| Forum Home | ||||
| PC World Chat | ||||
| Thread ID: 81664 | 2007-08-03 03:22:00 | Bridge Disaster In US | SurferJoe46 (51) | PC World Chat |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 576046 | 2007-08-03 22:40:00 | I juts can't believe how few people have been killed I think the final toll be in in the 20's or 30's. Considering there were about 200 cars on the bridge when it went down.Ironically that's because of the bridge repair work that was being done - only one lane each way was open, which of course limited the number of vehicles that were on it at the time. | Greg (193) | ||
| 576047 | 2007-08-04 01:23:00 | Amazing how bridge built by the Romans are still in use today but the modern world can't build anything that lasts. Well naturally, they didn't have computers to help them with design in those days :) We had the fiasco of the collapse of steel box girder bridges in the 1970's; at the time the designers, using main frame computers thought they were being very clever and elegant. Now, it is said we know more about stresses today than we did then. www.brantacan.co.uk |
Terry Porritt (14) | ||
| 576048 | 2007-08-04 01:25:00 | I think I will become a bridge designer, there many be a bit of work in the States for them over the next few years. it's called a civil/structural engineer to even get into engineering schools you need a pretty good mastery of calculus and physics; if you can by all means try |
motorbyclist (188) | ||
| 576049 | 2007-08-04 01:26:00 | "OM NOM NOM NOM" Leaves me guessing...what's it all about? think cookie monster:D |
motorbyclist (188) | ||
| 576050 | 2007-08-04 03:08:00 | What happened was a tragedy. Had it been caused by an earthquake, or something of that nature, then would possibly have been a little easier to bear. As always happens, the blame machine seems to be in place right now. Maintenance should always be a priority with anything such as bridges, electricity etc. Sadly, (especially, if shareholders are involved) maintenance is often a casualty of cost cutting or short sighted decision-makers. My son is a civil/structural engineer, but the best qualified engineer of any discipline can have their hands tied by bureacracy. |
Marnie (4574) | ||
| 576051 | 2007-08-04 05:05:00 | Interestingly we have a few of the same designed and about the same vintage as the one that went down . If they had built theirs to our SoCal earthquake standards as they were advised, they may not have had this tragedy . Even the Vincent Thomas Bridge ( . portoflosangeles . org/community_VTB . htm" target="_blank">www . portoflosangeles . org) (NOT like the one that fell!!) in LA is suspect and due for replacement soon . That's an interesting site to read about the Port of Los Angeles there . Completed in 1963, "San Pedro's Golden Gate" was the first bridge of its kind to be constructed on pilings . Construction required 92,000 tons of Portland cement, 13,000 tons of lightweight concrete, 14,100 tons of steel and 1,270 tons of suspension cable . It is designed to withstand winds of 90 miles per hour, double that required by code . The overall length of the bridge is 6,050 feet, with a main suspension span of 1,500 feet and 500-foot spans on either side . The towers are 365 feet high . Named for one of San Pedro's "own," an orphan from the streets and wharves who went on to become a State Assemblyman, it was The Hon . Vincent Thomas who cut the ribbon at the dedication ceremony . One suspicious thought: I hope they DON'T find any Chinese bolts in the bridge . |
SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
| 576052 | 2007-08-04 05:23:00 | What happened was a tragedy. and the 100 who died in a train wreck? (english.aljazeera.net) oh, wait, not americans so they don't matter enough to get on the news:groan: |
motorbyclist (188) | ||
| 576053 | 2007-08-04 05:27:00 | am i the only one frustrated by the fact that the whole bridge collapse could have been avoided if some beurocrat actually knew what he was doing and got the damn thing fixed? i hear the US postal service was losing US$2billion every year purely due to beurocracy (had a guy from the states give a lecture on operations research on friday) |
motorbyclist (188) | ||
| 576054 | 2007-08-04 05:34:00 | .....One suspicious thought: I hope they DON'T find any Chinese bolts in the bridge. Maybe 1963 was a bit too early for the plague of Chinese fake bolts to have got into the US. We had an air traffic control radar tower collapse in Wellington some years ago because fake class 8 Chinese bolts had been used. Tests showed they were just crummy mild steel. By that time our local bolt manufacturer, Ajax, which used to be part of the UK GKN group had closed due to New Right policies. Of course a reputable manufacturer could not compete against mild steel fake bolts made by coolie labour. By that time also, the more or less free QA that had been provided by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research had long gone, so importers could and still do import all sorts of crap with no QA oversight. |
Terry Porritt (14) | ||
| 576055 | 2007-08-04 05:37:00 | and the 100 who died in a train wreck? ( . aljazeera . net/NR/exeres/5F5DA467-55A0-4E3F-AAF7-FD3CC835B94C . htm" target="_blank">english . aljazeera . net) oh, wait, not americans so they don't matter enough to get on the news:groan: That's just rotten to say about ANYBODY dying . . even from you . Have you no scruples or shame? |
SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 | |||||