Structural Engineering

A government in exile, a parallel government running in the mainland country, natives protesting across the globe against dictating forces, and yet Tibet manages to match its pace with the advancing technology. Science and technology in Tibet is scaling new heights. Political instability and alarming conflicting interests with neighboring countries are among the dangerous diseases that can…

Street sweeping and cleaning may not look like a technical job, but it is properly carried out in an organized and planned way in the US and Great Britain. When urban civilizations were first evolving, street cleaning was done manually with the help of conventional brooms, shovels, and washcloths. Gradually, the industrial revolution sank in…

Floods, rains, and other natural calamities are beyond human control. Despite advancements in technology, excessive water, and the complications it brings, always hurts social life in flood hit areas. In 2011, the Mississippi River flooded the heartland of America. It was recorded as one of the most devastating floods in the history of America. If…

Construction of highways and railways is challenging around mountains and steep slopes. Each require special study by geologists and geotechnical engineers. Through geotechnical analysis, slopes are identified that are critical and require special protection. The “Rockfall Hazard Rating System” for the Federal Highway Administration was introduced by the Oregon State Highway Division. It is used to…

American infrastructure is rapidly degrading. Already old and decrepit relative to other nations with developed economic systems, a looming era of budget cuts and limited investment across the board threatens to further undermine the United States’ economic competitiveness as key systems fail. The State of American Infrastructure  The collapse of the I-35 West bridge in Minneapolis in…

Bridges are structures that connect two land masses separated by valleys or rivers, but they serve a greater purpose as they bridge the gap between different places, cultures, and societies. Discover how civil engineers construct bridges that win out over the deepest valleys and turbulent waters. Millau Viaduct in France, a concrete structure supported by…

Looking to do some building? If so, you’ve come to the right place. Referenced right here is a treasure trove of information that will help guide you through the building process, from deciding what materials to use to picking the people doing the work.You’ll also find special seismic information. When considering any sort of building project, there…

Determining the cause of structural failures is the challenging discipline of forensic structural engineering. Determination of civil and criminal liabilities drive many such investigations, but there are also valuable lessons to be learned from these failures. Not So Elementary, My Dear Watson                                     Collecting facts to recreate the scene of a crime has been a fascinating…

When it comes to the precipitous decline in the reliability and efficiency of America’s infrastructure, its not just bridges we should be thinking about. The nation’s water infrastructure is falling apart, much of it tainted with heavy metals and leaking like a sieve simply due to its age. The Unseen Decline of America’s Infrastructure: Decaying Pipes, Antiquated…

On 15th September 1958, the commuter train carrying passengers from Bay Head to Jersey Central met with a fatal accident. The engineer ignored three warning lights and both train locomotives tumbled off the end of an open drawbridge, dragging two of their five cars into the waters of Newark Bay. Freight/Passenger Train Transformed to Commuter…