Engineering Commons^™

An Analysis Of Energy Transitions At Different Scales: Fossil Fuel Divestment In Higher Education And Individual Behavior, Elizabeth Palchak

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

A sociotechnical energy transition requires both a shift to new technologies and attention to social issues like political movements, policy and human behavior. This dissertation investigates social elements of the renewable energy transition occurring at different scales. The core research questions are: How are universities creating and responding to the shifting language of fossil fuel investments? How and for whom do behavioral interventions work? And finally, do in-home displays (IHDs) change behaviors and attitudes of millennial energy users?

The three studies covered here occurred within higher education and reflect the importance of colleges and universities as dynamic players in energy …

Quantifying The Seismic Vulnerability Of Bridges In Low To Moderate Seismicity Regions, John Edward Lens

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

The U.S. Congressional Research Service issued a report for Congress in May 2016, entitled” Earthquake Risk and U.S. Highway Infrastructure: Frequently Asked Questions” which highlighted the absence of a national database on the status of seismic vulnerability of bridges or other infrastructure, and thus no estimate of costs to retrofit vulnerable bridges. Low to moderate seismicity regions exist in each of the continental United States, with over 30 states having mostly or entirely low-to-moderate seismicity. Resources at state transportation agencies and municipalities are focused on higher seismicity regions, creating a gap in quantifying the system-wide seismic vulnerability despite an overall …