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"Weather is Fate" | Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu ('Spirit of the Laws" 1748)
Louisiana State University | East Baton Rouge Parish -
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ALWAYS OPEN
Chocolate Cherry Breakfast Muffins & Cowboy Coffee
Medical student Abby Davis shares her recipe.
Building Construction in Cold Weather
Much of our assertion that building construction in education communities resembles a perpetual motion machine rests upon innovation in a broad span of technologies that is effectively weather resistant; that along with development of construction scheduling. Today at 16:0 UTC we review the technical, management and legal literature that supports safe and sustainable construction,
Industrial electroheating and electromagnetic processing
We are entering the colder half of the year in the North Hemisphere; time to revisit the technical standards -- product, installation, operation and maintenance -- for heating tracing systems that keep roofs, pipes, fire protection systems, floors and ambient air within the design temperature of materials in common use in education community infrastructure.
Heat Tracing Installation
A common conundrum in the construction industry is which discipline (architectural, mechanical or electrical) should specify application of this technology; especially in value-engineering negotiations when each discipline is trying to reduce its unit costs. Control and communication system add another layer of complexity.
Quadrivium: Winter
Educational settlements are the closest many people come to feel at home in beautiful surroundings. The catalog that informs the safety and sustainability of these "cities-within-cities" changes 100 to 1000 times per day. Titles are unstable, time-sensitive, copyright protected and land in public law. We explore the action continuously; assign priorities, then schedule a separate teleconference to formulate responses to public consultations. Daily colloquia topics appear on our CALENDAR.
Pipe Heating
A classical thermal conduction problem: simulation of the heating of water down the length of a pipe. The inner surface of the pipe is maintained at a uniform temperature.
Snow Load Calculator
Parent standard with links to previously posted representative calculations. Public proposals for the 2028 Revisions of ASCE/SEI 7 Minimum Design Loads and Associated Criteria for Buildings and Other Structures were submitted to technical committees earlier this month and will be evaluated by technical committees throughout the first part of 2025.
Current Issues and Recent Research
The Joint IEEE Power Engineering and Industrial Applications Society Committee to which we belong has formulated response to the 2026 National Electrical Code Second Draft and will submit its ballot December 27th. While all the issues are fresh in mind it is never unwise to draft proposals for the 2029 National Electrical Code which will begin accepting new public input some time after release of the new edition in the fall.
Outdoor Deicing & Snow Melting
Article 426-427 of the National Electrical Code covers the electrical energy pathways to heat tracing equipment that keep snow buildup from caving roofs and freezing pipes. While the voltage and ampere requirement of the product itself is a known characteristic, the characteristic of the wiring pathway -- voltage, ampere, grounding, short circuit, disconnect and control -- is more complicated and requires attention.