As we produced this, our final Moment magazine for the chapter, it just didn't seem possible that it could be number three. As with most students at Rose, our individual quarters over the past year seem to have been very long and demanding, yet when looking back at all the events which have transpired the time seems all too short.

Our goal as editors when elected was to produce a more student-driven publication for the chapter. (Since we ran unopposed, it wasn't difficult to initiate our quest.) We feel that we have indeed accomplished our goal, with a whole host of student written articles and individual student related issues in this and the past two Moments. We only hope that you as a chapter have enjoyed the fruits of our efforts as much as we have enjoyed in their production.

We would like to thank those students who have unselfishly written articles for us, despite busy schedules and looming projects. You have made these past issues what they were. We hope too that you will retain these past issues as they are reflections of the times gone by and will serve well for future enjoyment.

Rose-Hulman ASCE has a tradition of excellence as continually being one of the top ASCE student chapters in the country. The 1996 school year has proven once again to be worthy of such distinction, thanks to the hard work of many of our CE students and faculty.

"It is a great profession. There is the fascination of watching a figment of the imagination emerge through the aid of science to plan on paper. Then it moves to realization in stone or metal or energy. Then it brings jobs and homes to men. Then it elevates the standards of living and adds to the comforts of life. That is the engineer's high privilege.

The great liability of the engineer compared to men of other professions is that his works are out in the open where all can see them. His acts, step by step, are in hard substance. He cannot bury his mistakes in the grave like the doctors. He cannot argue them into thin air or blame a judge like the lawyers. He cannot, like the architects, cover his failures with trees and vines. He cannot, like the politicians, screen his shortcomings by blaming his opponents and hope the people will forget. The engineer simply cannot deny he did it. If his works do not work, he is damned.

On the other hand, unlike the doctor, his is not a life among the weak. Unlike the soldier destruction is not his purpose. Unlike the lawyer, quarrels are not his daily bread. To the engineer falls the job of clothing the bare bones of science with life, comfort and hope. No doubt, as years go by the people forget which engineer did it, even if they ever knew. Or some politician puts his name on it. Or they credit it to some promoter who used other people's money. But the engineer himself looks back at the unending stream of goodness which flows from his successes with satisfactions that few professions may know. And the verdict of his fellow professionals is all the accolade he wants."

Sabbatical leaves are among the many benefits of working for Rose-Hulman. I spent this past year working for Wright Water Engineers, Inc., in Denver, Colorado. Wright Water is a consulting firm that specializes in water resources and environmental engineering. Despite its modest size (about 50 employees), it has a national reputation due to its marketing niche, high-profile projects, and publishing record.

I had the privilege of working on two high-profile projects this past year. The first involved planning and preliminary design of a "river walk" similar to the famous one along the San Antonio River in San Antonio, Texas. The project required the diversion of water from the Arkansas River through its old channel bed in downtown Pueblo, Colorado. An inflatable dam was proposed to support gondola traffic through a festive shopping area. The possibility of failure or sabotage of the dam required a dynamic analysis of the resulting negative wave which would propagate upstream and endanger the boaters.

The second project involved the Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado. The park is famous for its cliff dwellings, elaborate villages built into the steep canyon walls by the Anasazi Indians more than 1000 years ago. One of the great mysteries about this ancient civilization revolves around their acquisition of reliable water supplies in this semi-arid climate. I was part of a multi-disciplinary team performing a paleohydrology study of a presumed reservoir site in a remote canyon within the park boundaries. The pro bono work is being performed for the National Park Service with assistance from the archaeologist at Mesa Verde and the Denver Art Museum. A National Geographic article may result from the study efforts.

On Saturday, October 12, 1996, the National Society of Black Engineers hosted their first Future of America program at Rose. The goal of this program is to introduce middle school students to the engineering disciplines at an early age and get them excited about post high school education.

I had the opportunity to display the civil engineering department for the students and show them what a civil engineer does. On such short notice, I decided to have a demonstration using light weight concrete and show the students the concrete canoes and the soils lab. After passing around sample of regular and light weight concrete and explaining the differences and uses, I placed each sample into a sink full of water and amazed the kids.

