Here is a cache hide within a quarter mile of the
Clark’s Covered Bridge in North Woodstock. The bridge is an
engineering marvel created for train traffic and is still in use by
Clark’s Trading Post for tourist rides. I didn’t think it was wise
to place a cache on or near the bridge due to its current use and
possible private property so I have placed one nearby. The bridge
can be viewed from the side of Route 3 just a little North of
Clark’s Trading Post main entrance. The cache can be reached two
ways. From the quiet cemetery entrance or from the side of the
airport road which goes to the state highway sheds.
Engineering Merit Badge Requirements
1. Select a manufactured item in your home (such as a toy or an
appliance) and, under adult supervision and with the approval of
your counselor, investigate how and why it works as it does. Find
out what sort of engineering activities were needed to create it.
Discuss with your counselor what you learned and how you got the
information.
2. Select an engineering achievement that has had a major impact
on society. Using resources such as the Internet (with your
parent's permission), books, and magazines, find out about the
engineers who made this engineering feat possible, the special
obstacles they had to overcome, and how this achievement has
influenced the world today. Tell your counselor what you
learned.
3. Explain the work of six types of engineers. Pick two of the
six and explain how their work is related.
4. Visit with an engineer (who may be your counselor or parent)
and do the following:
a. Discuss the work this engineer does and the tools the
engineer uses.
b. Discuss with the engineer a current project and the
engineer’s particular role in it.
c. Find out how the engineer’s work is done and how results are
achieved.
d. Ask to see the reports that the engineer writes concerning
the project.
e. Discuss with your counselor what you learned about
engineering from this visit.
5. Do ONE of the following:
a. Use the systems engineering approach to make step-by-step
plans for your next campout. List alternative ideas for such items
as program schedule, campsites, transportation, and costs. Tell why
you made the choices you did and what improvements were made.
b. Make an original design for a piece of patrol equipment. Use
the systems engineering approach to help you decide how it should
work and look. Draw plans for it. Show the plans to your counselor,
explain why you designed it the way you did, and explain how you
would make it.
6. Do TWO of the following:
a. Transforming motion. Using common material or a construction
set, make a simple model that will demonstrate motion. Explain how
the model uses basic mechanical concepts like levers and inclined
planes to demonstrate motion. Describe an example where this
mechanism is used in a real product.
b. Using electricity. Make a list of 10 electrical appliances in
your home. Find out approximately how much electricity each uses in
one month. Learn how to find out the amount and cost of electricity
used in your home during periods of light and heavy use. List five
ways to conserve electricity.
c. Understanding electronics. Using an electronic device such as
a mobile telephone or portable digital media player, find out how
sound travels from one location to another. Explain how the device
was designed for ease of use, function, and durability.
d. Using materials. Do experiments to show the differences in
strength and heat conductivity in wood, metal, and plastic. Discuss
with your counselor what you have learned.
e. Converting energy. Do an experiment to show how mechanical,
heat, chemical, solar, and/or electrical energy may be converted
from one or more types of energy to another. Explain your results.
Describe to your counselor what energy is and how energy is
converted and used in your surroundings.
f. Moving people. Find out the different ways people in your
community get to work. Make a study of traffic flow (number of
vehicles and relative speed) in both heavy and light traffic
periods. Discuss with your counselor what might be improved to make
it easier for people in your community to get where they need to
go.
g. Building an engineering project. Enter a project in a science
or engineering fair or similar competition. (This requirement may
be met by participation on an engineering competition project
team.) Discuss with your counselor what your project demonstrates,
the kinds of questions visitors to the fair asked you about it, and
how well were you able to answer their questions.
7. Explain what it means to be a registered Professional
Engineer (PE). Name the types of engineering work for which
registration is most important?
8. Study the Engineer's Code of Ethics. Explain how it is like
the Scout Oath and Scout Law.
9. Find out about three career opportunities in engineering.
Pick one and research the education, training, and experience
required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and
explain why this profession might interest you.