Transcript Bridges - bYTEBoss

Problem:
 Which
popsicle sticks Bridge Design is
stronger and hold the most weight?
Introduction
 When
I was younger I went to a bridge
class and we built truss bridges and
learned about lots of other types of bridges.
We had to follow the directions. We used
popsicle sticks and hot glue, and after
words, we went out and tested them. It
turned out that mine had held the most
weight. I was wondering if it would do it
again and why. We also got four extra sticks
to put anywhere we wanted.
Background Information:
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A bridge is a structure built to span over a valley, road, water or other
physical obstacle, for the purpose of providing passage over water
Three types of bridges are: beam bridges, cables-stayed bridges and truss
bridges.
There is tension and compression on a bridge.
Compression-The act or process of compression
Tension-The act or process of stretching something tight
Caisson-a watertight, dry chamber in which people can work underwater
Cable- a structural element formed from steel wire bound in strands
Beam Bridge- a simple type of bridge made of horizontal beams
supported by vertical posts
Pier- a vertical supporting structure such as a pillar
Cantilever- a projecting structure supported only at one end bending
Longest suspension bridge in the world is the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge
Hypothesis:
I
predict that the bridge with the six extra
sticks will hold more weight than the one
without the six extra sticks because the one
with the six extra sticks distributes the
weight better.
Materials
 Paper
 Popsicle
sticks
 Hot glue gun
 Weights
 Dog leash
 Saw horses
 Rocks
 Weights
Procedure
1. Gather all materials.
2. Make the two different bridge designs; Truss
bridges
3. Test the two different types of bridge designs.
4. Use saw horses to put the bridge on.
5. Put a lease on the bridge to hold the bucket.
6. Put white rocks in and see how much it hold until
it breaks.
7. Record the results and how much they held.
8. Clean the mess up.
Independent Variable
 Which
bridge designs is better? Two types of
trusses (one with more sticks than the other
in the design)
Dependent Variable
 How
much weight each bridge will hold?
Controlled Variable
I will make the two bridges out of the same
materials, same glue, and test them both the
same way.
Results
Test Bridge: 6.8 pounds
 Bridge with extra sticks held: 16.6 pounds
 Bridge with no extra sticks held 9.8 pounds
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Conclusion
I
found that the bridge with extra sticks
held more weight then the other. It also
broke in more spots then the other bridges. I
think why it broke in more spots was because
the weight was distributed better and used
more of the sticks to hold the weight. Next
time when I do a test on other types of
bridges I will use the same amount of
sticks and try harder on getting the glue the
same amount on each bridge.
Major Observations
I
really observed that when it started to
crack and break, they all twisted in the
middle but none of the sticks broke.
Possible Applications
 This
could help people who design bridges.
They could see where a bridge needs to be
stronger. Like on my bridges, they both could
be stronger in the middle and with more
glue.
Possible Causes of Error
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I did not build them on the same day and my
mom helped me build some of them.
Sticks were not in the same area.
They were glued in different spots and I did not
use the same amount of glue.
Some of the sticks were not glued securely.
The rocks were piled differently each time.
The bridges were not placed the same way on the
sawhorses.
Further Research
 In
the future I think it would be fun to test
different types of bridges and with different
materials.
Time Spent
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Sept.3=45 min.
Sept.4=45 min.
Sept.14=45 min.
Sept.15=45 min.
Oct.28=45 min.
Oct.29=45 min.
Oct.1=45 min.
Oct.2=45 min.
Oct.13=45 min.
Nov.9=35 min.
Nov.10=45 min.
Nov.11=10 min.
Nov.12=5 min.
Jan.4=45 min.
Jan. 5=45 min.
Jan. 6=45 min.
Jan. 7=45 min.
Acknowledgements
I
want to thank my mom for helping me
build my bridges and for getting the bridge
book so I could build the bridges.