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Ok so

- My team only meets once a week
- We've spent all our time in the meetings on build events
- Invitational in December

I'm thinking of practicing some Mystery Architecture builds at home so we don't crash and burn. What materials would I need, and how would I do it in general?

LittleMissNyan wrote:Ok so

- My team only meets once a week
- We've spent all our time in the meetings on build events
- Invitational in December

I'm thinking of practicing some Mystery Architecture builds at home so we don't crash and burn. What materials would I need, and how would I do it in general?

Ok, this is gonna be a long post... here goes...
Possible materials: Popsicle sticks, chopsticks, straws of all sizes, tape (remember that most Event Supervisors only give you small lengths, not the whole rolls), sheets of paper, string, cups, etc.
Of course, you don't know what they're gonna give you at competition. So you have to prepare for the unexpected. What my partner and I did was compile a list of different materials and categorize them. Below is the very basic list we used last year:

Attachment Materials: Thumb Tacks, Rubber Bands, Masking Tape, Scotch Tape, String, Paper Clips
Tier 1 Building Materials (10-25): Popsicle Sticks, No. 2 Pencils, Chopsticks, Slushy Straws, Bendy Straws
Tier 2 Building Materials (5-10): Paper Cups, Printer Paper, Notebook Paper
Tier 3 Building Materials (Miscellaneous): 1 Sheet Cardboard, 2 Paper Plates

We used a random spinner to choose one or two materials from each category. This way, we could guarantee that we had no practice sessions that only had all attachment materials. That would not be a good thing since it's pretty hard to build a structure with only tape, string, and rubber bands. Next, after identifying the materials we were gonna use, we used more random spinners to determine the quantity/amount of each material (for tape/string, select a length). Thus, we always had attachment materials and building materials every practice session, and they were pretty much always different.

Hope this answers your question, and I also hope this makes sense...

How will the primary dimension of an arch be defined an measured? This is the "sample task" in the rules manual.

For an arch, the Primary Dimension could be measured:
i. with no load, from the base to the highest point of the arch
ii. with a load, from the base to the highest point of the load

However, nothing in there differentiates it from a tower. I am thinking there will be some constraint that will require an architecture different from a tower. For example, I am thinking something like https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1ToX ... sp=sharing where the goal will be to maximize the size of the red rectangle (without changing its width). Is this along the right lines?

Regards,
Shri

I think what defines an arch would be that there are two “areas” of suport with something connecting them and it can not touch the ground between two points that the event supervisor gives.

Cow481 wrote:I think what defines an arch would be that there are two “areas” of suport with something connecting them and it can not touch the ground between two points that the event supervisor gives.

That is what I am thinking and coaching. Essentially a tower with only 2 sides on either end.

heiber wrote:

Cow481 wrote:I think what defines an arch would be that there are two “areas” of suport with something connecting them and it can not touch the ground between two points that the event supervisor gives.

That is what I am thinking and coaching. Essentially a tower with only 2 sides on either end.

But with a gap in between that is provided by the ES so is it like an elevated bridge with the height being the main dimension and having a set minimum distance in between

Cow481 wrote:

heiber wrote:

Cow481 wrote:I think what defines an arch would be that there are two “areas” of suport with something connecting them and it can not touch the ground between two points that the event supervisor gives.

That is what I am thinking and coaching. Essentially a tower with only 2 sides on either end.

But with a gap in between that is provided by the ES so is it like an elevated bridge with the height being the main dimension and having a set minimum distance in between

Sorry for double posting but I also think you can have two mini towers and something in between to hold the load. I don’t think it has to be one column on each side.

Cow481 wrote:

Cow481 wrote:

heiber wrote:
That is what I am thinking and coaching. Essentially a tower with only 2 sides on either end.

But with a gap in between that is provided by the ES so is it like an elevated bridge with the height being the main dimension and having a set minimum distance in between

Sorry for double posting but I also think you can have two mini towers and something in between to hold the load. I don’t think it has to be one column on each side.

Whether you use two columns or two mini towers on the side, the question for me is whether it is acceptable to have a cross-brace connecting the two to prevent them from spreading/splaying. Is there a minimum height above which you are allowed to attach a brace? If the brace it at the ground level, then the structure is no different from a tower.

shri wrote:

Cow481 wrote:

Cow481 wrote: But with a gap in between that is provided by the ES so is it like an elevated bridge with the height being the main dimension and having a set minimum distance in between

Sorry for double posting but I also think you can have two mini towers and something in between to hold the load. I don’t think it has to be one column on each side.

Whether you use two columns or two mini towers on the side, the question for me is whether it is acceptable to have a cross-brace connecting the two to prevent them from spreading/splaying. Is there a minimum height above which you are allowed to attach a brace? If the brace it at the ground level, then the structure is no different from a tower.

What I am coaching right now is practicing to measuring to the bottom of the arch platform / top. So if they build an arch that is 20 cm high but has cross bracing at 10 cm high, then the max height is 10 cm. But I've also talked with them about how we are making educated guesses and it is very important for them to understand the build parameters and scoring during the event.

When we reviewed the rules and section 4 - Primary Measurements, I told them that the most important word in the entire section is "could".

heiber wrote:

shri wrote:

Cow481 wrote: Sorry for double posting but I also think you can have two mini towers and something in between to hold the load. I don’t think it has to be one column on each side.

Whether you use two columns or two mini towers on the side, the question for me is whether it is acceptable to have a cross-brace connecting the two to prevent them from spreading/splaying. Is there a minimum height above which you are allowed to attach a brace? If the brace it at the ground level, then the structure is no different from a tower.

What I am coaching right now is practicing to measuring to the bottom of the arch platform / top. So if they build an arch that is 20 cm high but has cross bracing at 10 cm high, then the max height is 10 cm. But I've also talked with them about how we are making educated guesses and it is very important for them to understand the build parameters and scoring during the event.

When we reviewed the rules and section 4 - Primary Measurements, I told them that the most important word in the entire section is "could".

Agreed about what you said about the cross-brace.

There is one more issue. Are you requiring a minimum horizontal span where you are measuring the height? If the arch looks like a triangle, are you measuring the height to the top of the triangle, or to the tallest point inside the triangle which has the specific minimum horizontal span?