Common Sense Keeps Dam Break Models in Line
By Ellen Faulkner, PE Dam safety studies often involve the use of numerical models to assess the flooding that could occur from a theoretical failure of the dam. These models provide useful information, but also abundant opportunity for frustration, excessive analysis costs, and misleading results. In my 30 years of working with the HEC-RAS model… Read More »
Tags: Computed Energy Grade Elevations, Critical Depth, Dam Break Model, Dambreak Flood Hydrograph, Flood Profile, Flood Wave Velocity, HEC-RAS, Normal Depth, Supercritcal Flow, Tailwater Elevation, Weir Equation
Engineering Careers Have Solid Future
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicates civil engineering, surveying, and environmental engineering are among the technical fields that will see job growth exceeding the overall 7% projected U.S. job growth rate between 2016 and 2026. Civil and environmental engineering technicians holding two-year degrees also will be in high demand, according to the Bureau of… Read More »
Tags: Career Expo, DiscoverE, Engineering Careers, Engineers Week, Technicians, UW-Platteville
Slim Down for Safety: Even Roads Go on Diets
Mark Petersen, PE While many well-intentioned resolutions to slim down and shape up are broken within the first few weeks of the year, the type of diet we engineers are most familiar with is designed to extend well into the new year and beyond. Here are some insights into how (and why) engineers sometimes put… Read More »
Tags: Road Diet, Safety, Traffic, Transportation, TWLTL, Two-Way Left-Turn Lane
