Bridges, roads, tunnels, canals

New sensors to monitor health of U.S. infrastructure
Northeastern University researchers are working on developing new sensor systems for cars and trucks that will allow road and bridge infrastructure to be assessed in real-time across the United States
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States, localities are slow to repair poorly maintained levees
Two years ago the U.S. government identified 122 levees as too poorly maintained to be reliable in major floods; only forty-five of them had necessary repairs; people living behind the unrepaired levees should be concerned
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Trains carrying hazmat collide in Minnesota
At least 40 cars were derailed and some went into the Mississippi River in an early morning crash in southeast Minnesota; liquid ammonia and propane are leaking from some of the cars
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Getting the coming investment in infrastructure right
America 2050 issues blueprint for infrastructure investment; guiding principles: Fix, Phase, Green, Train, Count
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Briefly noted
The principles which should guide Obama’s $700 billion infrastructure plan… Cisco becomes infrastructure player on Obama tech focus… EU piracy mission chief calls for more surveillance equipment
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Making older buildings safer during earthquakes
Buildings being built now in earthquake-prone regions are designed better to withstand tremors; trouble is, for a long while yet, most of the buildings in which people live and work were built before new earthquake-related design concepts and new materials were available; UC San Diego researchers look for ways to make these buildings safer
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New CFIUS regulations
CFIUS issues final regulations governing national security reviews of foreign investment in the United States
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New bridge-inspection software contributes to bridge security
Inspecting a bridge for hairline cracks, flaking concrete, and rust has been a manual process — inspectors have always examined bridges for visible damage directly on site; German researchers develop software which allows digital inspection of bridges and other structures
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Earthquake's trampoline effect
During earthquakes the ground not only shakes from side to side, but also bounces up and down; this has important implications for designing quake-proof structures
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Closed Maine suspension bridge used for anti-terror testing
DHS is using a closed Maine bridge for tests on how to fortify bridges against terrorist attacks
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Using pre-cast abutments to build bridges faster
Wisconsin contractor using pre-cast, segmental abutments for the first time to build a bridge in Wisconsin; technique may allow building bridges 30 percent faster
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Debating how to shore up U.S. infrastructure
As federal, state, and municipal governments justifiably look to the private sector to help rebuild the aging U.S. infrastructure, they must make sure that the public interest in affordable and accessible infrastructure does not take a back seat
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Chertoff: Neglect threatens infrastructure
DHS secretary Michael Chertoff says that lack of investment in U.S. infrastructure “[is] kind of like playing Russian roulette with our citizens’ safety”
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Designing earthquake-resistant buildings
New NIST publication series addresses design of earthquake-resistant structures
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Major flooding risk could span decades after Chinese earthquake
Earthquake-induced landslides cause rocks and sediment to be dumped in the river valleys, and this material then moves downstream to settle on river beds; this means that river and lakes become shallower, pausing much greater risks of flooding for decades to come
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