The Olymphysics: The Battle of Wits is a team-building activity and an SHS-wide competition that

challenges senior high school students to show their collaborative skills while using their
knowledge in Science and Mathematics to solve various challenges.

Objectives
• Engage Students in Collaborative Problem-Solving: Foster an environment where students can
collaborate and apply physics principles to solve challenges in a fun and competitive manner.
Encourage teamwork and critical thinking skills.

• Promote Understanding of Physics Concepts: Utilize engaging Olympic-style activities to deepen

students' understanding of fundamental physics concepts. Relate these concepts to real-world
applications, such as the physics behind sports events, to make learning more tangible and relatable.

• Inspire Interest in STEM Fields: Use Olymphysics as a platform to inspire students’ interest in
science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by showcasing the practical and exciting
aspects of physics. Encourage students to consider future studies or careers in these fields by
highlighting their relevance and impact.

Eligibility

1. The Olymphysics: The Battle of the Wits is open to all bonafide senior high school students of Nuestra
Señora De Guia Academy for the academic year 2023-2024.
2. Participants of each team must come from different strands under the Senior High School
Department.
3. Each section must provide the following number of participants to represent their section in each
activity:
• Activity 1 – 3 participants
• Activity 2 - 3 participants
• Activity 3 – 2 participants
• Activity 4 – 3 participants
• Activity 5 – 5 participants
• Activity 6 – 5 participants
• Badge – 1 participant
• Banner – 3 participants
4. Participants must register through the Google form link.
5. The deadline for registration is November 29, 2023.

Guidelines and Mechanics

Attire
1. All members must wear their complete PE uniforms.
2. Any accessories and headgear are not allowed in this competition, except for the headbandana
provided by the committee.
3. The headbandana will signify the team’s assigned color.

House Rules
4. All participants must be at the venue 10 minutes before the event.
5. All teams are expected to be prepared (with proper attire, complete materials, and section’s
badge) before coming to the venue.
6. Gadgets and any types of body accessories are not allowed to be worn or carried in this
competition. The participants may leave their belongings in their respective classrooms.
7. The team must be together to solve each station's challenges. The team cannot proceed with the
activity if one member is missing.
• If one member is in the comfort room, the team must wait for the member before starting
the activity.
• Considerations may apply if one member has his/her valid reason.
Olymphysics Proper
8. The Olymphysics is composed of SIX activities or games in relation to STeM concepts.
Activity 1: Paper Tower 8:15-9:15
Activity 2: EquiTrick Challenge 9:30-10:15
Activity 3: Paper Airplane 10:30-11:15
Activity 4: Large Barge 11:30-12:15
Activity 5: Straw Bridge 12:30-1:30
Activity 6: Balloon Powered Car 1:30-2:30

9. Twelve (12) Facilitators will also be assigned to check each team. They will be the ones to decide if
the team has accomplished the challenge or not.
• A flag will be given to the team that has accomplished the challenge.
10. Pocket mail will be provided before starting the challenge of each station. This contains a brief
overview of the science or mathematics concepts and the mechanics of the challenges to be
accomplished.
11. The participants cannot ask the facilitators about the challenge. The only responsibilities of
the facilitators are the following:
• Give the materials to the participants.
• Assist in case of emergency or technical issues.
12. Participants who do not abide by the above-mentioned guidelines will be disqualified.

Declaration of Winners
13. Certificates of Participation shall be given to all participants.
14. Certificate of Recognition shall be given to the winners of each activity:
• First Place
• Second Place
• Third Place
15. Certificate of Recognition shall be given to overall:
• Champion
• First Place
• Second Place
 Activity 1: Paper Tower

OBJECTIVE: To construct a free-standing tower of maximum height using a single sheet of bond paper
(long size).

TEAM: Maximum of three (3) members in a team. No one other than those actually constructing
towers will be permitted in the room (or contest area) during the contest.

MATERIALS:
To be prepared by the host:
1. Two-meter long measuring scale
2. Scotch tape (smallest size of roll, one roll for each team; or one-meter long
piece of tape for each team)
3. bond paper, 8.5” x 13”

To be supplied by the contestant:.

