Transcript Slide 1

Your Challenge…
 Build the tallest tower you can that can
support a textbook!
Your Materials…
 50 straws
 3 ft of masking tape
The catch…
Each material has a value and your tower
cannot cost more than $10,000 dollars to
build!
1 straw is worth $200
1 inch of tape is worth $100
Things to consider…
 Rigidity of Forms- What shape is the strongest?
 Squares?
 Rectangles ?
Triangles?
 What should the shape of my tower be?
 Big base? Small base?
The Big Idea
Two kinds of forces:
Tension and Compression
Compression: Think of it as “Squishing,”
like pushing on a wall
Tension: Think of it as “Stretching,”
like a string being pulled.
Stability of our straw structures depends on the
balance between straws that are in tension and
ones that are in compression
When members are arranged like this they are called trusses.
Can you name a type of truss you’ve seen in your everyday life?
Trusses in Everyday Life
Bicycles
Houses and Roofs
Eiffel Tower
Bridges