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What is it and why should I care?
What is it and why should I care?
Surveying is a skill that has been in use since the beginning of time. The process mainly consists of using angles and predetermined measurements to closely approximate the area and volume of uneven surfaces. It is essential in every day life as it shows the boundaries of lands and is the underlying structure of all construction. It has been further used to approximate the dimensions of naturally occurring land features and is used for the level construction of roads and highways around hills and mountains. While a rather old skill there have been many mathematical tools and innovations to skyrocket the use and accuracy of surveying to new heights.
Instruments now and then
On the left is an image of a common planimeter. It was created in 1854 as a way to figure out the area of irregularly shaped lands by using it on a scale map of the area. This directly uses spatial geometry and algebraic equations to find the area of complicated shapes, before which there was no consistent way to do.
On the right is an example of a modern surveying device called a total station. It is an advancement of the Russian theodolite telescopic surveying instrument(basically a complicated telescope). It, as it's name suggests, is capable of doing everything necessary for surveying. It through computational mathematics can; precisely measure distance, and angles, process and store data, and display data points on a digital screen.
Specific uses of surveying
A specialized use of surveying is the creation and design of highways. Note that surveying also includes the drawing of the design for the highway itself, and not just prepping the surrounding area. The steps to surveying a new highway include; finding the shortest route that makes the least amount of work, grading the surface(angling the highway in a way not obstructive to the building process, calculating the volume and shape of dirt that has to be removed, and dealing with other natural formations(mountains, nearby oceans, etc. ). This and most other surveying projects can only be done with the help of angular geometry and algebraic equations such as the ones to the right.
A video giving a better view of the total station in action. It also goes into further detail on the uses and applications of surveying.
Links
- American mathematical society part 1 and part 2
- career trend
- The constructor
This page by Jon W.('18)
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