1. Ruler
2. Pair of scissors, cutter, and/or blade

RULES:
1. Each team will be given one sheet of paper and one small roll of cellophane tape at the start of
the contest. Only one entry will be allowed for judging. Each team should have only one entry.
2. The sheet of paper may be cut into pieces and reassembled as desired. Parts may be rolled,
folded, or slit.
3. Cellophane tape may be used to fasten the parts of the tower together. It may not be used to
attach the tower to the floor or any other object.
4. No other glues or tapes may be used. The paper may not be soaked, painted or chemically
treated to add rigidity.
5. A tower shall be declared free-standing if it remains self-supporting until measurements on all
entries are finished. This means standing during the time between the end of the construction period and
the end of the measurement period. If a tower has been measured but collapses or falls before all other
towers are measured, it shall be disqualified from winning.
6. Height is determined by measuring the perpendicular distance from the highest point of the
tower to the floor.
7. Each team must complete the construction of each tower within 45 minutes.
8. The three tallest towers will be declared First, Second and Third Place Winners, respectively

Activity 2: Equitrick Challenge

Materials
Two forks
Toothpick
Glass of water
Matches

Rules
1. Take the forks and wedge their tines / prongs together as shown in the picture. You can try this with
plastic forks too, like we did, but the most effective are steel forks.

2. We need to insert the toothpick between the tines / prongs of the fork. To do this, we first need to find
the mid-point of the forks by balancing them on your finger. Once it balances well, insert the toothpick at
this mid-point.

3. Carefully place the toothpick on the rim of the glass. Slide the toothpick back and forth along the rim until
you find the perfect point of balance. Slowly pull your hands away and ta da! Your work of art is balancing
perfectly. (It may take a couple tries to perfect this, so do not get discouraged!)

4. Once you have mastered the balancing, you can show off a little. Have your Mom / Dad light a match and
burn the end of the toothpick that is hanging over the inside of the glass. The toothpick burns down to the
very edge of the glass but the forks do not fall!
 Activity 3: Airplane Challenge

OBJECTIVE: To construct an airplane of largest range and longest time of flight.

TEAM : Maximum of two (2) members per team.
MATERIALS:
To be prepared by host:
1. Long tape or rope (20 m long, marked at one-meter intervals), meter stick
2. Three stop watches, timers
A. The competition
1. Two separate rounds will be run, one for distance and one for time of flight. The same plane
must be used for each round. Each team will have only one airplane.
2. Regarding the construction of the paper airplane, the following procedure shall be followed:
a. Each team will be given a piece of paper out of which the paper airplane is to be
constructed.
b. Each team should finish construction of the plane within 30 minutes after the start of
the contest.
3. The following rules and requirements shall be followed:
a. Preferably, competition will take place in an open air field or gymnasium where wind
velocity is negligible and insignificant. Launches will be executed by the competitor
horizontally from a standing position, and at shoulder level. If a launch violates this
rule, the contestant shall be given another chance. A second violation disqualifies
the team.
b. Stepping beyond the assigned marker will be a fault.
c. A second fault will disqualify the contestant.
d. Each team will be allowed two launches in each round with the best score for the set
being retained for purposes of the competition.
e. Each team will compete in each part of the competition.
f. No practice flights will be allowed in the vicinity of the launching area during the
duration of the contest.
B. Scoring
Distance Round
1. The plane should be launched horizontally at shoulder level.
2. Horizontal distance from the point in the ground directly below the launch point to the
position of first impact with the ground will be measured.
3. Impact with any object prior to hitting the ground will allow a repetition of a launch.
4. The greatest distance achieved will be awarded 20 points with all other scores scaled
proportionately to distance achieved to the nearest tenth of a point.
Time-of-Flight Round
1. In this part of the contest, the airplane may be launched at any angle.
2. Time from the flight of the airplane until first impact with the floor will be measured by two
or three timers.
3. Impact with any object prior to hitting the ground will allow a repetition of a launch.
4. The average time of the timers to the nearest tenth of a second will be recorded.
5. Greatest duration will be assigned 20 points with all other scores scaled proportionately to
the nearest tenth of a point.
Total Score is composed of the two (2) scores thus obtained. The highest scoring team will be awarded
20 points towards the total competition; the second, 15 points; the third, 10 points.

Activity 4: Large Barge

OBJECTIVE: To construct a barge that can support the greatest load without sinking.

TEAM : Maximum three (3) members.

