Foundation to Engineering Design
Spring 2015
 
Marshmallow Challenge
 
The task given to us was to balance a marshmallow on the tallest geometrical structure that we can design using 1-yard tape and 20 dry spaghatti. The challenge was fairly straightword and was completed in teams. Our team comprises two members. 
 
We started off with a quite layout of the model and how we wanted to implement it. Keeping the motive of having the tallest structure, its efficiency in holding up a mass of a marshmallow was found to be the key point. To ensure that a triangular structure was made to hold up the marshmallow at the topmost part. The joints were connected using smaller spaghetti pieces to hold the structure strong. 
 

The bottom structure was constructed like a cuboid with rectangular connections to ensure the toughness of the structure to hold the mass above it. The joints were taped properly to prevent any breakage. Also, the bottom part was sticked to the paper/groud to prevent the base movement. 

With every build up, the triangular piece consisting the marshmallow was tested to ensure the assurity of the structure handling the weight of the total model. On getting assured, further height of the model was developed on adding more of the structure with rectangular stability, which could go upto twice the height of the spaghetti length plus the triangular piece, and thus ensuring the stability and endurance of spaghetti sticks to hold up a structure.
 
Time was certainly a constrain, which couldn't allowed more possibilities to try. The triangular structure all the way down could have possibly turned out a more stable structure using less number of spaghetti, and a much taller model that could hold up the marshmallow, as designed below:

The task was quite interesting and involved team participation right then. It made us think to develop quite an  easy structure on a limited time period with number of possibilities and constraints.

- Aakash Gupta