The 3D Elevation Data Program is a Game-Changer
For decades, engineers have relied on a patchwork of data consisting of field surveys, orthographic photos, and other sources to piece together baseline topographic data for infrastructure design…
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Experiments in Flood Risk Assessment
As cities grapple with flood preparedness, a strategy known as “stochastic storm transposition” (SST) is increasingly viewed as a tool useful for flood risk assessment. Today, the method…
Findings from the World Meteorological Organization’s newly released Global Climate Report (2025)
If only the most alarming trends we are witnessing lately—warming oceans, heat waves in the Arctic and record high temperatures elsewhere—could be credited to normal fluctuations. But the…
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A Coffee Bar and Other Perks
The workplace is changing, and signs of this change are everywhere. From companies with in-house bistros to Google’s dog-friendly spaces and Microsoft’s family benefits, the workplace is slowly evolving. Companies state that the underlying goal of these programs is to support employees, attract the best job candidates and foster work environments that...
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The Lesser Known Engineer: Nikola Tesla
Public Domain, Link Over a century ago, a gifted man by the name of Nikola Tesla toiled away on his inventions in an upper flat of a derelict New York City apartment house until the early hours of the morning. In the afternoon when he took his daily walk, he would make...
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How Do We Plan for the Next Flood?
We are at a crossroads. For several years now, we have been aware of the fast-declining state of our country’s roads, bridges and other elements of our country’s infrastructure. The ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) issues a report every four years on the state of our nation’s infrastructure. According to ASCE,...
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Keep the Beast out of the Bay
The massive volume of water that makes up the Great Lake ecosystem boggles the mind. Consider that the Lake Superior basin alone contains the largest quantity of freshwater found anywhere in the world. According to Dan Egan, author of the recently (2017) published and much acclaimed book, The Death and Life of...
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The Military Missions, Discoveries and “What If” Moments that Led to the Development of GPS
In 1954, the Soviets launched the first artificial satellite to orbit the earth. Sputnik I was a man-made marvel that made it possible for radio signals to be detected from anywhere on earth with simple radio equipment. George Weiffenbach and William Guier from Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) picked up radio...
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A Sandbar in Frontier Chicago and the Canal that Shaped a City
How can a shoreline considered too wild to comfortably travel by foot or other means be transformed into a global hub for business and trade? Today, the Port of Chicago, with facilities at the mouth of the Calumet River (Iroquois Landing) and further inland at the junction of the Grand Calumet and...
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Alexander von Humboldt and Building a Better Bridge
Photo By Joseph Karl Stieler – [1], Public Domain, Link Today’s scientists, engineers and resource managers know that a project’s success depends on a variety of factors, including the analysis of several environmental parameters. We know that the natural systems we are analyzing are complex. We know that water temperature, flow velocity,...
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Before LiDAR: Early Aerial Mapmaking
The first maps on record that took advantage of an aerial perspective were sketched from the deck of a hot air balloon under the auspices of the Civil War’s Union Army Balloon Corps. Aerial reconnaissance exercises took place regularly during the American Civil War and creating a rough map was strategically key....
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A Peek at the High-Tech Playbook: Lessons from Software Giants on Creating a Unique Work Space
Milton Hershey of Hershey Chocolate company fame, maker of unremarkable but affordable chocolate, established a company town in Hershey, Pennsylvania in 1903, complete with worker lodging, parks for employee enjoyment and other enviable conveniences. As we move into 2019, we learn that Microsoft Corporation is investing $500 million to create affordable housing in...
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The Team that Could
When it comes to managing a company, we have come a long way. Thankfully, employees are no longer just cogs in the machinery of a business. In Charles Dickens’ s satirical book, Hard Times, published in 1854, factory workers were referred to as “hands.” Nothing more: just hands. Thankfully, today the employee...
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