Habitat for Humanity is a not for profit organization based in Americus, GA. Habitat was founded in 1976 by Linda and Millard Fuller. Habitat's goal was and still is the elimination of poverty housing around the world and to make decent shelter a matter of conscience and action. Habitat builds new relationships and a sense of community as well as new housing by having needy and affluent people working together as equal partners.

Here at Rose-Hulman, the students are attempting to get a campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity off the ground. The vision to have a campus chapter here was seen several years ago by Dr. Thomas Descoteaux. Currently, the Rose-Hulman Chapter of Habitat for Humanity is working hand in hand with the Wabash Valley Habitat chapter in building and renovating several houses in the Terre Haute area over the past year.

Currently, the Rose-Hulman chapter is busy building storage sheds. The 8x12 sheds are built by students of all backgrounds and majors and sold for a profit which is used to continue the process. One day we hope to use the money raised from the shed sales and construct a house with the nearby Wabash Valley chapter. In the meantime, student groups volunteer their time to assist the Wabash Valley chapter in different facets of building a house.

With the completion of the 1996 ASCE year, the current officers will end their terms and a new team of leaders must be ready to carry on the ASCE tradition of excellence. The only way that our ASCE chapter can maintain and improve is through an active participation by the students. I urge all of the CE students to get involved with ASCE, and especially sophomores and juniors to consider holding an office. It has been one of the most beneficial experiences I have had here at Rose-Hulman. Leadership and organizational skills can only be developed through experience. ASCE will offer that, a way to network with other CE students and practicing engineers, and much more. I cannot emphasize enough how beneficial active participation in ASCE can be to your continuing CE education.

Every year in February the secretaries of the student chapters of the ASCE submit reports to nationals describing their chapter's achievements over the previous year. These reports are the basis for selecting the outstanding chapters. The Robert Ridgway Award is given to the top ASCE chapter across the nation.

I have recently read the achievements of the 1993 Ridgway recipient, Northeastern University, and see absolutely no reason why that award couldn't keep a permanent address here at Rose. With the number of Civils here we are outnumbered only in the fact that the civil enrollment is higher elsewhere, but the actual number of ASCE members is very close to being the same.

If this chapter would participate with real commitment, then I see endless potential for our chapter to succeed.

Our chapter currently brings in speakers, holds business meetings, and participates in service projects, all of which were things that the winner of the Ridgway must do. It is the magnitude of those projects that we can improve on. In addition to replacing a sidewalk, why can't we assist in the repair of the homes of the elderly and the poor.

This next year I think we have a real shot at the Ridgway Award if our student chapter spearheads a major undertaking on behalf of the Habitat for Humanity Chapter on campus. It will take impressive steps like these for Rose-Hulman to emerge atop the chapters, but with your help it can become reality.

The Rose-Hulman Student Chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers held its annual fall picnic on Wednesday, September 25th. The menu, with Jesse Comer as the chief chef, included grilled hamburgers and hot-dogs, baked beans, chips, and cold pop.

The weather couldn't have been better as students of all classes and professors were able to get to know one another. Most of all it was a good time for freshmen and upperclassmen to meet one another.

After the cookout meal, a lively game of beach volleyball pursued. Seniors and freshmen paired up against the juniors and sophomores. Both sides put forth a battle, but the juniors and sophomores prevailed after several games.

This was a question posed to me by my brother-in-law shortly before the concrete canoe race on the morning of Homecoming. Without going into very much detail I tried to explain how concrete can be made to float with the proper shape and mix design. Finally, my father ended my explanation by asking my brother-in-law, "If you can make hundreds of tons of steel float, then why can't you make a couple hundred pounds of concrete float? It's the same concept except for the change in material."

At homecoming, craft were paddled by Civil faculty, alumni and students on Speed Lake. A short, straight sprint course of approximately 90 yards was set up to allow for several quick races. The first race consisted of students: one canoe of seniors, one of juniors and one of sophomores. The next race consisted of faculty, alumni and students. The faculty canoe paddled by Dr. McKinney and Dr. Jones beat the other two by a long shot. The experience of the two professors seemed to have been the deciding factor.

