As weights were added piece by piece, Freshta Qasimi watched nervously. She had confidence in her design, as the senior had tested it rigorously with her group for the past three weeks, but she was still nervous about it falling. More and more 1.5 kilogram, or 3.3 pound, weights were hooked to the end of her group’s cantilever, but it did not bend. It reached the maximum of the competition, supporting 50 lbs, without deforming. Freshta and her team of Sidrah Qureshi, Daniel Chen, and Sadia Qureshi had won. 

Their structure was tested at a design competition at the University of New Haven on Mar. 26, hosted by the Women in Engineering program (WIE). Qasimi and her group were one of the four teams from Hamden High. Twenty teams competed, though twenty-one were scheduled and one did not show up. The challenge tasked students with making a cantilever beam out of popsicle sticks and hot glue. The groups were evaluated on the quality of their design proposal, teamwork, efficiency (the ratio of the load their beam could support to the mass of the beam itself), innovation, and strength, according to Kim, a judge. The goal of the event was to expose more students to engineering that would not have free opportunities to do so, according to Leah Austin, the organizer of the event and coordinator of WIE. Final placements for the teams were not available at the time of publication. 

A cantilever is a rigid beam or slab that is anchored at one side, that is commonly used in civil engineering, for balconies, bridges, and brackets, among other uses. Austin said she chose cantilevers as they were both novel and did not require many materials. “We chose a cantilever because we wanted a new and interesting challenge but not something trivial,” she said. “It is simple enough in materials– just hot glue and popsicle sticks, but it is something that most people would not have seen.” It was a deceptively difficult challenge according to Bruce Crowder, an engineering teacher at HHS. “The things that break aren’t what you expect,” he said.

Students attacked the challenge in different ways. Sophomore Makayla Furlow’s design was inspired by a handbag, which worked well in practice, supporting approximately 25 pounds. She said that she ran out of time in the competition though. Freshman Aquinnah Swan, working with Hazel Curtis and Beren Cayan, designed a cantilever inspired by a balcony. Sidrah Qureshi said that her group’s design was inspired by a laminated beam. Qasimi said that they “tried to make it smaller and lighter, but it broke sooner,” so they went with their original design. Olivia Song, working with Jack Lauer, Oliver Ayellakai, and Samir Iydroose, described her philosophy as “do it and don’t ask questions.” Lauer added that their design philosophy was “triangles.”  The group looked at images of trusses, and they ultimately landed on a box truss.

The groups were not without their struggles, however. Crowder allowed students to test in his room after school each day, and he said about ten students took advantage of that. Swan’s group envisioned the C-Clamp anchoring their beam to be different from its actual shape, so they had to “fidget with it to make it work.” Furlow said that her team’s biggest setback was a lack of communication. “People not coming to test was the biggest issue, and two people quit,” she said, recounting how she met her one remaining teammate on the day of the competition. “And there was no communication. I kept going even if I’m by myself. I could still get something of value.” Song’s group inserted a thick rod of popsicle sticks into their design, where the clamp would go, as the “torque would be the highest at that point because there is the furthest from the application of the load,” but the C-Clamp that the organizers used could not grasp such a tall part. 

The students got a lot out of the event as well. Swan said, “It was a fun experience and something I can put on my college application.” Qasimi said that she “learned that teamwork really does make the dream work.”

There will be a competition next year, but the challenge has yet to be announced. In the meantime, all participants will have time to apply salve to their hands. “I burned my fingers, all of us burned our fingers so much, but it was all worth it,” said Qasimi.