MIT: Independent Activities Period: IAP

IAP 2016



Infrastructure Design for Climate Change

Herbert Einstein, Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Ari Epstein, Lecturer, Terrascope

Jan/11 Mon 10:00AM-12:00PM 1-371
Jan/12 Tue 10:00AM-12:00PM 1-371
Jan/13 Wed 10:00AM-12:00PM 1-371
Jan/14 Thu 10:00AM-12:00PM 1-371
Jan/15 Fri 10:00AM-12:00PM 1-371
Jan/20 Wed 10:00AM-12:00PM 1-371

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 12/15
Limited to 20 participants
Attendance: Participants must attend all sessions
Prereq: Undergraduate studies (ongoing or past) in any engineering d

In this team-oriented, project-based class, students will work to find technical solutions that could be implemented to mitigate the effects of climate change, bearing in mind that any proposed measures must be appropriate in a given region’s socio-political-economic context. The specific problem will be the effect of sea level rise. As a case study, students will work on measures related to the cities of Cambridge, Boston, and as much as possible Singapore, with input from officials of appropriate city agencies and/or local NGO’s. The issues and solutions will have direct relevance to large, coastal cities elsewhere.

Students will also learn the basics of the observational/adaptable approach to design, essentially having a feedback loop of “design-construction-operation-design adaptation”. This approach to design is already practiced to some extent, but is likely to become much more common in the near future, both because of advances in embedded-sensor technology and because of its relevance to high-uncertainty contexts such as that presented by climate change.

Sponsor(s): MIT-SUTD Collaboration, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Contact: Ari Epstein, 16-177, 617-253-3666, awe@mit.edu