Basic Bridge Building Facts:

There are six basic bridge forms: the beam, the truss, the arch, the suspension, the cantilever,
and the cable-stay.

https://www.britannica.com/technology/bridge-engineering

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http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/bridge/basics.html

There are more than half a million bridges in the United States, and you rely on them every day to cross
obstacles like streams, valleys, and railroad tracks. But do you know how they work? Or why some bridges are
curved while others are straight? Engineers must consider many things -- like the distance to be spanned and
the types of materials available -- before determining the size, shape, and overall look of a bridge.

Since ancient times, engineers have designed three major types of bridges to withstand all forces of nature.

The beam bridge...

consists of a horizontal beam supported at each end by piers. The weight of the beam
pushes straight down on the piers. The farther apart its piers, the weaker the beam
becomes. This is why beam bridges rarely span more than 250 feet.

Sneak a peek at the forces that act on beam bridges!

Beam bridge
Check out other types of beam bridges!

The truss bridge...

consists of an assembly of triangles. Truss bridges are commonly made from a series of
straight, steel bars. The Firth of Forth Bridge in Scotland is a cantilever bridge, a
complex version of the truss bridge. Rigid arms extend from both sides of two piers.
Diagonal steel tubes, projecting from the top and bottom of each pier, hold the arms in

Cantilever bridge:
Firth of Forth
place. The arms that project toward the middle are only supported on one side, like really strong diving boards.
These "diving boards," called cantilever arms, support a third, central span.

Check out the forces that act on truss bridges!

The arch bridge...

has great natural strength. Thousands of years ago, Romans built arches out of stone.
Today, most arch bridges are made of steel or concrete, and they can span up to 800
feet.

Catch a glimpse of the forces that act on arch bridges!

Ancient Roman aqueduct
Check out how arch bridges are built!

The suspension bridge...

can span 2,000 to 7,000 feet -- way farther than any other type of bridge! Most
suspension bridges have a truss system beneath the roadway to resist bending and
twisting.

See how forces act on suspension bridges!

Suspension bridge:
Golden Gate Bridge
Check out another type of suspension bridge!

Now that you've mastered the bridge basics, test your bridge-building skills in the Bridge Challenge!

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Abutment -
  the outermost end supports on a bridge, which carry the load from
the deck

Aluminum -
a lightweight chemical element (Al); the most abundant metallic
element in the Earth's crust
Anchorage -
a secure fixing, usually made of reinforced concrete to which the
cables are fastened

Aqueduct -
a bridge or channel for conveying water, usually over long distances

Arch Bridge -
a curved structure that converts the downward force of its own
weight, and of any weight pressing down on top of it, into an outward
force along its sides and base

Arch Dam -
a dam with an arched shape that resists the force of
water pressure; requires less material than a gravity dam for the
same distance

Architect -
a person who designs all kinds of structures; must also have the
ability to conceptualize and communicate ideas effectively -- both in
words and on paper -- to clients, engineers, government officials, and
construction crews

Beam -
a rigid, usually horizontal, structural element

Beam Bridge -
a simple type of bridge, composed of horizontal beams supported by
vertical posts

Bedrock -
the solid rock layer beneath sand or silt

Bend -
(v.) to curve; bending occurs when a straight material becomes
curved; one side squeezes together in compression, and the other
side stretches apart in tension

Bends -
(n.) see caisson disease

Brace -
(n.) a structural support; (v.) to strengthen and stiffen a structure
to resist loads

Brittle -
characteristic of a material that fails without
warning; brittle materials do not stretch or shorten before failing
Buckle -
to bend under compression

Buttress -
a support that transmits a force from a roof or wall to another
supporting structure

Buttress Dam -
a gravity dam reinforced by structural supports

Cable -
a structural element formed from steel wire bound in strands; the
suspending element in a bridge; the supporting element in some dome
roofs

Cable-Stayed Bridge -
a bridge in which the roadway deck is suspended
from cables anchored to one or more towers

Caisson -
a watertight, dry chamber in which people can work underwater

Caisson Disease -
an affliction developed by people moving in and out
of caissons quickly; also called the bends and decompression sickness

Cantilever -
a projecting structure supported only at one end, like a shelf bracket
or a diving board

Cast Iron -
a brittle alloy with high carbon content; iron that has been melted,
then poured into a form and cooled; can be made into any shape
desired

Civil Engineer -
an engineer who plans, designs, and supervises the construction of
facilities essential to modern life

Cement -
a binding material, or glue, that helps concrete harden

Coffer -
a sunken panel in a ceiling

Cofferdam -
a temporary dam built to divert a river around a construction site so
the dam can be built on dry ground
Column -
a vertical, structural element, strong in compression

