Blowin’ in the Wind Experiment

Aim
To design and build a device that harnesses an air current in order to lift a mass the greatest height.

Materials
6 plastic cups, 4 paper plates, 20 plastic straws, 1 plastic bag, 1 meter of duct tape, 1 manila folder, 5 meters of string, 1 pair of scissors, selection of masses.

Conditions

The device must be made only of the materials provided. Teams may test their devices using the blowers anytime. Nothing is allowed to touch the hair dryer.

Objective

Create a device that lifts the mass the greatest height above the table when blown with a focused air source for 10 seconds.

Time Limit

25 minutes (20 – building and testing phase, 5 – competition)

Ranking

Each team will get three timed runs of 10 seconds. Each team can ask the judges for a timed run at any time The product of the height (in cm) times the mass (in grams) will be measured and this product will be the used to determine the ranking of each team. For each run the highest measurement counts. You may pick whichever mass from the selection.