SLU Students Compete in a Battle of the Bridges
11/15/2024
School of Science and Engineering Innovation Challenge Featured 15 Teams of Students
School of Science and Engineering students construct a bridge out of cardboard and duct tape during the SSE Innovation Challenge with industry partner TWM on Wednesday, Nov.13, 2024. Photo by Sarah Conroy.
Saint Louis University students in the School of Science and Engineering tested their engineering skills in a timed innovation challenge building bridges out of cardboard tubes and duct tape.
School of Science and Engineering students construct a bridge out of cardboard and duct tape during the SSE Innovation Challenge with industry partner TWM on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. Photo by Sarah Conroy.
Fifteen teams of students competed in the event on Wednesday, Nov. 13. The challenge was won by a team comprised of Jaisri Akaram, Bharath Bandlamudi, Jahnavi Uppugandla and Abhilash Kurapati.
School of Science and Engineering students construct a bridge out of cardboard and duct tape during the SSE Innovation Challenge with industry partner TWM on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. Photo by Sarah Conroy.
Each team of three or more students was given eight cardboard tubes, a roll of duct tape and one hour to complete their bridge. The completed structures were judged on design, use of tape and the ability to bear weight. Each bridge was lifted onto Lego stands, taped down to keep it in place and loaded down with 203 pounds of sand.
School of Science and Engineering students construct a bridge out of cardboard and duct tape during the SSE Innovation Challenge with industry partner TWM on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. Photo by Sarah Conroy.
SLU’s School for Science and Engineering holds a monthly innovation challenge for students. November’s challenge was sponsored by TWM Inc., an engineering firm providing civil and structural engineering and geospatial services to both public and private sector clients in the Midwest and Southeast. TWM provided the challenge materials and led the judging.
School of Science and Engineering students construct a bridge out of cardboard and duct tape during the SSE Innovation Challenge with industry partner TWM on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024. Photo by Sarah Conroy.
Latest Newslink
- Saint Louis University Provides a Space for Religious Discernment to FlourishSaint Louis University provides an institutional framework to support men and women seeking religious vocations. Founded in 1889, SLU’s College of Philosophy and Letters oversees undergraduate and graduate programs oriented by the Jesuit commitment to intelligent service of faith and justice in dialogue with culture. The programs provide the philosophical and intellectual background needed for further studies in theology and ministry for future priests and nuns, as well as engaged laity within the Catholic Church.
- Helen De Cruz, Ph.D.: 1978-2025Helen De Cruz, Ph.D., the Danforth Chair in the Humanities at Saint Louis University, died Friday, June 20, 2025. She was 46. The Belgian-born philosopher examined why and how humans engage in pursuits that seem remote from the immediate concerns of survival and reproduction, such as theology, mathematics, and science.
- 'I am More Than Just a Refugee': A SLU Student Shares His StoryThe Saint Louis University-Jesuit Worldwide Learning (SLU-JWL) program offers remote bachelor's degrees to international students displaced by conflict, lack of opportunity, and poverty in places such as refugee camps in Kenya and Malawi. One student, Dictor Olame, reflected on his experience as a SLU student in the Kakuma refugee camp in North-Western Kenya.
- SLU Supports St. Louis by Hosting City's Tornado Relief CenterIn the weeks following a devastating tornado that tore through St. Louis on May 16, hundreds of households have turned to a centralized Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) at Chaifetz Arena for assistance.
- Persistence Pays Off for Fulbright Award RecipientAnuj Gandhi is a Fulbright Scholar. A year after being chosen as an alternate, Gandhi has been chosen for a Fulbright-Nehru Student Research Award. With the Award, the recent Saint Louis University graduate intends to "investigate how globalization-based acculturation influences Indian young adults' attitudes toward mental health and treatment options."
- Pestellos Honored With Honorary Street NameA stretch of Laclede Avenue that has undergone major development since President Fred P. Pestello, Ph.D., and First Lady Fran Pestello, Ph.D., arrived at Saint Louis University 11 years ago now has a new name.