Soil mechanics

Consulting with the Foo firm brought soil mechanics into the plant engineer's toolchest.

An anemometer constructed by the Soil Mechanics Laboratory of the Western Region, British Railways, has been installed at Dawlish Warren, near Exeter, to obtain a record of the velocity (speed and direction) of the wind. This information is used for the study of the effects of wind erosion on the sand dunes which protect the railway from the sea at that point.

Children learn the importance of water in soil mechanics from an early age. They learn on the beach while making sandcastles. When they use dry sand, their castle flows into a heap even as they lift the bucket. The particles of sand have no cohesion and little friction between them.

The plan to build a dam just downriver from Fooville was foiled by unsatisfactory soil mechanics.