Testing Fibonacci sequence in an Oak Tree Inspired Solar Array:
A thirteen year old boy of the state of New York has won the 2011 Young Naturalist Award in his Oak Tree inspired Solar Array.
Adian Dwyer is a 7th grader who proposes that the Fibonacci sequence which can be found in the arrangement of oak tree leaves can be used as a basis in creating new design of solar panels.
The oak tree design solar panel was found to increase the energy efficiency from 20% to 50%.
According to Dwyer’s essay which was posted at the website of Young Naturalist Award, he was enjoying a nature trip when his attention was caught by how the branches of oak trees are arranged in a spiral pattern.
He wondered why the trees have that pattern and ask what could be the purpose of such.
Learning the mathematical pattern found throughout the nature called as the Fibonacci sequence, he then tested it with the spiral pattern of oak tree branches.
After that, he found out that the pattern adhered to the sequence.
This led him to hypothesize that the purpose of those spiral pattern has something to do with the process of photosynthesis in the trees.
In order to test his hypothesis, he made a miniature oak tree shaped solar array. And a result, his design generated fifty percent more power than the traditional solar power design.
This is due to the various angles of the array that effectively capture the light of the sun.
This idea is unique for a normal teenager like Dwyer. No wonder, he got the award as a young naturalist.
{Source: amnh.org }
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