You may have seen experiments to build towers out of marshmallows and spaghetti before, but have those towers had to withstand an earthquake? That was the problem set before Year 8 when the Outreach Department from Oxford University Earth Sciences came to visit. Their edifices needed more thoughtful architecture with extra bracing to stay upright when the roller tables that simulated earthquakes were activated. Some teams still managed to build structures nearly half a metre tall!
