Eng 1050 T 2:00
Research Exercise #1
Topic: Converting American highways to the Autobahn
Topic 2: Safety and cost on the upkeep of the American Interstate & Highway
Subtopics: "Driving on the Autobahn" & "Civil Engineering Projects"
Subtopic 1 - Driving on the Autobahn
Works cited-Clash, James M. "Joy of Autobahn." New York Sept. 15, 2003: V. 172, I. 5; pg. 224
Summary
James Clash describes in "Joy of Autobahn", some very promising aspects of the German Autobahn. Getting a German license requires drivers to fork over $1000 and have to go through 24 hours of one-on-one training as well as autobahn training (Clash 224). The Autobahn itself has no speed limit, putting drivers in higher-risk situations, but the road is also safer and, though accidents happen, they occur less frequently and have a lower death rate than accidents on U.S highways. Clash's research found that, to remake the 45,000 mile U.S interstate system to meet autobahn standards would cost approximately $12 million dollars per mile, or around a half-trillion dollars (Clash 224). The U.S is suffering from unemployment, an increasingly unstable economy, and many people who are unhappy about the current state of affairs. Clash presents that the roads would last twice as long, (40-years instead of 20), so the overall prospect is actually rather feasible (Clash 224). Spearheading such a project would give many people jobs, and the benefits would last for years to come.
Response
Though transforming the U.S Interstate into an expanded autobahn would be a great project in innumerable ways, neither the senate or congress are really focusing on homeland issues like this at the moment. Even though the unemployment rate is rising dramatically every year, the dollar is dropping in the world market, and U.S made cars are becoming inconvenient, such a civil engineering project doesn't seem to be in the works or even under consideration.
Additional ideas
I could look into what such a large scale civil engineering project would do for the U.S economy, or the automotive industry, or the number of unemployed workers across the U.S. I could research current interstate laws and compare them to those that govern the autobahn and then explain either the benefits or limitations that such a change would have based on the results.
Summary
James Clash describes in "Joy of Autobahn", some very promising aspects of the German Autobahn. Getting a German license requires drivers to fork over $1000 and have to go through 24 hours of one-on-one training as well as autobahn training (Clash 224). The Autobahn itself has no speed limit, putting drivers in higher-risk situations, but the road is also safer and, though accidents happen, they occur less frequently and have a lower death rate than accidents on U.S highways. Clash's research found that, to remake the 45,000 mile U.S interstate system to meet autobahn standards would cost approximately $12 million dollars per mile, or around a half-trillion dollars (Clash 224). The U.S is suffering from unemployment, an increasingly unstable economy, and many people who are unhappy about the current state of affairs. Clash presents that the roads would last twice as long, (40-years instead of 20), so the overall prospect is actually rather feasible (Clash 224). Spearheading such a project would give many people jobs, and the benefits would last for years to come.
Response
Though transforming the U.S Interstate into an expanded autobahn would be a great project in innumerable ways, neither the senate or congress are really focusing on homeland issues like this at the moment. Even though the unemployment rate is rising dramatically every year, the dollar is dropping in the world market, and U.S made cars are becoming inconvenient, such a civil engineering project doesn't seem to be in the works or even under consideration.
Additional ideas
I could look into what such a large scale civil engineering project would do for the U.S economy, or the automotive industry, or the number of unemployed workers across the U.S. I could research current interstate laws and compare them to those that govern the autobahn and then explain either the benefits or limitations that such a change would have based on the results.
Subtopic 2 - Paving America Coast to Coast
Works cited-Reid, Robert L. "Paving America Coast to Coast". Civil Engineering June 2006: V. 76, I. 6; pg. 37
Summary
The origins of the American Interstate, Robert Reid explains, originated when president Eisenhower was supreme commander of the U.S Expeditionary force in World War II. and he was able to move his troops quickly along the early German Autobahn (Reid 37). Before the American Interstate was created, movement across the country was slow and dangerous, between mud roads and the lack of roads between cities made traveling difficult. According to Reid, after becoming the president in 1953, Eisenhower decided that the U.S needed it's own quality highway and modeled the U.S interstates after the German Autobahn (Reid 37). It's been nearly a generation and our roads reflect the passage of time, but our society is progressive and needs a new system to stimulate growth similar to after the original highways were built.
Response
Now that the U.S has dived into the 21st century and everything from missiles to CDs are being revolutionized, it seems that our roads have remained relatively the same. A civil engineering project would certainly benefit the economy, which is currently declining, and would re-revolutionize transportation in and across the U.S.
Summary
The origins of the American Interstate, Robert Reid explains, originated when president Eisenhower was supreme commander of the U.S Expeditionary force in World War II. and he was able to move his troops quickly along the early German Autobahn (Reid 37). Before the American Interstate was created, movement across the country was slow and dangerous, between mud roads and the lack of roads between cities made traveling difficult. According to Reid, after becoming the president in 1953, Eisenhower decided that the U.S needed it's own quality highway and modeled the U.S interstates after the German Autobahn (Reid 37). It's been nearly a generation and our roads reflect the passage of time, but our society is progressive and needs a new system to stimulate growth similar to after the original highways were built.
Response
Now that the U.S has dived into the 21st century and everything from missiles to CDs are being revolutionized, it seems that our roads have remained relatively the same. A civil engineering project would certainly benefit the economy, which is currently declining, and would re-revolutionize transportation in and across the U.S.
1 comment:
Andrew-
Overall, you've done a good job with the attribution, but you need to make more than one mention to clearly indicate who is stating what. In your first example, after the first case of attribution, you just give the in-text citations, so it's not clear to me how much is a paraphrase and how much is your discussion.
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