Compressed-Air Chamber -
the space at the bottom of a caisson into which air is introduced
under pressure to exclude water so that excavation can take place

Compression -
a pressing force that squeezes a material together

Concrete -
a mixture of water, sand, small stones, and a gray powder
called cement

Construction Manager -
a person who coordinates the entire construction process -- from
initial planning and foundation work through the structure's
completion

Continuous Span Beam Bridge -

simple bridge made by linking one beam bridge to another; some of
the longest bridges in the world are continuous span beam bridges

Core -
central region of a skyscraper; usually houses elevator and stairwell

Cut and Cover -

a method of tunnel construction that involves digging a trench,
building a tunnel, and then covering it with fill

Deck -
supported roadway on a bridge

Deform -
to change shape

Diversion Channel -
a bypass created to divert water around a dam so that construction
can take place

Dome -
a curved roof enclosing a circular space; a three-dimensional arch

Downstream Face -
the side of the dam that is not against the water

Dynamite -
a blasting explosive, based on nitroglycerin, but much safer to handle
than nitroglycerin alone
Electrical Engineer -
an engineer concerned with electrical devices and systems and with
the use of electrical energy

Embankment Dam -
a dam composed of a mound of earth and rock; the simplest type
of gravity dam

Engineering -
a profession in which a knowledge of math and natural science is
applied to develop ways to utilize the materials and forces of nature
for the benefit of all human beings

Environmental Engineer -
an engineer who designs and operates systems to provide safe
drinking water and to prevent and control pollution in water, in the
air, and on the land

Fire-Setting -
an ancient tunneling technique in which rock is heated with fire and
then doused with cold water, causing the rock to fracture

Force -
any action that tends to maintain or alter the position of a structure

Geodesic Dome -
a dome composed of short, straight pieces joined to form triangles;
invented by Buckminster Fuller

Geotechnical Engineer -
an engineer who evaluates and stabilizes foundations for buildings,
roads, and other structures

Gravity Dam -
a dam constructed so that its great weight resists the force of
water pressure

Gunpowder -
any of several low-explosive mixtures used as a blasting agent in
mining and tunneling; the first such explosive was black powder,
which consists of a mixture of potassium nitrate, sulfur, and
charcoal

Iron -
a chemical element (Fe); one of the cheapest and most used metals

Joint -
a device connecting two or more adjacent parts of a structure;
a roller joint allows adjacent parts to move controllably past one
another; a rigid joint prevents adjacent parts from moving or
rotating past one another

Load -
weight distribution throughout a structure; loads caused by wind,
earthquakes, and gravity, for example, affect how weight is
distributed throughout a structure

Masonry -
a building material such as stone, clay, brick, or concrete

Mechanical Engineer -
an engineer who applies the principles of mechanics and energy to
the design of machines and devices

Monolithic Dome -
a dome composed of a series of arches, joined together with a series
of horizontal rings called parallels

Movable Bridge -
a bridge in which the deck moves to clear a navigation channel;
a swing bridge has a deck that rotates around a center point;
a drawbridge has a deck that can be raised and lowered; a bascule
bridge deck is raised with counterweights like a drawbridge; and the
deck of a lift bridge is raised vertically like a massive elevator

Nitroglycerin -
an explosive compound made from a mixture of glycerol and
concentrated nitric and sulfuric acids, and an important ingredient of
most forms of dynamite

Perimeter -
the distance around the outside of a shape

Pier -
a vertical supporting structure, such as a pillar

Pendentive -
a triangular shape that adapts the circular ring of a dome to fit onto
a flat supporting wall

Pile -
a long, round pole of wood, concrete, or steel driven into the soil
by pile drivers

Pile Driver -
a noisy machine that repeatedly drops a heavy weight on top of
a pile until the pile reaches solid soil or rock or cannot be pushed
down any farther

Plastic -
a synthetic material made from long chains of molecules; has the
capability of being molded or shaped, usually by the application of
heat and pressure

Pressure -
a force applied or distributed over an area

Reinforced Concrete -
concrete with steel bars or mesh embedded in it for
increased strength in tension; in pre-tensioned concrete, the
embedded steel bars or cables are stretched into tension before the
concrete hardens; in post-tensioned concrete, the embedded steel
bars or cables are stretched into tension after the concrete hardens

Richter Scale -
used to measure the magnitude of an earthquake; introduced in 1935
by the seismologists Beno Gutenberg and Charles Francis Richter

Rigid -
(adj.) ability to resist deformation when subjected to
a load; rigidity (n.) the measure of a structure's ability not to
change shape when subjected to a load

