Geotechnical Design has traditionally been done using working stress design (WSD), a design approach in which a factor of safety is used to either magnify the applied loads or reduce the available resistance to ensure safety. In WSD, all the uncertainties are lumped in the factor of safety. Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) is an approach in which the uncertainties related to the imposed loads are accounted for by magnifying these loads, while the uncertainties involved in reducing resistances are accounted for by reducing the resistances.

At the Civil Engineering Scholarship and Awards program held April 27, 2006, Clint Roos received the John G. McEntyre Endowment Scholarship.

Sybil Sharvelle, environmental graduate student, received the Greeley and Hansen Elmer F. Ballotti Memorial Fellowship and the Association of University Women Dissertation Fellowship.

Civil engineers aiming to uncover better ways to make roads last longer, using less asphalt and less crude oil.

Purdue researcher uses remote sensing to study environmental and property related issues in the aftermath of Texas coast hurricanes, monitor endangered species' habitats at Kennedy Space Center, assess earthquake damage in Algeria, and map wildfires in the Australian outback.

Three Purdue researchers put their heads and labs together under the umbrella project of using UV radiation to treat drinking water, their collaboration became a breakthrough.

Brominated flame retardants (BFRs) are a group of chemicals added to many products, including computers, TVs and household textiles, in order to reduce fire risk. The widespread production and use of BFRs are raising concerns due to evidence of increasing contamination of the environment, wildlife, and people; and limited knowledge of potential effects heighten the importance of identifying emerging issues associated with the use of BFRs.

In our Fall 2005 issue of Impact you will read how well-paved roadways can lead to energy savings, how more women break into engineering fields once reserved for men, how energy demands call for civil engineers, plus much more.

Purdue University is already earning dividends on the new Robert L. and Terry L. Bowen Laboratory for Large-Scale Civil Engineering Research, a high-tech facility that was dedicated today (Friday, 10/3).