Physics students in the Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) program at the Oneida-Herkimer-Madison (0HM) BOCES recently completed a project called The Great Pumpkin Drop. Students were challenged to design and build an apparatus to protect a pumpkin dropped from a 100-foot-high firetruck bucket. The students learned about the physics of falling objects throughout the project.
The pumpkin drop event was held on October 26. New Hartford firefighters took to the sky to test out the students' contraptions. One-by-one, they dropped the pumpkins from atop the ladder as students watched in anticipation. One particularly successful group used a bedsheet as a parachute. Their pumpkin floated slowly down, landing softly on the pavement. The students thoroughly enjoyed the project and learned a great deal.
On November 16, the students will present the results of their work during the "Science and Snacks" poster session.
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