Every morning, many of us wake up and travel to work with various modes of transportation. We travel in cars, bicycles, trains, buses, and other miscellaneous vehicles. Some go to school, others work and the rest do various things through out the day. I can continue on to name different things we all do through out the day, and every single thing is affected by engineering. Engineering can be defined as a branch of science that incorporates science and technology to create practically anything. In this course we have talked about various structures, including bridges, historical and religious buildings, and other various architect through the centuries. All of the ingenuity and thinking that went into the creation of these structures deals with engineering. Two particular structures we analyzed were the Golden Gate Bridge and the Brooklyn Bridge. Both were huge accomplishments in the field of engineering and they show the technological advances that engineering has made over time.

Engineering is applying sciences, technology and using ideas to create ways to better civilizations.  People start to engineer small and large objects when they see the need. There is evidence that dates back thousands of years where people have created and built things based on their needs.  The Mayans and the Aztecs engineer their towns and villages around their needs and religious beliefs.  In modern civilization we look to create things to help make life more efficient.  In result of that we sometimes end up harming our environments, and to make up for that we begin to engineer even more.  The things we have looked to engineer take a lot of time and energy but without having these things life would be much more difficult.  Engineering is not only used to change what we have as a society, but to look at finds ways to better the world we live in.

Engineering as i’ve learned it it the building and construction of structures within societies. It can be irrigation cannals with the Tono O’ohan society of the southern states or the grand dome of Hagia Sopheia in Turkey. Engineering is not just about building houses and it can be as profound as centralizing structure from which a society is developed for example with the Incans.  I think engineering is often over looked with history but the way buildings and structures are built, the materials used and thier appearance are incredibly powerful clues to the past of societies. And by observing this we can also learn how to preserve these historical pieces and improve or own structures. When researches studied Hagia Sophea for structural integrity they found the the materials and composition was extremely well suited for the earthquake frequented area which has allowed for it to endure thousands of years.  After testing a model of structure in simulations they found that the largest recorded earthquake in man kind would have to be tripled to destroy the structure. I think this kind of discovery is incredibly insightful not only in the countries history but how valuable knowledge of the past can be in the present.