Each year the Rose-Hulman ASCE Student Chapter extends its efforts into the Terre Haute community through service projects. One such project came to the attention of the student chapter through the local Rotary. The need was a wheelchair ramp at a local residence for a five-year-old boy afflicted with cerebral palsy. Rose-Hulman administrator and Rotary member, Mr. Dave Piker approached the student chapter about undertaking the project. Despite busy schedules and a plethora of class projects, a handful of ASCE chapter students decided to take part in making the ramp a reality for Timothy and his mother, Mrs. Price.

The job was to build a ramp, but a lot of preliminary planning and footwork was necessary before a screw was driven or a form placed. Tate and I went to the site to look over the options for the route of the ramp. As with most residences in the south Terre Haute neighborhood, there was very little yard to work with, especially in the front. We decided the best option would be to build a treated wood ramp extending in an "L" shape from a side patio to a sidewalk running behind the house to the alley. A twelve foot sidewalk extension to the alley would also be required. This option would provide for an acceptable slope and minimized consumption of yard space. After the initial visit, I went back to the site to take some pictures and began work on a design. The design took up a good part of the 7th week for me. (Please keep this in mind, professors that gave tests that week!) Once the design was drawn up, a list of lumber was established and priced.

The next step in the footwork phase was a meeting with Mr. Piker to work out logistics with support agencies providing materials. Special recognition and thanks goes to the United Cerebral Palsy of the Wabash Valley for providing the lumber and hardware for the ramp. Thanks also to Rose-Hulman for providing the concrete for the sidewalk extension.

After all the planning and organizing, Tate and I were particularly excited to finally see the sawdust fly. And fly it did on Saturday, 26 Oct from dawn until dusk. The majority of the project was completed in one day with finishing touches being completed on the following Wednesday, 30 Oct. Neighbors on all sides took an interest, coming by and seeing the work firsthand throughout the day on Saturday. Mrs. Price was a gracious host, providing some great chili for lunch on Saturday.

After the dust had settled and the project was completed, Mrs. Price and her son Timothy came out to thank us personally for the work. We were told that the ramp and sidewalk would make daily activity easier and more enjoyable. We were particularly glad to hear that the sidewalk at the end of the route was just the right size and location for Timothy's schoolbus.

When its time to play, my recreation of choice is ultimate frisbee . During a typical season, I practice with the team three times per week for 2 hours. In addition, I run or work out another 2 to 3 times per week. This is not a chore, nor is it just habit. I love to play, and I have sacrificed homework, job searching, meetings, sleep, ice cream, comfort, and more just to be on the field.

Not to be forgotten, there are some civil engineering students that compete in a sport in which they are the only civil representative. Jeanne Hudson, a sophomore from Soquel, California, is in her second year with the women's cross-country team. She has a 5K career best of 25:50 minutes.

After an ICAC tournament championship and a trip to the NCAA Division III tournament last year, the 1996-97 Rose-Hulman men's basketball team is looking forward to another successful year. But that will not be easy after losing three all-ICAC players, including 1996 civil graduate Kiley Gwaltney. Coach Jim Shaw is entering his third season as head basketball coach at Rose-Hulman and will turn to several young players to step up and fill the voids left by those players.

Several civil engineering students are listed on the roster for the 1996-97 season. They include senior Kent Murphy, junior Todd Burch, and sophomores Bryan Egli, Josh Williford, and Sam Johnson. All of these players are returning letter winners from last year's team. It looks as though the sophomores would have the advantage in this year's civil basketball tournament, but you can never count out the seniors.

Rose-Hulman's football team is filled with many civil engineering majors that help to make the team one of the best in the conference. This year's team witnessed great success and hope to continue this trend in the years to come.

Senior Brandon Boone is the incumbent at center after starting 29 straight games at that position. He is one of the best offensive linemen in the ICAC and has the opportunity to contend for post season honors. Junior Shawn Golden has the inside track on one of the starting halfback slots after playing as a reserve for the past two seasons. Other juniors on the team, defensive back Curtis Craig and linebacker J.D. Rohrer, will help to support an impenetrable defense.

