The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge

SELF-ANCHORED SUSPENSION SPAN

 

If one single element bestows the status of world-class on the new Bay Bridge, it is the Self-Anchored Suspension (SAS) Span. This engineering marvel will be the world's largest SAS bridge (2,047 feet). 

The SAS is not just another suspension bridge. Traditional main cable suspension bridges have twin cables with smaller suspender cables connected to them. These cables hold up the roadbed and are anchored to separate structures in the ground. While there will appear to be two main cables on the SAS, there is actually only one. This single cable is anchored within the eastern end of the roadway. The cable is carried over a single tower and wraps around the two side-by-side decks at the western end. 

The SAS, and the rest of the new East Span, is being built to the north of the existing bridge. By switching from the existing East Span's double-decks to side-by-side roadways, drivers will enjoy unencumbered and expansive views of the Bay Area as they pass beneath an angled canopy of suspension cables. The SAS, and Skyway, will feature a 15-foot-wide cantilevered bicycle and pedestrian path on the eastbound side of the bridge, so those traveling on foot or two wheels between Oakland and Yerba Buena Island (YBI) can enjoy those majestic views of the Bay as well. 

The new SAS bridge echoes the existing towers of the West Span, as well as the towers on the Golden Gate Bridge. All vertical elements of the SAS – the tower, piers and lights – have been designed to emphasize its clean modern lines. Adding to its distinctiveness is the asymmetrical design. The bridge will have a longer forward span (east of the tower), which will provide a more gradual transition from the gently sloping Skyway, and will give the new East Span a unique silhouette. While the new East Span will have side-by-side decks, those decks will transition to a double-deck structure at YBI, to carry traffic through the YBI tunnel and onto the West Span. 

The design features state-of-the-art seismic safety elements and will provide the East Span with a modern, streamlined appearance. Rising 525 feet above mean sea level and embedded in rock, the single-tower span is designed to withstand a massive earthquake. The single steel tower will be made up of four separate legs connected by shear link beams, which function in the same way as a fuse in an electrical circuit. These beams will absorb most of the impact from an earthquake, preventing damage to the tower legs. In addition, if one of the legs is damaged, the other legs will keep the bridge standing.

Using BIM to Improve Processes

The construction technology for the BIM (building information modeling) process continues to get better and better as time progresses, and construction companies continue to find new ways to improve the process. While some construction firms use 3D models to provide a good visual representation for the owner, others in the industry are looking even further to 4D scheduling and 5D estimating.

While contractors continue to push the BIM envelope, technology providers play an enabling role in helping improve the process—namely by creating new modules and features to help improve the technology for the industry. While BIM is already a powerful tool in the construction industry, upgrades are hitting the market all the time.

One recent example is the new version of the Vico Office Suite from construction software and services provider, Vico Software, www.vicosoftware.com, Boulder, Colo.

Vico Office enables users to launch a BIM authoring application that can then be used to perform a variety of functions including on-site production control, quantity takeoffs, model-based estimating and scheduling, as well as a constructability analysis.

The new version of Vico Office contains a number of enhancements such as interoperability with a wider range of BIM-authoring systems, which enables users to import CAD-Duct and IFC file formats.

The software can be used to convert any system used for cost estimating into a BIM-based system. Additionally, users have complete visibility into any changes made to a project in regards to system cost, quantities, and unit prices, and they can even analyze the differences in names of takeoff items used at different points in a project or separate projects.

Vico Office also comes with a Constructability Manager that allows users to perform clash detection, compare different models, as well as identify issues regarding the constructability of a project.

While BIM is a great tool for managing information about a building as it is being built, the technology also serves as an effective way to help contractors speed up processes. From 3D modeling to 5D estimating, there are a number of new capabilities contractors can do to enable the BIM process.

The Face of Facebook

Mark Zuckerberg opens up.

by Jose Antonio Vargas

The C.E.O. of Facebook wants to create, and dominate, 

a new kind of Internet.

Mark Zuckerberg founded Facebook in his college dorm room six years ago. Five hundred million people have joined since, and eight hundred and seventy-nine of them are his friends. The site is a directory of the world’s people, and a place for private citizens to create public identities. You sign up and start posting information about yourself: photographs, employment history, why you are peeved right now with the gummy-bear selection at Rite Aid or bullish about prospects for peace in the Middle East. Some of the information can be seen only by your friends; some is available to friends of friends; some is available to anyone. Facebook’s privacy policies are confusing to many people, and the company has changed them frequently, almost always allowing more information to be exposed in more ways.

