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Is 1,500 miles per gallon possible? High school students expect to break mileage barrier during Indiana’s 13th annual Super Mileage Challenge
Approximately 50 cars from 40 high schools across Indiana will compete in the 13th annual Super Mileage Challenge Monday. The event, sponsored by the Indiana Department of Education and the Indiana Mathematics Science and Technology Alliance (IMSTEA), will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis. Students expect to average 1,500 miles to the gallon during the event, breaking last year’s mark of 1,365.41 mpg. “This event provides students with an exciting hands-on opportunity to apply what they’ve learned in the classroom to meet a real-world challenge,” said Dr. Suellen Reed, Superintendent of Public Instruction. “These students will be the scientists, engineers and technicians of tomorrow – the kind of innovators who are so important to Indiana’s economic future.” Students designed and built the vehicles they will drive around the raceway. Each vehicle is a one-person, fuel-efficient car powered by a single cylinder four-stroke cycle engine. The testing will consist of 10 laps at a minimum speed of 15 miles per hour. After each test, the gas tank is weighed and the mileage is calculated. Teams can make as many tests as they want, and the best three attempts are averaged for their official score. “The competition is a true academic and technical application of math, science, technology and engineering,” said Jim Thompson, president of the IMSTEA. “There’s a strong teamwork element to this too.” Awards are given for the team with the best score in the event, as well as for the best integration of mathematics, science and technology into the design and construction of the vehicle; best design, craftsmanship, sportsmanship, teamwork and the closest performance to estimated mpg. “Indiana schools participating in the annual Super Mileage Challenge often go on to compete against colleges and win. Some schools have even been invited to go to California and compete against colleges in a competition sponsored by Shell,” Thompson said. See the attached list for participating high schools, as well as possible story ideas related to this release. For more information, go online to www.imstea.org and www.doe.in.gov/octe/technologyed/SuperMileageChallenge.html. Attachment:
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Indiana Department of Education |
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