pt 1.4 - testing of bridge

4.1       Testing

4.2       Calculation of efficiency  
(a) Mass of load on bridge = 25kilogram
(b) Mass of bridge = 0.545kilogram 
Efficiency = (a) / (b)45.87No units

4.3       Discussion of bridge design after testing

answer: our score on efficiency is 45.87, rounded off to the nearest 2 decimal places. in our opinion, our efficiency is quite low, as we had expected to at least achieve a score of 100. i think that what we did wrong was that our base was too large and wide, so that took up materials needed to build and strengthen the trusses at the side. had we used more sticks on the trusses and not the base, i am sure that our efficiency score would have increased.

2.     Which part of the bridge started to give way first? Explain using Physics concepts.

answer: the middle truss was the first to give way. i think this is because that since it is right in the middle of the bridge where the weight was placed, the trusses there would receive the most tension, thus it was the first to bend and break.

3.     Which part of the bridge provided the most strength in the testing process? Explain using Physics concepts. 

the trusses of the bridge provided the most strength. even though we thought that the base would provide the most strength, i believe that it was actually the trusses that help to hold more weight, and without it, our bridge would have probably snapped in half. the trusses had helped to distribute the weight evenly across the bridge and had helped focused the weight on the two end points of our bridge as well. 

i observed that for the other groups, despite not having large bases, their bridge was able to withstand more weight than ours. i think that this is because they had focused more on the truss and had strengthen it, so they were able to hold more weight. thus i conclude that the trusses had provided the most strength in the testing process.

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