The USGS Centennial: From Mining to Mapping the Moon
The United States Geological Survey was established 100 years ago by the U.S. Congress primarily to determine the extent of the rapidly industrializing nation's mineral resources. The...
Mapping America is Never-Ending Task for USGS
For its first topographic surveys, begun in 1879, USGS measured distances by counting revolutions of a wheel, ran traverses by chain and compass, and used a barometer to determine elevations....
Flood Studies Led to National Flood Insurance
Federal responsibility for flood insurance was decreed by Congress in 1956, after it realized that the private insurance could not alone bear the risk. Flood-plain management, a prerequisite...
Why Does a Federal Demonstration Project Succeed or Fail�
This is a condensed version of an article published in
Top-to-Bottom Construction in High-Rise Buildings
This top-to-bottom construction method, called jackblock is a cousin of lift-slab. The main components are the jack and concrete block, hence the name. The top story of a building is constructed...
Non-Government Consensus Standards: Changes in the Wind�
Article clarifies the standards-writing climate in the U.S. today. Among key thrusts are: (1)The Federal Trade Commission just published a draft regulation that would significantly change...
Fledgling Standards-Writing Program: Progress Report
Officially reborn just over two years ago, ASCE's standards effort now includes more than a dozen standards-writing committees at work or now being formed. Focus is in four...
U.S.-China Relations: Friends Now, Partners Tomorrow
Now that diplomatic relations are resumed, U.S. firms are vying for a share of the big development contracts China has to offer: ports and waterways development, earthquake engineering,...
Concrete Microwave Tower is Award Winner
A microwave tower in Florida was built of cast-in-place concrete instead of steel, because: (1)Concrete was considered more esthetic than steel; and (2)concrete was more resistant than...
New Umbrella Society for Engineering is Taking Shape
If all goes as planned (and the prognosis is good), 1980 will see the start of operation of a new umbrella society in engineering. The joint creation of many engineering specialty societies...
Nuclear Waste Disposal: Is there a safe solution?
Will fission nuclear power play a major role in the American power industry during the next 50 years? Whether or not it does will largely depend on whether the federal Department of Energy...
Underground Buildings Save Energy
While properly designed underground buildings use less energy for heating and cooling, that's not always the reason they're underground. For example, San Francisco's...
Special Projects Strengthen CE Student Development
Some remarkable accomplishments are being racked up by ASCE's Student Chapters and Clubs across the U.S. Among last year's programs, here are some of the more...
Corps Takes New Approach to Flood Control
As urban development increased storm runoff into the Charles River, a dam built in 1910 became inadequate to protect the Boston area from flooding. Boston suffered $5,000,000 in flood...
Largest Inverted Shell Houses Two Theaters
A meeting center in Albany, New York, has such a complex shape that it took months just to design its surface mathematically. Perched on a pedestal, it is nearly elliptical in plan. From...
Building Skyscrapers in Orbit
NASA plans to build a host of large structures (communications antennas, remote-sensing radiometers, solar power satellites, etc.) in space. Three ways to build them are: (1)Fabricate...
What Has the U.S. Gotten Out of the Space Program�
Since the time of its creation in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has spent billions of dollars on space activities. What has the U.S. gotten out of these tremendous...
Fighting Fire With Concrete
Fire departments have been required to handle an increasing number of fires in multi-story buildings. A fire department in a rapidly developing suburb of Indianapolis, Ind., undertook...
Confusion Prevails in Federal Minority Business Efforts
Minority business participation in federally-funded programs should be doubled, according to President Jimmy Carter. A number of programs have been set up to accomplish this goal; an overview...
Regulations: More is Less
Federal regulations have mushroomed since 1969. Agencies to write and enforce regulations have grown as well. Now, say engineers in industry, it is increasingly not economically feasible...
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