Henry Petroski on The State of American Infrastructure

Mike talks with Henry Petroski, a Professor of Civil Engineering and History at Duke University. Dr. Petroski is a prolific scholar and public intellectual - in addition to publishing nineteen books and hundreds of articles in newspapers, magazines, and trade publications, he’s authored over seventy-five academic journal articles. His many books include: The Pencil: A History of Design and Circumstance, The Evolution of Useful Things, The House with Sixteen Handmade Doors, and The Road Taken: The History and Future of America’s Infrastructure. In this episode, Mike and Dr. Petroski discuss learning from failure, how bad US infrastructure really is, why so many big projects seem take longer and cost more than projected, what a good infrastructure bill would look like, and lots more. Dr. Petroski's Recommendations: American Society of Civil Engineers Smart Brief | http://bit.ly/2iRsDSD US Department of Transportation | http://bit.ly/2iRRc1J American Infrastructure Weekly | http://bit.ly/2iRpfHu Trump Administration Infrastructure Initiative | http://bit.ly/2iPSbzA Dr. Petroski's Duke University Page | http://bit.ly/2iQf7i6 We hope you'll consider checking out the sponsors of today's show: Davinci. Book your meeting space at http://www.davincimeeting.com/TPG and the first hour is on them! SeatGeek. Politics Guys listeners get $20 dollars off their first SeatGeek purchase. Just download the SeatGeek app or go to https://www.seatgeek.com and enter promo code POLITICSGUY Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. If you’re interested in supporting the show, go to http://www.politicsguys.com and click on the Patreon link.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-politics-guys/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesThe Politics Guys on Facebook | XListener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo, we’re @PoliticsGuys.The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.