UT Civil Mail News No.9

Transcription

1 UT Civil Mail News No.9 April 2, 2015 We have started to send monthly mail news to alumni members who have registered for our on-line network and would like to provide useful and interesting topics for members. If you have any requests, feel free to send an to: The topics in the February issue include: 1. Professor Emeritus Yutaka TAKAHASHI was awarded the Japan Prize A field report from Coastal Engineering Laboratory 3. Furuichi Award in Spring, 2015 At Komaba, IIS campus, March 31, by Etri (M2 Meguro Lab)

2 1. Professor Emeritus Yutaka TAKAHASHI was awarded the Japan Prize 2015 Professor Emeritus Yutaka TAKAHASHI, who graduated in 1950 from our alma mater, was awarded this year s Japan Prize in the field of Resources, Energy and Social Infrastructure. The Japan Prize is a very prestigious international award presented to individuals whose original and outstanding achievements have contributed to peace and prosperity for humankind through scientific technology in the selected two fields not covered by the Nobel Prize. Its laureates receive a certificate of merit, a prize medal and a cash prize of 50M Yen. Pic: From HP of Japan Prize Professor Takahashi's achievements in the field of hydrology and river engineering are recognized as developing innovative concepts on river basin management and reduction of water-related disasters. At the press meeting to announce the award, he emphasized that the issues raised in his research should be treated holistically, from the source to the river mouth. He has also been devoted to regional cooperation and human resource cultivation in this field in the Asia monsoon area. The award ceremony will be held on April 23, 2015, at the Tokyo Forum, with the attendance of the Emperor and Empress, and the commemorative lectures are scheduled for April 21 (sponsored by the Japan Prize Foundation) and May 18 (sponsored by the Japan Society of Civil Engineers). We, members of the alumni of UT, cordially congratulate Dr. Yutaka Takahashi on receiving this prestigious award. (Manabu Ito) 2. A field report from the Coastal Engineering Laboratory The Coastal Engineering Laboratory deals with natural processes and their interactions with human activities in coastal zones. Coastal physical processes, which are governed by complex dynamics between water, air and land in different scales, occasionally produce extreme phenomena which have a great impact on our lives. For a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of these dynamic environments, we have long been conducting field studies at numerous sites inside and

3 outside the country. We collect various data, employing innovative field instruments and techniques, interpret them through theoretical analysis and laboratory experiments, and synthesize the results to form models for prediction, and thereby control of, the complicated coastal processes. Among a number of recent field work projects, here we share some photographs from our post-event survey of coastal impacts by super typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. Super typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines in November, 2013, causing severe damage, especially in Leyte and Samar islands, through the development of strong winds, storm surges and waves. This compound disaster has resulted in about 7,000 fatalities and missing people and has caused numerous tragedies in the affected coastal towns. We chose to investigate the typhoon s impact on natural coasts rather than the tragic scenes evidenced in human communities. Please look at the fury of the strongest recorded typhoon (the lowest central pressure: 895hpa and the maximum instantaneous wind speed: 88 m/s) on the Pacific Coast of Eastern Samar where it first made landfall. Upper-left: Palm trees toppled by winds and high waves. Upper-right: Severe beach erosion. The original beach surface was above the head of the person in the photograph. Lower-right: A giant boulder cast ashore by the extreme waves. Its circumference was about 4 m.

4 3. Furuichi Award in 2015 Spring The following five students have got Furuichi award for their master theses this spring! Mr. KEITA KAMIYA (Regional Planning and Information Lab.) Statistical Anomaly Detection for Monitoring of Human Dynamics Mr. KENTA OITATE (Concrete Lab) Experimental Investigation and Thermodynamic Analysis of Physical Properties of Cementitious Materials Exposed to Supercritical CO2 Mr. SADANOBU MIZUSAKO (Earthquake Research Institute) Imaging of Distribution of Ground Motions Based on Sparse Modeling Mr. KEIGO GUNJI (Geotechnical Engineering Lab) Laboratory tests on the deterioration in stability of soft-rock slopes, as induced by seismic loading Mr. KENGO YAMAMOTO (Coastal Engineering Lab) Study of Sediment Management of River Mouth Areas based on Topography Change at Tenryu-river Estuary Pic.2: Prize winners receive the honor of washing the statue of Prof. Furuichi!

5 We are looking forward to your feedback and suggestions! The editorial team of the Alumni Association of the Civil Engineering at the university of Tokyo Chief editor: Ayuko AKAIKE (1995 alumna) Associate editor: Kiichiro HATOYAMA (2001 master) Editors: Aya ABE (2001 alumna), Akiko SUZUKI (2009 alumna) Adviser: Manabu ITO (1953 Alumnus) Proofreader: Alexander GILMORE (Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering)