Infrastructure News

ENERGY

Missouri DOT Explores Solar Roads

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INFRASTRUCTURE

Maps of U.S. Infrastructure

The Washington Post has an online article that includes six informative maps about U.S. infrastructure. We encourage readers to check it out.

TRANSPORTATION

Missouri Gets F for Road Safety

That National Safety Council gave Missouri an F for road safety in its recent State of Safety: A State-by-State Report. Missouri’s low score is a result of the lack of laws relating to child passenger protection, texting while driving, seat belts and other transportation safety issues.

The state received and overall grade of F and was ranked lowest in the country (ranked 51^st out of all states and the District of Columbia and ranked 49^th for road safety) . In addition to road safety, the report considers safety issues in workplaces, homes and communities. You can find the Missouri scorecard here, as well as NSC’s scoring methodology.

Missouri Still Contender for Hyperloop

We previously noted that a Kansas City to St. Louis route was entered into a competition for Hyperloop One as it considers routes for a high-speed, tube magnetic levitation system. Apparently the 240 mile route across Missouri to connect the two Midwestern metropolises is still in the running. You can find more here.

Here is a link to another articles on a potential hyperloop in Missouri:

Proposed Missouri hyperloop would forge 25-minute connection across the state

Missouri Transportation Improvements Stalled

The Columbia Missourian recent published an evaluation of Missouri Governor Eric Greitens’ campaign promise to improve state transportation infrastructure. Though the governor recommended supplemental appropriations for the transportation agency in his fiscal year 2018 budget, he has not proposed new or increased funding sources and generally has opposed increased taxes. Recent bills in the state General Assembly that would increase fuel taxes have also failed to pass.

Here are some additional articles on Missouri’s transportation funding.

Missouri House Strikes Down Proposed Gas Tax Hike

Task force seeks consensus on new source of road funding

Transportation task force considers fuels tax increase

Texting Lanes Coming to Miami

Apparently it is hard for some people to put down their cellular phones and pay attention to something else. The Miami Dade Express Authority has decided it is easier to change the roads than change behavior. It is planning to install to install bumpers on one lane of a highway and designate it for texting use.

Infrastructure Watch usually passes on thing like this without comment, but this seems like a bad idea. It may keep texters from wandering into other lanes, but it seem like they can still get into a lot of other troubles. In addition, it does nothing to address texting while driving in other lanes or on other roads. IW believes there is a role for technology in addressing this issue and that we have to be realistic about human behavior, but on the whole this does not seem like a very expensive way to address just a small part of the problem.

For all of you texters who won’t be driving Florida’s bumpered, baby lanes: STOP IT!

At any rate, you can read more about this here.

Incidentally, Florida got a F for road safety in the NSC State of Safety report, where it ranked 44^th. It’s overall grade was a D, with a rank of 40^th. You can see the Florida scorecard here.

WATER

Philadelphia Unearths Wooden Water Pipe

Recently a construction crew digging in Philadelphia came across segments of wooden water pipe that were probably installed in 1812. Fortunately, Philadelphia is not still using these pipes. When they were installed, they would have carried water from the Schuylkill River that was pumped up by steam engine.  You can read more about it here.

The Poop Engineer: Wastewater Blog

IW welcomes another engineering and environment blog to the web, The Poop Engineer. IW is not associated with The Poop Engineer, though the author worked at the same company for a while. Good luck, Andy.

Water Weirdness

Apparently some UK utilities uses dowsing rods to find water pipes.  IW does not recommend this, but it’s interesting that people cling to it. Here are links to articles on the practice.

Are Indians Turning To The 'Supernatural' In Subterranean Search For Water?

