ASCE Beginnings

[Music] way of driving pil wouldn't be so noisy yeah I use K oh come on they use those for water sure and this is not rock yeah you have to go down as far as the building is high hey just a minute every job is different on this project they're betting down a different level you mean those files aren't all going the same dep right every major project is individual this th varied by the soil and the foundation how do you know so much about it yeah are you connected with this building what do you do are you some kind of engineer or something uh yes to the last and no to the second and that's how I know about it you a say be a civil engineer right and if you have a minute would you explain what you meant about getting down at different levels oh gladly but let's get away from this noise and there's a great little park right up the hill from here let's go up [Music] there you know I've been thinking about becoming an engineer are there many women you bet and a growing number and more are needed it's a good field for a woman one that likes math and science that is well nothing a guy likes better than an audience even a civil engineer that building is going to have a six-story base with Galleria and Mall with two towers rising from it one 28 stories and the other 43 they're driving the piles according to the buried solid Strat at below oh do they always do that no it depends on the structure being built it might vary with two major buildings in the same city like the John Hancock near the lake in [Music] Chicago and the huge Sears Tower away from [Music] it [Music] or from one part of the country to another each is one of a [Music] kind but that's just in structural engineering and buildings not so Structural Engineering is involved with structures not just building is the Golden Gate Bridge like the San Mato there both structures and [Music] bridges but where the one Rises brilliantly into the air the other hugs the [Music] water [Music] there are alternative solutions to every engineering projects the decisions are Guided by economy ecology and Aesthetics ideally selecting the best solution for the total Community you make the engineers sound like the good guys they're not the ones that make all the decision now there's a lot I'd like to say about that but first when judging history try and consider the time when the decisions were made whether it was for industry transportation or power the goal was progress and the Community Choice was to move forward so what about strip mines and polluted water long-term ecological effects weren't recognized there was no measure of how fast our natural resources were being used and with technical advancement and increasing population the rate has been accelerating but now that we know better we try to encourage Alternatives well part of it has to be protection Recycling and efficient use of natural resources and energy precisely like the new people mover transit system the idea is to have quieter cleaner inner city transportation that will help replace cars gas and their pollution in San Francisco this kind of system shows how the environment can be enhanced by good design and planning tell me more I need ammunition for guys who kid me about joining The Establishment and ask me what I'm going to do for Humanity I believe it but I haven't had any specifics okay here's one that proves the [Music] point as you fly over the California Water Project in the sanin valley the line of water separates the green lushness of the Orchards and Farms from the golden brown of the mountain [Music] grasses