Special to the Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE
April 12, 2008 06:50 pm
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Wabash Valley high school students used the principles of mathematics, science and physics to assist engineers to pull off a large scale athletic event in the Junior Engineering and Technical Society’s TEAMS Competition on March 5 at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.
This year’s theme, coinciding with the 2008 Beijing Olympics, was “Behind the Scenes: Athletic Events.” Teams of eight students came up with a variety of solutions for traffic flow and security issues, the design of venues and facilities, and even to the sports themselves, such as how aerodynamic principles can be applied to soccer or baseball to increase performance and gain a competitive edge.
Scenarios tackled included:
n Studying, analyzing and making recommendations regarding the flow of visitors to and from the Beijing National Aquatics Center.
n Comparing different types of transportation to reduce unwanted emissions and assist in making the event “green.”
n Providing the analysis needed for the construction and maintenance of the Whistler Sliding Center for the 2010 Winter Olympics.
n Applying aerodynamic principles to the discus, track, shot put and corner kick in soccer competitions to assist teams in their understanding of the properties of the events.
n Used science and engineering principles to understand the true dynamics of a pitched ball, such as gravity changes due to the spin, helping the batter achieve better performance.
n Analyzing and recommending techniques that meet the challenges of allowing a large number of people to communicate via sufficient multichannel communications capabilities.
Sixteen teams from nine high schools participated in the three-hour test that featured 80 multiple-choice questions and essays to solve four challenging engineering problems.
Terre Haute South’s “A” varsity team posted the top score in the multiple-choice portion of the competition, with 57 points. Terre Haute North followed closely behind at 55 points. Both schools shared the junior varsity title with identical 29-point scores.
Enrollment division winners among varsity teams included Terre Haute South, for schools with 251 to 450 seniors; Edgewood, for 151-250 seniors; Clay City, for 51 to 150 seniors; and Vincennes Rivet, for 4-50 seniors. Robinson had the top varsity and junior varsity scores among Illinois teams.
Members of Terre Haute South’s varsity team were seniors Brian Harvey, Swara Kopparty, Arjun Theertham and Ernest Wright; juniors Raj Bhuptani and Pardha Ponugoti; sophomore Sachin Shinde; and freshman Joseph Botros. The school’s junior varsity included sophomores Anisha Joenathan, Julene Manyarji, Dustin Morris, Eesha Purohit and Arun Theertham; and freshmen Elijah Beard and Samuel Throne. Both teams were coached by Daniel Wunderlich.
Terre Haute North’s junior varsity team featured junior Will Kline; sophomores Matthew Lieberman, Mitchell McCord and Samuel Rider-Leck; and freshmen Tommy Foulkes and Brandon Longfellow. The team was coached by Glen Cook.
Clay City’s JETS team included seniors Brandon Blackburn, Andrew Nicoson and Dale Stoops; and juniors Colton Johnson and Hunter Lavoine. The team was coached by Patricia Gregory.
All teams are now eligible for state and national recognition.
III
Competitors:
Indiana schools
Varsity Division 1 (4-50 Senior Enrollment)
30 - Vincennes Rivet
Varsity Division 3 (51—150 Senior Enrollment)
28 — Clay City
26 — North Central
Varsity Division 5 (151—250 Senior Enrollment)
45 — Edgewood
19 — West Vigo
Varsity Division 7 (251—450 Senior Enrollment)
57 — Terre Haute South A
55 — Terre Haute North
47 — Terre Haute South B
Indiana Junior Varsity (All Divisions)
29 — Terre Haute North
29 — Terre Haute South
28 — West Vigo
18 — Vincennes Rivet
Illinois schools
Varsity Division 3 (51—151 Senior Enrollment)
40 — Robinson
29 — Teutopolis B
26 — Teutopolis A
Illinois Junior Varsity (All Divisions)
26 — Robinson
Overall results
57 — Terre Haute South Varsity A (Indiana, Division 7)
55 — Terre Haute North Varsity (Indiana, Division 7)
47 — Terre Haute South Varsity B (Indiana, Division 7)
45 — Edgewood Varsity (Indiana, Division 5)
40 — Robinson Varsity (Illinois, Division 3)
30 — Vincennes Rivet Varsity (Indiana, Division 1)
29 — Terre Haute North JV (Indiana, Division 7)
29 — Terre Haute South JV (Indiana, Division 7)
29 — Teutopolis Varsity B (Illinois, Division 3)
28 — West Vigo JV (Indiana, Division 5)
28 — Clay City Varsity (Indiana, Division 3)
26 — Robinson JV (Illinois, Division 3)
26 — North Central (Indiana, Division 3)
26 — Teutopolis Varsity A (Illinois, Division 3)
19 — West Vigo Varsity (Indiana, Division 5)
18 — Vincennes Rivet JV (Indiana, Division 1)
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