Haynes 1

Lethal Longbows
Alec Haynes

Mrs.Lane Pre-AP English 7 12 Apr. 2013

Haynes 2 Longbows can be deadly weapons although just powered from wood. How do longbows shoot arrows accurately although it can be made from only wood and sinew? The history, science, and engineering of longbows is what makes them such lethal weapons. Nice intro! The longbow has a long history where it has become more advanced. The modern longbow was invented in 1180 C.E. by the Celts in Wales. However, it was not widely used until the 13th century when the English Archery Law, which required men from the age of 15-60 years of age to practice archery after church on Sunday, was passed. The longbow was a much better weapon than the crossbow because the crossbow could fire only 2-3 shots per minute while longbows could shoot up to 20 arrows a minute. The longbow caused the British to win the Battle of Crecy where the French had 35,000-40,000 men and the British had only 12,000 men. However , 6,000 of them were longbowmen. Charge after wild charge followed and was destroyed by the archers.( Iggulden, 55) The longbow was a deadly weapon thousands of years ago when people could not fully understand the science of longbows and now people improved the design and fully understand the science behind longbows. Great in-text citation! The science of the longbows accuracy and power is another reason they are such fatal weapons. The thickness of the wood of longbows is what gives

longbows their power. Also the draw length, or how far you pull the string back, helps contribute to power. The string is not the provider of the power but is how you access the power. Once you pull the wood to your anchorpoint, or where you put the string in relation to your face, you have potential energy. Once you release the potential energy turns into kinetic energy which projects the arrow at deadly speeds toward its target. Once the arrow is shot it must be accurate. When the string projects the bow it bends away from the bow and then toward the bow. Therefor, an arrows stiffness must be Haynes 3 matched to the bow. It is matched to the draw lengths and thickness of the bow. If the arrow does not bend enough it bends away from the bow but it does not bend back toward the bow enough. This causes the arrow to go to the left for right eye dominant shooters. This is referred to as the arrow being to stiff. If it bends away from the bow and bends toward the bow to much it is referred to as being to weak and goes to the right for right eye dominant shooters. The affects are opposite for left eye dominant shooters. The science of how longbows shoot accurately and powerfully is why it can be so murderous. The amazing engineering of longbows is why they are so lethal. When bows were first invented by the Celts they were made from yew wood and sinew which are animal tendons. Now they are still made from yew wood but

the string is usually a synthetic man-made materials. The first step in making longbows is cutting a shelf for the arrow to rest on and cutting the limbs to the thickness you want them. Next, you cut small nocks in the ends of the limbs to put the string in. Then, you put the string in the nocks and twist it to get it the distance away from the shelf you want it. Finally, you put in anything else you want such as nock point, silencers, etc.. Engineering makes longbows so fatal because of the design of the longbows. Longbows are such lethal weapons because of the vast history of longbows, science of how longbows shoot, and the engineering of longbows. The history of longbows was long and it became much more improved. It proved it could be a murderous weapon in its history. The fully understood science behind how longbows shoot accurately and powerfully and the engineering of how longbows are constructed also allow them to be deadly weapons.

Haynes 4 The Order of Rye Longbowmen. org. 7 Apr. 2013. {www.ryelongbowmen.org} The Physics of Medieval Archery. 30 Sept. 2007. Wordpress Entries. 8 Apr. {www.isegoria.net.} Engineering the Medieval Achievement. edu. 8 Apr. 2013. {web.mit.edu}

Physics of the Bow and Arrow. edu. 8 Apr. 2013. {physics.indstate.edu}

Alec! Your paper has lots of strong, interesting information. However, you did not provide in-text citations for all of the supporting inforation. Rememeber, in research you have to have citations to show your reader where you got your information. Without it, your work could be considered plagiarism. All-in-all, you work is well stated, your grammar looks good, and your MLA format is well on its way. Good work.

_x_5 ___4 ___3 ___2 ___1 ___5 ___4 _x_3 ___2 ___1 _x_5 ___4 ___3 ___2 ___1 _x_5 ___4 ___3 ___2 ___1

ORGANIZATION Each paragraph has a clear topic and concluding sentence. Supporting details clearly support topic sentences. Transitions are used to connect paragraphs. Introduction, body, conclusion provides logical sequencing of ideas. The title page is labeled correctly. AMOUNT OF INFORMATION The thesis statement is direct, clear, and concise. STEM category is clearly identified and supported in paragraph 1 STEM category is clearly identified and supported in paragraph 2 STEM category is clearly identified and supported in paragraph 3 The conclusion paragraph restates the thesis statement QUALITY OF SOURCE INFORMATION At least three sources (one for each STEM concept) are used. All sources are cited correctly in MLA format in the text. All sources are cited correctly in MLA format on the Work Cited page. Quotations are used correctly in MLA format All information is from reliable sources. MECHANICS No use of contractions Minimal to no sentence fragments or run-on sentence Punctuation is correct. Capitalization is correct.

 Spelling is correct.

Total: 180/200