The Greek (Non) Tragedy Project
This project is one of the most hands-on and exciting projects I have done at this school! For this project we had to get with a partner and choose an Ancient Greek invention to learn about. My partner and I chose Archimedes' Screw. Our goal was to learn all about our invention and how it worked. We also had to find out about its historical background and the modern version of it. Then we created a proposal of what our project would be about, how it would be displayed at Exhibition, what physics concepts it was related to and how we were going to teach those concepts to the audience (see link to proposal below). Since we were not going to be at our station to explain what is going on (because it was a museum-type setting) we had to make it very easy and user-friendly. My partner, Michelle Garcia, and I decided to create a website to display how our invention worked and was related to physics (see link to webiste below). Finally, we actually had to build a miniature version of our invention.
Greek Invention/Technology:
The ancient version of Archimedes' Screw was originally used to pump water from the hull of a ship back out to sea. The reason the ship was leaking in the first place was because of its size. Before they even started to build this ship, they new it would have a leaking problem. Some time later the Archimedes' Screw was then used to pump water from low land to high ground for uses like irrigation. It was powered by a human turning a handle.
Physics Concepts Related to Ancient Technology:
One major physics concept that relates to Archimedes' Screw is torque. Torque is the measure of the turning force on an object. Just as you can push or pull an object, you can also turn it. Torque can be expressed in the following equation: T=Fst. In order for torque to be applied you need something called force. Force is the amount of energy being put on something. The more force you put on something, the greater the physical effect on the object. For example, if you were to throw a 5-pound object with 10 pounds of force it wouldn’t go as far if you had put 15 pounds of force into the throw.
Modern Invention/Technology:
The modern version of Archimedes' Screw is very similar to the ancient one. Modern Archimedes' Screws are different from the ancient ones in that they are made of metal and now run on motors, instead of by man power. The modern Screw is also used for irrigation as well as things like generating power and sludge pumping. It is also still used for moving water from low ground to high ground.
Physics concepts Related to Modern Technology:
One big physics concept that relates to the modern Archimedes' Screw is mechanical advantage. Mechanical Advantage is the ratio of the amount of force applied to a machine over the force exerted or output created by the machine. The force applied to the machine is the amount of force that you put on the machine. For example, if you were riding a bike, the amount of force you use to push the pedals to make the bike go would be the force applied to the machine, or in this case, the bike. The force exerted by the machine is the force that the machine creates or produces. For example, if you were riding a bike, the exerted force would be the wheels of the bike turning and moving the bike.
A big part of mechanical advantage is efficiency. In the example problem, we did not include efficiency to make it simpler. Efficiency is the work you put in divided by the work that comes out multiplied by 100%. This can be shown in the following equation: Efficiency = Work in/Work out x 100%. When talking about efficiency you want it to be high, like 70-100%, meaning you get out most of the work you put in. The higher the percentage, the better the efficiency. This relates to Archimedes’ Screw because the screw itself is inside a tube to ensure that whatever is being transported doesn’t fall out. When the blades of the screw turn they rub up against the casing which lowers the efficiency because of friction.
Museum Exhibit and Project Reflection:
Our museum exhibit was pretty simple. On our exhibit table we had a computer displaying the website we made (see below). Next to it we had out miniature Archimedes' Screw (Interactive using marbles). And to the left of that we had a sign to draw the audience in. Overall I think it was simple enough to understand, but I think we could have made it more appealing to the eye.
I think I did a great job working with my partner on this project. I think we were able to communicate very well and trouble-shoot with each other in an efficient way. I am very proud of how our final product of the Archimedes' Screw turned out and the hours we spent wrapping the rope around the dowel in order to create blades. If I could do this project again I would try to explain our physics concepts a little more and make our screw look even better.
Below is a downloadable version of my Project Proposal:
michaelliuzzimichellegarciaproposalfinal.doc | |
File Size: | 160 kb |
File Type: | doc |