A Dizzying View and a World Record

Another bridge record was overtaken last month when a Swiss bridge opened. The Charles Kuonen Suspension Bridge now holds the title for the longest pedestrian suspension bridge in the world at a length of 1621 feet. The bridge was much needed, cutting the travel time across a mountain valley from 4 hours to just 10 minutes.

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TESTIMONIAL OF THE WEEK - The Insight You’ve Been Looking For!

“Dr. Tom's 20-Week course helped me learn everything I needed to pass the PE exam on the first try. He did a better job of explaining the material than most of my professors. He was always very friendly and easy to understand. The best part about the 20-Week review is that you develop a weekly schedule of what you need to work on. Material is not crammed into a 3 or 4 week review like some other PE courses. With the 20-Week Review, you gradually rebuild and strengthen what you learned in college so you can take on the PE exam with confidence. The Exam Day Companion is worth it's weight in gold! I have already recommended my coworker to the course, and I will encourage other ME's to take the course. It was also the cheapest course I was able to find. I just wish I could shake Dr. Tom's hand and tell him thank you for everything!”
- Michael Noll, PE, Delmar Systems in Houston, TX

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PROBLEM OF THE WEEK - Mechanical: Machine Design & Materials NCEES Problem 112

Problem 112 in the NCEES Mechanical Practice Exam for Machine Design & Materials has been one of the more troublesome NCEES MDM Practice Exam problems for our participants. The solution begins with an equation that results in questions like "where did that come from?"  When I first looked at the solution I had the same question. What is lacking is a statement up front that the change in length of the bar must equal the change in length of the spring. The bar gets longer because of the increase in temperature, but it simultaneously gets shorter because of the increase in the force in the spring. Once you do that, you get the equation they started with. This is actually a great problem, and I hope my explanation helps you to understand all its fundamental concepts.  - Dr. Tom

Dr. Tom’s Solution to Mechanical: Machine Design & Materials NCEES Problem 112

DTC recommends that anyone taking the PE Exam purchase the NCEES Practice Exam for the exam they are taking. It is an essential exam review resource. https://account.ncees.org/exam-prep/ 

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Transformer-Like Self-Deploying Portable Homes

Tiny houses are all the rage these days, and RV’s have been popular for decades. The idea of taking your home with you where ever you want to go has always had an allure - think of gypsy caravans and houseboats. Today, a visionary company, Ten Fold, is taking this concept to amazing levels, with portable homes that are also marvels of mechanical engineering. Push a button, and your home converts, Transformer style, from a tractor trailer into a home complete with furniture. You’ve got to watch the video. I've lost count of how many times I have watched it to see all the incredible possibilities. Enjoy. - Dr. Tom

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Helping You Become a PE Is What We Do!

You want to be a PE. We want to help. So let’s work together to get you there. We have great review courses and we make them affordable. And right now, we’re taking it a step further and giving you a chance to win a Free or Half-Price Civil or Mechanical Review for the April 2018 PE Exam, and giving away a discount code for 10% off on a DTC PE Exam Review. All you have to is enter the DTC Fall Giveaway before September 30. And once you enter, you’ll be able to view sample lessons and see how our courses work. So what are you waiting for? Enter today and take the first step towards becoming a PE!

“I passed the April 2017 exam on my first try taking the PE, and I do not believe I would have passed without the help this course provided. Dr Tom's help in identifying errors in NCEES and PPI published solutions was very helpful and I would have been ill prepared studying on my own. Your course was tremendously helpful and I have already begun recommending it to friends and colleagues gearing up to take the PE. Just wanted to give a sincere thank you for conducting this course.”
- Patrick Cable, PE

 

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Urgent Advice for Those in the Path of Hurricane Irma!

The Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS) has new advice for home owners preparing for Irma and other fierce wind storms: SHUT ALL INTERIOR DOORS, as well as windows and exterior doors. The advice follows an intensive summer study at their unique research center in South Carolina that examined how a full scale single family home performed in scientific wind testing. Debris flies in a hurricane and if a window is broken or seals fail, wind pressure can build inside the home and press upward on a roof that is already stressed by external forces like wind, rain and debris. Closing interior doors can "compartmentalize" the pressure and reduce upward force on the roof. It's a simple step that could make a big difference in how the roof performs. This and other prep tips available. #ShutthedoorsonIrma!

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Rebuild the Golden Gate Bridge with Plastic?

Although it was built 80 years ago, the designers of the Golden Gate Bridge had fantastic strategies for some of the major challenges likely to face the span. Winds, earthquakes, and manufacturing error were all considered and accounted for. Yet, today, engineers would likely still turn to a suspension bridge to complete the job, but using more advanced materials and techniques. Ever wondered how the new versus the old bridge types might differ in material and in transferring forces? This article lays it out.

 

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TESTIMONIAL OF THE WEEK - Quick Answers To Your Questions

“I found the Participant Forum to be a useful tool to post questions and see other students questions and concerns throughout the 20 weeks. All of the questions I posted were answered by Dr. Tom within a day.”
- Chris F, PE - Westinghouse Electric Company - Irmo, SC

“Dr. Tom has a question/answer forum and was very dedicated to helping and answering all the questions I posted along the way. I would recommend the 20 week course to anyone taking the exam.”
- Britt, PE, Alexandria, VA

“Since it was an online course, I was concerned about getting answers to questions about the assigned problems, Dr. Tom has forum to answer questions and most of my questions were already asked by other students.”
- Tommy, PE, Pomona, CA

“On the participant forum, his quick and clear responses to my questions helped me at times I was stuck. Getting stuck during studying is ok, but not on the exam. I would absolutely recommend this course to anyone.”
- Stephen E. Kreidler, PE, Tulsa, OK

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PROBLEM OF THE WEEK - Civil AM: Transportation NCEES Problem 129

We're reviewing Civil AM: Transportation Problem 129 in the NCEES Civil Practice Exams together because this involves an evaluation of traffic count data in a way that is non-typical (a single day of traffic counts is used to represent a month). The key for this problem is to read and understand the problem clearly (the NCEES improved the wording of the problem through an errata). The problem is looking for a seasonal factor that can be used to multiply the Average Daily Traffic (ADT) to arrive at an estimate of the peak or seasonal daily traffic volume. Give it a try, then watch the video.