Joe Mize, a sophomore defensive end from Sullivan will begin to contribute more this year as Rose-Hulman digs deep into its bag of tricks to support one of the best teams in the conference. Freshmen Matt Arnold and Bradley Chelton will also chip in to help the teams performance. Chelton will convert from the offensive line to tight end, and Arnold will be one of two kickers for the Fighting Engineers.

In addition to the players on the field, one civil student will contribute from the sidelines. Senior Todd Harris will no longer run the Engineers' vaunted triple-option offense from behind center, but he will have the chance to pass on the knowledge he has gained over the past four seasons to his successor at quarterback.

You may have noticed a few more female athletes running around campus this year. These are the members of the new Rose-Hulman women's volleyball team. Our current record is 3-14. We have three regular season games left plus the ICAC tournament, which is November ninth at Manchester.

There are currently two civil engineers on the team, - Kelly Barney, a freshman setter/outside hitter, and me, a sophomore defensive specialist. Kelly is from Mt. Pleasant, Iowa where she attended Mt. Pleasant High School. There she was a three-year letterman in basketball and a four-year letterman in track and volleyball. I am from Lafayette where I attended Lafayette Jefferson High School. There we earned the state runner-up title my junior year and made a repeat trip to the final four my senior year.

There are seven other women on the team this year. The freshmen include Kate Buchanan, a setter/outside hitter, and Molly Lambert and Beth Nixon, both middle hitters. The other sophomores are Amy Gainey, a setter/defensive specialist, and Holli Krumbein, an outside hitter. Our lone junior is Amy Werner, a defensive specialist/outside hitter. And finally, our senior, Nikki Overman is an outside hitter.

On Thursday, Oct. 11, there was an ASCE field trip to the Olin Hall addition construction site. The field trip was led by Dennis Burke, the project superintendent for Wilhelm Construction and Rose grad from 1984. Dennis gave us a tour of the site and talked about the various problems and difficulties that have occurred during construction.

The building is two stories with load bearing masonry walls. The second floor and roof are precast hollow core panels. When asked why structural steel was not used instead of masonry Dennis responded by saying that was the architect's decision and he really didn't understand it. There are two floors with four classrooms per floor, and a lounge area. Each classroom will have metal ducts in the floor for the computer data and power lines. A four inch concrete topping will then be placed on the floor to bring the floor level up even with the metal ducts. The building will have a brick exterior. The addition will be completely separate from the original Olin hall. The only connecting part will be the second floor hallway from the original Olin hall to the addition. This part will be attached structurally to the existing Olin Hall. There will be a courtyard area between the existing Olin hall, the addition, and the Templeton Building.

They have had some challenges and problems arise during the construction. When they did some of the excavating they had to dig three feet below the level of scum pond. They had problems keeping the water from seeping through the soil and had to pump it out every day. Another challenge was the two arches in the front of the building. The two concrete arches have brick lining for their inner radius, and one of the arches is also curved along its vertical plane. This made them very difficult to form.

On Wednesday, October 23, the ASCE student chapter was supposed to visit the Honey Creek Flood Control Project, but we were rained out. Instead, Dave Daugherty, along with Denise Held and Jim Sell, came to Rose-Hulman, equipped with slides that only Dr. Houghtalen could top. Since we could not go to the flood project, SCS brought the project to us. The presentation included Mr. Daugherty's description of the background, funding and regulations of the project. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funded the work designed to alleviate flooding in many homes and businesses in the area between Honey Creek and Interstate 70.

On the afternoon of September 17, approximately 35 civil students were treated to a tour of the construction of the new RHIT Athletic Facility. Bruce Carter, 1990 CE Rose graduate and Project Manager for Huber, Hunt, and Nichols gave the tour.

Aside from the actual construction, coordination was the point stressed most by Mr. Carter. Work began on the southwest portion of the facility and has progressed in a counterclockwise direction in four areas. This was done because most of the interior work is in the southwest portion and less is needed in the remaining areas. For example, the large fieldhouse housing the track and basketball courts needs very little finishing work compared to all of the small rooms contained in the starting area. This also allows contractors to follow one another with their work through the building instead of having certain contractors get ahead of others.

