Matt Schultz

Mr. Acre
GAT 9C
May 29, 2013

Tower
Project
Matt Schultz

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Introduction:
This project will be a very big challenge, it will take a long time and it will be very
stressful. Im ready for this challenge, I plan on getting it done. This paper will show
many parts of the tower and describe how I got the surface areas and volumes of many
shapes in the tower.

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Part 2: My Fourteen Sided Polygon Maximized on the Plot

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Figure 1: The four polygons/bases.

This is a picture of the base of the tower. It shows that the plot size is 41x41
centimeters. This will explain how central angle measures of each polygon, length of
one side of each polygon, and surface area of each polygon were found.
The central angle of the polygons is very easy to find. Divide 360/n to find a
central angle, n representing number of sides. This is done because this shape can be
made into triangles, just like a pizza. So because there is 360 total degrees in a circle

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and 14 pieces, 360/14 is used to find the central angle, which is approximately 25.71.
This angle will be used to find the surface area of all four polygons.

Figure 2: Polygon one

This is a figure of polygon one. For polygon one, surface area was found by
taking one triangle out, finding the area of it, and multiplying it by 14 because of the 14
sides. First the triangle was split in half, so it is now a right triangle. The angle needs to
be split in half because of this, it is now approximately 12.86.
Next the hypotenuse needs to be found. Since the tower has to be built 3 feet
away from the all of the borders of the 41x41 plot, it becomes a 35x35 plot. 35/2 gave
the hypotenuse, because half of a straight line across this plot was the hypotenuse of a
triangle. The triangles hypotenuse is 17.5 cm. To find the length of a side, sine equation
was used. The equation is sin(theta) = opposite/hypotenuse. The angle theta is known
and the hypotenuse is known so now it is sin(12.86) = x/17.5. the goal is to find x, this is

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the opposite side so it will lead us to finding the side length. First, take the sine of 12.86
which is approximately 0.22. The equation is now 0.22 = x/17.5. 17.5 is multiplied to
both sides, 17.5 gets cancelled out and it is left as x = 3.89. This has to be multiplied by
two to find the length of a side because the triangle was split in half previously. So after
that, the length of a side is found. It is approximately 7.79 ft. This is the base of the
triangle.
Now the final step before finding the area is the triangle height. To find this, the
cosine equation was used. This equation is cos(theta) = adjacent/hypotenuse. Theta
and the hypotenuse are known so now it is cos(12.86) = x/17.5. The cosine of 12.86 is
approximately 0.97. Then get x by itself by multiplying by 17.5 on both sides. It is left as
x = 17.06. 17.06 ft is the triangle height, now everything that is needed to find the area
has been found.
The area equation is A = base*height. The base is about 7.79 cm and the
height is about 17.06 ft, so now the equation is A = 7.79*17.06. Multiply everything
together and then multiply it by 14 because this is just one of 14 triangles in the
polygon. The area is approximately 930.138 sq ft.

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Figure 3: Polygon two

This shows a figure of polygon two. Polygon two is done in the same fashion as
polygon one, splitting the triangle in half, finding the hypotenuse of a triangle, then the
base, then the height. The hypotenuse is found the same way as in polygon one, but
there is a foot between these polygons, so this polygon is on a 33x33 plot, 33/2 is 16.5.
The sine equation is used to find the triangle base (sin(theta) = opposite/hypotenuse).
The equation is now sin(12.86) = x/16.5. Multiply 16.5 to both sides and it is left as x =
3.67. Again, since the triangle was split in two that has to be doubled to find the base.
The side length and base of the triangle is approximately 7.34 ft.
The triangle height is easy to find. Since this polygon is one foot less than the
first polygon, alls thats needed is the height from the triangle in polygon one. Subtract
one from the height of that triangle to get the triangle height in polygon two. This is done

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because it has to be subtracted at a 90 degree angle (this will be for the other polygons
too). This triangles height is 16.06 ft.
The area is found the same way as in polygon one. A = base*height. The
equation now reads A = 7.34*16.06. When this is all multiplied together it has to be
multiplied by 14 just like in polygon one. The area is approximately 825.59 sq ft.

