Last Friday, students took to the Plaza with their entries for the Ideal Beam Competition! One by one the beams were tested by placing a concentrated load at midspan. To be crowned “Ideal Beam 2022 Award” winner, the entry must have had the greatest ratio of weight of load to weight of beam. However, IF a beam achieved the highest ratio greater than 1200, they would be awarded a cash prize!
“Often an entry will linger while it twists and bends to carry load and defy failure. Others will fail under a minimal load due to an unaccounted cause from circumstances that was missed in the design or construction process. ALL of the entries will teach us something about structure.” -Richard Farley, Adjunct Professor of Architecture
Congratulations to all who participated! After a few years hiatus, it was nice to have this long-standing tradition back!
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