Bridginess : More of the Civil Engineering Life / Brian Brenner
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Bridginess Other Titles of Interest Civil Engineering Body of Knowledge for the 21st Century, second edition. (ASCE Committee Report, 2008). Focuses on outcomes of proposed changes in the way civil engineering is taught and learned, including the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary for entry into professional practice. (ISBN 978-0-7844- 0965-7) Civil Engineering Practice in the Twenty-First Century: Knowledge and Skills for Design and Management, by Neil S. Grigg, Marvin E. Criswell, Darrell G. Fontane, and Thomas J. Siller. (ASCE Press, 2001). Supplements the technical education of engineers by detailing essentials skills and strategies that engineers need to be successful. (ISBN 978-0-7844-0526-0) Don’t Throw This Away! The Civil Engineering Life, by Brian Brenner. (ASCE Press, 2007). Blends quirky humor and engineering “right stuff” in a collection of essays on the mindset, practice, and profession of civil engineering. (ISBN 978-0-7844- 0888-9) Engineering Legends: Great American Civil Engineers, by Richard G. Weingardt. (ASCE Press, 2005). Sketches the lives and achievements of 32 great U.S. civil engineers, from the 1700s to the present. (ISBN 978-0-7844-0801-8) Managing and Leading: 52 Lessons Learned for Engineers, by Stuart G. Walesh. (ASCE Press, 2004). Offers ways in which engineers can more effectively approach the nontechnical aspects of working with colleagues, clients, customers, the public, and other stakeholders. (ISBN 978-0-7844-0675-5) The 21st-Century Engineer: A Proposal for Engineering Education Reform, by Patricia D. Galloway. (ASCE Press, 2008). Issues a clarion call to reform the way today’s engineers prepare for tomorrow. (ISBN 978-0-7844-0936-7) Bridginess More of the Civil Engineering Life Brian Brenner, P.E. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Brenner, Brian R. Bridginess : more of the civil engineering life / Brian Brenner. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-7844-1040-0 1. Civil engineering. 2. Popular culture—United States. 3. Brenner, Brian R.—Homes and haunts. I. Title. TA155.B739 2009 624—dc22 2009029176 Published by American Society of Civil Engineers 1801 Alexander Bell Drive Reston, Virginia 20191 www.pubs.asce.org Any statements expressed in these materials are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily represent the views of ASCE, which takes no responsibility for any statement made herein. No reference made in this publication to any specific method, product, process, or service constitutes or implies an endorsement, recommendation, or warranty thereof by ASCE. The materials are for general information only and do not represent a standard of ASCE, nor are they intended as a reference in purchase specifications, contracts, regulations, statutes, or any other legal document. ASCE makes no representation or warranty of any kind, whether express or implied, concerning the accuracy, completeness, suitability, or utility of any information, apparatus, product, or process discussed in this publication, and assumes no liability therefor. This information should not be used without first securing competent advice with respect to its suitability for any general or specific application. Anyone utilizing this information assumes all liability arising from such use, including but not limited to infringement of any patent or patents. ASCE and American Society of Civil Engineers—Registered in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Photocopies and reprints. You can obtain instant permission to photocopy ASCE publications by using ASCE’s online permission service (http://pubs.asce.org/permissions/requests/). Requests for 100 copies or more should be submitted to the Reprints Department, Publications Division, ASCE (address above); e-mail: [email protected]. A reprint order form can be found at http://pubs.asce.org/support/reprints/. Bridge drawing appearing on the first page of each essay © iStockphoto/Keith Bishop. Copyright © 2010 by the American Society of Civil Engineers. All Rights Reserved. ISBN 978-0-7844-1040-0 Manufactured in the United States of America. 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 1 2 3 4 5 The morning sun glints off Freshly tempered steel As a new bridge sees its first sunrise It stands proudly for All to watch as they Gaze in wide wonder At its vastness The gates are opened For the first time Letting some uncaring, Some attentive persons Try out the bridge And see if the engineers Succeeded in their Job well done Days, months, years, pass Until that morning sun no longer Glints off its shiny surface But instead is Swallowed in its cloudy depths Then the engineers are called back To fix the weathered bridge So a new generation Can pass through its gates And travel to the waiting side Rachel Brenner This page intentionally left blank Contents Foreword, by Jerry Rogers ix Marina Bay in Summer 1 My Name 4 The MRS Degree 8 Niche Knowledge 13 Convention Crashers 18 Back at the Olive Garden 24 Airport Inspection 27 Mass General, Without the M 32 Horse Management and Suspension Bridge Design 37 Back To School 41 Aqua Teen Hunger Force Attacks I-93! 