Ford Model T Research Paper

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Travelling across the country in an old Ford Model T would never be easy; but, traveling in a Model T on a bumpy dirt road with ruts and holes, almost unbearable. Thankfully, many advances in America’s roadway systems came about in the 1900s. Traveling from one city to another became not only quicker and easier, but also safer, thanks to the many innovations that roadways experienced over the last century. Many engineers put in a lot of time and effort to make these innovations and need to be accredited for their scientific achievements. However, getting to the roadway system that we take for granted today did not happen overnight. It took new technology and some brilliant minds to bring the pieces together to form the luxury of nice, smooth They had to make some of the biggest engineering breakthroughs of their time. The creation of asphalt as a byproduct of oil refining, for example, now allowed the creation of roads that were smoother to drive on and less harmful to the environment. Before this discovery, asphalt was mined and stripped from underneath the earth’s surface. Engineers did not stop there though. The permeable asphalt that allows a little expansion incorporates chemistry and makes roadways stronger and less likely to create potholes or breaks in the road. Even the creation of Botts’ painted road markers had to take into account not only the chemistry of the paint, but also some earth science techniques. He decided elevating the road markers to allow water to drain off of them would be the best option, so that the color does not fade. “Botts’ Dots” are still the design used for road markers today. The Golden Gate bridge, standing as an icon of roadway innovations, took multiple engineers years to design and complete. They could not just simply build an ordinary bridge. They had to take into consideration the physics behind it, as well as, what kind of effect the environment would have upon the bridge. The bridge sits along one of the most active fault lines in the world, so engineers had to make sure their bridge could withstand a little movement. Today the Golden Gate bridge still stands tried and true, as does many other One of these new innovations is glow in the dark road markings. This new technology uses solar power obtained from the road throughout the day to “charge” the photo-luminising powder that is the glow in the dark lights. Expensive lighting will be replaced with this more cost efficient option that can glow up to eight hours a night. This innovation can already be found on the N329 highway in Oss, Netherlands. Other advancements in lighting to come include wind powered lights and interactive lights. Wind powered street lights will be powered by the gusts of wind created when a car passes by, reducing the need to burn fossil fuels to power the lights. Interactive lights will be turned off but as a car approaches they light up, then fade back away as the car passes by. Smart new technology has the future of roadway systems

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