MATERIALS TO BE BROUGHT BY THE PARTICIPANTS:

1. One (1) peso coins of practically uniform size to serve as weights, to total 1500 g
2. small basins (palanggana/batya) with the diameter of at least 40cm.
3. Pieces of aluminum foil of equal sizes, each not exceeding 20 cm in length, one piece per team

RULES :
1. Each team will be given a piece of aluminum foil not more than 30 cm in length.
2. Each team will construct within 10 minutes a barge out of the given material without using tape, glue,
staples, or any other material.
3. The barge must be loaded by the team while floating on a basin of water.
4. Only dry loads should be used. If any water leaks into the barge during the loading process, the barge
will be considered sinking. Thus damp or wet cargo must be unloaded, the barge dried and reloaded.
Only two reloadings will be allowed.
5. Each team will be allowed one repair of its construction after thorough drying.
6. The barge that supports the heaviest dry load will be considered the winner and others judged
accordingly.
7. Loads will consist of coins. The dry load just before the barge sinks will be the one recorded. If the load
gets wet, the test must be repeated. Only 2 repetitions will be allowed. Consistently wet cargo will be a
cause for disqualification.
8. Winners will be determined on the basis of the number of coins as load before the boat sinks. If entries
have the same number of washers as load, a tie shall be declared. This means load is quantized
 Activity 5: Straw Bridge

TEAM: Maximum of five (5) members in a team. No one other than those actually constructing
towers will be permitted in the room (or contest area) during the contest.

Materials
50 drinking straws
Clear tape
Scissors
200 pcs 1 peso coin
Small cup
Pencil
Paper
Two chairs or tables

Directions
1. Your challenge is to build a bridge using shapes that you think will make your bridge the strongest
and able to hold the most weight. It must meet these requirements:
2. Span at least 25 centimeters across two tables or chairs and not be taped or attached to them.
3. Use no more than 50 straws, but they can be cut into smaller pieces.
4. Securely hold a small cup in the middle of the bridge. This is where you place pennies to test the
weight limit.
5. Before you build, come up with an idea of how you will design the bridge. Draw sketches if it helps
you think through your ideas.
6. Build your bridge using only straws and clear tape. When you are satisfied with your bridge, place it
between two tables or chairs that are 25 centimeters apart. Place the cup in the middle and add a few
pennies at a time. Count the pennies and keep adding them until the bridge collapses. How many
pennies did it hold? How did the bridge break? Can you change your design to make it stronger?
 Activity 6: Balloon Powered Car

Materials

Plastic bottles
Plastic bottle caps (4)
Flexible straws (3)
Wooden skewers (2)
Balloon
Rubber band
Tape
Scissors
Instructions
1. Cut two straws so they are slightly longer than the width of the bottle.
2. Tape the straws to the bottle. Make sure they are parallel .
3. Two straws taped to the side of a bottle, parallel to each other.
4. Cut the skewers so they are slightly longer than the straws.
5. Use the hobby knife to make small holes in the center of all four bottle caps.
6. Push a skewer through one of the holes.
7. Thread the skewer through one of the straws, pointy end first.
8. Push a bottle cap onto the other end of the skewer. This makes an axle with two wheels.
9. Repeat steps 5–7 to make a second axle.
10. Plastic bottle with wheels and axles attached, made from straws, skewers, and bottle caps
11. Make sure your axles spin freely. Put the car down and make sure it rolls smoothly. It might get stuck if the wheels wobble or the axles are not
parallel. Adjust them if needed.
12. Slide the short end of the third straw into the neck of the balloon.
13. Tightly wrap a rubber band around the neck of the balloon.
14. Balloon attached to straw with rubber band
15. Blow the balloon up through the straw to make sure there are no leaks.
16. Cut a small hole (big enough for the straw) in the top of the car.
17. Press the free end of the straw through the small hole and out the mouth of the bottle.
18. Tape the straw so it points backwards, not down.
19. Balloon car with the (deflated) balloon attached to the top
20. Inflate your balloon; then put the car down and release! Cover the tip of the straw with your fingertip to keep the air in the balloon until you
put it down.
21. If your car does not move at all, or moves very slowly, inflate the balloon more and try again.
22. If your car still does not move, double check your axles to make sure they spin freely. If the wheels and axles are not aligned, the balloon might
not be strong enough to push the car forward.