What is Wedge (mechanics)?
[[Image:Keil.jpg|thumb|200px|{{center|Wedge}}]] [[File:Wood splitting wedge.PNG|thumb|right|200px|{{Center|Splitting wood with a hammer and wedge}}]] A '''wedge''' is a [[simple machine]] used mainly to put in between two stones.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/mechanics/incline.html |title=Simple Machines |author= |website= |publisher=Georgia State University |accessdate=12 January 2016}}</ref> A wedge as a tool is used to push two things apart such as the blade of a sword and knife does when it cuts [[wood]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://teacher.scholastic.com/dirtrep/simple/wedge.htm |title=The Wedge |author= |website= |publisher=Scholastic Inc |accessdate=12 January 2016}}</ref> A wedge can also be used to lift an [[Physical body|object]] or hold an object in place. The [[mechanical advantage]] of a wedge depends on the [[ratio]] of its length to its thickest part. == History == The origin of the wedge is unknown, because it has been in use as early as the [[Stone Age]]. Circa [[3000 BC]], in [[Ancient Egypt]] [[quarry|quarrie]]s, [[bronze]] wedges were used to break away blocks of rock used for construction. [[Wood]] wedges, that swelled after being wet, were also used. Some [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American]] tribes used [[antler]] wedges as a means of splitting and working wood to make [[canoes]], houses, and other wood objects. [[File:Quarry - geograph.org.uk - 227105.jpg|thumb|left|150px|{{Center|A wedge used to lift a block of stone}}]] == Examples for separating and lifting == Examples include [[axe]]s, [[splitting maul]]s, and splitting wedges. Wedges can also be used to lift heavy objects, or finely adjust the height of objects, essentially separating them from the surface they rest on. These may also be referred to as [[shim]]s. [[Knife|Knives]], [[scissors]], [[chisel]]s, and even [[Tooth|teeth]] can sometimes be used as wedges, however, they are more fundamentally [[cutting]] implements. == Examples for holding fast == Wedges can also be used to