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Civil Engineering Vocab

Subject : engineering
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Masonry composed of irregularly shaped stones laid without regularity of coursing - but well bonded.






2. The taking in or soaking up of one substance into the body of another by molecular or chemical action (as tree roots absorb dissolved nutrients in the soil).






3. A structure or chamber which is usually sunk or lowered by digging from the inside. Used to gain access to the bottom of a stream or other body of water.






4. Any designated use or activity on a piece of land.






5. A relatively clear or forested area left untouched in or near a city. It may be active open space - such as a baseball field - or passive open space - such as an area of natural woodland.






6. The oxidation ditch is a modified form of the activated sludge process. The ditch consists of two channels placed side by side and connected at the ends to produce one continuous loop of wastewater flow and a brush rotator assembly placed across the






7. A wall or plate placed in an open channel and used to measure the flow of water. The depth of the flow over the weir can be used to calculate the flow rate - or a chart or conversion table may be used to convert depth to flow. A wall or obstruction u






8. Harmonious use of the land for more than one purpose; not necessarily the combination of uses that will yield the highest economic return - e.g. - a mix of residential and commercial developments in the same area.






9. One or a series of oneinch diameter holes through a manhole lid for purposes of venting dangerous gases found in sewers.






10. American Society for Testing and Materials






11. A coordinating agency formed in 1961 for state boards that administer licensing exams and maintain records for landscape architects to practice.






12. Tamping or rolling of a material to achieve a surface or density that is able to support predicted loads.






13. A break in a lateral pipe somewhere between the sewer main and the building connection.






14. A structure made of concrete or other durable material to protect bare soil from erosion by splashing or falling water.






15. The excess water running off from the surface of a drainage area during and immediately after a period of rain. See STORM RUNOFF.






16. The pipes - conduits - structures - equipment - and processes required to collect - convey - and treat domestic and industrial wastes - and dispose of the effluent and sludge.






17. A groundwater table that has seasonal changes in depth or elevation.






18. A sewer that discharges into a branch or other sewer and has no other common sewer tributary to it. Sometimes called a 'street sewer' because it collects wastewater from individual homes.






19. A sewer installed to connect two separate sewers. If one sewer becomes blocked - wastewater can back up and flow through the interconnector to the other sewer.






20. Railing support at landings or other breaks in the stairs. If an angle post projects beyond the bottom of the strings - the ornamental detail formed at the bottom of the post is called the drop.






21. Downward movement of the soil or of a structure which it supports






22. Record of an area's natural and man-made resources - including vegetation - animal life - geological characteristics and mankind's presence in such forms as housing - highways and even hazardous wastes.






23. A material - other than aggregate - cementitious material or water - added in small quantities to the mix in order to produce some (desired) modifications - either to the properties of the mix or of the hardened product.






24. A manhole located at the upstream end of a sewer and having no inlet pipe. Also called a TERMINAL MANHOLE.






25. A water service shutoff valve located in a water service pipe near the curb and between the water main and the building. This valve is usually operated by a wrench or valve key and is used to start or stop flows in the water service line to a buildin






26. A mixture of storm or surface runoff and other wastewater such as domestic or industrial wastewater.






27. Acronym for 'Computer Aided (i.e. - Assisted) Design and Drafting -' a digital design process in which landscape architects use computers to help produce precise drawings and details for the construction of a project.






28. A railing composed of balusters capped by a handrail.






29. That part of the precipitation falling on a drainage area which does not escape as surface stream flow during a given period. It is the difference between total precipitation and total runoff during the period - and represents evaporation - transpira






30. Soil that cannot absorb any more liquid. The interstices or void spaces in the soil are filled with water to the point at which runoff occurs.






31. A road laid through a garden or park-like landscape - usually with median and roadside plantings.






32. Subsurface water in the saturation zone from which wells and springs are fed. In a strict sense the term applies only to water below the water table. Also called 'phreatic water' and 'plerotic water.'






33. A legal means of protecting beautiful views and associated aesthetic quality along a site by restricting change in existing features without government approval.






34. A sewer designed to carry both sanitary wastewaters and storm or surface water runoff.






35. The legal grant of right-of-use to an area of designated private property.






36. A system used where wastewater collection systems and treatment plants are not available. The system is a settling tank in which settled sludge is in intimate contact with the wastewater flowing through the tank and the organic solids are decomposed






37. A groundwater table that is changed by artificial means. Examples of activities that artificially raise the level of a groundwater table include agricultural irrigation - dams and excessive sewer line exfiltration. A groundwater table can be artifici






38. The slope of a plot of land. Grading is the mechanical process of moving earth changing the degree of rise or descent of the land in order to establish good drainage and otherwise suit the intent of a landscape design.






39. Water that does not contain objectionable pollution - contamination - minerals - or infective agents and is considered satisfactory for drinking.






40. Downstream opening or discharge end of a pipe - culvert - or canal.






41. A flat board or plate - deflector - guide or similar device constructed or placed in flowing water or slurry systems to cause more uniform flow velocities - to absorb energy - and to divert - guide - or agitate liquids (water - chemical solutions - s






42. A sewer line that receives wastewater from many tributary branches and sewer lines and serves as an outlet for a large territory or is used to feed an intercepting sewer.






43. A plan for conserving or protecting various natural or manufactured resources. Such a plan is used as a management tool in making decisions regarding soil - water - vegetation - manufactured objects and other resources at a particular site.






44. A trained builder or installer of landscapes - retained to implement the plans of landscape architects.






45. A chamber or well used with storm or combined sewers as a means of removing grit which might otherwise enter and be deposited in sewers. Also see STORM WATER INLET and CURB INLET.






46. A capped opening in a building lateral -usually located on the property line - through which the pipelines can be cleaned.






47. The property of a material or soil that permits considerable movement of water through it when it is saturated.






48. The man-made creation of or alterations to a specific area - including its natural resources. This is in contrast to the 'natural environment.'






49. A large - public park - often highly scenic and isolated belonging to and operated by the federal government.






50. A record of each person involved in the handling and possession of a sample from the person who collected the sample to the person who analyzed the sample in the laboratory and to the person who witnessed disposal of the sample.