The Science & Society Distinguished Public Talks series continues Thursday, Nov. 13, with a talk presented by Robert B. Gilbert, Brunswick-Abernathy Professor of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering at the University of Texas, in Austin. Gilbert’s talk titled, 'Hurricane Katrina and the New Orleans Levees: What Went Wrong and Why,' will be held at 5 p.m. in the Conference Center, rm. G at the UNM Continuing Education building located at 1634 University Blvd., N.E. The talk is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served at 4:30 p.m.
On the morning of August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans and triggered what would become one of the worst engineering disasters in the nation’s history. The levees and the floodwalls protecting the area failed and allowed water to pour into the city. More than 1,500 people lost their lives.
The educational and healthcare systems have been crippled and more than 400,000 residents who fled the city and have not returned. It will take decades for New Orleans to recover. A discussion is presented as to how the engineering and science professions can learn and improve in the wake of this disaster.
Gilbert’s technical focus is on risk analysis and management for civil engineering systems. Recent activities include analyzing the performance of offshore drilling platforms and pipelines in hurricanes; managing earthquake and flooding risks for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in California; and performing a forensic analysis of the New Orleans levee failures.
The Science & Society Distinguished Public Talks Co-sponsored by the Albuquerque Section of the Institute of Electrical & Electronic Engineers (IEEE), Sigma Xi (the Scientific Research Society), the Department of Physics & Astronomy, the College of Arts & Sciences, the School of Engineering, the University Honors Program and the Division of Continuing Education.