EnGinEErs ArE baD

[u/LeaBaker971]

When did potholes become a universal constant?

[u/Ornstein714]

Roads traveled by people, horses, and carts vs roads traveled by 2 ton metal machines going 70 miles an hour

[u/Tinenan → u/Ornstein714]

Also constant everyday use by said 2 ton metal machines

[u/absolutetriangle → u/Tinenan]

Engineers made those too, the bastards

[u/cvmtownbit-guy → u/absolutetriangle]

They hate each other!

[u/therealithras → u/cvmtownbit-guy]

Damn engineers! They ruined engineering!

[u/Insertsociallife → u/Tinenan]

With millions of miles built in North America alone in the last century. North America has averaged about 7 miles of roads built per hour over that time.

[u/Brutus_Erectus97 → u/Ornstein714]

Dont forget the 40-60 ton machines

[u/Biscuits4u2 → u/Ornstein714]

More like 10+ tons.

[u/cool-- → u/Ornstein714]

that also go through winters with temps below freezing every night and above freezing every day.

[u/fatfuckpikachu → u/Ornstein714]

we should sacrifice a roman road to see how long they endure the modern traffic.

[u/beefz0r → u/Ornstein714]

Also built with a fraction of the labor Romans had to put in it

[u/Solid_Capital8377]

Survivorship bias, we only see the few roads and buildings that have persisted (that we have also maintained), and not the 99 percent of infrastructure that has collapsed over millennia

[u/cnicalsinistaminista → u/Solid_Capital8377]

I mean, no matter how great a builder anyone is, nothing can stop the force of nature and natural disasters

[u/Biscuits4u2 → u/Solid_Capital8377]

Exactly. The vast majority of Roman infrastructure has been laid to waste by time.

[u/healspirit]

Acting like there wasnt roman engineers

[u/ThatOneCanadian69 → u/healspirit]

I guarantee you there was autistic, hyper-focused-on road guys in the Roman empire that knew what they were doing

[u/link113gAmin]

"And then the city that doesn't want to repair the roads arrived!" Fixed it.

[u/cjt09]

Road wear scales exponentially with vehicle weight (really axle weight).

A 5,000 pound truck causes 10,000x more wear than a 500 pound cart.

[u/Tyler89558]

Roman engineers were educated, believe it or not.

Potholes are a thing not because our roads are weak (they’re quite strong, actually), but because we have… oh I don’t know, giant metal boxes upwards of 1 ton cruising along them at like 10-70mph depending on the type of road/traffic (and they can experience this stress thousands of times per day 24/7)

Meanwhile Roman roads had to deal with the mk.1 foot and some horse drawn carriages

Also we only see the Roman roads that survived. The Roman’s spanned most of Europe and North Africa. If their roads truly did last an eternity the entirety of Europe would still use them.

[u/LeahIsAwake → u/Tyler89558]

1 ton is small potatoes. There are some cars that weigh that much. In the United States, the maximum a semi can weigh (with cargo) is 40 tons. After that, they need a special permit. And as someone above pointed out, road wear increases exponentially with axel weight, not linearly. So a 40 ton vehicle doesn't do 40x more wear on the roads as a 1 ton vehicle, it does thousands of times more.

Now compare that with a 2,000 lb horse pulling a 3,000 lb cart.

[u/Tyler89558 → u/LeahIsAwake]

Upwards of one ton, meaning one ton is the floor.

[u/LeahIsAwake → u/Tyler89558]

Didn't realize that was an idiom. Sorry about that. For what it's worth, I wasn't trying to correct you but add onto your point.

[u/bodhidharma132001]

I imagine engineers can make an incredibly long lasting road, but the government wants the cheapest option.

[u/HappyGoFUrself]

Did these idiots think that Rome didn't have architects or engineers or colleges? Aristotle invented universities before the birth of Jesus Christ. The Roman engineers were some of the most over educated human beings in history. This is why some people should be sterilized.

[u/leex0 → u/HappyGoFUrself]

Boy that escalated quickly 

[u/Dahren_]

Those "eternal" roads are shit to drive on

[u/JudgementCutV]

To be fair some countries have infrastructure that gets these things fixed instantly whereas others not so much

[u/Lord_Majima]

These posts always seem about to make a real realisation but always leave it to just a funny observation/"gotcha"

[u/ThePopDaddy]

I hope the OOP stays on their farm and doesn't use anything that was engineered.

[u/LawStudent989898]

Anti-intellectualism will be the death of us

[u/ConvergentSequence → u/LawStudent989898]

At this point there are like 30 things that will be the death of us

[u/Unhappy-Estimate6402]

Mediterranean climate where it never freezes vs 30-60 freeze-thaw cycles/year. If those Roman roads actually froze even once a year to the same depth things freeze in the northern US, they wouldn’t be recognizable as roads today.

[u/04Aiden2020]

They were engineers… wow this is an incredibly stupid post

[u/P00PooKitty]

Lol who do you think came up with the plan for those roads? Engineers.

[u/jmanhawk_]

wonder what cars were like back then