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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. Sewers are surcharged when the supply of water to be carried is greater than the capacity of the pipes to carry the flow. The surface of the wastewater in manholes rises above the top of the sewer pipe - and the sewer is under pressure or a head - ra






2. A dimensioned drawing indicating the form of an existing area and the physical objects existing in it and those to be built or installed upon it.






3. Masonry composed of roughly shaped stones - well bonded and brought at irregular intervals vertically to discontinuous but approximately level beds or courses.






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






5. A biological wastewater treatment process which speeds up the decomposition of wastes in the wastewater being treated. Activated sludge is added to wastewater and the mixture (mixed liquor) is aerated and agitated. After some time in the aeration tan






6. In landscape architecture - an essential sheet showing site boundaries and significant site features - used as a basis for subsequent plan development.






7. A professional who designs - plans - and manages outdoor spaces ranging from entire ecosystems to residential sites and whose media include natural and built elements; also referred to as a designer - planner - consultant. Not to be confused with lan






8. An agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture - primarily responsible for planning and overseeing the use of national forest lands by private - commercial and government users.






9. A pipe or conduit that carries wastewater or drainage water. The term 'collection line' is often used also.






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






11. Rain and snow water accumulated in the earth's porous rock.






12. An agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior charged with the planning and administration of all parks and monuments in the federal park system. The NPS is often referred to as the largest single employer of landscape architects in the United Sta






13. 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.






14. Narrowly defined - an extended view or prospect from a site which - many times - is as important as or more important than the site itself.






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






16. A system of major sewers serving as transporting lines and not as local or lateral sewers.






17. Broken stones - boulders - or other materials placed compactly or irregularly on levees or dikes for the protection of earth surfaces against the erosive action of waves.






18. A device that admits surface waters to the storm water drainage system. Also see CURB INLET and CATCH BASIN.






19. A wall that supports any vertical load in addition to its own weight.






20. An opening in pipes or sewers designed for rodding or working a snake into the pipe in either direction. Twoway cleanouts are most often found in building lateral pipes at or near a property line.






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






22. A wall that resist horizontal forces applied in the plane of the wall.






23. A reactor or basin in which baffles or other devices create a series of compartments. The environment and the resulting microbial population within each compartment can be controlled to some extent by the operator. The environmental conditions (food






24. The illustration and description of problem-statements and large-scale design solutions that affect extensive areas of land; the anticipation of problems that will be encountered as human use and development of land continues.






25. In landscape architecture - a study of the potential cost of site purchase - demolition and improvement in comparison to the income or other benefit to be derived from site development.






26. The force that resists the separation of two bodies in contact.






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






28. Any method of determining the weight a compacted material is able to support without damage or displacement. Usually stated in pounds per square foot.






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






30. 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






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






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






33. Narrowly defined - the amount of countryside and/or city that can be taken in at a glance. Also - an area of land or water taken in the aggregate.






34. Material used in backfilling of an excavation - selected for desirable compaction or other characteristics.






35. A small tank (usually covered) or a storage facility used to store water for a home or farm. Often used to store rainwater.






36. A septic tank or other holding tank which serves as a temporary wastewater storage reservoir for a Septic Tank Effluent Pump (STEP) system. See SEPTIC TANK.






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






38. The natural elements with which landscape architects work - such as plant materials and the soil itself.






39. A U.S. government agency charged with administering vast areas of public land.






40. Pertaining to groundwater - a well - or underground basin where the water is under a pressure greater than atmospheric and will rise above the level of its upper confining surface if given an opportunity to do so.






41. Material used for backfilling a trench or excavation which was not the original material removed during excavation. This is a common practice where tests on the original material show it to have poor compactability or load capacity. Also called BORRO






42. British thermal units; the quantity of thermal energy required to raise one pound of water at its maximum density - 1 degree F. One BTU is equivalent to .293 watt hours - or 252 calories. One kilowatt hour is equivalent to 3412 BTU Back Pressure (wat






43. A small box-like structure that contains valves used to regulate flows.






44. A popular social concern of the late nineteenth and early 20th centuries aimed at improving the appearance of urban areas through better planning and the addition of formal - romanticized public spaces and gardens.






45. The movement of water through very small spaces due to molecular forces.






46. Any attempt to restore to beneficial use land that has lost its fertility and stability; most often applies to mining reclamation - such as the restoration of strip mines and quarries.






47. The amount of runoff that reaches the point of measurement within a relatively short period of time after the occurrence of a storm or other form of precipitation. Also called 'direct runoff.'






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






49. The dropping or lowering of the ground surface as a result of removing excess water (overdraft or overpumping) from an aquifer. After excess water has been removed - the soil will settle - become compacted and the ground surface will drop and can cau






50. The angle between a horizontal line andthe slope or surface of unsupported material such as gravel - sand -or loose soil. Also called the 'natural slope.'