Flying Contraptions
Mathematically speaking, this particular flying object shouldn’t be able to fly. What do you think about that?
Why can this thing fly? It doesn’t even LOOK like a plane! When I teach at the university, this is the plane that mathematically isn’t supposed to be able to fly! There are endless variations to this project—you can change the number of loops and the size of loops, you can tape two of these together, or you can make a whole pyramid of them. Just be sure to have fun!
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This was fun! My kids were so thrilled that it worked, even though I had a hard time explaining the “why”, but now they are experimenting with combined ones, different lengths, etc. Thank you!!
Wow! I can’t believe this goofy contraption really worked! It flew across our room really far! (Tyler- age7)
Which part did you have trouble with?
I could not get it to work….
Yes, it could be!
try it with the small part in front, it will have a better chance of flying far!
THIS COULD BE THE NEXT TYPE OF PLANE!!!!!!
Yes, all the experiments are performed on the videos. And yes, the flight lab is being worked on now for release this summer.
I have a suggestion for anyone who is having trouble with the glider falling apart when it lands. I found that masking tape worked better for me than regular tape in keeping the circles on the straw. This was a very fun experiment!:) -Madeline (Ann’s daughter)
We just joined up and I can’t wait to try this with the kids! Time for a trip to the $ store for straws.
Two questions:
Do you ever perform the experiments on the videos?
I clicked on the link you have for this experiment and received an error message that the file no longer exists. Is it being updated or is this an old link?
Officially, it’s located here in the Flight Lab:
http://www.sciencelearningspace.com/summer-camp/flight-lab-experiments/
My 7 year old daughter was excited when she saw her
plane fly…and I was too!
interesting! they dont have these in paper airplane books
This is one of small handful of quick-start experiments we have under the ‘Getting Started’ menu that uses everyday stuff from around the house.
Officially, it’s located here in the Flight Lab:
http://www.sciencelearningspace.com/summer-camp/flight-lab-experiments/
The video streaming will depend on your internet connection. Here’s something you can do if it’s slow: click PLAY, then click PAUSE and wait for it to load completely, then hit PLAY again. We’re currently working on getting all the videos to stream smoothly, but it takes awhile to update 700+ videos! Let me know how it goes so I can help.
Am I missing something? Can’t find materials list for this experiment, video starts mid-way and is choppy (all other videos on this site play fine). I can figure out what to do from the partial video here, but we’re new to e-science and I prefer my kids to view the whole experiment from prep to finish. Sadly, we’ll have to skip this one until we’re able to view it all
Also, what unit of study does this experiment go with? Where can I find similar activities, further explanations? Thanks
Yes, give it a GOOD hard throw… and see how it works!
Do you just throw it?
How does the Flying Contraption Work????
Did you find it in the previous comments?
Where do we click on to read the explanation of why this plane can fly when it shouldn’t be able to?
Hey! This is a pretty cool looking paper plane! Now I can show it off to my friends and watch their mouths drop open in awe! Yay for science!
The four forces are lift, weight, thrust, and drag. All airplanes and flying objects have these four forces acting on it. Lift generated by the wings counteracts weight, thrust from the engines (or from a good throw from your wrist) counteracts drag (the friction from the air).
Aurora – What are the four forces that you are referring to in your explaination as to why these flying contraptions should not be able to fly mathmatically?
Another great flying contraption. We have a collection now. Thanks!
This one is a wired one but still good.
This is our very 1st experiment and it works so well! Very excited about this program. Thank you!
We didn’t have straws so the kids decided to use bamboo skewers! (the pointy end was covered by a loop anyway)
Thanks for the fun science adventure!
They are experimenting with various loops, widths, etc. and are having fun!
i gust dont get it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! hymmmmm,……. lol!!!!!!! now i get it!!!!!!!!!!!!
Did you see the hints in the other comments? Tell me what YOU think!
Very fun experiment, but we are looking for the “why?” …..”Why isn’t it supposed to fly (mathematically speaking)?”
“Why DOES it fly?”
My son (6) made 3 of these already on his own. He loves it!
You’ll find direct links to online suppliers (like Radio Shack) on the main shopping lists for the items. Look above in the main bar that says “Shop List” and click on the unit you are working on. If there are items not easily found at the grocery store, then they will have an appropriate link. If you have trouble finding an item, please let me know so I can direct you.
