The Walla Walla District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, helped seven Walla Walla-area schools celebrate National Engineers Week Feb. 17-23 by sponsoring in engineering design contests. This year the contest was the "tallest tower construction."
"This year’s contest was an object lesson in what we do every day at the Corps of Engineers," E-Week coordinator Jeffrey Lyon said. "We have time to plan and design projects, then with limited time and materials we must construct the facilities to meet the needs of our customers and society. All this work is done in teams and one person cannot succeed by themselves. We enjoyed seeing the students experience the team dynamics of the engineering world."
Students were given 200 toothpicks and 100 mini-marshmallows, and had just 20 minutes to construct their tower. Each tower needed to be freestanding for two minutes before its height could be measured.
National Engineers Week was founded in 1951 by the National Society of Professional Engineers. It’s always celebrated at the time of George Washington’s birthday. Our nation’s first president was a military engineer and a land surveyor. Every year, the Nation’s engineers take a week to highlight the practice and accomplishments of engineers to show what can be done with a little science and imagination.