Series
The Structures Series
Why the built world stays up: what a bridge is actually resisting, why a tall building does not fall over, how concrete sets and how it fails, what stops a lift when the cable goes, and how a tunnel gets dug under a river. Part of Under the Hood.
What Is a Bridge Actually Holding Up?
Every bridge is an arrangement for turning a downward load into compression and tension, and the type tells you where each one ends up. An arch turns the load into compression along a curve and pushes outwards at both ends, which is why it needs rock or a tie. A suspension bridge hangs the deck from something in tension and puts the tower in compression.
Coming soon