According to his Facebook profile, Zuckerberg has three sisters (Randi, Donna, and Arielle), all of whom he’s friends with. He’s friends with his parents, Karen and Edward Zuckerberg. He graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy and attended Harvard University. He’s a fan of the comedian Andy Samberg and counts among his favorite musicians Green Day, Jay-Z, Taylor Swift, and Shakira. He is twenty-six years old.

Zuckerberg cites “Minimalism,” “Revolutions,” and “Eliminating Desire” as interests. He likes “Ender’s Game,” a coming-of-age science-fiction saga by Orson Scott Card, which tells the story of Andrew (Ender) Wiggin, a gifted child who masters computer war games and later realizes that he’s involved in a real war. He lists no other books on his profile.

Zuckerberg’s Facebook friends have access to his e-mail address and his cell-phone number. They can browse his photograph albums, like one titled “The Great Goat Roast of 2009,” a record of an event held in his back yard. They know that, in early July, upon returning from the annual Allen & Company retreat for Hollywood moguls, Wall Street tycoons, and tech titans, he became Facebook friends with Barry Diller. Soon afterward, Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page, “Is there a site that streams the World Cup final online? (I don’t own a TV.)”

Read more http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/09/20/100920fa_fact_vargas?currentPage=all#ixzz13HNda6h4

Secrets of the Great Titanic Disaster Revealed

Louise Patten revealed in her new book, Good As Gold, that human error was the main cause of the great Titanic disaster in 1912.

 

The granddaughter of Second Officer Charles Lightoller who served in the liner and knew what happened on April 14 1912, revealed that the ship had plenty of time to avoid crashing into the iceberg and not because it failed to see it earlier as widely believed.

According to the book, the disaster was caused by a steering error where the helmsman panicked, took a wrong turn, and caused the famous voyeur to struck the iceberg, the Telegraph reported.

"They could have easily avoided the iceberg if it wasn't for the blunder," she was quoted as saying in the daily.

Patten's book also claimed that the First Officer William Murdoch saw the iceberg two miles away but his command "hard a starboard" was misinterpreted.

She blamed the Tiller and Rudder steering systems in operation for the disaster as the command "hard a starboard" meant turn the wheel right under the Tiller system, but turn left under the Rudder system.  

The family secret was kept for nearly 100 years because Lightoller decided to cover up the error worrying that it might cause White Star Line, Titanic's owner, to go bankrupt while his colleagues lose their jobs.

Titanic hit the iceberg on April 14 1912 and sank in between 11.40pm until 2.20am on April 15, causing some 1,500 casualties.

A SIMPLE COMPUTER PROBLEM?

My grateful thanks to a friend for sending me the following post. When making your way to Open Houses or for holidays, please drive safely. Have a nice day everyone. Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri!

_______________________________________

"Technical Support, how can I help you?"

FEMALE CALLER: "Last night my computer started making a lot of hissing noises at me so I shut it down. This morning when I turned it on the computer started hissing and cracking, then started smoking and a bad smell, then nothing."

TECH SUPPORT: "I will have a technician come over first thing this morning. Leave the computer just like it is, so they can find the problem and fix it, or change it out with another computer. Give me your address; phone number and the technician will be there just as soon as he can."

When the technician got there, the lady showed him where the computer was, said what happened to it, and this is what the technician found wrong ....

Take a look at the pictures... YOU WON'T BELIEVE YOUR EYES....

And you thought YOU had computer problems!!!

The technician told her,... "it must have been after the mouse!"

The woman didn't think that was funny at all!


Computer Repair

Caller: Hi, our printer is not working.

Customer Service: What is wrong with it?

Caller: Mouse is jammed.

Customer Service: Mouse? ... Printers don't have mouse!!!

Caller: Mmmmmm?? ... Oh really? ... I'll send you a picture ...

Eid Mubarak!

 

PRAYER FOR PEACE

Oh Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful, grant us peace and Iman, safety and Islam, and guidance to perform all that you please.

