Engineering and Ethics

The other day I was joking about how architects get praised when a building is successful and popular, and engineers only get credit for a building if it falls down. While funny and true some of the time, it is important to note that architectural engineer's job is all about safety and that, while we don't save lives per se, our jobs need to be done as precisely as a doctor's, and are about keeping people safe whether they are in our buildings or not.

Engineering Ethics is all about making sure the choices we make while building a structure are the right things to do. Many professions will not lose much if they cut a few corners here or there. An author may still do well if his book has a plot hole or two, and a singer can be extremely popular even if her voice isn't exactly pitch-perfect.

Building engineers, on the other hand, have to make sure everything they do is perfect. They can't afford to cut corners, which sounds like an oxymoron of sorts. If an engineer takes a shortcut, it will almost certainly be becuase he wants to save some money. And this can work very well in the short term. But this isn't ethical. Even a small shortcut can be catastrophic when we are talking about a building, and this can end up costing a lot more in the long run than the engineer was hoping for.

The Tacoma Narrows Bridge. One of the most common
case studies in Engineering Ethics

Say you, the architectural engineer, are tasked with building a modest skyscraper. The project manager has given you your budget and you are all set to get your materials in order. You know you don't have an infinite supply of money, so what do you do when it comes to choosing your supplier for the steel framework? You can't get the top-of-the-line stuff on your budget, not by a long shot, so you decide to get the cheapest stuff you can find, which happens to be some small operation overseas who has promised you the absolute best price on the materials you need. Was this a good idea?

Of course not!

It's like when you are shopping for, say, electronics. You could by the five-dollar no-name earphones at the discount store, but it is extremely likely your cheap-o equipment will not even work when you take it out of the box. You are better off paying a few extra dollars to get a pair of headphones from a brand you trust. Wasn't that worth the extra money?

The same thing can be applied to engineering. Except getting the cheapest equipment could cost you more than a few extra dollars. If you don't make sure you are using quality materials on your project (or hire quality workers), your building may not stand up properly. And if something goes wrong, your building has a chance of collapsing. And that runs the risk of hurting people. Defnitely more of a dangerous game than just buying a cheap pair of headphones.

This is what happens when engineering ethics is ignored.

One of the first classes you'll take as an engineer at IIT (whether architectural or structural or any other type) is Engineering Ethics. Your professor will take an entire semester or more expanding on this topic and by the end of the class you can be confident that the decisions you make on the job are the right ones, whether the topic be managing construction, like I've mentioned here, or things such as whistleblowing and the general principles that all engineers should live by. If you're curious, the Wikipedia page has a lot of good info. There's even this site which has a lot of case studies for you to peruse.

This is not meant to scare you. This is meant to show you how important an engineer's job is, and even if you won't see your name on the building if it ever finds its way on the Register of Historic Buildings, you'll know that the reason it was able to stand up long enough to get onto that list is because you made the right decisions putting it together, and that in itself should be enough.

Around Town: Ferro's

Around Town is meant to introduce you to the neighborhood surrounding IIT's Main Campus and show you some of the things you can do (and eat!) close to campus without spending a ton of money. First on the list is...

Ferro's! Just across the highway on 31st Street, this unassuming building is home to some of the best (and cheapest!) Chicago food near campus. Whether you are looking for a classic Chicago-style hot dog, a hamburger, or even an omelette and pancakes, this place has something for you.

As soon as you walk in you are overwhelmed by the sheer size of the menu. Breakfast items, sandwiches, beef, salads, Chicago tamales (?), the list goes on. But if you are a bit indecisive, turn your attention to the wall on the left. Here you will find only ten choices to choose from, but these are arguably the best things on the menu. The specials listed here are delicious, and you can choose from a two-hot-dog-and-fries meal to a hamburger and others.

