Case Methods in Civil Engineering Teaching

English: There have been significant changes in undergraduate civil engineering curricula in the last two decades. Key issues for university curriculum committees are selection and transference of appropriate skills and attributes for students to succeed in the industry. Despite significant changes occurring in teaching theories, civil engineering education still relies heavily on deductive instruction. Case-based teaching is one of the most widespread forms of inductive learning and this paper describes the differences between two of the most familiar types: \u27case-histories\u27 and \u27case-studies\u27. These methods are presented using the Kansas City Hyatt Regency walkway collapse as an exemplar. The benefits of using this approach are improved retention of knowledge, better reasoning and analytical skills, development of higher-order skills, greater ability to identify relevant issues and recognize multiple perspectives, higher motivation and awareness of non-technical issues. Many of these outcomes are part of the expected attributes of civil engineers outlined by professional bodies. French: Les programmes d\u27enseignement de premier cycle en génie civil ont subi de grands changements au cours des deux dernières décennies. Les questions clés pour les comités de programmes universitaires sont la sélection et le transfert des connaissances et des qualités appropriées aux étudiants pour qu\u27ils réussissent dans l\u27industrie. Malgré des changements importants dans les théories d\u27enseignement, l\u27éducation en génie civil est encore grandement fondée sur l\u27apprentissage déductif. L\u27enseignement basé sur des cas est l\u27une des formes les plus étendues de l\u27apprentissage inductif et le présent article décrit les différences entre les deux types les plus familiers : l\u27étude des dossiers individuels et la méthode des cas. Ces méthodes sont présentées en utilisant l\u27exemple de l\u27effondrement de la passerelle du Hyatt Regency de Kansas City. Les avantages d\u27utiliser cette approche sont une rétention améliorée des connaissances, de meilleures capacités analytiques et de raisonnement, le développement de capacités d\u27ordre supérieur, une meilleure capacité à identifier les questions pertinentes et à reconnaître les multiples points de vue, une meilleure motivation et une sensibilisation aux questions non techniques. Plusieurs de ces résultats font partie des qualités escomptées chez les ingénieurs civils, tels que soulignées par les corps professionnels

1976 Montreal Olympics: Case Study of Project Management Failure

A successful engineering project must include its timely and economic completion. A project management failure can lead to delays and cost overruns. One example of a project that greatly exceeded its projected budget is the construction of the multiple facilities for the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal. These included the Olympic Stadium, a velodrome for bicycle events, and the Olympic Village to house the athletes. This case study reviews the circumstances of the cost increases and the design decisions and other circumstances that led to them. The difficulties were brought on by an unrealistic schedule to complete the facilities before the fixed start date of the Games, combined with an unusually cavalier attitude toward project costs, exacerbated by political tensions. Although the original cost estimate for the facilities was $120 million, the final cost was$1.5 billion, with $830 million for the main stadium alone. Part of the justification for the expense of the facilities was the hope that the facilities would be useful for future athletic events—the record on this is mixed at best. The lessons learned can be applied to other projects to better control costs

Another Look at the Collapse of Skyline Plaza at Bailey’s Crossroads, Virginia

On March 2, 1973, the Skyline Plaza apartment building in Bailey’s Crossroads, Virginia collapsed while under construction. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) requested an investigation from the National Bureau of Standards [(NBS); now the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)]. The NBS team concluded that the most likely cause of the collapse was a punching shear failure of the 23rd floor slab. The two factors that contributed to this were premature removal of shores below the 23rd floor slab, and the low strength of the 23rd floor concrete in the area supporting the weight of the 24th floor slab. The engineer’s structural drawings required 2 full stories of shoring and 1 story of reshoring while a concrete slab was cast. The project architect and structural engineer were sued and held responsible, although their specific shoring instructions had been ignored. This case study reviews the available published information on the case to determine what lessons can be learned. The case is suitable for inclusion in variety of courses in the civil engineering and construction curriculum

Another Look at the Collapse of Skyline Plaza at Bailey’s Crossroads, Virginia

On March 2, 1973, the Skyline Plaza apartment building in Bailey’s Crossroads, Virginia collapsed while under construction. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) requested an investigation from the National Bureau of Standards [(NBS); now the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)]. The NBS team concluded that the most likely cause of the collapse was a punching shear failure of the 23rd floor slab. The two factors that contributed to this were premature removal of shores below the 23rd floor slab, and the low strength of the 23rd floor concrete in the area supporting the weight of the 24th floor slab. The engineer’s structural drawings required 2 full stories of shoring and 1 story of reshoring while a concrete slab was cast. The project architect and structural engineer were sued and held responsible, although their specific shoring instructions had been ignored. This case study reviews the available published information on the case to determine what lessons can be learned. The case is suitable for inclusion in variety of courses in the civil engineering and construction curriculum