British water utilities admit they use divining rods to find leaks

In 2017, UK water companies still rely on “magic”

Testing Dowsing: The Failure of the Munich Experiments

U.K. Water Companies Sometimes Use Dowsing Rods To Find Pipes

UK water firms admit using divining rods to find leaks and pipes

Water Dowsing

Water firms backtrack on admissions that they use divining rods

Water News

More than Half of World Population Experiences Water Scarcity

Researchers at the University of Twente (reported in the Washington Post) have published a study indication that 4 billion people, more than half of the world population, experiences severe water shortages at least one month out of the year. Half a billion people experience year-round severe water shortages. Agriculture is the primary use of water. You can find a copy of the study here.

Water-Food Nexus: Better Water Management Could Lead to More Food Production

There is potential for existing agricultural lands, along with current rainwater and irrigation resources, to produce more food, potentially halving the food gap by 2050. The greatest potential is in dry areas such as the western U.S., Mexico, Australia, South Africa and China. Developing the potential of these areas depends on careful cropland water management. You can find more here.

Roundup of Recent News

Construction

Roman Cement Studied

One could argue that the durable cement developed by the ancient Romans helped them build a lasting civilization because they could build lasting structures. Scientists have recreated the mix and studied its properties. You can find the report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences or a summary in the Washington Post.

Engineering

Be An Engineer Web Site Features Women Engineers

BeAnEngineer.com has profiles of notable engineers, many of them women. Here are links to some of the profiles:

Patricia Galloway, first woman president of the American Society of Civil Engineers

Margaret Petersen, hydraulic engineer

Marilyn Jorgenson Reece, highway engineer and first woman registered civil engineer in California

Ellen Swallows Richards, sanitary engineer and founder of home economics

Engineers are Human, Too

Check out former ASCE president Patricia Galloway’s TED talk about the profession of engineering. Engineers care about solving real problems that help real people.

You can see Galloway’s speech here.

Safety

New Reporting Requirements Take Effect January 1

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has updated it rules related to injury reporting. Though many employers will not be affected by the rule change, it will not be required that all employers report all work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and loss of an eye within 24 hours to OSHA.

Find out more here.

Transportation

Investing in Transportation Good for the Economy

A recent study by the Transportation Construction Coalition touted the benefits of investing in surface transportation infrastructure. These benefits include more jobs, increased incomes, and increased government revenues without tax increases.

You can read the report here, or find a summary at Fleet Owner.

60 Minutes Looks at Crumbling Infrastructure

60 Minutes ran a story on America’s aging and slowly failing transportation infrastructure. You can see the story here.

Wonders in the Sky

Slate named the U.S. Aviation Control System one of its seven wonders of the modern world. America’s airspace is one of the busiest and one of the safest.

Read more about it at Slate.

Water

New York’s Wonderful Water

Slate named the New York City water system one of the seven wonders of the modern world. It is a massive engineered system for a massive undertaking.

Read Daniel Glass’ appreciation of the system here.

Sewers Have Limits: Can’t Handle Grease

I’ve seen shelves of congealed grease on the walls of sewage pump stations. Yes, it is gross. WAMU posted a story of the grease problem in the Washington DC sewers.

ARRA Still News

Here is a summary of some recent news about the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.

OSHA Activities Under the Recovery Act (Department of Labor, July 16, 2013)

OSHA, State Plans Did Not Use Almost Half Of Allocated Recovery Act Funds, Audit Finds (Rolfsen, B., Bloomberg BNA, July 25, 2013)

Upgraded Palm Springs Airport tower ready for increased business (Descant, S., Desert Sun, July 26, 2013)

Estimated Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Employment and Economic Output from October 2012 Through December 2012 (Congressional Budget Office, Feb. 2013)

In Congress (Infrastructure Watch, Feb. 22, 2013)

In Shovels, a Remedy for Jobs and Growth (Porter, E., New York Times Economic Scene, Feb. 12, 2013)

INSPECTOR GENERAL QUESTIONS $12 MILLION IN SMART GRID RECOVERY-RELATED COSTS (Recovery.gov, Feb. 20, 2013)