The nice thing about this smaller menu is that it is great for the poor college students that we are. Ferro's has a punch card just for college students (i.e. us), and for every special you get off this menu, you get a punch. Fill up the card and get a free lunch! And this means there is no excuse not to try a Chicago dog if you've never had one before. And ask for a char dog if you're in the mood for something grilled. For the out-of-towners, a Chicago dog has mustard, onion, Chicago-style relish, tomato wedges, sport peppers, and celery salt. And absolutely no ketchup!

They just recently added a whole new section to their menu, dubbed "City-Que." Someone in the kitchen must have really been jonesin' for some barbeque, because they bought a smoker and now there is a whole new menu's-worth of BBQ options. Pulled pork, rib tips, and beef brisket are just a few things on this new menu. It is surprisingly delicious, and my favorite item from this section is, strangely enough, the Pulled Pork Cheese Fries. It doesn't exactly sound like a good combination going in, especially since I am not a fan of the cheese sauce American fast-food joints slather on everything, but this thing is fantastic! The pulled pork really makes this dish and pairs unusually well with the sauce, and this is perfect on one of those days where you need a pick-me-up after just finishing an extra-hard exam and you don't care whether you live or die.

My favorite thing here though is one of their specialties: Italian Ice. There are a few places in Bridgeport that offer this, but Ferro's is my favorite. A lot of flavors to choose from, but my go-to flavor is strawberry. All the flavors are made with real fruit and it is just the ticket on a hot summer day.

This place certainly will not be winning any beauty contests, and isn't the five-star cuisine you might find near the Loop or elsewhere, but this place is fast and cheap has something everyone can enjoy--and if you have a friend who's a vegetarian, you can tell them to just deal with it and get a pepper-and-egg sandwich. Within walking distance of campus, definitely check this place out.

So.... What is Architectural Engineering?

All this talk about fraternities is all well and good, but this blog has to be called "ArchE-typical" for some reason or another, right? So, in order to make this blog's name appropriate, how about I talk about what I do?

The most common question I get asked as a student ambassador (who also happens to be studying Architectural Engineering) is, what is the difference between Architecture and Architectural Engineering? I am asked this by almost everyone going into either field, and this is completely okay! Architectural Engineering is still a fairly new major, and it doesn't help Illinois Tech offers both, or that in some countries, the terms can mean the same thing!
Architecture has been around for a long time. Like, a long time. Ancient civilizations and all that. Just about any building can be called architecture, from the Taj Mahal to the Sears Tower to the storage shed behind your house. And someone had to design all these things. The person who designs a building (what it looks like, what its purpose is, where it should go) is called an architect. And this is what Architecture is all about.

Architecture.

Architecture.

Also, Architecture.

Architectural Engineering, on the other hand, has only been around for a decade or so, at least by name. As buildings became more complex, engineers were needed to see the construction of the building through. Architects called upon structural engineers who could design the support structures to make sure the building wasn't going to fall over. They had electrical engineers work out how all the wiring was going to be put in the building. They had engineers whose jobs were to only analyze the building in terms of plumbing, or fire safety.

If you were going to build something, whether it be a house or a skyscraper, you pretty much had to hire an engineering dream team in order to get the thing built. Well, as you can well imagine, the people who were paying for these buildings were getting tired of spending all this money on several engineers to work on one project. And frankly, I don't blame them. Engineers are expensive! They realized they could probably save a few bucks if they could find one person who knew about all these things, instead of having to hire three (or four, or seven) separate people/firms on a project. Thus, Architectural Engineering was born!

To simplify things a bit, an Architectural Engineer (or Building Engineer, if you want to avoid the inevitable confusion with an Architect) has background in the following fields:

-Structural Engineering
-Electrical Engineering
-Geotechnical (Soil) Engineering (this would apply to a building's foundation)
-Illumination Engineering
-Acoustical Engineering
-Mechanical Engineering (this would include things like HVAC)
-Construction Management
-and the list goes on...

So, to put it simply, Architecture the process of designing the aesthetics of a building, and Architectural Engineering is the process of actually building the thing. Put another way, if a building is successful, the architect gets the credit. If a building fails (read: falls down), it is the engineer's fault. Unfortunately, that's just the way it is!

