want to do anything so, and I was left to do it alone. There were other times where my group wanted to do something and insisted we do it that way whereas I saw the flaw in their idea, but they refused to listen to my input. One way I dealt with this was by continuing to communicate with each other so we could stay on the same page.
D. A personal strength that a brought into the project was a different perspective on the project and the ability to wrap my mind around the prototype to get a better final product. I was able to look deeper into our prototype and work things out to come out with a better final product. I was also able to provide a different perspective on how to put our trebuchet together and come up with a more effective way to put it together. Overall there were some things that I wish we could change about our trebuchet to make it better. Some of these things include a stronger and more efective frame, to take the time to make a sling that would have given us better results.