Crumbling Pipes and Underground Waste: A Glimpse at Our Ailing Sewer System (PBS News Hour, Jan. 3, 2013)

American Reinvestment and Recovery Act News (Infrastructure Watch, Dec. 4, 2012)

Recovery Act Review (Infrastructure Watch, Dec. 4, 2012)

Waiver From Rescission of Unobligated Funds Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Obama, B., Federal Register 77, 70883, Nov. 27, 2012)

Clean-energy subsidies are vanishing. What should replace them? (Plumer, B., Washington Post Wonkblog, Apr. 18, 2012)

Google

Gina McCarthy Nominated to Lead Environmental Protection Agency

We previously posted that President Barack Obama nominated Gina McCarthy for the post of Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Given the president’s recent reemphasis on climate change, it makes sense that he might pick the director of EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation.

Emily Badger at The Atlantic Cities reminds us that McCarthy also had a connection to Mitt Romney. She was involved in the Massachusetts Office of Commonwealth Development, which promoted smart growth in the state during Romney’s governorship. So while picking a nominee with climate change credentials, he is also picking someone with a background in smart growth and land use.

Related posts and articles

Gina McCarthy, EPA’s air chief, nominated to head agency (Eilperin, J., Washington Post, Mar. 4, 2013)

News Brief (Infrastructure Watch, Mar. 5, 2013)

Gas Taxes

Federal and state fuel taxes are a major source of funding for transportation infrastructure. Declining revenue from these taxes, brought on by increased fuel efficiency and reduced travel due to the weak economy, is prompting lawmakers to take a look at how transportation is funded.

California and Wyoming have already increased gas taxes. Maryland, Minnesota, New Hampshire and Virginia may soon follow.

Of course, people are looking beyond fuel taxes. Some have suggested treating transportation more like a utility. In a sense, a gas tax is something like a utility fee in that gas use is somewhat proportional to miles use. The problems with a fuel tax have been noted, which means the tax rate must increase if it is to continue as a primary funding source. A tire tax might also support a utility-like fee because tire wear is also somewhat proportional to miles driven. Some have even propose a per-mile tax, though this would be more difficult to administer because miles driven would have to be reported by vehicle owners or recorded and submitted by a device, which prompts privacy concerns.

We probably have the means to solve our transportation funding problems. Not all of them are easy, but then what is?

Related posts and articles

The gas tax compromise (Baltimore Sun, Mar. 5, 2013)

Highway Funding (Infrastructure Watch, Jan. 29, 2013)

It's official: Gas tax going up (Horn, J., San Diego Union-Tribune, Feb. 28, 2013)

Md. Gov. O’Malley calls for sales tax on gas, other steps to pay for road and transit projects (Washington Post [Associated Press])

NH panel endorses 15-cent gas tax hike (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Feb. 21, 2013)

Plan calls for $20 billion in Minnesota tax hikes for roads, transit (Doyle, P., Star Tribune, Nov. 30, 2012)

Richmond’s bad transportation deal (Galuszka, P., Washington Post, Feb. 20, 2013)

Transportation as Utility (Peterson, E. C., Eno Brief)

Wyoming Senate passes fuel tax hike (Billings Gazette [Associated Press], Feb. 14, 2013)

Infrastructure & Engineering News Roundup

Engineering Week

We’re in the middle of Engineers Week 2013. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for IW to miss taking not of this week. We encourage you to visit the Web site of the National Engineers Week Foundation. We’ve been tweeting about Engineers Week, and if you use Twitter you can also promote the profession this week with an #EWeek2013 hashtag.

Mayors Support Texas Water Resources Development Plan

The Texas Legislature is considering a proposal to spend $2 billion from the state rainy day fund to pay for projects in the state water resources plan. The mayors of Dallas, Mesquite, Midland, and San Antonio expressed support for the bill (find about this in the Dallas Morning News and the Houston Chronicle).

