Newtown Student Displays Engineering Skills

BALTIMORE, MD. — Brittany McClure of Newtown, a 1999 graduate of Newtown High School, was among 35 Johns Hopkins University engineering students who took part in the seventh annual Spaghetti Bridge Competition recently.

The event, a favorite spectator sport for many Maryland Science Center visitors, always attracts a large crowd of future engineers and professionals anxious to observe the one-of-a-kind pasta party.

The contenders, students of professor Michael Karweit at JHU Whiting School of Engineering, won a pass on their final exam if their structure supported 22 lbs. The record holder is a bridge that held 387 lbs.

The bridges themselves were made only of noodles, glue, and resin, weighing in at no more than 1.5 lbs. They were required to be at least 20 inches high and span about 3.5 feet. To measure the strength of the bridges, weights were attached and then added to the center of the span until the spaghetti split and splattered.

“It requires students to combine engineering theory and practice,” Mr Karweit said of his unique collegiate contest. “And it’s a great way to introduce engineering to the outside community.”

The Spaghetti Bridge Competition was held at the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore, Maryland.