Volume of W.E.B. Du Bois Library

In Physics 132 Laboratories this week, students were challenged to calculate the volume of the W.E.B. Du Bois library on the UMass Amherst campus. The only tools given were a yardstick and a 12 inch ruler and students were not allowed to enter the library or hop the black fence surrounding the library. My group approached the assignment by first taking the height measurement of one brick that we were able to measure by the entrance. We then used the nine sections of the library’s height structure to estimate the number of bricks. Next, the number of bricks was counted by the naked eye for one section and multiplied by a factor of nine to obtain the total number of bricks that make up the height. In order to measure the width and length of the library, we looked at the equal square pattern of the cement on the ground around the library. We counted nine square patterns to line up with the front of the library and to its depth. The measurement of one square pattern was then taken and multiplied by a factor of nine. After having collected the data, students then returned to the labs and calculated the volume. Shortly after, results were discussed within the groups and the average volume was calculated.