A structural engineer and bridge designer in the UK says the collapse of the 1970s-built Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore in the US was potentially a disaster waiting to happen.
Ian Firth told the Standard’s Tech & Science Daily podcast: “We’re looking at a very, very large vessel, the type of which did not exist back in 1970 you know, much, much larger than was envisaged back then, a navigation channel which is only 350 or so metres wide, which is not very wide for ships of that scale, and so yeah, potentially, you could say it's a disaster waiting to happen sadly.”
According to Ian, the bridge was built in the early 1970s, at a time before structures designed to protect against collisions were considered a standard part of the build. “We design structures in the water, in this country we call them dolphins, something which is sacrificial, something which, if the ship hits it, it doesn't hit the bridge.” Ian said
“It gets deflected by this object or slowed down sufficiently that if it does hit the bridge, the energy has gone out of it, and it's not going to do so much damage.”
“It doesn't have that kind of protection. There is some, there is one little round object each side of the bridge I've seen from the photographs, but it's not adequate. It's obviously insufficient to do the job.”
Elsewhere, in Florida, a new bill has been signed into law banning children under 14 from using social media.
It comes into effect in January next year, and means social platforms like TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram need to delete under-14s’ accounts.
Those who don’t risk being sued on behalf of children - with the minor awarded up to $10,000.
After the UK government accused China of hacking into the Electoral Register, Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden has guaranteed that UK elections will be safe from Chinese cyber attacks.
He said the local elections in May and the general election later in 2024 “will be safe and secure”.
In a statement to the House of Commons, he announced sanctions on two people and an entity associated with Chinese state-linked hacking group APT31.
Consumer group Which? says tougher action is needed to stop copycat websites posing as banks.
Copycat sites often masquerade as real banks to try and trick people into handing over their personal details and money.
Working with the DNS Research Federation, Which? found more than 2,000 website URLs containing the names of specific UK banks were reported to a phishing blocklist in 2023.
The group is calling for the next government to put a duty on domain registrars to prevent scammers from setting up these fraudulent websites.
Also in this episode:
OpenAI releases short films made entirely with Sora, study suggests statins could help fight gum disease, the tiniest ‘starquake’ ever detected, and meet barbie pig and friends: never before seen life from the deep sea.
Listen above, find us on Apple, Spotify or wherever you stream your podcasts.
