Downing, Lewis K.

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Howard University: Digital Howard

Howard UniversityDigital Howard @ Howard UniversityDepartment of Civil and EnvironmentalEngineering Faculty PublicationsDepartment of Civil and EnvironmentalEngineering5-1-1946The Civil EngineerLewis K. DowningHoward UniversityFollow this and additional works at: http://dh.howard.edu/civileng_facPart of the Engineering CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Digital Howard @ HowardUniversity. It has been accepted for inclusion in Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications by an authorizedadministrator of Digital Howard @ Howard University. For more information, please contact lopez.matthews@howard.edu.Recommended CitationDowning, Lewis K., "The Civil Engineer" (1946). Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications. Paper 1.http://dh.howard.edu/civileng_fac/1R eprin ted  from  th e  B E T A  K A P P A  CHI B U L L E T IN  Vo-1. 4, N o. 2, May, 1946The Civil EngineerB y 'Lewis K. DowningDean, School of Engineering and A rchitecture H ow ard University, W ashington, D. C.Engineering has been defined as “the art and science of controlling and direct­ing the m aterials and power sources in nature for the use and convenience of the hum an race!”. The scientist discovers the laws of nature—the Engineer takes the discoveries of the scientist and con­verts them  into useful channels for thebenefit of man. The team w ork of physi­cists, chemists, bacteriologists, other scientists and engineers brought the atomic bomb to a reality and opened up an entirely new and unlim ited area of technological advancement. To Major- General Leslie R. Groves, a Civil Engi­neer, was entrusted the coordination andClass in M aterials Testing D epartm ent of Civil Engineering a t H ow ard University, W ashington, D. C.im plem entation of all activities in the development of the atomic bomb p ro ­ject.Early engineering was basically m il­itary in purpose and in fact. G reat works of engineering come down to us from the early days of the Roman Em ­pire. Huge aqueducts radiated from Rome to points of m ilitary operation many miles away. These assured the necessary w ater supply for the armies. Via Appia, a great m ilitary highway constructed of large blocks of stone four feet deep and placed by prisoners of w ar for the passage of troops and char­iots and men 2,000 years ago was used by American troops to enter Rome in World War II. Julius Caesar was a highway engineer.M ilitary engineering re-converted to peace-time civilian use became known as Civil Engineering now considered the m other of all modern professional engineering. All main divisions or branches of the engineering profession have their origin in Civil Engineering.The design, construction, and opera­tion of dams, w ater supply systems, w ater power plants, tunnels, bridges, highways, w aterways, air fields, sani­tary  systems, and public utilities; thesurvey of public lands, control of ero­sion, irrigation; teaching, research, con­sulting service, and regional planning are among the private governm ental and industrial opportunities in the life’s work of the Civil Engineer.Included among prom inent Negroes in the field of Civil Engineering are: A rch­ibald A. Alexander, builder of the G r a n d  Rapids (M ichigan) Sewage Treatm ent Plant, Tidal Basin Bridge, District of Columbia and other engi­neering projects; Charles S. Duke, Structural Engineer, Analyst, Federal Public Housing Administration; Samuel R. Cheevers, Highway11 Engineer and Engineering Contractor; Cornelius L. Henderson, S tructural Engineer, Can­adian Bridge Company; William F Thornton, Civil Engineer, President, Na­tional Technical Association; and A rch­ibald F. Glover, Civil Engineer, D epart­m ent of Public Works, New York City.Preparation for the profession of Civil Engineering calls for a thorough back­ground in College Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and the Humanities along w ith discipline in the professional courses allied to and in the field of Civil Engineering.

The Civil Engineer

https://dh.howard.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&amp;context=civileng_fac

The Civil Engineer

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