Bamboo is versatile and has notable economic and cultural signi cance in South Asia,

Southeast Asia, and East Asia, being used for building materials, as a food source, and as a
raw product, and depicted often in arts, such as in bamboo paintings and bambooworking.
Bamboo, like wood, is a natural composite material with a high strength-to-weight ratio useful
for structures.[19] Bamboo's strength-to-weight ratio is similar to timber, and its strength is
generally similar to a strong softwood or hardwood timber.[20][21] Some bamboo species have
displayed remarkable strength under test conditions. Bambusa tulda of Bangladesh and
adjoining India has tested as high as 60,000 psi (400 MPa) in tensile strength.[22] Other
bamboo species make extraordinarily hard material. Bambusa tabacaria of China contains so
much silica that it will make sparks when struck by an axe.[23]

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