CE 101 – CIVIL ENGINEERING ORIENTATION

Introduction and history of civil engineering and the profession. Familiarize with the
practices of Civil Engineers in relation to their interaction with society and to know about the
different fields/careers of Civil Engineering. Basic Mathematics applied to Civil Engineering
subjects.

CIVIL ENGINEERING is a professional engineering field that involves consultation, design,

preparation of plans, specifications, estimates, installation and supervision of the construction of
streets, bridges, highways, railroads, airports and hangars, portworks, canals, river and shore
improvements, lighthouses, and dry docks; buildings, fixed structures for irrigation, flood
protection, drainage, water supply and sewerage works; demolition of permanent structures; and
tunnels.

CIVIL ENGINEER is a professional person who practices civil engineering. The word civil derived
from the Latin word civilis means citizen relating to ordinary citizens and their concerns while
engineer is also derived from the Latin words ingeniare ("to create, generate, contrive, devise")
and ingenium ("cleverness")

HISTORY OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

It is difficult to determine the history of emergence and beginning of civil engineering,

however, that the history of civil engineering is a mirror of the history of human beings on this
earth. Man used the old shelter caves to protect themselves of weather and harsh environment,
and used a tree trunk to cross the river, which being the demonstration of ancient age civil
engineering.

Civil Engineering has been an aspect of life since the beginnings of human existence. The
earliest practices of Civil Engineering may have commenced between 4000 and 2000 BC in
Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia (Ancient Iraq) when humans started to abandon a nomadic
existence, thus causing a need for the construction of shelter. During this time, transportation
became increasingly important leading to the development of the wheel and sailing.

CE 101 – Civil Engineering Orientation | Instructor: Engr. Karl Hendrix G. Lontoc 1

Until modern times there was no clear
distinction between Civil Engineering and
Architecture, and the term engineer and
architect were mainly geographical
variations referring to the same person,
often used interchangeably. The
construction of Pyramids in Egypt (circa
2550-2490 BC) might be considered the
first instances of large structure
constructions. . The pyramids were built
by Pharaohs Khufu (tallest), Khafre
(background), and Menkaure (front).

Around 2550 BC, Imhotep, the first documented engineer, built a famous stepped pyramid
for King Djoser located at Saqqara Necropolis. With simple tools and mathematics he created a
monument that stands to this day. His greatest contribution to engineering was his discovery of
the art of building with shaped stones. Those who followed him carried engineering to remarkable
heights using skill and imagination.

Ancient historic civil engineering constructions include:

QANAT WATER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM located at Iran (the oldest older than 3000 years and
longer than 71 km,). It is a gently sloping underground channel to transport water from an aquifer
or water well to the surface for irrigation and drinking, acting as an underground aqueduct.

CE 101 – Civil Engineering Orientation | Instructor: Engr. Karl Hendrix G. Lontoc 2

PARTHENON by Iktinos in Ancient Greece (447-438 BC), is a former temple made up of marble
stones on the Athenian Acropolis, Greece, dedicated to the goddess Athena, whom the people of
Athens considered their patron.

APPIAN WAY by Roman engineers (c. 312 BC), the first and most famous of the ancient Roman
roads, running from Rome to Campania and southern Italy.

CE 101 – Civil Engineering Orientation | Instructor: Engr. Karl Hendrix G. Lontoc 3

GREAT WALL OF CHINA by General Meng T’ien under orders from Ch’in Emperor Shih Huang
Ti (c. 220 BC), is an ancient series of walls and fortifications located in northern China. t was an
integrated military defensive system with watchtowers for surveillance.

SANCHI STUPA, one of the oldest stone structures in India, and and was originally commissioned
by the emperor Ashoka the Great of the Maurya Empire.

CE 101 – Civil Engineering Orientation | Instructor: Engr. Karl Hendrix G. Lontoc 4

 One of the earliest examples of a scientific approach to physical and mathematical
problems applicable to civil engineering is the work of Archimedes in the 3rd century BC, including
Archimedes Principle, which underpins our understanding of buoyancy, and practical solutions
such as Archimedes’ screw. Brahmagupta, an Indian mathematician, used arithmetic in the 7th
century AD, based on Hindu-Arabic numerals, for excavation (volume) computation.

In the 18th century, the term civil engineering was coined to incorporate all things civilian
as opposed to military engineering.

MILITARY AND CIVIL ENGINEERING

During the era of battles or operations, the engineers were engaged to assist the soldiers
fighting in the battlefield by making catapults, towers, and other instruments used for fighting the
enemy. However, during peace time, they were concerned mainly with the civil activities such as
building fortifications for defense, making bridges, canals, etc.

. Military engineering encompasses applying scientific principles to solve problems and

improve operations within the military. In ancient and medieval times, military engineers
constructed works to attack or defend castles and the like with the use of numerous devices. Such
military engineers had access to the then most advanced technical knowledge, that could be
applied for betterment of cities and public works in peaceful times. That is why, military engineers
were called engineers for a long time. Civil engineering was broadly defined as those
developments that were not exclusive to the military, such as water management, roads and
bridges. The term “civil engineering” first arose during this realization, and the first engineering
school opened in 1747. Called the National School of Bridges and Highways (École Nationale
des Ponts et Chaussées), it was located in France and was the first sign of the disciplines
separating from each other.

CE 101 – Civil Engineering Orientation | Instructor: Engr. Karl Hendrix G. Lontoc 5

 The first to use the title “civil engineer” was John Smeaton,
who built the Eddystone Lighthouse is often regarded as the "father
of civil engineering". Smeaton is important in the history, rediscovery
of, and development of modern cement, identifying the
compositional requirements needed to obtain "hydraulicity" in lime;
work which led ultimately to the invention of Portland cement.
Portland cement led to the re-emergence of concrete as a modern
building material, largely due to Smeaton's influence.

In 1818, world’s first engineering society, the Institution of Civil Engineers was founded
in London, and in 1820 the eminent engineer Thomas Telford became its first president. The
institution received a Royal Charter in 1828, formally recognizing civil engineering as a profession.
The first civil engineering degree in the United States was awarded in 1835 by Rensselaer
Polytechnic Institute. The American Society of Civil Engineers was the first national
engineering society in the United States. It was founded in 1852 with members related to the civil
engineering profession located all over the world. Anyone could join and exists to this day as a
great resource for civil engineers and associated workers.

CE 101 – Civil Engineering Orientation | Instructor: Engr. Karl Hendrix G. Lontoc 6