Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Flipping out.

Catapult diagram
What do you get when you combine Pioneering, Mechanics and a bit of mad science?  A catapult!  Think for just a second about how you would design a catapult.  How many poles and lashings are needed?  Where are the friction points?  How is it controlled?  What about anchorage?  How will it be powered?  What are you launching, how far and at what angle?  What simple machine is responsible for operation of a catapult?  Something that seems intuitive, like a catapult, actually involves quite a bit of design and engineering if it is to operate accurately, repeatedly and most of all safely.  Here is a fun task: Draw up a design a simple catapult using as few parts and lashings as possible.  Just remember, "Don't shoot your eye out!"