44 Highways to Nowhere 49 Everyone Wants One 51 The Canopy 56 Bridginess 59 The Gift 68 When I Turned 16 72 Bridges at the Beach 77 Meeting at the Summit 82 Engineering with Elephants 86 The Show 90 World’s Ugliest Bike Trail 95 Buffalo on 495 99 The Night Shift 103 Wildlife Returns to Suburbia 107 Back to the Transit Future 110 What the Future Should Look Like 113 Gephyrophobia 116 Go Jump Off a Bridge 122 The Moral Infrastructure Equivalent of War 129 Bridges I Have Known 132 Managing to Avoid Congestion 136 Providence 139 Ward’s Berry Farm 143 Glacial Potholes 146 See the Squirrels, Find the Nuts 151 Fallingwater 157 The Wall 164 What Happened to John T. Mongan 167 Leaving Things on Top of the Car 176 Don’t Rezone for Brickstone 181 Riding the Rails 187 The Dumbest Generation 191 Where Old Bridges Go When It’s Time 195 Covered Bridge 201 Infrastructure at the End 206 Marina Bay in Winter 209 Bridge Circuits 213 List of Bridges 218 Acknowledgments 221 Publishing Credits 226 About the Author 227 Foreword Brian Brenner follows in the footsteps of Mark Twain in his entertaining, enjoyable collection of witty essays. Brenner’s enthusiasms—civil engi- neering, bridges, life in general, sports, special occasions—are artfully matched with a Twain-like love for poking fun at popular culture, self- important specialists, and his own foibles. Civil engineers like Brenner are known for taking future wives on “bridge dates” and stopping the car on family vacations to photograph notable bridge crossings. Just as important, however, Brenner is a credible, knowledgeable engineer whose passion for bridges has led him to study them carefully and to think deeply about how and what they span. Brenner can be linked to another bridge engineer, Thomas Tel- ford. Telford supervised the design and construction of more than 1,000 bridges and roads in Scotland and England; he was also the first president of the Institution of Civil Engineers, the British equivalent of ASCE. Similarly, Brenner has been involved in the engineering of doz- ens of bridges, has visited many more, and teaches bridge design. He is also active in ASCE, serving on technical committees and as editor (suc- cessively) of two ASCE journals. In this appreciation volume about bridges, I am very glad to read a discussion of bridge history. Brenner’s travels take us to covered bridges across New England and a rest-home park for retired truss bridges. In many of these essays, you will read about beautiful old bridges that grace the landscape and serve as silent sentinels of our past. In Brenner’s opti- mistic and often funny take on the bridge future, the glow of the bridge past is always present. This is how it should be—we engineers stand on the shoulders of giants. I hope you enjoy Bridginess. And now I must go—I am late for a bridge date. I’ll take my camera, and I won’t leave it on top of the car. —Jerry R. Rogers, Ph.D., P.E., D.WRE, Dist.M.ASCE This page intentionally left blank Marina Bay in Summer The best outdoor palm trees around Boston, and maybe the only out- door palm trees around Boston, can be found at Marina Bay in Quincy. Marina Bay is a recently constructed planned development on Boston Harbor just south of the city. The development features condominiums, offices, support facilities for the boats in the marina, and a waterfront boardwalk lined with restaurants and shops. Adjacent to the boardwalk is an outdoor music nightclub, where the palm trees are planted at the entrance gate. The palm trees are guests only for the warm season. They pack up and migrate south soon after the arrival of the first fall nip. On a warm summer night, Marina Bay is the place to be around Boston. Calypso music and “Dirty Water” play at the nightclub. The sound echoes off the buildings and the bay, all the way to Spectacle Island. A party is going on at the docks. Boat owners pass around cheese platters and sip white wine while lounging on their aft decks. The board- walk is busy with strollers of all ages who come to see the scene and feel the cool breeze off the harbor. Once it’s warm enough, the restaurants open their outdoor seating areas on the boardwalk, and the places are packed. Strollers, boaters, and diners gawk at the boats, the bay, and each other. One of the bars has large TV screens facing the boardwalk deck, where everyone participates in the essential Boston summer ritual of watching the Red Sox.