Cities with empty commercial space and housing shortages are converting office buildings into apartments – here’s what they’re learning

Turning excess office space into apartments isn’t a panacea for the housing shortage, but it’s producing thousands of new units yearly and is more sustainable and economical than new construction.

John Weigand, Professor of Architecture and Interior Design and Interim Dean, College of Creative Arts, Miami University • conversation
June 13, 2024 • ~9 min

Acapulco was built to withstand earthquakes, but not Hurricane Otis' destructive winds – how building codes failed this resort city

The best science is not always the best engineering when it comes to building codes. It’s also a problem across the US, as an engineer who works on disaster resilience explains.

Michel Bruneau, Professor of Engineering, University at Buffalo • conversation
Nov. 7, 2023 • ~9 min

Two years after its historic deep freeze, Texas is increasingly vulnerable to cold snaps – and there are more solutions than just building power plants

Texas wasn’t prepared to keep the lights on during Winter Storm Uri, and it won’t be ready for future cold weather unless it starts thinking about energy demand as well as supply.

Matthew Skiles, PhD Student in Mechanical Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin • conversation
Feb. 10, 2023 • ~13 min

Dreaming of beachfront real estate? Much of Florida's coast is at risk of storm erosion that can cause homes to collapse, as Daytona just saw

Dozens of homes near Daytona Beach collapsed or were left unstable when Hurricane Nicole struck. Here’s what can be done to reduce that kind of risk.

Zhong-Ren Peng, Professor of Urban and Regional Planning, University of Florida • conversation
Nov. 23, 2022 • ~8 min

How to build wildfire-resistant communities on the wildland fringe

As more people move into high fire-risk areas and rebuilding after destructive blazes, an architect explains what to do to keep properties as safe as possible.

Jeanne Homer, Professor of Architecture, Oklahoma State University • conversation
Feb. 1, 2022 • ~9 min

Florida condo collapse – searching for answers about what went wrong in Surfside can improve building regulation

Investigators are searching for what caused the tall apartment building near Miami to suddenly fail. What they find could lead to changes in building codes.

Norb Delatte, M.R. Lohmann Professor of Engineering and the Head of the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Oklahoma State University • conversation
June 28, 2021 • ~7 min

After a record 22 billion-dollar disasters in 2020, it's time to overhaul US disaster policy – here's how

NOAA released its list of climate and weather disasters that cost the nation more than $1 billion each. Like many climate and weather events this past year, it shattered the record.

Deb Niemeier, Clark Distinguished Chair and Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Maryland • conversation
Jan. 8, 2021 • ~11 min

After a record 22 billion-dollar disasters in 2020, it's time to make US disaster policy more effective and equitable – here's how

NOAA released its list of climate and weather disasters that cost the nation more than $1 billion each. Like many climate and weather events this past year, it shattered the record.

Deb Niemeier, Clark Distinguished Chair and Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Maryland • conversation
Jan. 8, 2021 • ~11 min

We’ll see more fire seasons like 2020 - here’s a strategy for managing our nation’s flammable landscapes

A fire scientists offers a six-point strategy for preventing wildfires and living safely in flammable landscapes.

Jennifer Balch, Associate Professor of Geography and Director, Earth Lab, University of Colorado Boulder • conversation
Nov. 12, 2020 • ~8 min

Wildfires can leave toxic drinking water behind – here's how to protect the public

Two environmental engineers say governments need to do more to protect people from possible water contamination after wildfires.

Caitlin R. Proctor, Lillian Gilbreth Postdoctoral Fellow, Purdue University • conversation
Sept. 17, 2020 • ~9 min

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