Figure four: Polygon three

This is a figure of polygon three. For polygon three, everything is done the same.
Everything is different though because this polygon is another centimeter smaller than
polygon two. This is on a 31x31 plot. 31/2 is 15.5. This is the hypotenuse. The
hypotenuse is used in the sine equation along with the angle to find the side length
(sin(theta) = opposite/hypotenuse). This equation is now sin(12.86) = x/15.5. The sine of
12.86 is multiplied by 15.5 to get approximately 3.45. Then this is multiplied by two, just
like the others to get a side length and base of the triangle as approximately 6.90 ft.

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The same fashion is used to find the triangle height. This polygon is one foot less
than polygon two, so another foot is subtracted from the height (again, because it has to
be done at a 90 degree angle). The triangles height is 15.06 ft.
The area is also found in the same fashion used in the other two polygons (A =
base*height). After plugging everything in, the equation will read A = 6.90*15.06
which will be multiplied by 14 because again, this is just one of 14 pieces in the polygon,
the area is approximately 727.26 sq ft.

Figure 5: Polygon four

This is a figure of polygon four. Polygon four is basically repeating everything in
the other polygons. It is on a 29x29 plot, so the hypotenuse of a triangle is 14.5
centimeters. The length of a side/triangle base is found by using the sine equation
(sin(theta) = opposite/hypotenuse) just like it was used in the other three polygons. It is

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sin(12.86) = x/14.5. When 14.5 is multiplied to the sine of 12.86, the length of a side and
the triangle base are found to be approximately 6.45.
The triangle height is found the same way as the others, by subtracting one from
the height of the triangle in polygon three. The height is found to be approximately 14.06
ft.
Area is done the same way (A = base*height). The equation will say A =
6.45*14.06. 14 is multiplied to this answer because of the 14 pieces and the area is
found to be approximately 638.57 sq ft.
These are the steps to take in order to find the central angle, side of each
polygon, height of the triangles in each polygon, and the areas of each polygon. It takes
a long time and takes a lot of thought, but is pretty simple.
Part 3: Volume of the Concrete needed for the Footing, the Plexiglas needed for
the Floor, and the Water needed for the Aquarium

Figure 6: Footing
First, the volume of the footing needs to be found to figure out how much
concrete will cost. The volume was found by finding the area of the base and multiplying

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it by the height. The area of the base was found by subtracting the area of polygon one,
which was about 930.14, from the area of polygon four, which was about 638.55. The
difference is approximately 291.57. The height of the footing was given, it is 3.5 feet. So
since the area formula is V = area(base)*height, it becomes V = 291.57*3.5 which
equals approximately 1020.49 cu ft.
The cost of concrete is $115 for each cubic yard. Since the volume is in cubic
feet, it will have to be converted. All that needs to be done is divide 1020.49 by three,
because there are three feet in one yard. 1020.49/3 equals approximately 340.165.
Then multiply this by 115 to get the total amount of money that concrete will cost. The
cost will be $39,119.96.

Figure 7: Plexiglas flooring

Now the volume of the floor needs to be found in order to configure the cost of
Plexiglas. The volume formula is V = a(base)*height. The area of the base is about
638.57 because the flooring is represented by polygon four, the area was found
previously in the paper. The height of the floor was given, it is four inches. Since four

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inches is one third of a foot, 1/3 was used as the height. After substitution the equation
reads, V = 638.57*1/3, the volume was found to be approximately 212.86 cu ft.
To find the cost of Plexiglas, the volume must be converted from inches to feet
because the cost of Plexiglas is $1100 for each 48 x 96 x 4 sheet. Since there is 12
inches in a foot, divide each of these by 12. It is now 4 x 8 x 1/3. 4*8*1/3 = 10.666.
Then to figure out how many sheets of Plexiglas are needed, divide 10.666 by 212.86
(the volume). The quotient is about 19.96, but it must be rounded to 20 because you
cannot buy a partial sheet of Plexiglas. The cost is found by multiplying 20 by $1100 and
it is $22,000.

