I came across this interesting product for structural/geotechnical monitoring of cracks in 3 dimensions. Most crack monitors are designed for monitoring in 2 dimensions, this one can measure movement out of the plane of monitoring. I like that the markings are laser-etched so the simple device should last for a long time. Price is $40/each from Quality Plus Engineering, LLC.
Available Resources
Video: xGEL LatMate Software for Geotechnical Lab Efficiency
Here is a video about a nifty software product I came across at the trade show, xGEL LabMate. I enjoyed the chance to chat with Art Koenig, the president of GeoSmart Software about this software, […]
Available Resources
UC Berkley GeoEngineering Lectures on YouTube
UC Berkley has a bunch of lectures online, including three geoengineering themed ones. It appears that they were all from lectures given as a part of the 27th Annual GeoEngineering Distinguished Lecture Series on May 8, 2009. So if you have an hour plus to kill per lecture (and I haven’t yet), you can check out one of the following.
Geologic Hazards
What Would a Large Earthquake Do to Downtown L.A.?
From the USGS Newsroom:
USGS scientist Ken Hudnut fills us in on how science created the theoretical magnitude 7.8 earthquake behind the Great Southern California ShakeOut—the largest earthquake preparedness drill in U.S. history, coming Nov. 13—and what such an earthquake would do to downtown Los Angeles.
Seems like they did it right wiith this study. They had multiple teams independenlty come up with the ground shaking model, then had different structural engineers who are experts in seismic design of large buildings review the tall buildings in the L.A. area for the design earthquake. They say that buildings would likely come down in the 7.8 magnitude event. Click through to watch the video interview from the USGS.