TAM Alumnus David Raske Introduces Students to Forensic Engineering

6/25/2012 By Linda H. Conway

TAM Alumnus David Raske shared his experiences as a professional engineering with TAM 195 classFreshmen students in TAM 195, Mechanics in the Modern World, were introduced in early October to the field of forensic engineering by UIUC alumnus David T. Raske.

Written by By Linda H. Conway

TAM Alumnus David Raske shared his experiences as a professional engineering with TAM 195 class
TAM Alumnus David Raske shared his experiences as a professional engineering with TAM 195 class
TAM Alumnus David Raske shared his experiences as a professional engineering with TAM 195 class
Freshmen students in TAM 195, Mechanics in the Modern World, were introduced in early October to the field of forensic engineering by UIUC alumnus David T. Raske.

Dr. Raske received his Ph.D. in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in 1972. He is one of several alumni who are invited each year by the course instructor Prof. James Phillips to show new engineering students how the mechanics courses, which they have yet to take, will prepare them to work in a wide variety of engineering settings.

Dr. Raske, whose interests have led him to pursue many different avenues of engineering throughout his career—from designing race cars as a young man to nuclear safety at Argonne National Laboratory— has visited campus on several previous occasions to talk to students about his experiences as a professional engineer.

Over the course of his career, Dr. Raske has become an expert in forensic engineering and has served as a consultant in a number of accident reconstructions. In his recent presentation, Dr. Raske used the cases of several high-profile disasters, such as the Hyatt-Regency walkway collapse in Kansas City and the I-35 freeway collapse in Minneapolis, to demonstrate how engineers were able to use different mechanics principles to reconstruct the circumstances that led to structural and material failures. Sometimes accidents occur when common-sense observations are overlooked or ignored, he explained. He cited the I-35 case where careful examination of the gusset plates and beam joints should have revealed a dangerous situation that invited an accident of the type that eventually occurred.

Earlier in the semester, alumnus Bill Fortino (BS, EM ‘96) of Cabot Corporation talked to the class about opportunities in the microelectronics industry. A more recent alumna, Rachael Herbert (BS, EM ‘08), who is now employed by Sargent and Lundy, a global company that specializes in professional services for electric power and energy intensive clients, also met with the class and fielded many questions about the future of nuclear power.

During the second half of the semester, students will get a taste of real-world problem solving when they are assigned to teams, which will then compete to design a structure made only of 2x4s. The structural failures that will inevitably occur will be considered part of the learning experience, and will illustrate the need for their upcoming courses in mechanics.


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This story was published June 25, 2012.