Highways. They’re like the veins of America, the blood flowing from coast to coast. Without highways, there’d be nothing really bringing the country together. Politics certainly aren’t doing the trick! Unfortunately a bulk of the highway system is seemingly crumbling.
With that said, highways are one of the most important parts of American infrastructure; it is important for the government to keep up to date on repairs, meaning no potholes or other impediments to smooth flowing traffic. After all, the highway system is crucial to the nation’s economy so the roads must be maintained; it’s really as simple as that. What are the roads constructed out of? Concrete of course!
Congress had to scramble to approve funding for the highway system by July 31. Why such a scramble? We’ll never know; it’s Washington! But their scramble demonstrates just how important the highway system is and how we need stronger and higher-performing highways and bridges. While that’s priority number one, there’s also talk of developing a better system of concrete. That may already be in the works, according to this article in The Christian Science Monitor.
Phoebe Tollefson writes, “It may sound far-fetched, but the technology exists for self-healing concrete. The auto-mending material contains limestone-producing bacteria that activates when wet. The bacteria can lie dormant for up to 200 years, according to the European Patent Office, where the technology is registered.”
Imagine that! Self-healing concrete. It’s almost like something out of a sci-fi movie. It basically starts repairing itself the moment it gets wet. That kind of technology could possibly change the way we see the world. What do you think?