|
Graduate Student Paper |
|
| “Shin-Tai Song a doctoral student in the Civil Engineering
Department at the University of California, Davis is the recipient of the
first Nevada Medal for Distinguished Graduate Student Paper in Bridge Engineering,”
Professor M. Saiidi of the Civil Engineering Department at the University
of Nevada, Reno announced recently. Mr. Song is working under the
direction of Professor Rob Chai of UC-Davis. His paper was selected
among 11 entries from 6 countries. Evaluators were from a group of
internationally-recognized authorities in bridge research and design.
The award includes a plaque, an engraved 14-K gold pin, and a $1,000 check.
The funding for the award is provided through an endowment established
by Simon Wong Engineering of San Diego, California. Mr. Wong completed
a BSCE (’79) and an MSCE (’84) degree in civil engineering at the University
of Nevada, Reno.
The title of Mr. Song’s paper was: “Live Load Distribution
in Box Girder Bridges.” A large number of bridges throughout the
world are of box girder type. The way the weight of heavy trucks
on these bridges is shared among different members is not well understood.
As a result provisions in design codes are overly restrictive. Using
elaborate computer simulation, Mr. Song was able to come up with rational
recommendations that the evaluators found to be of great benefit to bridge
designers and researchers. Mr. Song is very excited about his field
of research and hopes to contribute to the bridge engineering profession
by continuing his research and design following graduation
|