Media Advisory 07-026
Bridges on the Brink?

Panel to discuss what we know and what we need to know about structurally deficient U.S. bridges

Artists rendition showing interior of a bridge similar in structure to the I35-W bridge. Credit and Larger Version

September 12, 2007

The tragedy of the I-35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis alerted many to the urgent need to better monitor and maintain thousands of bridges across the United States. For decades, engineers have been studying these bridges and calculating their risk of failure, yet many proposed solutions have not been adopted.

NSF's Directorate for Engineering and the Office of Legislative and Public Affairs invite you to attend a presentation to learn what engineers know about our at-risk bridges; what they are hoping to learn from the I-35W collapse; and how cutting-edge technologies, some already in the testing stages, may provide answers for how to monitor and maintain the long list of bridges deemed structurally deficient.

Presentations Include:

"Bridge Lifecycles, Cradle to Grave"
Richard Sause, Lehigh Univ.

"Learning from I-35W, An Early Look"
Taichiro Okazaki, Univ. of Minnesota

"Bridging New Applications"
Antonio Nanni, Univ. of Miami

When: Wed., Sept. 19, 2007, 2 p.m. - 3 p.m

Where: National Science Foundation
4201 Wilson Blvd., Room 110
Arlington, VA 22230 (Ballston Metro stop)
Enter at corner of 9th & Stuart Streets

The event is open to the public. Registration is requested to ensure that sufficient space is available. Please contact Josh Chamot at jchamot@nsf.gov or (703) 292-7730.

-NSF-

Media Contacts
Joshua A. Chamot, NSF (703) 292-7730 jchamot@nsf.gov

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering, with an annual budget of $6.06 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to over 1,900 universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives about 45,000 competitive requests for funding, and makes over 11,500 new funding awards. NSF also awards over $400 million in professional and service contracts yearly.

 Get News Updates by Email 

Useful NSF Web Sites:
NSF Home Page: http://www.nsf.gov
NSF News: http://www.nsf.gov/news/
For the News Media: http://www.nsf.gov/news/newsroom.jsp
Science and Engineering Statistics: http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/
Awards Searches: http://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/