Mazy's Muddle: Kites on top
Hello, I think we should all go fly kites today....in the school ground, in a park, or on the terrace of a building.
Wherever we have a safe place to fly a kite! Because June 15th is the anniversary of Benjamin Franklin’s kite experiment in 1752. Do people become famous just for flying kites? Of course not! He became famous for being a scientist, a musician, a printer, a statesman, and a philosopher!
There are many different versions of the story of how Franklin did the kite experiment to find out if lightning was an electrical event. I’m not sure which story is right, but he was very careful while doing the experiment.
When he became old, and spent his time reading, Franklin found that he could not take out books from tall shelves. Even though he had many grandchildren to help him, he invented a tool called a long arm to reach the high books. The long arm was a long wooden pole with a grasping claw at the end.
Now, if we were to need a long arm to reach a kite kept on top a shelf 3.67 m from the floor, what is the shortest length the long arm should have? I know! I know! I know! Do you?
Out of the maze: Depends on how tall you are, and how long your arm is: So check out the length from floor to your outstretched fist, subtract this length from 3.67m. This will still not give the answer – you’ll need a slightly longer long arm since it will have to be held at an angle, and not vertically!
