What is a Toothpick Bridge?
A toothpick bridge exemplifies engineering on a small scale to teach students about structural strength, capacity, resilience, and creativity. In many classes, workshops, and contests, participants build a bridge out of toothpicks that can span a wide river, hold a heavy load, or withstand shaking. By trial and error, they’re introduced to architecture, construction, and civil engineering. One of the best methods of learning is the hands-on approach. Instructors and professors at all levels return to the project that challenges students to build a bridge only with toothpicks. Besides creating a standing toothpick bridge, they may have to fulfill other requirements such as using just two anchor points, only forming triangles, keeping the bridge only so long, etc. The rules also specify if flat or round toothpicks are allowed, what kind of glue to use, and the limit on the number of toothpicks. Competitions award the most supported weight, an unusual design, the lightest bridge, or one t
A toothpick bridge is a simplified demonstration of the mathematics involved with full scale bridges. The forces involved with toothpick bridges exemplifies the forces that are involved in Truss bridges built today. Through experiments and testing, you can reproduce the forces of a full scale bridge by building a toothpick bridge. These forces include: Compression: Compresion is the downward force placed on a beam. For example, if you take a short straw pinch it in the middle, it flats out. If you hold it length wise between your finger tips and press, it takes a significant amount of pressure before the straw finally folds. That force is called compression. Tension: Tension is a force that pulls. For example, if you took a toothpick and tried to pull each end until the toockpick broke, it would take a lot of force. That force is tension. Torsion: Torsion is twisting. Twisting a toothpick to make it break is easier than pulling it apart (tension). Not all toothpicks are the same and di
