Week 2: Teamwork

        My group mates and I will be participating and competing in the faculty suggested Bridge Design Challenge. In this past week’s lab, the main objectives of the project and deliverables to be expected were discussed. The bridge of topic is the truss bridge, a structure that can be seen throughout the world and history. Primarily, it is a simple formation, yet very complex concept, that consists only of triangles. Our job as a team will be to take what we know and elevate it, practically, as much as we can. We were shown multiple examples of truss bridges that exist today. These can be studied and used as references as we begin to segue into the composition of the bridge. In addition, we were shown a software that will become a major tool when it comes time to test our construction. Lastly, everyone separated into their teams to create the blog that will be used to record our weekly progress.

        Teamwork is a key component in this project. If we cannot be civil to one another when discussing ideas, it will be nearly impossible to get anything done. However, and fortunately for us, we all get along well outside of the classroom and sometimes even collaborate on homework so I feel that I can predict that this will not be too much of a problem. In our case, I believe that making decisions and arranging meeting times will be our biggest obstacles. Between the three of us, there are a lot of ideas flowing. There is the possibility that there will be disagreements when expressing these ideas. This can be solved by addressing one another’s positive aspects as opposed to rejecting the entire thought. We will also have to consider why the idea might not work so that we can be careful not to apply it to our final construction. Arranging meeting times may also be a slight problem. With our busy schedules and extracurriculars, I believe this might become our biggest issue. We must sit down and openly discuss how this can be resolved. Overall, I feel that three of us have a successful work ethic and will work well together during this project. I’m very excited to use this project as a chance to get to know my future roommates better! (:

Chelsea Moss