Figure 8: Aquarium
The purpose of having a footing is to insert an aquarium. It is given that 75% of
the footings volume will be filled with water. To figure out the amount of water it can
have, the volume on the inside of the footing must be found. This volume is taken by
multiplying the area of the base (polygon four) by the height, which is 3.5. So when
638.57 is multiplied by 3.5, the product is about 2234.99 cu ft. This is the total volume of

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the aquarium, but only 75% of the aquarium is filled with water. 2234.99 is multiplied by
0.75, the amount of water the aquarium has is approximately 1676.24 cu ft.

Part 4: One Lateral Face of the Outer Prism Base

Figure 9: Outer wall

This is a drawing of polygon two and a side of the prism. The prisms base (side
length of polygon two) is approximately 7.34 ft. The height of the prism is said to be
twice the length of the base, its about 14.69 ft. The surface area of the side is found by
multiplying the base by the height. 7.34*14.69 = 107.845 sq ft is the area. This will be
used in order to find area with the door and window.

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Figure 10: Lateral face with door

The dimensions of the door are given, it is 5 x 3. There is also a top to the door
which is half of the fourteen sided polygon. The area of the door is found by doing 5*3
(b*h) which is 15, and then adding it to the area of the top part. Just like before, the area
of the polygon is found by taking out a triangle from it, this time its one of seven pieces
because its half of the polygon. Since the length of this polygon is three, the
hypotenuse will be 1.5 because it is only half of the total length. Now, just like before,
the sine and cosine equations will have to be used to find base and height of the
triangle, and then the area can be found. So the sine equation is sin(theta) =
opposite/hypotenuse. The angle measure of theta is still 12.86 because the polygon is
still 14-sided. So plug it all in and it reads, sin(12.86) = x/1.5. After it is solved x will
need to get multiplied by two because the opposite side is just half of the base. The
base is found to be approximately 0.67ft. Now the height needs to be found by using the
cosine equation which is cos(theta) = adjacent/hypotenuse. Plug everything in and it will
read cos(12.86) = x/1.5. Solve for x and it is found to be about 1.46 ft. Now the area of

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that triangle can be found, the equation is b*h and then seven will be multiplied
because there are seven of these triangles in the top part of the door. After multiplying
0.67*1.46 (7) the area is found to be approximately 3.42 sq ft. Add this to 15 to find
the total surface area of the door. The sum is about 18.42 sq ft. To find the area of the
lateral face with the door, subtract 18.42 from 107.845 (area of side). This is
approximately 89.43 sq ft.

Figure 11: Lateral face with window

Now the surface area of the window needs to be found. The windows are to be
the shape of the 14-sided polygon, but in a 3 x 3 plot. The area is double the area of the
top part of the window, because the top part of the door was three feet long, so is the
window. The area of the window is approximately 6.83 sq ft. This needs to be subtracted
from the surface area of the side, the difference is about 101.01 sq ft. There must be
two windows in the house.
The last thing is to find the lateral surface area of the prism. Since the area of
one side is 107.845, this is multiplied by 14 because its a 14-sided polygon. The

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product is about 1509.83. This would be the lateral surface area, but the door and
windows must be accounted for. 1509.83 was subtracted by 32.10 (door and windows
added together). The total lateral surface area was found to be approximately 1477.74
sq ft.
Part 5: Volume of the Inner Base Prism

Figure 12: Inner wall faces

This is a drawing of polygon three and a side of the prism. The base of this prism
is approximately 6.90 ft. The height is given, it was said to be double of the base, so it is
approximately 13.80. The volume of the prism can be found by multiplying the area of
the base by the height. The area of polygon three was previously found, it is
approximately 727.26 sq ft. This is the base, the height is 13.80. 727.26*13.80 is about
10,033.53. This is the volume of the inner prism of the tower.

