Interview with a civil engineer.

Interview of a civil engineer

First of all, thanks for your time, I know that you don’t have much time so I appreciate this a lot.

1.     What’s your name?

My name is Pedro González.

2.      Why you decided to study Civil engineering?

It is a career that requires effort and dedication, but one of my passions is building, so it wasn´t an effort as big as it could be.

3.      Could you define the Civil Engineering?

Engineering that uses: knowledge of calculus, mechanics, hydraulics and chemistry to develop the design, construction and maintenance of infrastructure deployed in the environment, including roads, railways, bridges…

4.      Have you study a master? Related to?

Yes, I have studied a master of International Business Administration in Boston.

5.      What characteristics or skills define a civil engineer?

Extensive knowledge in the administration of mechanics, calculus and also hydraulics, it depends in the project you are involved.

6.      How many time after finishing your degree were you waiting until you start working?

None, I started working two days after I finish studying my degree. Very fast in my opinión.

7.      Is the workplace a civil engineer turned their expectations?

Not yet.

8.      What contributions to society gives a civil engineer?

Create roads, building, bridges and dams.

9.      Would you have been interested in some other career? Why?

I am always looking to expand my knowledge and be more prepared for everything.

The Fibonacci series

The Fibonacci series.

The spiral, Fibonacci series and golden sequence is well known in the mathematical scene. At the end of s. XII, the Italian mathematician Leonardo of Pisa (1170-1240), who was better known as Fibonacci, described this formula as a solution to a problem of raising rabbits. The formula had been described earlier by Hindu mathematicians Gopala and Hemachandra, who investigated the rhythmic patterns that formed syllables with one or two pulses. The number of such rhythms (keeping together a number n of pulses) was F (n +1), which is like sed n +1 represents the term of the Fibonacci sequence. Kepler also wrote of such succession.

In 1202, Fibonacci published his book Liber Abaci, which included several problems and algebraic methods. The famous spiral, called "Fibonacci sequence" appears constantly in nature. The can see for example:

- Counting the scales of a pineapple. After watching her, you'd be surprised that appear spirally around the corner in equal numbers to the terms specified in the Fibonacci sequence.

- Also in pineapples sunflower. In them, a network of spirals are formed, some that go in the direction of clockwise and others to the contrary, but in any case always, quantities of ones and others are consecutive terms of the Fibonacci sequence.

This sequence so beloved by fans of mathematics, is formed by adding the previous two series elements, 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144 Apparently ... it could be either a mathematical series, with no relevance, but no. Besides being very important in the application of various theories (computer science, mathematics, biological settings and game theory), is very curious and does not fail to call attention, as this series appears in nature in an optical way.

The sequence of this series starts with 0 and 1 and thereafter every element is the sum of the previous two. 

Each element forming this sequence is called the Fibonacci number.

And it all started with a problem of raising rabbits. It was the following:

A certain man had one pair of rabbits together in a closed room and one wishes to know how many are created from this pair in a year when nature bear another pair in a single month, and in the second month also born calve.

So  we see that:

 

As you can see in the picture, the number of partners over the months coincide with the terms set out in succession. Simplified: the sequence is used to determine the number of couples who have rabbits in twelve months and also to know if these are played continuously, and if each pair of rabbits produces a new pair of rabbits (one male and one female). Each rabbit you can cross to the age of one month, and its gestation period one month.

The gold number

The gold number:

The gold number is the ratio or proportion there is between two segments of lines. It was discovered in antiquity, and can be found not only in geometrical figures, but also in nature. You may find this relationship in various works of art or architecture. For example, the Vitruvian Man, drawn by Leonardo Da Vinci and considered a beauty ideal, is provided as the gold number. What is the origin and significance of this mathematical value?

There are numbers that have intrigued us for centuries. Values ​​such as PI-mathematical ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter-usually occur as a result of most diverse equations or proportions of various natural objects. The golden ratio also has many interesting properties and appears hidden and enigmatic, in the most diverse places.

The first to make a formal study on the golden ratio was Euclid, about three centuries before Christ, in his Elements. Euclid defined its value by saying that "a straight line is divided at the end and proportional when the whole line is to the greater segment as the greater the younger." The value of this ratio is a number, as Euclid proved, can’t be described as the ratio of two whole numbers (is irrational and owns infinite decimal) whose approximate value is 1.6180339887498 ...

Math time

Mathematic rule

Calculus video-exercise