Hooray Architect!

Hooray Engineer!

If you decide to study Architectural Engineering, and I definitely urge you to consider it, you have the option of choosing where to specialize. At IIT you will take classes that will introduce you to Acoustical and Illumination Engineering or other specialized departments, but it is up to you if you want to pursue these areas to the fullest. If you would rather be a Fire Safety Engineer, or a Plumbing Engineer, take those classes that apply to these fields and get your specialization! But you will have to at least have some background in all of these departments to get your degree and become a licensed engineer.
My plan is to specialize in Acoustical Engineering and set myself up for working on music halls and the like. I am a musician, so to be able to connect two of my passions together would be amazing. I also have a minor in Architecture, but that is another story.

If you have any questions about Architectural Engineering or Architecture, shoot me an email or post a comment! Choosing a major can be a confusing and difficult decision, and I want to help in any way I can, even if that means suggesting something totally crazy like Computer Science or Psychology!

Song of the Day

The Cinematics - A Strange Education



Fraternities and the Media

I was recently pointed to an article listing some of the most notorious college fraternities in the country. Thankfully, my own fraternity, Alpha Sigma Phi, did not make the list (though I wasn't exactly holding my breath), but it did give me reason to bring up (again) the topic of the fraternity and how it is viewed by the media.

You may or may not remember a post I wrote a while back about my experience in joining a fraternity, and I mentioned how fraternities do not have the best reputation. While I did make it a point to reference films like "Animal House" and "Old School," among others, I really did not talk about where the ideas for these films came from.

One of the most important (if obvious) factors to consider is the media. While the morning news can be informative, have you ever noticed how the majority of the news that is neither traffic nor weather is depressing? I catch snippets of the news on my way to and from work and, I have to tell you, there may be a few happy stories in there, but most of it is about crime, political corruption, or death. Many of you already know this, but for the benefit of those individuals who are not conspiracy theorists or sociologists is it important to realize that news programs choose what they air/broadcast/publish based on what their listeners/viewers/readers want to hear. Every news program has traffic. Every news program has weather. Every news program has that one story about a cute new animal that has been born at the local zoo. But every news channel has their own style.

Different channels tend to have content with different spins on the same material, or even different material all together. You might have two channels reporting on the same landmark Supreme Court decision, and while one news group may be reporting the results with a positive air, the other network might be giving the same results with a hint of disapproval. Most schools that offer journalism will tell their students to be objective in their reporting, but sadly this isn't always the case in real life.

This is not to say that news programs are all liars, and they are conditioning us to be good citizens who sit on our rears and let ourselves be spoonfed all of the nonsense and B.S. the government wants us to believe (I am not that crazy). News groups can choose what they want to air, and 90% of the time these segments are true stories with reputable sources.

On the topics of fraternities, however, it seems like most news networks have the same general idea about fraternities. "Fraternities are nothing but trouble," news anchors will tell their viewers, and no matter how many fraternity brothers stand up and protest, the media does not change. Maybe I'm wrong and all fraternities are evil (this would be the least likely). Maybe the producer of one news program got the stomach flu off some bad seafood served to him by a waiter with a fraternity tattoo on his arm (ever-so-slightly more likely). Or, as seems to be the case to me, news networks are simply catering to the masses who generally believe, to my disappointment, that fraternities are groups of wretched, soulless ne'er-do-wells who would rather get drunk and put their friends at risk than lend a hand for their neighbor.

And this is where we get movies like "Animal House." They are based off of the media, which is based off of what it thinks we, the common masses, believe. Typically, we don't desire to see a movie that goes strongly against what we believe. And the same thing goes for the mass media. While there is definitely news, and some very good news too, some of it is purely for entertainment, or else to reaffirm our views on a topic.

I'm getting to the point,  I swear.

