| Red Clay State Historic Park 1140 Red Clay Park Road, S.W. Cleveland, Tennessee 37311 |
| Red Clay Park in Bradley County, TN, encomopasses about 260 acres of valleys and forested ridges. It became the capital of the Cherokee nation when they moved from New Echota, GA and marks the last encampment site where the Cherokee Council met prior to their forced removal westward. The park has a replica of a typical Cherokee farmhouse, a modern council house, an amphitheater, and museum and picnic areas. Our class was especially intrigued by the Eternal Flame which burns at the park as a constant reminder of the endurance of the Spirit of the Cherokee People. The life-giving Blue Hole Spring at the park was almost sacred to the Cherokee and still flows at an even temperature all year long. |
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| The Blue Hole Spring at Red Clay State Park |
| PROBLEM #1: (Right triangle trigonometry) (Submitted by Allison) Tex, Dima and Marisa want to find the measurement across the Blue Hole Spring. Tex and Marisa stood directly across from one another on opposite sides of the spring. Dima stood 7 meters from Marisa on the same side of the spring. The angle Dima measured when sighting from Tex to Marisa was 56 degrees. A. Find the distance across the Blue Hole. ___________________ B. If Dima moved farther from Marisa and Tex remained stationary, how would the angle that Dima measured be affected? _________________________________________________ PROBLEM #2: (Volume, Area and Rate of Water Flow) (Submitted by Marisa, Tex and Dima) The Red Clay sacred spring brings forth 350 gallons of fresh spring water per minute, or approximately 504,000 gallons per day. A. If the circular basin of the spring is 15 feet deep and measures 14.7 feet in diameter, approximate the maximum water capacity of the Blue Hole in cubic feet. _______________________________ B. Assuming one person needs a minimum of 5 gallons of water per day for drinking and for personal hygiene, approximate the maximum number of people that could be accommodated by the spring assuming only 5%of the flow could be used. ___________________ C. The time necessary for a leaf to float a distance of 15 meters was calculated as 45 seconds. What was the rate of the current of the stream in meters per second? ___________________ D. Find the surface area of the nearly circular Blue Hole if the diameter is 14.7 meters. _____________ PROBLEM #3: (Perimeter and Area of Polygons) (Submitted by Marisa) There were 7 clans of the Cherokee Indian Tribe. Representatives from each clan would meet in the Council House as the governing body. Every clan was designated one side of the traditional meeting room, which formed a regular heptagon measuring approximately 6 meters along each side. A. What was the approximate total perimeter of the council house? __________________________ B. What was the approximate enclosed area of the council house? ___________________________ C. The modern council house is rectangular measuring 7 meters by 10 meters. How does this area compare with the area of the traditional council house? _______________________________ |
| Tex, Marisa and Dima checking the water flow from the Blue Hole Spring |
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| Modern Cherokee Council house in background. Tex, Marisa, Dima and Josh at Red Clay; Allison by the Council sign. |