Maya’s Mysteries: Courage to Connect
“With faces joyous and beaming with light, associate with your neighbor.”
—Bahá’u’lláh
I was excited when a new girl moved in across the street. I suggested that we invite her over. But my friend Zoe didn’t want to. She’s African American, and Zoe, who’s white, said we wouldn’t have anything in common with her. I was surprised and sad.
Still, I didn’t give up. I made cookies and took them to the neighbors. And guess what? The new girl, Kiara, has two supercute dogs! We walked the dogs and stopped at Zoe’s house to invite her. Zoe was shy at first, until we discovered that we all like building robots. Kiara’s going to join the robotics club with us!
It just took a tiny change—believing that strangers can be friends, and knocking on their door. It was like building a bridge between people. Speaking of bridges, Kiara showed me this cool experiment. Check it out!
You’ll Need:
4 3" x 5" (7.6 x 12.7 cm) index cards, 2 same-sized markers, ruler, pencil, scissors, tape, about 50 pennies
Step 1: Look at the photos in Steps 2–5. Which bridge do you expect to hold the most pennies, and why?
Step 2: Tape markers to a table, so the space between them is 3¾" (9.5 cm). Set the single index card on top. Add pennies one at a time until the card touches the table. How many pennies did it hold?
Step 3: Cut another card in three 1" x 5" (2.5 x 12.7 cm) pieces. Set the three strips on top of each other. Add pennies. How many did it hold?
Step 4: Cut another card in thirds, and tape them together. Add pennies. How many did it hold?
Step 5: For the fourth card, fold up a 1" (2.5 cm) portion on each side to make a channel. Add pennies. How many did it hold?
Which bridge worked best? Why do you think so?
How it Works:
The coins cause stresses (internal forces) that squeeze together the top of the bridge and stretch out the bottom. If stresses get too intense, the bridge is stretched or squeezed so much that it fails. By folding up the sides, you increase the distance between the top and bottom of the bridge. That reduces the stresses so it can hold more coins. That’s why I-beams are used in real bridges!
Characters466 Maya118 Maya’s Mysteries94 Science183 Technology51 STEM261 Race Unity219 Racism104 Race55 Courage64 Friendliness33 Experiments14 Dr. Scotti6 Science and Religion23 STEM Station30 STEAM43 STEAMS69 Communities46 Cooperation95 Teamwork128