Introduction – Task – Process – Evaluation - Conclusion

Introduction

Our sleepy little town is growing. We need a new bridge (see what happened to our old bridge). You must come before the city council (your fellow classmates) and tell us what happened to our bridge and what type of bridge will replace it!

Task

Your task is to fix the town’s bridge. Use the various websites to study and learn about different types of bridges, their attributes, and their flaws. Make sure you have a copy of Building big worksheet.

You must give a detailed account as to why you chose this particular bridge type. What makes your bridge to good for this location (given by me), and what measures you plan to put into the bridge so a Tacoma Narrows incident doesn’t happen again

Process

Engineers make sure you have the “building big” worksheet

1 go to http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/bridge/index.html click on “Basic Bridges”. Here you will find some basic definitions of the various bridge types. Take notes on your groups chosen bridge. You may cut and paste to a word document and print up to two pages of notes.

For more information on bridges (and you will need more) please check out these sights

http://www.lib.washington.edu/specialcoll/tnb/

http://www.brantacan.co.uk/bridges.htm

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/sr16narrowsbridge/

http://travel.howstuffworks.com/bridge.htm

http://www.bridgesite.com/funand.htm

When you are finished copying notes please go to this site and start “Building Big” worksheet

2 click on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/bridge/challenge/index.html go through the resident’s problem. Make sure that I check off on your worksheet that you have complete the entire course

3 Click on “Forces Lab” and answer the remaining questions (backside)

Evaluation

Students will start off within a group of three. They will work together in the computer lab (separate computers) to answer all the questions in the Building Big Worksheet.

They will also be directed to various sites on the net to find information about particular types of bridges

Students will also have a group presentation at the end of the week (Thursday-Friday) where they will give an oral report on their bridge (each group is given a type of bridge-cantilever-cablesway-cable-truss). In this report they must present arguments as to what type of forces their bridge can withstand and any important qualities their bridges processes.

Advanced project: if the class is sufficiently advanced the students may download images and video to be placed in a PowerPoint presentation (instead of the oral report)

Conclusion

· This activity is supposed to preclude the actual design of a balsa bridge.

· In this activity the students will hopefully learn the physical, monetary, and aesthetic reasons for choosing one bridge design over another.

· As the students go through the “building big” websites force lab, students will see graphic demonstrations of the four basic engineering forces previously discussed in the unit “Force and Motion”

· During the “Advanced” section students will be able to place both picture and video into their PowerPoint presentations.