Oh Allah, the Generous, the Gracious, grant all goodness to Muslims, and all blessings to the faithful, and all mercies to mankind.

Oh Allah, guide this Ummah to do the best, bless this Ummah to be loving and compassionate, help this Ummah to spread good and peace to all mankind.

Oh Allah, remove all conflicts and hatred that is happening. Grant peace and restore human dignity in this world. Safe this earth from destruction due to human ignorance, grant our country and the entire world with safety, peace, calmness, tranquillity, progress and development.

Oh Allah, may this day of ours be better than yesterday. May our tomorrow be better than today. Please grant us positive outcomes in all our endeavours. Save us from disappointment both in this world and in the hereafter.

Oh Allah, the Gentle, the Sustainer, may peace and calmness prevail in this world. Guide mankind to uphold justice and equality. Protect our young from misguidance. Give us the strength to spread your true message. Strengthen us to be a blessing to all mankind - Ameen.

I would like to wish Muslims all over the world happiness, prosperity and all things good; now and forever

Eid Mubarak everyone!

Coult It Be Due To Perception?

Some of you might be wondering why I am posting so many jokes all of a sudden. Well, I don't know about you but I feel deeply saddened by the many issues which have surfaced of late and efforts by some to sow seeds of divisiveness and discord. It makes me wonder how we regard one another in this nation we call our own.

 

This is a very important season to Muslims all over the world and I am trying to do my part to keep a lively and happy atmosphere in this space. It is not that I am trying to run away from the situation or problems at hand.

Rather, there are already so many sites which have posted articles lamenting or lambasting events, characters or issues. Having another one does not alleviate the frustration or negativism that surrounds us.

It is most disconcerting to see how perception and motivation can affect the way we regard others.

Perception is the act or faculty of apprehending by means of the senses or of the mind; cognition; understanding. This reaction can be an immediate or intuitive one based on moral, psychological or aesthetic qualities. Some could rely on their insight, intuition or discernment.

It is very easy to find fault with others. However, tact and sensitivity to other people's feelings are needed when we formulate our messages.

Believe me - it is easier to scold and to attack others than to craft a message that drives home the point without hurting the feeling of others.

Perhaps it is a question of objectives in communication. I guess we all have to examine our motives in communicating, including myself. The meaning of the message is not just in the words but is is dependent on the receiver who assigns   meanings to the words of that messages.

I truly appeal to all to think of this nation. We are living in the most challenging and disappointing times but we cannot be swept away by the currents of strife raging at the moment.

We have to keep a level head, exercise restraint, wisdom and take calculated moves to ensure that we can look forward to a bright future.

Thanks! Take care and have a pleasant day!

Hilarious Letter to CEO

The following letter is fictitious. I am posting if for anyone suffering from Monday blues and also for the sake of humor. No offense to anyone! Take care and have a nice day! Cheers!

Microsoft's Bill Gates decided not to invest further in Punjab after receiving a letter from Mr Banta Singh.

To: Bill Gates, Microsoft
From: Banta Singh of Punjab, India
Date: 1 April 2009
Subject: Problems with my new computer

Dear Mr. Bill Gates,

We bought a computer for our home and we have found some problems, which I want to bring to your notice..

1. There is a button 'start' but there is no 'stop' button. We request you to check this.

2. One doubt is whether any 're-scooter' is available in system? I find only 're-cycle', but I own a scooter at my home.

3. There is 'Find' button but it is not working. My wife lost the door key and we tried a lot to trace the key with this 'find button', but was unable to trace. Please rectify this problem.

4. My child learn 'Microsoft Word' now he wants to learn 'Microsoft Sentence', so when you will provide that?

5. I bought computer, CPU, mouse and keyboard, but there is only one icon which shows 'My Computer': when you will provide the remaining items?

6. It is surprising that windows says 'My Pictures' but there is not even a single photo of mine. So when will you keep my photo in that.

7. There is 'Microsoft Office' what about ' Microsoft Home' since I use the PC at home only.

8. You provide 'My Recent Documents'. When you will provide 'My Past Documents'?

9. You provide 'My Network Places'. For God sake please do not provide 'My Secret Places'. I do not want to let my wife know where I go after my office hours.


Regards,
Banta

Last one Mr. Bill Gates

P.S. "Sir, how is it that your name is Gates but you are selling WINDOWS?"