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Part 6: Pyramid Top of the Outer Pyramid

Figure 13: Outer pyramid

This picture shows the pyramid top. The height was given; it is three times the
length of one side of polygon two. So since the side length of polygon two is 7.34, the
height is about 22.03. To find the slant height, the Pythagorean Theorem must be used,
a squared + b squared = c squared, the first leg is the height, which is 22.03. The
second leg is 16.06; its the triangle height of polygon two. So plug those two into the
equation and you have 16.06 squared + 22.03 squared = c squared. 16.06 squared plus
22.03 squared equals 743.27. Take the square root of both sides to solve for c. c =
27.26. Approximately, 27.26 is the slant height.
The angle measurement between the prism base and the pyramid face needs to
be found. This angle is found by using the tangent equation. This equation is tan(theta)
= opposite/adjacent. In this case, the opposite and adjacent sides are known, so the

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inverse of tangent will be multiplied by 22.03/16.06 to get theta (the angle measure).
The angle is found to be approximately 53.91.

Part 7: One Lateral Face of the Outer Pyramid

Figure 14: Face of outer pyramid

This picture shows one lateral face of the outer pyramid. The dimensions of the
triangle were found in the previous part. The angles were found by using the tangent
equation. Tan(theta) = opposite over adjacent. To find the angle at the top plug the
opposite and adjacent side lengths in. The equation reads, tan(theta) = 3.67/27.26.
When solving for theta, the equation will be simplified to inverse of tangent (3.67/27.26).
Theta equals 7.67, as shown in the figure above. The other angle is found by simply
adding 7.67 and 90 then subtracting that from 180, because there is 180 degrees in a
triangle. This angle is found to be 82.33.
The formula used for area of a triangle is A = b*h. The base is around 7.34 and
the height is around 27.26. Plug those in and solve, the area is approximately 100.10 sq

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ft. This is the area of one lateral face. To find the total lateral surface area, the area of
one lateral face must be multiplied by 14 because there are fourteen sides to the
pyramid. 100.10*14 = 1401.38. The total lateral surface area is approximately 1401.38
sq ft.
Part 8: Pyramid Top of the Inner Pyramid

Figure 15: Inner pyramid

This picture shows the pyramid top. The height was given; it is three times the
length of one side of polygon three. So since the side length of polygon two is 6.90, the
height is about 20.69. The volume of the pyramid was found by using the formula, V =
1/3 area (of base)*height. The base is polygon three, so the area of the base is about
727.26 sq ft. The height, as said before, is 20.69. The equation now reads V =
1/3*727.26*20.69. When all of this is calculated, the product is 5016.77 cu ft, this is the
volume.

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Part 9: My Tower

Figure 16: Outer tower

This is a drawing of the complete tower. The total lateral surface area of the outer
tower was found by adding the prisms surface area in part four to the pyramids surface
area in part seven. The prisms surface area is about 1509.83, and the pyramids
surface area is about 1401.38. Add these together to find the total surface area of the
outer tower. The total lateral surface area is approximately 2911.21 sq ft.
To find the total volume that the tower holds, the volume of the prism from part
five must be added to the volume of the pyramid in part eight. The volume of the prism
is approximately 10,033.53, and the volume of the pyramid is approximately 5016.77.
When these are added together, the volume of the inner tower is found to be
approximately 15,050.3 cu ft.

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Conclusion:
Many parts of this project did not go so well for me. There were very stressful
points throughout this project. The math part went well. I dont think there was anything
that I messed up math wise, but the building was pretty rough. I used too small of a plot
size when I started building, and then I had to restart. Then there were some difficulties
when gluing the pieces to the pyramid. I eventually got the hang of it and now its
completed. This project was the most challenging thing I have ever done in school, and
it was also one of the most challenging things in my life. But I appreciate this project
because Im sure that it will help me later on in life, not just with building, but with time
management and learning how to handle frustration. I cant believe Im saying this, but
this was a great project; I liked it.