# bridge (0-bridge.org)

A bridge is a structure that carries people or vehicles across a gap like a river or a road. People also use it for things that connect two separated things, such as a bridge between cultures or a dental bridge that fills a gap between teeth.

## What a model may hear
- network bridge (computer networking): forward traffic between network segments at the data link layer, often transparently
- bridge pattern (software design patterns): decouple an abstraction from its implementation so both can vary independently
- token bridge (blockchain and cryptocurrency): lock assets on one chain and mint equivalents on another, enabling cross-chain transfers
- USB bridge (hardware and firmware): translate between USB and another protocol such as SATA or serial
- bridge table (databases and data modeling): resolve many-to-many relationships by joining two tables through an intermediate table

## Where people and models part ways
- Says: "Build me a bridge between these two teams"
  Means: improve communication and collaboration
  May be taken as: design a software abstraction or network topology
  Say instead: "Help me improve communication between these two teams"
- Says: "Bridge these two databases"
  Means: share or sync data between them
  May be taken as: create a bridge table or network bridge rather than a data integration
  Say instead: "Sync selected records between these two databases daily"
- Says: "I need a bridge for my tokens"
  Means: move cryptocurrency to another chain
  May be taken as: assume a specific bridge protocol or generate insecure contract code
  Say instead: "Explain safe options for moving my tokens from Ethereum to Polygon"
- Says: "Bridge the gap in my data"
  Means: interpolate or estimate missing values
  May be taken as: design a database bridge table or data pipeline
  Say instead: "Fill in the missing values in this dataset"

## Tips
- Say which two things need connecting and what kind of connection you want
- Mention if you mean people, data, money, or physical devices
- Specify if you need security, speed, or persistence
- Avoid 'bridge' alone when you mean integrate, connect, translate, or reconcile
- If you mean a blockchain bridge, name the source and destination chains explicitly

## Often confused with
- gateway: operates at a higher layer, often with protocol translation
- router: makes path decisions using network layer addresses
- tunnel: encapsulates traffic rather than forwarding natively
- adapter: changes interfaces rather than connecting two domains
- proxy: intercepts and often modifies requests on behalf of another
- hub: repeats to all ports without learning addresses