Make a coconut-flinging machine

Task stats

Points

15

Disquals

0

• While searching for materials in the shed, Ante remarks that he has no talent as an engineer. He decides to tie a long cord between some trees to act as a slingshot, with the coconut resting on the neck of a mannequin to give it some starting height. He uses 9 minutes and 35 seconds of his allotted time to build his coconut-flinging device. The cord is much too long to be an effective slingshot, so the coconut falls to the ground almost immediately upon launch – a distance of 1m 11cm. He earns one point.
• After a few failed attempts, Lidija decides to built a catapult by using a broom to leverage the coconut, which she has taped to a basketball, out of a wheelbarrow. She uses all 20 minutes of her allotted time to build her coconut-flinging device. When launching, Lidija leverages the basketball straight up into the air, and it does not bounce or roll much farther away from where it started – a distance of 2m 11cm. She earns two points.
• Ana looks for items while lamenting that “today is not a good day for thinking.” She makes a slingshot by tying a belt or leather strap across a circular table that has a giant hole in the centre of it where a bowl-shaped seat would normally rest. She uses 14 minutes and 19 seconds of her allotted time to build her coconut-flinging device. When launching, Ana holds the coconut at a downward angle, so it does not go very far – a distance of 3m 6cm. She earns three points.
• After playing around on a skateboard for a bit, Igor uses a wooden plank and a bucket to build a catapult. He also puts nails at the end of the board, so the coconut will not fly off of the board prematurely. Using a sledgehammer, Igor launches the coconut, and it flies sideways and is stopped by the skateboard he had been playing around with earlier on during the construction process. The coconut travelled a total distance of 6m 15cm, and he earns four points.
• Enio ties a cord around two pillars used to hold up the roof of a small covered sitting area in the backyard of the house, making a slingshot. He also tapes a shallow bowl in the centre of the slingshot to hold the coconut, and angles it upwards before releasing, resulting in the coconut travelling the majority of the distance of the yard – 13m 60cm. He earns five points.