You HAVE to Listen!

Wanda's dishwasher quit working so she called in a repairman. Since she had to go to work the next day, she told the repairman, 'I'll leave the key under the mat. Fix the dishwasher, leave the bill on the counter, and I'll mail you a check. Oh, by the way don't worry about my dog Spike. He won't bother you.'

 

 

'But, whatever you do, do NOT, under ANY circumstances, talk to my parrot!'

 

 

 'I MUST STRESS TO YOU: DO NOT TALK TO MY PARROT!!!'

 

When the repairman arrived at Wanda's apartment the following day, he discovered the biggest, ,meanest looking dog he has ever seen. But, just as she had said, the dog just lay there on the carpet watching the repairman go about his work.

The parrot, however, drove him nuts the whole time with his incessant yelling, cursing and name calling.

Finally the repairman couldn't contain himself any longer and yelled, 'Shut up, you stupid, ugly bird!'

To which the parrot replied, 'Get him Spike!'

See - Men just don't listen!

Just kidding - I put this up for the sake of humor. Have a pleasant day, everyone!

A Man, A Woman and the ATM

No offense to anyone. :-) Am posting this for the sake of humor and also Saturday madness. Take care and have a great day!

MALE VS. FEMALE AT THE ATM MACHINE
A new sign in the Bank Lobby reads:

'Please note that this Bank is installing new Drive-Through ATM machines enabling customers to withdraw cash without leaving their vehicles.

Customers using this new facility are requested to use the procedures outlined below when accessing their accounts.

After months of careful research, MALE & FEMALE Procedures have been developed. Please follow the Appropriate steps for your gender.'

************************************

 

MALE PROCEDURE:

1. Drive up to the cash machine.
2. Put down your car window.
3. Insert card into machine and enter PIN.
4. Enter amount of cash required and withdraw.
5. Retrieve card, cash and receipt.
6. Put window up.
7. Drive off.


FEMALE PROCEDURE:
What really funny is that most of this part is the Truth!

1. Drive up to cash machine.
2. Reverse and back-up the required amount to align car window with the machine.
3. Set parking brake, put the window down.
4. Find handbag, remove all contents on to passenger seat to locate card.
5. Tell person on cell phone you will call them back and hang up....
6. Attempt to insert card into machine.
7. Open car door to allow easier access to machine due to its excessive distance from the car.
8. Insert card.
9. Re-insert card the right way.
10. Dig through handbag to find diary with your PIN written on the inside page.
11. Enter PIN.
12. Press cancel and re-enter correct PIN.
13. Enter amount of cash required.
14. Check make-up in rear view mirror.
15. Retrieve cash and receipt.....
16. Empty handbag again to locate wallet and place cash inside.
17. Write debit amount in check register and place receipt in back of checkbook.
18. Re-check make-up.
19. Drive forward 2 feet.
20. Reverse back to cash machine.
21. Retrieve card.
22. Re-empty handbag, locate card holder, and place card into the slot provided!
23. Give dirty look to irate male driver waiting behind you.
24. Restart stalled engine and pull off.
25. Redial person on cell phone...
26. Drive for 2 to 3 miles.
27. Release Parking Brake.

SEND THIS TO A MAN WHO NEEDS A LAUGH,
AND TO THE LADIES who can handle it .... they need a laugh, too!

PUPPIES FOR SALE

A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell. He painted a sign advertising the pups and set about nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard. 

As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his overalls. He looked down into the Eyes of a little boy. 

Mister," he said, "I want to buy one of your puppies." 

"Well," said the farmer, as he rubbed the sweat off the back of his neck, "these puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money." 

The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer. "I've got thirty-nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?"

"Sure," said the farmer. 

And with that he let out a whistle,"Here,Dolly!" he called.

Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur. The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence. His eyes danced with delight.

As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse. Slowly another little ball appeared; this one noticeably smaller. Down the ramp it slid. Then in a somewhat awkward manner the little pup began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up....

"I want that one," the little boy said, pointing to the runt. 

The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, "Son, you don't want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would."

With that the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe. 

Looking back up at the farmer, he said, "You see sir, I don't run too well myself, and he will need Someone who understands." 

The world is full of people who need someone who understands.