Comparaison de quelques peuplements nématologiques des Petites Antilles

L'enquête faunistique effectuée sur trois îles des Antilles : Union, Barbade et la Martinique a permis de collecter 63 espèces de nématodes appartenant à 25 genres. Plus de la moitié des genres sont multispécifiques, avec un maximum de 7 espèces pour le genre #Xiphinema. A l'exception de 4 espèces : #Tylenchorhynchus curvus Williams, 1960, #Gracilacus aonli (Misra & Edward, 1971) Raski, 1976, #Helicotylenchus retusus Siddiqi & Brown, 1964 et #Pratylenchus teres Khan & Singh, 1975, toutes les autres existent en Amérique du Sud. Trois espèces seulement sont communes aux trois îles : #Paratylenchus elachistus Steiner, 1949, #Pratylenchus zeae Graham, 1951 et #Rotylenchus reniformis Linford & Oliveira, 1940. C'est à la Martinique, la plus vaste des trois îles, où l'altitude est la plus élevée, la pluviométrie la plus forte, qu'il y a le plus d'espèces et de genres, bien que la plus éloignée du continent américain. Le taux d'endémisme qui atteint 7 % est relativement faible. (Résumé d'auteur

Effect of Supplementary Cementitious Materials on the Compressive Strength and Durability of Short-Term Cured Concrete

This research focuses on studying the effect different supplementary cementitious materials (silica fume, fly ash, slag, and their combinations) on strength and durability of concrete cured for a short period of time—14 days. This work primarily deals with the characteristics of these materials, including strength, durability, and resistance to wet and dry and freeze and thaw environments. Over 16 mixes were made and compared to the control mix. Each of these mixes was either differing in the percentages of the additives or was combinations of two or more additives. All specimens were moist cured for 14 days before testing or subjected to environmental exposure. The freeze–thaw and wet–dry specimens were also compared to the control mix. Results show that at 14 days of curing, the use of supplementary cementitious materials reduced both strength and freeze–thaw durability of concrete. The combination of 10% silica fume, 25% slag, and 15% fly ash produced high strength and high resistance to freeze–thaw and wet–dry exposures as compared to other mixes. This study showed that it is imperative to cure the concrete for an extended period of time, especially those with fly ash and slag, to obtain good strength and durability. Literature review on the use of different supplementary cementitious materials in concrete to enhance strength and durability was also reported

A US$ 1 Trillion Question: Is The Current Chinese Exchange Rate Regime Sustainable?

The recent surge in China’s foreign exchange reserves (one trillion US$ in October 2006), is behind this update analysis of the domestic issues that it raises. The speculation on a future appreciation of the yuan has recently boosted money growth in China. Some controls on capital inflows reduced short-term capital in 2005 and 2006 but this has been compensated for by a surge in the trade surplus. This has resulted in abundant liquidity in China responsible for distortions which this article endeavours to analyse

Unraveling the mysteries of honeybee in the Mascarene Islands

Exam paper for second semester 2017, N.D. Extraction Metallurg

Understanding the needs of Mena public transport customers: culture of service and gender responsive recommendations

Fast population growth, urban sprawl and the raise in households’ motorization observed in all major cities of the Middle-East and North-Africa (MENA) region, are constantly challenging public transport providers who seek to handle efficiently the continuously rising travel demand. Most of the MENA cities suffer from traffic congestion that not only impacts the quality of life of MENA citizens, but also their access to job opportunities, health services, and social and political participation. Alongside the development of public transport network, it is crucial to encourage urban dwellers to reduce their dependence on personal cars, use public transport, and develop soft mobility skills. Therefore, operators and service providers need to define customer-centric strategy and build a culture of service excellence in line with their customers’expectations. In cooperation with academic partners, the UITP MENA Centre for Transport Excellence launched the User-Oriented Public Transport research project with the aim to understand the perceptions of female and male users and non-users about public transport services in five MENA cities: Algiers, Amman, Beirut, Casablanca and Muscat. The methodological framework was built around the five dimensions of the user’s needs pyramid: safety, security, ease-to-use, comfort and experience. Based on the quantitative analysis of data collected from 984 respondents and the qualitative analysis of 49 women’s testimonies collected during the focus groups, recommendations were made to encourage culture of service and gender mainstreaming in public transport development in the region

Holomorphic linearization of commuting germs of holomorphic maps

Let $f_1, ..., f_h$ be $h\ge 2$ germs of biholomorphisms of \C^n fixing the origin. We investigate the shape a (formal) simultaneous linearization of the given germs can have, and we prove that if $f_1, ..., f_h$ commute and their linear parts are almost simultaneously Jordanizable then they are simultaneously formally linearizable. We next introduce a simultaneous Brjuno-type condition and prove that, in case the linear terms of the germs are diagonalizable, if the germs commutes and our Brjuno-type condition holds, then they are holomorphically simultaneously linerizable. This answers to a multi-dimensional version of a problem raised by Moser.Comment: 24 pages; final version with erratum (My original paper failed to cite the work of L. Stolovitch [ArXiv:math/0506052v2]); J. Geom. Anal. 201