The Wonderful World of Bridges
Laura Hackney, Math Teacher
Paul G. Blazer High School
Ashland Independent School District
Sunshine
Skyway Bridge, US (Florida)
Introduction
How often do you consider bridges? Take a moment and think about what impact bridges have on your life. Do you cross any bridge on a regular basis? Now, consider the impact that bridges have had on the entire world. Suppose that all of the bridges in a large city, New York City for example, were closed. What effect would that have on the city? From a historical perspective, how have bridges affected the United States? Think about some of the famous bridges that you have heard about, such as Brooklyn Bridge, Golden Gate Bridge, or London Bridge. Why do you think that these bridges are so well known while other bridges seem unremarkable?
Bridges play a vital role in this country. Construction of bridges has allowed for roadways to go over rivers, lakes, and valleys. Can you imagine not being able to go into Ohio or West Virginia without the aid of a boat? I would venture to guess that we all take bridges for granted most of the time, but this web quest allows you to look at some of the issues that must be considered when constructing a bridge.
The building of bridges, or anything
else for that matter, is the work of engineers.
Engineers design and oversee the construction of bridges.
There is a large amount of mathematics involved in designing
and building bridges. There are many factors that must
be considered when planning to construct any type of bridge.
A bridge may have to cross a small stream that is only a few
feet wide or a large bay that is a mile wide. Once an
engineer decides what type of bridge is best for the job, the
real work begins. There are many decisions and
calculations that must be made.
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| Ashashi Kaikyo Bridge, Japan | Chesapeake Bay Bridge, US | Tower Bridge (London, England) |
Task
You will be
assigned to a group and will work with that group to complete
this web quest. You will explore various web pages to
find certain information about bridges. Each group will
need to find information about:
-the types of bridges
-how each type is built according to principles of
engineering
-the forces that act upon each type and how that is
considered by engineers
-the strengths and weaknesses of each type
-experimenting with bridge building
Once all of this information is collected, each group will design and construct a bridge. The bridge will be made from paper straws and masking tape. Once the bridge is constructed, the group will test the strength of the bridge by seeing how many pennies it will hold. Each group will present it's findings to the class.
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| Lake Ponchartrain Causeway, US | Golden Gate Bridge, US | New River Gorge Bridge, US |
| (Louisiana) | (California) | (West Virginia) |
Process
You will be assigned to a group to work with to complete this project. I expect that every member of the group will play an active role in the activities. All members are to help with all parts of the activity. You will have to work together to complete the web quest and final project. You will need to follow the given steps to find the information you need.
- You will need to print the worksheet that has the questions you need to answer.
- You must find information about the different types of bridges and the characteristics of each type. Be sure to learn all that you can and don't forget to play the game!
- You must find information about the different forces that act upon bridges. These are things that engineers must consider when designing a bridge.
- Visit another site that has more information about basic bridge construction along with information about the forces that act upon each type of bridge. When you are finished learning about bridges, take the bridge challenge.