Concrete slabs have been placed in the first area and it is also dried in. The second area would be dry approximately two weeks from the time the field trip was taken. This area also contains the pool for which the concrete has been placed and work continues on putting in the guttering. Special care had to be taken for the pool area because of its corrosive environment. All welds must be made air tight so the unprotected inside of the beams are not exposed to the corrosive elements in the air. Students also got to walk through the immense fieldhouse where the indoor 200 m track and four of the recreational basketball courts will be built.

This section of the Moment has been provided as a synopsis of the projects that the senior class is undertaking as part of CE 489 Senior Design and Synthesis. We hope that it may serve to inspire underclass chapter members who wonder if they will ever do something "real" or "practical" in a class. All the following are projects currently underway by senior civil engineering students.

A-Bomb Engineering
Client: Pierson Township, IN

This summer was a bit of a departure from the norm for me. I actually got a job. The fact that I was actually working wasn't the only change though. I jumped from classes in civil engineering to electrical contracting work.

I worked for a small electrical contracting company named Maron Electric. They are located right on the edge of the city of Chicago. I found out the hard way that commuting is really not the way to go, this is because my trip lasted from one to two hours and involved cars, trains or buses or all three. During the three months I worked there I learned all sorts of things and was reminded of others. Namely that if you are classified as new and summer help you get the most boring jobs that no one has any interest in doing. I was quickly given other responsibilities as the time passed.

I learned the basics of preparing an electrical bid. Which consisted of a take-off, that just means you count everything and find out how much wire and conduit is needed to connect them, pricing, and extension (multiplying, adding, and subtracting numbers). However all of that was just academic. What I really learned came from listening to everyone complain about the shoddy work of the architects and engineers. I was amazed at the quality of some of the work put out by firms. If I ever turned in homework like that in my high school architecture class I would have been failed outright. I also made the mistake of thinking most people working in various firms would be able to spell correctly, just so nobody else screws up, it is spelled 'fluorescent' not 'flourescent' (I think that was the most common mistake but certainly not the only one). If I, never really having worked with electrical plans before, could see the mistakes you'd think a 'professional' would have caught it. So I just took all that I heard and filed it away in the back of my mind, so if I ever happen to be in a situation preparing plans I'll avoid those same mistakes.

The past three summers I have worked for the Daviess County Highway Department. In doing so, it has given me experience in many general civil engineering areas. This experience has given me a good base and wider civil engineering knowledge. I not only learned about building roads and bridges, but also all the work and knowledge that goes into them.

Working with roads, I learned of different stabilization techniques of lime and cement, different ways to build roads, maintaining roads, dust control and proper drainage techniques. I also gained some experience on the construction and destruction (using dynamite) of small single span bridges.

Other more specific projects I did were pavement management and sign inventory. Pavement management was a rating of road condition and traffic counts that were used to decide when to pave certain roads. The traffic counts were done by burying or patching over electronic counters, which were read by a computer software program. The sign inventory was an entire inventory of all county roads with descriptions of location, type, condition and various measurements.

Most projects required surveying and drawings before they could be evaluated. I had to do surveying on many ditches, roads and bridges. I then made drawings of elevations, cross sections and site plans off the surveying. Cut and fill estimations were then made based off the drawings to help figure the dirt needed if any. Smaller jobs that I did included computer work, pipe sizing, measuring roads and running errands.

This past summer I got the opportunity to work for the county highway department in my home county, Allen County, Indiana. When I put in an application at the city-county building on Leap Day (Feb. 29) this past year, I had no idea it would pan out so well.

I reported to Bill Hartman, Chief Project Supervisor, as directed on my first day. That morning I was at first a bit apprehensive because I saw a lot of empty office space and very few people. When I accepted the job, not having any experience with highway work, I assumed most work was done in the office: designing, drafting, problem-solving, etc. Nothing could be further from the truth. I quickly learned that most of the employees were field project supervisors who spent their days at the project either outdoors or in the field offices located at the site.

My first day was a tour of all major field projects underway, or a "Tour of the Realm" as my boss liked to term it. Allen County is the largest county in the State of Indiana by land area, with Fort Wayne being the county seat. It is also moderately populated with a comparable income which allows for a number of major and minor projects to be completed each year. Funding for some projects is shared by the federal government under direction of the state. This year I was in luck as we had several large projects, both roads and bridges, which were underway. The county staffs the projects (including its federal-aid projects) with its own personnel, usually one employee at each project. This year they were spread thin, which gave me more opportunities take part in aiding with supervision and oversight of several projects over the summer.

For the first two months I was assigned to help Dan Allen, county project supervisor of a $1.4M federal-aid bridge rehabilitation.

This project got my feet wet (but not soaked, as we were over the water) in construction management and federal-aid paperwork necessary for the construction record. Dan was fun to work for and was willing to answer my never-ending questions about how things worked. He also gave me a healthy share of responsibility in supervision of the project and completing paperwork on my own, for which I was grateful. I was even allowed to cover the supervision of the bridge for two separate weeks while he was on vacation. The bridge was of the earth-filled arch variety, spanning 200 feet over the St. Mary's river. Valuable engineering experience included working with a contractor (my first experience here), interpreting plans and specifications, concrete inspection, and management of the construction record.

For the last month I worked with several major road projects. Although I really enjoyed the bridge job, it was good for me to get experience with road construction as well. Bill, my boss for the summer, was very good about getting me out to see as many aspects of highway construction as possible. One of the road projects was new construction. It was a $5.4M four-lane connecting route to an interstate (I-469.) It was in the earthwork stages the entire time I was there. The equipment used for the excavation of the road subgrade was enormous at first glance, and there was a lot of it on this project. I likened it to an entire armored cavalry division it was so big. The other road projects were a realignment project with a bridge included in it (Wallen Road), and a widening with a reconstructed intersection (Adams Ctr/Marion Ctr.) These road jobs gave experience in earthwork, drainage work, stone placement and grading, asphalt overlay, and road contractors.

This past summer, I managed to land an internship with Bateman Engineering located in Seymour, Indiana. My job was supposed to be an inspection job with the company. I had figured that I would be stuck in some little cubical figuring things off blueprints with an occasional trip to visit the site. When I arrived on the first day, my job had changed, and that was only the beginning of things to come.

Instead, I was informed that I would be working on the field crews, which enabled me to spend more time outside. We mostly did construction layouts and site preparation (i.e. dig here.) I learned how a subdivision is laid out, how the slopes alongside the roads are figured, and how much detail goes into a bridge, especially the arch bridge in Columbus, Indiana. I learned a great deal about surveying, most importantly, that I didn't know a whole lot about it. The classes we take at Rose give us a basic understanding of the concepts and ways of thinking, but in the field you have to alter things to fit the situation, and each situation is different.

That was where the boss and everyone else had the problem. The boss was a book smart man with very little field experience and when he did go outside it was very easy to tell that he didn't go out much. He knew what he wanted to do but couldn't adapt to the situation. The guys who worked outside were much better at adapting and could easily "make stuff up" when they needed to and it usually made sense. I learned more from the guys in the field than from my boss, a Purdue grad. The boss was a nice guy who could figure anything from a textbook or derive equations all day. But the guys in the field knew more because they actually did it all day, everyday.

The most important lesson of all is that experience is the best teacher. No matter what your GPA, or what your test scores were, it makes no difference out in the field. What your given at Rose are the basics, the common concepts and methods. What they don't teach is how to apply these methods. That's up to each individual, and, in each situation, the way to vary what you know comes from experience. Our field crew superintendent was not an engineer, he didn't even have a college degree, but he worked circles around the boss, who had a Purdue civil engineering degree and was a registered land surveyor. The field super could figure things that weren't given or work out the grades in the field so that the project would drain and look right. Experience was his teacher and the field was his classroom.

He never talked down to anyone, and he had everyone's respect from the start. If you want to be an effective, respected engineer, listen in class and learn as much as you can, but also keep in mind that experience counts for a lot in the real world.

Jerry Milliman of New Haven, Indiana has received the $1,000 J.B. Wilson Consulting Engineering Scholarship for outstanding academic achievement in the Consulting Engineering Program and a promising future as an engineer.

Milliman, a senior dean's list student, was assistant project manger for a $1.4 million earth-filled arch bridge rehabilitation project this past summer during an internship with the Allen County Highway Department in Fort Wayne.