Dr. Daniel Findley’s Solution to NCEES Civil AM: Transportation Problem 129

DTC recommends that anyone taking the PE Exam purchase the NCEES Practice Exam for the exam they are taking. It is an essential exam review resource. https://account.ncees.org/exam-prep/

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Will Sailing Ships Rule the Seas Again?

As part of the worldwide pursuit to bring "green" technology to maritime shipping, a German company is planning to build a 560-foot cargo ship driven primarily by wind power. Named the Quadriga, it will have four gigantic sails, constructed of what appears to be rigid material, however strongly reminiscent of sailing days of old. A four-masted ship designed to carry as many as 2,000 cars, it will have backup diesel-electric engines and an auxiliary battery system when needed.

As the saying goes, if you wait long enough, history will repeat itself. This ship is a perfect example, wind power born out of the shortcomings of current fossil fuel technology, where current fossil fuel technology was born out of the shortcomings of wind power.

I invite you to watch the short informational video at the Maritime Executive. At the end, there is a great quote by Albert Camus, a French writer who won the Nobel Prize in 1957, "Anyone who is willing, will find ways, anyone who isn't, will find reasons not to." - Dr. Tom

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Giveaway Deadline Is Only 1 Month Away!

Don’t wait until the last minute. Enter the DTC Fall Giveaway now, and you’ll have time to look through the sample lessons and see how our courses work. You’ll also get discount code for 10% off on a DTC PE Exam Review, just in case you don’t win. That’ll save you $75 to $95 right there. Then if you are one of our lucky winners, you could receive a Free or Half-Price Civil or Mechanical Review for the April 2018 PE Exam. Here at DTC headquarters, we love helping people pass the PE Exam. So what are you waiting for? The deadline is September 30. Enter today and start sampling!

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NYC - Forget Uber, Bicycles Are What’s Hot

In the city where cars and taxis rule, bikes have mounted a comeback according to this NY Times article. In the past 12 years, daily bike trips have nearly tripled from 170,000 to 450,000, and along one section of Hoyt Street, you'll occasionally see more bicycles than cars. Transportation engineers in the city have designed and striped more than 1,000 miles of bike lanes. It just goes to show you what can happen when you provide the right infrastructure!

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TESTIMONIAL OF THE WEEK - Problem Identification - A Key to Success

“Dr. Tom's 20-week review course was very helpful at breaking down the mountain of information that is Mechanical Engineering into small bite-sized pieces. I had taken the PE twice before, and my biggest concern was problem identification and time management. I knew that these two strategies are critical to passing. On previous exams, I often times would not be able to quickly identify the question type and, therefore, wouldn’t know how to begin to solve it. I believe this was the main reason I did not pass before, and the other review course I took did not help out much with that.

It was apparent early on in Dr. Tom’s 20-Week Review course that problem identification was one of the main focuses. With the way the course topics were divided, as well as with use of the Personalized Resource Notebooks, I was able to identify problem types significantly faster than before. I believe this was the main reason I passed. Dr. Tom seems to really care about his students and course attendees, and I’m grateful his devotion has lead to such an effective review course. Dr. Tom’s course was much more effective than the other review course I took, and I would recommend Dr. Tom's 20-Week Review to others preparing for the ME PE Exam, without a doubt.”

William Allred, PE, LEED AP BD+C, RS&H
Merritt Island, Florida

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PROBLEM OF THE WEEK - Civil AM: Transportation NCEES Problem 128

We're reviewing Civil AM: Transportation Problem 128 in the NCEES Civil Practice Exams together because we typically solve vertical curve problems to find elevations along a curve (such as the elevation at a particular point or the high/low point). The key for this problem is to recall that taking a derivative of an equation will provide the slope, so by taking the derivative of the parabolic equation and using the given information, the slope at the given point can be determined. Give it a try, then watch the video.

Dr. Daniel Findley’s Solution to NCEES Civil AM: Transportation Problem 128

DTC recommends that anyone taking the PE Exam purchase the NCEES Practice Exam for the exam they are taking. It is an essential exam review resource. https://account.ncees.org/exam-prep/

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A Well-Designed Gearbox is a Beautiful Thing

ASME's Mechanical Engineering magazine’s column, "As the Turbine Turns,” for September 2017 is about one of the most important devices in a multitude of mechanical systems. In this 21st century technological world, it is surprising that this device does not have any electrical or electronic components. It's a gearbox, and in particular the article discusses a key component of the "geared turbofan" (GTF) jet engine, a planetary gearbox. Without it, velocities at the tip of the fan would easily approach supersonic speeds with all the associated problems that would cause.

In my first job as a mechanical engineer at Scientific-Atlanta, the electrical and RF engineers, the "sparkies," outnumbered the mechanical engineers, the "sledgies," by at least 20:1, maybe more. This article brought back fond memories of being one of the select "sledgies," where nothing defines us better than a well-designed gearbox.
- Dr. Tom

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