Model Bridge Contest to be Held at Brookhaven Lab, March 24

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Contact: Peter Genzer, (631) 344-3174 | Written by Diane Greenberg

Model Bridge Contest to be Held at Brookhaven Lab, March 24

March 13, 2007

EVENT: Destructive testing of model bridges will provide a great photo opportunity as Suffolk County high school students compete in the 2007 BNL Model Bridge Contest. Media representatives are invited to attend. Students, parents and teachers will be available for interviews. The event is closed to the general public because of space limitations. All visitors to the Laboratory age 16 and over must bring a photo ID.

WHEN: Saturday, March 24, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

WHERE: Berkner Hall, Brookhaven National Laboratory. The Lab is located on William Floyd Parkway (County Road 46), one-and-a-half miles north of Exit 68 of the Long Island Expressway.

DETAILS: Over 150 high school students from 12 schools in Suffolk County have entered the 2007 Model Bridge Contest. (Below is a list of participating schools.) The students designed and constructed model bridges according to certain size and weight specifications, with the goal being to build the lightest bridge that supports the most weight. Materials were restricted to basswood and glue.

Brookhaven engineers will test the bridges by determining how well they remain intact under the pressure of a machine called a stress tester. The bridges are required to be no longer than 400 millimeters, no taller than 100 millimeters, and weigh no more than 30 grams. Some are very intricate and attractive. The contrast between the delicate basswood bridges and the equipment used to test them provides excellent visuals.

The first- and second-prize winners will be eligible to enter the 2007 International Bridge Building Contest, which will be held in Chicago, Illinois, on April 28.