Popsicle Bridges // Video

Students in Mr. Larson's Physical Science courses studied the effect that force has on bridges. For the experiment, students were put into teams and were instructed to build model bridges with popsicle sticks and glue, simulating an actual bridge that everyone uses today. The most common types constructed in class were beam and arch bridges.

The specifications for the experimen is that each bridge could use a maximum of 200 sticks, it had to be 18-24 inches across, and 1 inch off of the ground. Once done, each bridge was put to the test by adding increasing weight to see how much each bridge could support. In the video above, the destruction of each bridge was pretty fun and some of the student reactions are hilarious. The top bridge held 78.7 pounds hanging from it. Pretty impressive for popsicle sticks.