NAE Honors Engineers

The National Academy of Engineering recognized several engineers with prizes for their contributions to the profession, engineering achievements, and advancements in engineering education. The Draper Prize is especially prestigious, and is sometimes called the “Nobel Prize of engineering.” The Washington Post web site has a very good blog post about the prizes and winners.

National Infrastructure Bank Proposed

Another infrastructure bank proposal has been introduced. This one comes from Rep. John Delaney (MD). His bill would create an Office of Infrastructure Investment in the Department of Treasury. The office would oversee an American Infrastructure Fund and act something like a bank, loaning money to states and guaranteeing state and local bonds. The new release from Rep. Delaney’s office suggests that public-private partnerships will be encouraged by the office, but provides no specifics about how this would work.

T&I Committee Takes Up Infrastructure Issues

During his State of the Union address, President Barack Obama proposed a program of investing in infrastructure, particularly energy and transportation, as a way to create jobs and stimulate the economy.  The House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee delved into the issue.

The committee held hearings yesterday the featured proponents from infrastructure advocates, business, and labor. Speakers included

•  Edward G. Rendell, Co-Chair of Building America’s Future and former governor of Pennsylvania,
• Thomas J. Donohue, President and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and
• Terry O’Sullivan, General President of the Laborers’ International Union of North America.

The T&I committee will be looking at three major bills, one to address waterways and ports, one to address railroads, and finally a reauthorization of the surface transportation programs (i.e. highways and related automobile, trucking and transit programs).  The last surface transportation reauthorization was only for two years, rather than the typical five-year plan.  The last Congress punted, largely for lack of will or imagination to deal with the predicted shortfalls in revenues for highway funding, for which they were criticized by departing Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

Related posts and articles

At hearing on nation’s crumbling infrastructure, money is the theme (Halsey, A., Washington Post, Feb. 13, 2013)

The Federal Role in Infrastructure (Macheska, C., Save America’s Infrastructure, Feb. 14, 2013)

Hearing Highlights Federal Role in Infrastructure and Economic Importance of Transportation System (House T&I Committee news release, Feb. 13, 2013)

No easy funding fix for U.S. transportation woes –lawmaker (Palmer, D., Reuters, Feb. 13, 2013)

The State of the Union... and our Highways (Jones, P. D., Huffington Post, Feb. 13, 2013)

Revisit: Fiscal Cliff, More Trouble for Colo. R., EPA Leadership

Fiscal Cliff Deal & Wind Energy

I posted highlights from the fiscal cliff deal earlier this month.  The law extended several tax credits and program supporting energy, including wind energy.  Here are links to some additional information on wind energy in the fiscal cliff deal.

Infrastructure in the Fiscal Cliff Deal (Infrastructure Watch, Jan. 3, 2013)

U.S. Wind Tax Credit Extended in “Fiscal Cliff” Compromise (Yale Environment 360, Jan. 2, 2013)

Wind Production Tax Credit Extended in Fiscal Cliff Deal (Seigel, R. P., Triple Pundit, Jan 3, 2012)

Senator Viewed Low Mississippi River

Reuter reported that Sen. Dick Durbin (IL) toured the Mississippi River near Thebes, IL, to view efforts to remove rocks and keep the drought-strained river open to barges.

IW has been following the impacts of the drought on the Mississippi River:

Barge Traffic Threatened on Missouri & Mississippi Rivers

Mississippi River

Southwest United States May Be Dryer in Future

Researchers from Columbia University predict a 10 percent decrease in rainfall in areas of the southwest United States.  This would lead to a corresponding reduction of flow in the already critical Colorado River, which may news recently because of the recent release of a federal plan for the river.  Find out a little more in this Los Angeles Times article by Bettina Boxall (here→).

Speculation on Next EPA Administrator

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson announced her plans to resign.  Speculation has begun on who may replace her.  I don’t know if odds-makers are taking bets.  Here are some links that may help you handicap the race.

