BOOK REVIEW OF LEAP OF FAITH BY DANIELLE STEEL

Leap of Faith is a novel by a famous novelist Danielle Steel. Leap of Faith debuted at the New York Times and is listed as the best-selling novel to fifty-two of Danielle Steel. This novel is about a girl from France, she is Marie-Ange Hawkins who lives in a magnificent castle name, Chateau de Marmouton. At the castle, she has childhood like everyone's dream. She has the freedom, security and abundant affection of both parents and her brother. But when Marie-Ange Hawkins is eleven years old, a tragic accident that befell his parents take her happiness. She becomes an orphan and is sent to America to live with a cruel aunt of her father. Alone in a foreign land, Marie-Ange Hawkins becomes slave of agricultural land by her aunt, only her friendship with Billy and her dream to return to the castle of her childhood memories that make Marie-Ange endures. But the magic happens when Marie-Ange is 21 years old. She makes it back to the castle Chateau de Marmouton again and even get a chance to be the hostess which is the new owner of the castle, Comte Bernard de Beauchamp proposed her. But behind his proposal, Comte Bernard de Beauchamp keeps his hidden bad intentions to Marie-Ange Hawkins. In desperation and uncertainty areas around her, Marie-Ange has to find the faith and courage to take her last step to save her love ones and herself. Danielle Steel packed this book with very interesting by a simple writing style and storyline in the 1800s which is different from the usual. This book is quite interesting and deserves to be read as entertainment by teenagers and adults

Charney Hall Redesign Using Cross-Laminated Timber

Santa Clara University’s new law building, Charney Hall, was constructed in 2018 using steel and concrete, but was redesigned by this team using Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) and Glue- Laminated Timber (glulams). Charney Hall is a non-symmetric, incongruent structure with large open rooms up to 6,000 square feet. Glulams are made of several parallel planks of wood glued together with structural epoxy to obtain higher strength in the longitudinal direction. CLT panels are similar to glulams, but the longitudinal grains of wood planks are oriented in perpendicular layers in order to increase strength along the weak and strong axes of the member. These engineered wood products capture the strength and longevity of steel and concrete while lowering the environmental impact during the manufacturing and construction process, so the purpose of this design was to show the applicability of these materials in the United States. The completion of this design required an understanding of product information and material properties provided by manufacturers such as Structurlam along with an understanding of the fire, seismic, and safety research that a few organizations, such as Portland and Oregon State Universities, have conducted. This structural redesign included the design of the gravity system by way of the glulam beams and columns and the CLT floor diaphragms. It also included the design of CLT shear walls for the lateral system and a few poignant connection designs

Studies on the Seismic Design of Low-Rise Steel Buildings

The behavior of low-rise steel shear buildings, moment frame buildings, and X-braced buildings, subjected to earthquake base motion, is studied using inelastic time-history analysis. Two simpler methods of analysis, the modal method and the quasi-static building code approach, are evaluated for practical use in calculating. response quantities. The application of the results of these studies to the practical design of buildings is discussed.National Science Foundation Grant No. AEN 75-0845

Improvement of oral reports through the students' use of audio-visual aids

Author misnumbered thesis. Please note that there are TWO page 108s, but the continuity is the same. Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

A Structural Safety Analysis of Buildings During Construction

The safety of steel buildings, constructed by the tier method, is evaluated. The probability of failure of steel frames supported on temporary connections is examined during the different stages of completion. The principal loading of concern is the maximum wind load over the critical stages of construction.National Science Foundation Grants ENG 77-02007, ENV 77-09090, and PFR 80-0258

The use of free visual aids in the teaching of economic geography

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

The 1985 Chile earthquake: Structural characteristics and damage statistics for the building inventory in Vina del Mar

The Chile earthquake of 3 March 1985 resulted in an effective peak acceleration of 0.36g in the coastal city of Vina del Mar. The city had an inventory of over 400 reinforced concrete buildings ranging in height from 5 to 23 stories. The observed behavior of the buildings is interpreted in relation to the physical characteristics of the structural systems.National Science Foundation Grant ECE 86-0378

Environmental performance of rainwater harvesting strategies in Mediterranean buildings

Purpose: The rapid urbanization and the constant expansion of urban areas during the last decades have locally led to increasing water shortage. Rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems have the potential to be an important contributor to urban water self-sufficiency. The goal of this study was to select an environmentally optimal RWH strategy in newly constructed residential buildings linked to rainwater demand for laundry under Mediterranean climatic conditions, without accounting for water from the mains. Methods: Different strategies were environmentally assessed for the design and use of RWH infrastructures in residential apartment blocks in Mediterranean climates. The harvested rainwater was used for laundry in all strategies. These strategies accounted for (i) tank location (i.e., tank distributed over the roof and underground tank), (ii) building height considering the number of stories (i.e., 6, 9, 12, and 15), and (iii) distribution strategy (i.e., shared laundry, supply to the nearest apartments, and distribution throughout the building). The RWH systems consisted of the catchment, storage, and distribution stages, and the structural and hydraulic calculations were based on Mediterranean conditions. The quantification of the environmental performance of each strategy (e.g., CO2eq. emissions) was performed in accordance with the life cycle assessment methodology. Results and discussion: According to the environmental assessment, the tank location and distribution strategy chosen were the most important variables in the optimization of RWH systems. Roof tank strategies present fewer impacts than their underground tank equivalents because they enhance energy and material savings, and their reinforcement requirements can be accounted for within the safety factors of the building structure without the tank. Among roof tanks and depending on the height, a distribution strategy that concentrates demand in a laundry room was the preferable option, resulting in reductions from 25 to 54 % in most of the selected impact categories compared to distribution throughout the building. Conclusions: These results may set new urban planning standards for the design and construction of buildings from the perspective of sustainable water management. In this sense, a behavioral change regarding demand should be promoted in compact, dense urban settlements.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Effective Width of Floor Systems for Application in Seismic Analysis

Effective width coefficients for floor systems have been developed for use in the analysis of frames subjected to lateral seismic loads. The results cover a wide range of the governing nondimensional parameters, and are applicable to floor slabs with supporting beams as well as to flat slabs. The effective width coefficients were derived from a parametric study of typical interior panels of floor systems using elastic finite element analysis. An example of the application of the use of the results in seismic analysis of low-rise building frames is presented.National Science Foundation Grants ENV 77-07190 and PFR 80-0258