Rock Tunnel -
a passage constructed through solid rock

Shear -
a force that causes parts of a material to slide past one another in
opposite directions

Shear-Walls -
solid concrete walls that resist shear forces; often used in buildings
constructed in earthquake zones

Silt -
sediment particles ranging from 0.004 to 0.06 mm (0.00016 to
0.0024 inch) in diameter

Soft-Ground Tunnels -
a passage constructed through loose, unstable, or wet ground,
requiring supports to keep the walls from collapsing

Span -
(n.) the distance a bridge extends between two supports; (v.) to
traverse a specific distance
Spillway -
an overflow channel that allows dam operators to release lake water
when it gets high enough to threaten the safety of a dam

Spire -
an architectural or decorative feature of a skyscraper; the Council
on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat includes spires but not antennae
when calculating the official height of a skyscraper

Stable -
(adj.) ability to resist collapse and deformation; stability
(n.) characteristic of a structure that is able to carry a
realistic load without collapsing or deforming significantly

Steel -
an alloy of iron and carbon that is hard, strong, and malleable

Stiff -
(adj.) ability to resist deformation; stiffness (n.) the measure of a
structure's capacity to resist deformation

Story -
floor of a skyscraper

Strong -
(adj.) ability to carry a realistic load; strength (n.) the measure of a
structure's ability to carry a realistic load

Structural Engineer -
an engineer who investigates the behavior and design of all kinds of
structures, including dams, domes, tunnels, bridges, and skyscrapers,
to make sure they are safe and sound for human use

Suspension Bridge -
a bridge in which the roadway deck is suspended from cables that
pass over two towers; the cables are anchored in housings at either
end of the bridge

Tailings Dam -
a dam, usually made of earth and rock, used to contain mining waste

Tensegrity -
an array of tension cables and compression rods that supports a
structure; invented by Buckminster Fuller student Kenneth Snellson

Tension -
a stretching force that pulls on a material

Tension Ring -
a support ring that resists the outward force pushing against the
lower sides of a dome

Torsion -
an action that twists a material

Tower -
the vertical structure in a suspension bridge or cable-stayed
bridge from which cables are hung; also used loosely as a synonym
for the term skyscraper

Truss -
a rigid frame composed of short, straight pieces joined to form a
series of triangles or other stable shapes

Tuned Mass Damper -

a mechanical counterweight designed to reduce the effects of
motion, such as the swaying of a skyscraper in the wind or in an
earthquake

Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) -

a mechanical device that tunnels through the ground

Tunnel Shield -
a cylinder pushed ahead of tunneling equipment to provide advance
support for the tunnel roof; used when tunneling in soft
or unstable ground

Unstable -
characteristic of a structure that collapses or deforms under a
realistic load

Upstream Face -
the side of a dam that is against the water

Wood -
a common natural material strong in both compression and tension

Wrought Iron -
an iron alloy that is less brittle than cast iron
 Bridge | Dam | Dome | Other | Skyscraper | Tunnel

Bridge
Akashi Kaikyo Bridge
Brooklyn Bridge
Charles River Bridge
Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Firth of Forth Bridge
Garabit Viaduct
George P. Coleman Bridge
Golden Gate Bridge
Iron Bridge
New River Gorge Bridge
Sunshine Skyway Bridge
Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Tower Bridge

Dam
Aswan High Dam
Edwards Dam
Folsom Dam
Grand Coulee Dam
Hoover Dam
Itaipu Dam
South Fork Dam
  Three Gorges Dam

Dome
Astrodome
Climatron
Georgia Dome
Hagia Sophia
Mihrimah Mosque
Olympic Stadium
Pantheon
SkyDome
St. Peter's Basilica
United States Capitol

Skyscraper
Chrysler Building
Citicorp Center
Eiffel Tower
Empire State Building
First Interstate World Center (Library Tower)
Home Insurance Building
John Hancock Center
Petronas Towers
Sears Tower
World Trade Center
Tunnel
Central Artery/Tunnel Project (Big Dig)
Channel Tunnel (Chunnel)
Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Holland Tunnel
Hoosac Tunnel
London Underground
New York Third Water Tunnel
Paw Paw Tunnel
Seikan Tunnel
Thames Tunnel
Underground Canal

Other Structures from Who Builds Big

Harris County New Exposition Center
J. Paul Getty Center
New York State Capitol
United States Courthouse, Seattle
https://www.slideshare.net/Lonny/bridge-basics 21 slides

How to build a Popsicle Bridge

https://www.instructables.com/id/Popsicle-Stick-Bridge/