My daughter was able to get the first project done and loved it. I am glad that she can do this with you.
We would like to find out where or order form is for some of the things from Radio Shack. We need to order some of the main components. Thanks
Thank you! This will be our first official experiment on your site. I just previewed the video, but I’m going to allow my oldest to take the reins for the actual assembly.
You can vary and change the flying contraction by: placing a paperclip at the bottom of the small hoop, building a really loooong one with multiple straws, make a double or triple (or more) by placing the small hoops side-by-side and the large hoops side-by-side and taping them together (you can also create a pyramid stack of these – I will post a photo soon.
Read over the previous comments for ideas on how we think they fly… I’ll post more with the photo.
My kids were able to make this all by themselves with me just supervising (They are 7 & 8 years) so they were really impressed that they were able to fly and and figure it out themselves. We only had “bendy” straws so I assumed it wouldn’t work, but it did!
very cool
Would you explain how to attach more than one? I tried a few different ways and it wouldn’t fly. Is there also a description on why/how they fly? My children are trying many variations trying to figure it out.
Thanks!
We were out of straws but we had CHOP STICKS and it worked! Ha – great fun – Thanks Aurora! – Mom
I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY LIKED IT! – Hannah age 11
Try it!
And then let me know about it…
Hey this looks awesome! Can it work with a wood securer instead of a straw?
socool
This is AMAZING! I’ll be trying this as soon as I have the chance!
I can’t believe this!! My mom had alot of fun doing this and so did i. – Tara [ daughter of Linda]
Great experiment. We experimented with the different ways to throw it. My daughter, who is more into art than she is science, is having fun decorating her card pieces with drawings and my son has moved onto experimenting with changing the sizes of the hoops and the length of the straw. He is also going to attach several together to see how they fly.
so cool trying it now
This Is Cody. We made a flying contraption. We used three pieces of cut paper, then we used a straw, and two pieces of tape. When I threw my contraption, It spins in the air. whoo!
We redid the experiment with a super size drink straw and it FLEW! our index card (4 x 6) was too heavy for a normal straw. That was why it didn’t fly the first time. What a great experiment! Rebekah say’s that she can’t believe she actually made an airplane that flies.
OMGoodness what an awesome first experiment! We had the best time doing it together and then trying to fly it together too! What an afternoon.
Fantastic!! Aurora. My son is working on several paper airplaines to see if it makes a diference to use a shorter straw or a thinner paper ring. Great project. Thank you, María Z
IT WORKS! My boys doubted you! Not anymore…thanks for making science super fun!
You’re right – it’s a bit complicated to explain outside a graduate level aerodynamics class, but here goes: there are FOUR forces at work with your flying machine. Gravity is always pulling it down, but air keeps it up (lift). The way airplane wings generate lift is by having a curved surface on the top which decreases the sir pressure, and since higher pressure pushes, the wing generates lift by moving through the air. But what about a flat wing?
If you drop a regular sheet of paper, it flutters to the ground. If you wad it up first, you’ll find it falls much faster. The air under the falling paper needs to get out of the way as gravity pulls the paper, which is a lot easier when the paper is wadded into a ball. For a flat wing (like on a paper airplane) to glide through the air, it needs to be balanced between gravity and the air resistance holding it up. In order for a glider to fly, the center of pressure needs to be behind the center of gravity. By adding paper clips to your paper airplane, you move the center of gravity and center of pressure around to find the perfect balance.
When we use math to add up the forces (the pull of gravity would be the weight, for example), it works out that there isn’t enough lift generated by thrust to overcome the weight and drag. When I say, “mathematically speaking…” I mean that the numbers don’t work out quite right. When this happens in science for real scientists, it usually means that they don’t fully understand something yet. There are a number of ‘unsolved’ mysteries still in science.. maybe you’ll be able to help us figure them out?
Hi Aurora
Can you please tell me why it is mathematically impossible to fly, bearing in mind that I am not mathematically or scientifically minded.
Thanks
we just did this and we were wondering why this would work even though it Mathematically shouldn’t?
We didn’t think this one would work– I was really surprised- looking forward to putting two together tomorrow. Thanks for a great first day of camp.
We had a super day with all the wonderful science experiments! Thank you so much!