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Student Activity - It's Come a Long Way

INTRODUCTION

If you have read the information in The Torch Relay, you will realise that by the time the Olympic torch reaches the venue of the Opening Ceremony, it will have travelled a long way around the world. However, it will also have come a long way in its development, from the very first ideas and designs about what it might look like and how it might work, to the impressive finished product.

Melbourne 1956 Olympic Torch Mexico 1968 Olympic Torch
Olympic Torch 1956 Melbourne Olympics (Allsport) Olympic Torch 1968 Mexico Olympics (Allsport)

Each Olympics, the host country develops its own torch design - one that looks great but also says something about that country's unique people and places. But looks aren't everything!

QUESTION: What are some of the many other factors to consider when designing an Olympic torch?

For more details go to the information sheet Flame Aims.

It is difficult to achieve all the necessary requirements! It takes many people, using leading-edge thinking, know-how and countless tests, discussions, changes and re-tests, to come up with a good design for the torch. As you will discover, minerals make the job easier by playing an important part in the construction of an olympic torch.

In fact, without minerals the torch would look and work very differently.

INVESTIGATION

Now that you know what factors had to be considered in torch design, you can investigate why certain minerals were chosen to make the Sydney 2000 torch.

WHAT YOU NEED

  • A globe of the world
  • Tiny balls of Blu-tak
  • Fine string
  • Information sheets:

The Torch Relay,

Flame Aims,

Sydney 2000 Olympic Torch

Athens 2004 Olympic Torch

  • Paper and pencils
  • A sample of each of the following:
    • Aluminium foil
    • Piece of wood
    • Plastic
    • Rusty tin
    • Ceramic
    • Copper wire
    • Lead (a fishing sinker)
    • Gold (jewellery)
    • Stainless steel (from the kitchen)


Ron Clarke 1956 Melbourne Olympics Allsport


WHAT TO DO

Task 1: Torch Relay

Read the information sheet The Torch Relay. Mark the path on a globe of the world, using Blu-tak and string, that the Olympic torch will take on its way from Olympia to Beijing.

Task 2: Sydney 2000 Torch

Using the information sheets Flame Aims and Sydney 2000 Olympic Torch, correctly match the five flame aims with the various design features listed below.

Flame aim Design features

Sydney 2000 Torch
Sydney 2000 Torch Allsport
Constant, bright, easy-to-light flame
  • The fuel canister was removable so it could be re-filled.
  • There is was in-built system that extinguished the torch after 10 secs if it was left lying on the ground or was held upside-down.
  • The materials used to make the torch were lightweight.
Safety
  • The soot burned away completely so that no smoke can come off the flame.
  • A wind and rain shield provided weather protection.
  • Each canister held enough fuel to burn for 20 minutes.
Weather resistance
  • The fuel could be stored as a liquid, taking up minimal room, therefore the torch could be small.
  • One end of a heater coil was immersed in the flame. Its other end heated the fuel so that it more easily and continuously turns into a gas which can be easily ignited.
Environmentally friendly
  • The small pilot flame inside the torch stopped the much larger outside flame from going out.
  • The torch had a cavity wall (double wall with a layer of air between). As air doesn't transfer heat very well, this cavity insulated the outside of the torch from the hot flame.
Easy to carry
  • A wind and rain shield served to spread the flame and make it more visible (without it, the flame would have gone straight up).
  • Butane and propane are easy to ignite (highly flammable) as gases.


Task 3 - "Who Wants to be a Mineralaire" !

Now that you know a lot more about the Sydney 2000 torch and its features, play a game based on the TV show - Who Wants to Be A Millionaire to find out what materials the torch was made of.

Question and Possible Answers for Contestant 1:

The two outside shells of the torch were made from a material that can be shaped into an attractive design, is lightweight and does not melt from the heat of the flame. Its name is:

A: Aluminium
B: Plastic
C: Wood
D: Ceramic

Question and Possible Answers for Contestant 2:

The heater coil inside the torch was made from copper because this metal:

A: Looks nice
B: Conducts (transfers) heat really well
C: Is tough
D: Melts easily

Question and Possible Answers for Contestant 3:

The "wind and rain" shield was made from a material that does not rust, can be made thin and lightweight, is strong enough to hold its shape, and is smooth to reflect raindrops and reduce wind resistance. Its name is:

A: Gold
B: Lead
C: Tin
D: Stainless steel

Scroll down for the correct answers ...

Task 4 - Athens 2004 Torch

Read the information sheet Athens 2004 Olympic Torch then go to the Magnesium fact sheet.

Write down at least three (3) reasons why you think magnesium was chosen in making the Athens torch. Discuss as a class.

Scroll down for the answers.

EXTENSION ACTIVITY - A Torch with No Minerals

Working on your own, in pairs or small groups, design the torch for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

The catch is, imagine we couldn't mine for minerals - so your torch will have to be made from other materials!

Present your idea on a poster and use it to help you explain your torch design to the rest of the class.

Opening Ceremony 1980 Moscow Olympics
Opening Ceremony 1980 Moscow Olympics Allsport

The answers to Task 3 Who Wants to be a Mineralaire? are: A, B, D.

The answers to Task 4 - Athens 2004 Torch:

(Any 3 of -)