Because of the negative stigma fraternities have, much of what you hear on the six o'clock news is about hazing gone awry, or the death of a brother due to the stupidity of one chapter. Indeed, this does happen, but not with the regularity we are led to believe. This is because there is almost never any coverage on a fraternity who raises money for organizations like Livestrong, or a chapter who has made substantial progress in improving its surrounding neighborhood. Stories like this happen all the time, be we never hear about them because they are not nearly as entertaining or startling as the ones that are promoted on the news now.

Now, I know that most fraternities are not nearly as bad as the media makes them out to be, and if I have done my job correctly, you do too. So our task then is to tell the world about all the good fraternities do, not just for the communities at large (which is great), but the good it can do for the individuals who are in these fraternities. Fraternities can change lives, and more often than not it is a positive change. Some of the most well-known and most successful individuals today (Warren Buffet, for example, who is an Alpha Sig) attribute part of their success to the values learned and friends made while in a fraternity. I myself have been converted from an individual who wanted nothing to do with fraternities because of the stories I've heard to a person who is proud to be a member of a fraternity.

I have nothing bad to say about my chapter, and I want others to experience the pride I have for my fraternity. Maybe one day the media will finally get the picture about what fraternities really are, but until then it is up to us to inform the world on what we are truly capable of.

My fraternity's motto is "Causa Latet Vis Est Notissima," or "The Cause is Hidden, the Results Well Known." Not everyone is going to know what goes on in a fraternity, but darn it if we are not going to show the world the great things we can do because of our involvement in Alpha Sigma Phi.

Summer Time

It seems to me like the summer is really getting to me. Summertime is for hanging out with friends, going to the beach, vacationing, relaxing, generally being in a happy mood. But I am in a sort of rut now, I think. Playing video games and watching movies can get you only so far through a summer. And as weird as it is to say, I think I may be looking forward to going back to school, if only for something to do.

I have been taking summer school every year for a long time, so being done this late in the summer is strange. My family's vacation is not dependent on my school schedule, and I have more "me" time, at least when I am not working. But having non-stop classes for so long messes with my mind. Because now that I am done for the whole summer, I don't know what to do with myself.

During the academic year, there is always something going on. Organizations have events, your friends are hanging out, you have to go downtown to buy groceries and supplies, and of course there is lots and lots of studying to be had in between classes. Thanksgiving break and Christmas Vacation were just long enough where you had some room to breathe but not so long that you start to get restless. You knew you were going back to school in a few weeks and you could use the time to prepare or start ramping up the relaxing process.

In the summer, you can take a summer class to get ahead in your academic schedule or even to retake a class you might not have done well in before. And they usually take up about half the summer, so you only have about the same amount of time as Christmas Vacation to relax, which I am totally used to.

But now... My summer class has been done a couple weeks now, I have received my grade, and now there is nothing left for me but work all week and try to relax. I am not sure what to do anymore. There's no homework to do when I get home, no test looming over my head, no missing assignments that nag me every night until I fall asleep. All this stress-free living is driving me up a wall. I am starting to come up with excuses to mark up a calendar. I am starting to think about work while I am at home. I am starting to think about studying something, anything. It is freaking me out.

This is what trying to relax feels like. Relaxing is so....stressful!

So, I think what I am trying to say is, I think I miss school.

Whoah. Did I really just say that?

Oh no wait, I didn't, because I wrote it. Okay, I feel better.

No, that's a lie. It still feels weird.

But I think the weirdest part of all of it is that I am on campus every day for my job. Still giving campus tours and filing applications just like always! But I am on campus without any classes to go to. It's like the school is taunting me!

Fortunately (if any of the rest of you can call it that) I move back into the fraternity house August 6th. The semester doesn't start until the 20th, but we have Work Week, where everyone living in the house moves in early and we work on house repairs, clean things up, and generally do the kinds of chores that are only necessary once a semester. The plan is to start earlier than we usually do (hence the early move-in date) so we have some time to relax and prepare for the impending cranial onslaught that is the fall semester.

Can't say hard labor really appeals to me all that much, but I am looking forward to getting back together with my brothers and getting ready for the fall.