http://www.teachengineering.org/view_activity.php?url=collection/wpi_/activities/wpi_spagetti_bridge/wpi_spag_act_joy.xmlactivitytext/xmlK-12 Outreach Office, breakingbridgecivil engineeringfailureloadspaghettiweight testing

Civil engineers design structures such as buildings, dams, highways and bridges. Students explore the field of engineering by making a bridge using spaghetti as their primary building material. Then they test their bridges to see how much weight they can carry before breaking.

Many people in different branches of engineering work to build bridges. Civil engineers are responsible for design and construction of such structures, however they also work with mechanical engineers and material engineers to design the most stable structures. These engineers must consider many variables when creating plans, such as the distance to be spanned, where the bridge is being built, the expected type of traffic it will have to withstand, materials available, budget, and what the bridge will look like. To create a design method.Group work and discussion.Building techniques that civil engineers use. 12TeachEngineering.orgS101D432MassachusettsScience1.1 Given a design task, identify appropriate materials (e.g., wood, paper, plastic, aggregates, ceramics, metals, solvents, adhesives) based on specific properties and characteristics (e.g., weight, strength, hardness, and flexibility).68S100E25FMassachusettsScience1.2 Identify and explain appropriate measuring tools, hand tools, and power tools used to hold, lift, carry, fasten, and separate, and explain their safe and proper use.68S1011835MassachusettsScience1.3 Identify and explain the safe and proper use of measuring tools, hand tools, and machines (e.g., band saw, drill press, sanders, hammer, screwdriver, pliers, tape measure, screws, nails, and other mechanical fasteners) needed to construct a prototype of an engineering design.68S1012153MassachusettsScience2.1 Identify and explain the steps of the engineering design process, i.e., identify the need or problem, research the problem, develop possible solutions, select the best possible solution(s), construct a prototype, test and evaluate, communicate the solution(s), and redesign.68S1009558MassachusettsScience2.2 Demonstrate methods of representing solutions to a design problem, e.g., sketches, orthographic projections, multiview drawings.68S1004F28MassachusettsScience2.5 Explain how such design features as size, shape, weight, function, and cost limitations would affect the construction of a given prototype.68S10257A9MassachusettsScience5.1 Describe and explain parts of a structure, e.g., foundation, flooring, decking, wall, roofing systems.68S10164E9MassachusettsScience5.2 Identify and describe three major types of bridges (e.g., arch, beam, and suspension) and their appropriate uses (e.g., site, span, resources, and load).68S100DB96MassachusettsScience5.3 Explain how the forces of tension, compression, torsion, bending, and shear affect the performance of bridges.68S100916BMassachusettsScience5.4 Describe and explain the effects of loads and structural shapes on bridges.68United StatesCopyright 2012 - K-12 Outreach Office, Worcester Polytechnic Institutehttp://www.teachengineering.org/policy_ipp.phphttp://www.teachengineering.org/2011-10-307Teacher