Chris Gregoire: Lisa Jackson's Replacement at EPA? (Zellar, T., Huffington Post, Jan. 8, 2013)

E.P.A. Chief Set to Leave; Term Fell Shy of Early Hope (Broder, J. M., New York Times, Dec. 27, 2012)

EPA head Lisa P. Jackson to resign post (Eilperin, J., Washington Post, Dec. 27, 2012)

Gov. Chris Gregoire’s office says no word on EPA post (Schrader, J., News Tribune, Jan. 4, 2012)

Gregoire Emerges as Top Contender to Boss EPA (Connelly, J., Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Jan. 4, 2012)

New Congress Gets to Work (Sort of), Other Federal Government News (Infrastructure Watch, Jan. 7, 2012)

Infrastructure in the Fiscal Cliff Deal

President Obama signed a bill (H.R. 8) embodying an agreement to avoid the “fiscal cliff.”  In some ways, the bill is a punt.  The 113^th Congress and the president will be negotiating new deals again in a couple of months.  Rather than complain about the chronic procrastination and shortsighted partisanship that is prevalent in our capital (I supposed I just complained), I’ll summarize some of the infrastructure-related features of the bill.

ENERGY

The bill extends the tax credit for wind energy of 2.2 cents per kilowatt hour.  The extension is for 10 years and will cost $1.2 billion annually.

A more modest provision in terms of price, $1 million annually, will extend a subsidy of $2 per ton for coal produced on Indian lands.

Other provisions

•          Extend tax credits for home energy improvements and energy-efficient new homes and appliances,
•          Extend the tax credit related to what are now called second generation biofuels,
•         Extend credits for a variety of alternative energy generation in addition to wind,
•         Extend a number of programs that support biomass projects through tax credits and financial assistance,
•          Extend the tax credit on refueling properties for alternative fuel vehicles,
•          Extend credits for biodiesel.

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads will receive a one-year extension of the tax credit for maintenance.  The will be about $165 million of the year.

An expired increase in the tax credit for taking public transit that originated in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is revived for 2013 and retroactively for 2012.

Electric scooters and bikes will be supported by an extension of the tax credit for “2- or 3-wheeled plug-in” electric vehicles.

Related posts and articles

From NASCAR to rum, the 10 weirdest parts of the ‘fiscal cliff’ bill (Plumer, B., Washington Post Wonkblog, Jan 2., 2013)

Don’t Fear the Nexus

Our infrastructure for water, energy, transportation, and food is all interconnected.  Changes to one has consequences in the others.  Below are links to several articles that explore these interconnections.

Energy & Water

2013: Year of the Water-Energy Nexus? (Tweed, K., Greentechmedia.com, Dec. 18, 2012)

A startup that squeezes electricity out of city water (Wang, U., Washington Post, Nov. 28, 2012)

Waste Wattage: Cities Aim to Flush Heat Energy Out of Sewers (Kaufman, R., National Geographic, Dec. 11, 2012)

North America leads shift in global energy balance, IEA says in latest World Energy Outlook (International Energy Agency, Nov. 12, 2012)

US drought could trigger repeat of global food crisis, experts warn (Goldenberg, S., Guardian, July 23, 2012)

What’s on the Mind of Utilities? Water (Kanellos, M., Greentechmedia.com, June 13, 2011)

Food & Water

Drought expands, concerns mount about wheat and rivers (Gillam, C., Reuters, Dec. 6, 2012)

Water Pollution and the Farm Economy (Gillis, G., New York Times Green blog, Dec. 11, 2012)

365 Trillion Gallons of Water Thrown Away With Our Food Every Year (Ichenseher, T., National Geographic, Sept.  9, 2010)

Other

It's All Connected (Infrastructure Watch, Nov. 29, 2012)

Book Review: #STEM Books for #DeSTEMber

I’ve reviewed 39 STEM-related books (and counting).  STEM is an acronym for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.  As you may have seen in the news, there is a push to improve STEM education, interest students in STEM fields, and grow the number of workers in these fields.  The idea is that these will be the skills needed by workers of the future.  If you’re a STEM educator or a student considering a career in STEM fields, you might like to take a look at some of these books.

