- Legislation Introduced to Codify Stem Cell Rules
- Commissioner Enhances FDA’s Commitment to Personalized Medicine
- Perfecting Policy on Stem Cells
- NIH and FDA Aim to Retool Regulatory Science
- DOE Leads Federal Funding for a Regional Innovation Cluster
- Certainty on the Science of Climate Change
- They’re Not Perfect Cells, But They’re Model Cells
- Genomic Medicine on the March
- President’s Budget Aims to Recharge Regional Innovation
- Event: The Science of Climate Change
- Progress in Bioethics
- The Top Science Progress Features of 2009
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
- November 2007
- October 2007
- September 2007
Design Flaw Likely Cause of Minneapolis Bridge Collapse
A design flaw in the gusset plates joining steel beams may have been the culprit in the I-35 bridge collapse outside of Minneapolis that killed 13 people last August. According to the National Transportation Safety Board, investigators found failed plates that were sized a half an inch too thin in the original design. The “design error” means the bridge was unsound from day one and would have never been discovered by inspectors who check for corrosion and cracks. The NTSB investigation is far from over and a complete understanding of all factors in the collapse is still a long way away. Tragedies such as these could be avoided in the future by implementing wireless sensor technology to monitor bridges continuously for dangerous loads and stresses. Reece Rushing discussed some of these technologies in a recent Science Progress article.
Image credit: AP/John Weeks III
Comments on this article


