High schoolers with siege weapons

Tennessean | Students spring into action to build catapult
SEWANEE, Tenn. — Inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy, three sophomores at St. Andrew's-Sewanee School came up with a daring idea: Build an enormous working siege engine — or catapult — for academic credit.

''I was looking for an independent study project,'' said David Fort, who suggested the idea to classmate Benjamin Miller. ''He laughed and said, 'That would be a lot of fun but we'd never get it approved.' ''

... ''They pulled the pin and it was so beautiful. It made almost no sound at all but a whooshing,'' said [sponsor Patrick Dean], who gave the boys an A-plus and a history credit for the project. ''The adults were looking at each other like 'Can you believe they made this work?' ''

... In the weeks since the first launch, the students have flung more than 60 pumpkins and water jugs into the open field. So far, their top distance has been 122 yards — about the length of a football field — although they keep tweaking.

The word they want for what they've built is "trebuchet." I hope the teacher and students know that word and the reporter just chose not to include it, feeling that his audience wouldn't understand it.