I’ll confess that I’m not an educator, but I think most of these books will be accessible to high school and college students, and a few to middle school students.  The list is also a reflection of my career and interests in engineering, public health, policy, and history.  Even with these biases, I think it is a good list for someone looking for STEM-related books.

How to Build an Android: The True Story of Philip K. Dick’s Robotic Resurrection by David F. Dufty

I was fascinated by robots as a kid.  I enjoyed reading Isaac Asimov’s robot stories.  I longed for the Omnibot 2000 in the Sears Wishbook.

Robots have come a long way.  In How to Build an Android, David F. Dufty describes the short strange life of a very complex robot made to look and talk like science fiction author Philip K. Dick.  The robot had a very sophisticated and lifelike head and complex artificial intelligence.  As with most complex things, it was the work of many people who had to solve a lot of problems.

If you’re interested in robotics, this is an interesting nontechnical book.  In addition, you’ll get introduced to some freaky sci-fi.  You may even get as (somewhat) legitimate reason to use the word “Dickhead” (capitalized, it refers to a fan of PKD, so don’t go using it on anyone).

 

The Big Roads: The Untold Story of the Engineers, Visionaries, and Trailblazers Who Created the American Superhighways by Earl Swift

The Interstate highway system in the United States is one of the most enormous structures built.  Some of the prospective STEM students who read this may actually be younger than the Intestate system, though in some sense it is never complete because it needs constant repair and maintenance.  The Interstates were completed in the 1990s, but the Federal-Aid Highways go back to 1916.

 

Earl Swift wrote an accessible history of the Interstates in The Big Roads.  If you interested in automobiles or transportation, it’s a good read.

 

Dreams of Iron and Steel by Deborah Cadbury

Deborah Cadbury describes seven wonders of engineering in Dreams of Iron and Steel.  It covers almost a century of history, but many of the events are concentrated in the Victorian Era.  That was a time of great technological innovation.

 

Though the book is history, many of the structures still stand.  Railways, the Brooklyn Bridge, the Suez and Panama Canals, and Hoover Dam stand testament to an age of big engineering.

 

The Physics of Superheroes by James Kakalios

Though the memory of Professor Wragg’s sneer prompts me to not make this confession, part of my interest in science and technology came from comic books.  Iron Man was cool.  Spider-Man’s web shooters were very cool.  Superhero comics are full of fantasy, admittedly, but the strange, unrealistic science and technology they depict have inspired many to study STEM in reality.

 

Physicist John Kakalios uses examples from comic books to explore real physics in The Physics of Supeheroes.  Sometimes comics get there science right.  Even when they get it wrong, it can be instructive.  If you know what people are talking about when they refer to the “New 52,” you may find this book to be a great introduction to physics.

 

1089 and All That: A Journey into Mathematics by David Acheson

Here is another confession: I’m not especially interested in math.  I endured a lot of math classes to study engineering.  Reading David Acheson’s 1089 and All That did not require such endurance.  For one reason, it is a short book.  For another, Acheson doesn’t expect his readers to be mathematicians; it is enough to follow the outline of the math he discusses.

 

I recommend this book because so many people have a fear of math.  1089 can be followed by many high school students and older folks with math phobias.  Just take a deep breath, relax, and follow along as well as you can.  You’ll see that math can be interesting, useful, and even beautiful in a way.

 

The Brooklyn Bridge: They Said it Couldn’t be Built by Judith St. George

Judith St. George’s The Brooklyn Bridge is a short history of and iconic bridge.  Written for the bridge’s 100^th anniversary, it is also the story of the engineers who sacrificed life and health to see it completed: John Roebling and his son Washington.  John Roebling was a German immigrant who built many suspension bridges and owed a wire-making business.  He gave his son and extraordinary education in bridge engineering for the time, and before beginning work on the Brooklyn Bridge he served as an officer in the Union Army during the Civil War.

