Exam (elaborations)
Structural Engineering (Test 1) Detailed Questions and Expert Answers
- Course
- Structural Engineer
- Institution
- Stanford University
Structural Engineering (Test 1) Detailed Questions and Expert Answers
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Structural Engineering (Test 1) Detailed Questionsand Expert Answers
Def: structure - ANS ...a structure is anything built; ...a structure is any assemblage
of materials intended to sustain loads; ...a structure is something made to react to
forces and hold its shape
Example of structures - ANS Towers, buildings, bridges, tables, chairs, pencils,
paper clips, aluminum cans, human skeletons
Height of Eiffel Tower - ANS 300 m
Length of Golden Gate Bridge - ANS 0.8 miles
When was the Eiffel Tower built - ANS 1889; 100 years after French Revolution
Height of Duke Chapel - ANS 210 feet
Height of Empire State Building - ANS 1250 feet (without antenna, with antenna -
1454 feet), built in 1931
Height of John Hancock - ANS 1127 feet, built in 1969
,Architecture of John Hancock - ANS Sides are sloped - base is wider and that makes
it sturdier against the wind; X's on the outside are exposed structure
"Mechanical utopias" - ANS No such thing - there is always room for improvement.
There are inconveniences/necessities that lead to development of tools and
systems.
Past successes... - ANS Are no guarantee of future performance.
Box structures and bridges - ANS Cut a bridge in half - made from box structures.
Box geometry gets a lot of stiffness - obviously we want bridges to be strong and
stiff.
Cross-sectional cardboard - ANS Corrugated boxes. Less material, a lot of little
"boxes" side by side which gives strength and is light, a series of folds.
Def: patent - ANS When someone/a company takes legal credit of an idea (by
inventors/designers/engineers who serve as critics/creators). Gives inventor
temporary monopoly on inventions.
Why do things/structures change? - ANS A catastrophic failure occurs, less
catastrophic faults and failures arise. Engineers devise ways to eliminate them.
, Problems with older designs, and why we redesign things. - ANS Strength (stronger
materials are developed), durability (better protective finishes), serviceability,
usability, aesthetics, cost (more efficient construction).
Why/how/when did the paper clip evolve from the straight pin? - ANS Industrial
revolution - a lot of inventions made to automatically do things (like the pin
making machine)
Problems with office pins - ANS Relatively difficult to apply/remove; exposed sharp
point; can snag unrelated documents; pricked fingers; leaves holes in paper; hard
to reuse - these sorts of problems are why we patent things
Gem Manufacturing - ANS Made the first paperclip, but didn't patent it
Shades of pencils - ANS Drawing pencils are a combination of graphite, clay, and
wax. Darker shade --> more graphite --> less clay. The lead gets thicker because
less clay makes it less strong.
How does a pencil work as a structure? - ANS The entire pencil itself is a beam;
forces acting on the beam are fingers, pushing down to write, etc.
Arrows on a free body diagram - ANS Arrows go where the contact is.
Why did we change from bottles to cans? - ANS Needed bottle opener; expensive
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