Science and magic
The British science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke developed three laws, the most famous of which is, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Isaac Asimov expressed a similar […]
Engineering education
Get to the point
Years ago, I worked on the development of high-performance concrete for an offshore oil platform in Alaska. We needed to conduct abrasion testing at below-freezing temperatures, so we wanted to […]
Material Change report aids in responsible sourcing
Responsible sourcing is the human-rights aspect of supply chains. The idea is that it’s not enough to follow ethical practices within your own business. You also need to ensure that […]
A test for spotting fraudulent statistics
As countries report their death tolls due to COVID-19, some appear to be providing fraudulent statistics. Dmitry Kobak has examined them using the Poisson distribution. It’s a useful way to […]
Julia Morgan, architect and engineer
Before Julia Morgan became an architect, only men practiced architecture. First she studied civil engineering at the University of California at Berkeley, graduating in 1894—the only woman in her class. […]
Learning from natural experiments
Experiments usually involve a controlled environment where we can limit the number of variables. In a traditional experiment using the scientific method, we hold everything constant except the thing we […]
Becoming a Professional Engineer
We’ve discussed the importance of building codes and professional licensing in promoting the health, safety, and welfare of the public in previous blogs. But what does it take to become […]
Expecting the results to be different
We (erroneously) credit Albert Einstein with the definition of insanity as continuing to do the same thing while expecting the results to be different. But it’s such a common behavior […]
Writing short reports for clients
You’ve just completed the project, and now you need to sit down and write the report. Staring at the blank computer screen, you wonder why it’s so hard to write […]
Accessory dwelling units combat homelessness
Accessory dwelling units provide an independent living space outside the primary residence on a property. It might be a smaller house in your back yard that you rent to short- […]