 

Why should a cutting-edge STEM student read about a bridge that is almost 130 years old?  It’s because we still use and rely on very successful, centuries old technologies.  Improving and rebuilding our infrastructure will be an important part of our economy.  As recently as 2010, New York City and the federal government committed $500 million to repair and repaint the Brooklyn Bridge.

 

The Essential Engineer: Why Science Alone Will Not Solve Our Global Problems by Henry Petroski

STEM lumps together science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.  Is there a difference between science and engineering?  Is it important?

 

Henry Petroski, a professor of civil engineering and history and author of The Essential Engineer, believes there is an important difference.  At heart, science is about increasing knowledge.  Engineering is about invention.  Of course, new knowledge makes new invention possible.  Just as often, though, engineering runs ahead of science.  Sometimes science didn’t advance until someone invented the instruments to conduct new observations and experiments.  The invention of the microscope made possible the science of microbiology.  Steam engines were built and greatly improved before we had a modern scientific understanding of thermodynamics.  In fact, thermodynamics was to a large extent born out of desire to understand steam engines. In this sense, it is an engineering science (study of manmade things) as much as a natural science (study of natural things) or branch of physics.

 

Petroski’s focus in the book is the importance of engineering to policymaking, where it is often overshadowed by science.  Policy, science, and engineering play off of each other a lot.  Most of my career as an engineer has been related to government, policy, and regulatory compliance.

 

The Ghost Map: The Story of London’s Most Terrifying Epidemic—and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World by Steven Johnson

The Ghost Map by science writer Steven Johnson is the story of the birth of epidemiology.  Epidemiology is a medical science that uses statistics to help us understand how diseases operate in a population.  Using various statistical and geographic tools, long before we had computers and GIS, physician John Snow demonstrated that cholera, once a recurring plague that wiped out hundreds of thousands of people in some outbreaks, was a waterborne disease.  This understanding, initially met with much skepticism, allowed officials to intervene to prevent the spread of the disease.  For those who say of their math classes, “I’ll never us this,” here is a case where math (and science and policy) were used to make a great difference.

 

Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West by Stephen Ambrose

It is not much publicized today that the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 to 1806 had a partly scientific mission.  Captains Lewis and Clark were charges with bringing back samples of the flora, fauna, and culture of the western territories.  It was also hoped that they would find a water passage to the Pacific Ocean.  In Undaunted Courage, Stephen Ambrose writes about the scientific mission as well as the policy, diplomacy, and commercial hopes the expedition carried.

 

Of course, what attracts most people to the Lewis and Clark expedition is that it was a great adventure.  There is a place in STEM fields for thoughtful adventurers and explorers. 

 

Buried Alive: The Terrifying History of Our Most Primal Fear by Jan Bondeson

A list like this deserves something strange, creepy, and more fun than you care to admit.  Right now, thousands of very young future STEM workers are catching bugs and snakes, breaking their toys to see what is inside, or staring into space with a weird expression of vacancy and concentration.

 

Jan Bondeson’s Buried Alive is not a morbid book.  It is sometimes humorous, especially in consideration of topic.  From a STEM point of view, Bondeson shows how knowledge accumulates over time.  The fears and activities of our forefathers may seem strange to us, but they sometimes made sense in light of what they knew.  Buried Alive doesn’t simply play off our fascination with the grotesque and death, though the book might not have been written if we lacked that fascination, I think it reminds us to approach our ancestors with a touch of grace and humility.  Maybe our progeny will show us the same courtesy.

 

If you’re looking for something for a younger student, check out this post→ from Joanne Loves Science or these recommendations→ from STEM Friday.  By the way, I also write about engineering, infrastructure and the environment at Infrastructure Watch.

 

This review of STEM books appears courtesy of Keenan’s Book Reviews.