Bridge Building Vocabulary Crossword

the distance between two bridge supports, whether they are columns, towers or the wall of a canyon
any action that tends to maintain or alter the position of a structure
a force which acts to compress or shorten the thing it is acting on
A force which acts to expand or lengthen the thing it is acting on
a rigid, usually horizontal, structural element
a vertical supporting structure, such as a pillar
a projecting structure supported only at one end, like a shelf bracket or a diving board
weight distribution throughout a structure
a rigid frame composed of short, straight pieces joined to form a series of triangles or other stable shapes
ability to resist collapse and deformation
to change shape
what happens when the force of compression overcomes an object's ability to handle compression
what happens when tension overcomes an object's ability to handle tension
forces are spread out over a greater area, so that no one spot has to bear the brunt of the concentrated force
forces are moved from an area of weakness to an area of strength, an area designed to handle the forces.