Mystery of why Roman buildings have survived so long has been unraveled, scientists say

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They found that white chunks in the concrete, referred to as lime clasts, gave the concrete the ability to heal cracks that formed over time. The white chunks previously had been overlooked as evidence of sloppy mixing or poor-quality raw material.
"For me, it was really difficult to believe that ancient Roman (engineers) would not do a good job because they really made careful effort when choosing and processing materials," said study author Admir Masic, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
 
Perhaps the ancients had assistants that we don't have.

Ancient aliens.jpg
 
I read this a few days ago and made me think, what is the lesson that we should be applying to concrete we make today?
From what I've read there is a lot of research going into making concrete less resource intensive so I'm not so sure because it seems like the "Roman method" used higher temperatures.
 
here in Pa any "new" road they build is lucky to make it two years before it starts to fall apart
LOL... I have a cousin who's a civil engineer and he used to say that every project has a cost/benefit analysis with regards to lifespan. They could build it to last long but the cost of doing so goes up considerably. Perhaps the problem with PA roads is the underlying soil?
 
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I read this a few days ago and made me think, what is the lesson that we should be applying to concrete we make today?
Avoid exposing it to brine? That seems to be a major driver in what takes it out in the north. Also, Roman concrete didn't have rebar, which if course, if exposed to moisture, rusts, and then splits the concrete.
 
Most of the things that are still around from them were of religious importance to them, it makes sense that they spared no expense. The religious buildings of old civilizations usually last a lot longer than anything else. That combined with what was probably a much higher budget for their transportation. Their [Rome] climate is also much more temperate and nicer than most of the USA despite being the same latitude as Chicago. I'm sure Roman engineers would also be amazed at the skyscrapers we have today, or roads built to withstand millions of 80,000+pound trucks a year.
 
Maybe if you read post #7, my comment will make sense....
And yes we know that slavery still exists. That's why everything is made in 3rd world countries.
Thanks for clarifying, would’ve been nice if you quoted the text to which you were replying to. Otherwise it just looks like a generic comment.

Regarding slaves, and slave labor. Historically it did not look like what is being portrayed today ie. being whipped constantly and starved. These workers were fed very well and had good living accommodations, at least for these big projects.

It is actually the modern day slavery that really is treating people like animals, because they can be replaced with machines otherwise. Back in the ancient times, slave labor was all that was available and not easily replaceable, so they were treated better.
 
The Romans added volcanic ash to their concrete,

This sealed the microscopic pores, making it water resistant

You didn't bother to read the article. While that is true, that is not the reason.
The reason is calcium oxide being used to essentially pour a hot reactive cement.
My understanding is that it makes it weaker in the short term, but over time it strengthens.
 
Slaves have always been well treated and badly treated. Same with hired workers. A good worker was valuable, whether slave or free, and treated well because it made/makes economic sense. Slave labor was not the factor in Roman structures surviving, Roman engineering was. A Roman road is something all Arizona highway engineers should study.

They say the Great Pyramid was built with 100,000 non slave laborers paid in onions. They also say Roman soldiers were paid in salt, which is where the word salary comes from. That is part of why I do not put much faith in things "they" say.
 
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