Capstone Project: Earthquake Resistant Buildings Proposal Analysis

This capstone proposal focuses on the analysis of earthquake-resistant buildings. It begins by highlighting the challenges and importance of constructing buildings that can withstand seismic activity, discussing the differences between load-bearing wall structures and framed structures, and their respective vulnerabilities during earthquakes. The proposal emphasizes the significance of material strength and engineering ethics in designing such structures, aiming to minimize damage, loss of life, and property. The project aims to evaluate the social impact of these buildings, considering factors such as safety, sustainability, and the role of engineering ethics. The document also underscores the importance of the proposal as a prerequisite for the final term paper, and the need to address the potential positive and negative social, cultural, environmental, and financial impacts associated with these designs.

Social Impact Analysis Capstone Paper Proposal
Earthquake Resistant Buildings
Earthquakes are one of the most dreaded natural calamities human beings, have been over the
centuries, struggling to do away with due to its catastrophic nature. Even though it has become
possible to erect steel and structure skyscraper buildings, giving 100% guarantee of the stability
of such buildings against a significant earthquake still remains a major challenge.
The effect of earthquakes on building structures can be noticed in two major construction types
that are common with buildings: load bearing wall structure as well as framed structures. The
structure is erected using continuous vertical walls that offer support to the floor slabs at various
levels, for instance, of load bearing wall structure. Nevertheless, should it be functionally
inconvenient to have continuous partitions, then the framed structure has to be implemented in
which isolated posts called columns are linked using horizontal bands also known as beams in
supporting the structure.
Both the two structures have a fundamental role to play when it comes to coping up with the load
of the objects and persons occupying them, which is the same case as the structure of shelves.
Imagining that a stack of shelves has been constructed and does not having connectors or joints
to the horizontal shelves as with the vertical partitions as applicable load bearing toes or
otherwise with the vertical posts as applicable in framed type, in such a case, the frames will
simply be resting on the vertical members placed on top of each other. This offers a simple way
of breakage and thus collapse of the whole shelf and this is similar to the impact of an
earthquake.

The current technology offers an opportunity of precisely determining the forces as well as the
stresses that can be experienced by a building. Knowledge of the strength of material that is used
in making a member aids in achievement of economy of materials thus economy with regard to
the cost of construction.
The approach toward the design of earthquake resistant structures aims at controlling as well as
reducing the degree of damage since designing for every type of earthquake forces that are
barely predictable is not only a challenge but also uneconomical. The benefits of construction of
earthquake resistant buildings are thus to save damages to property as well as injuries and loss of
lives which occur in case an earthquake. The relevant engineering ethics in the design of
earthquake resistant buildings lies along safety and sustainable design provisions. The
engineering codes of ethics demonstrate that engineers are tasked with the responsibility of
ensuring they produce safe products in society.