IN THE NEWS: PROFILES
Cheryl Wilson, B.S. '95, M.S. '98
Click image to see a cool bridge photo!
Todd Fratzel B.S. '94, M.S. '96
Susie Siden, B.S. '98
"LOOK, MA, NO GLUE!"
Ray Cook, assistant professor of civil engineering (second from left), was particularly pleased with the winning entry in the model bridge contest he held in Civil Engineering 400. All the bridges had to be made of paper products and string. The winning bridge, made completely without glue, supported 160 pounds without breaking, and also received high marks for its aesthetic appeal and compliance with specifications.The Project
"Students can learn a lot about real-life bridges from paper models," notes Cook. "They can get a good feel for problems with thrust at the foundations, excessive shear, the importance of connections, problems with buckling of compression elements, the importance of diagonal bracing, and problems dealing with bearing. Basically, the same sort of problems that occur in concrete, steel, and timber bridges show up when you have a model bridge of any sort."
Cook has seen a number of his former students (see photos at left) go on to become structural engineers who design bridges, including some that are part of Boston's Central Artery Tunnel Project, commonly known as the "Big Dig."
Students in Civil Engineering 400 are always required to do a design project of some type. Another example is an "egg drop" contest, in which students make structures designed to protect an egg falling from a great height. Senior civil engineering students are available to act as consultants for the teams. All civil and environmental engineering students at UNH work on a number of design projects, culminating in the senior design project.
The Winners
Shown here (from left) with Cook and their winning bridge are teammates Christopher Seman of St. James, New York; Casey Holmes of Albion, Maine; and Charles Blackman of Loudon, New Hampshire. Members of the winning team received a $25 gift certificate for pizza.
The Prof
Ray Cook, a structural and materials engineer, performs research on high performance concrete for use in highway structures. He and some of his graduate students constructed an award-winning bridge of high-performance concrete over the Newfound River in Bristol, New Hampshire. Before coming to UNH, he had a wide range of industrial experience and designed street lighting systems and highways, as well as steel and reinforced concrete structures.
(UNH Photo by Gary Samson)