What civil engineers are reading this week

• Beware ‘scope gaps’; one subcontractor found out the hard way with court loss

  The term generally refers to situations where an item of work specified in the plans and specifications is not included in any trade contractor’s scope of work. What does it mean from a legal standpoint?

• Energy resilience, independence overtake climate confidence, study reveals

  As world leaders prepare for COP30, a study shows geopolitics reshaping infrastructure strategy, with national energy security passing global climate cooperation as primary driver of the energy transition.

• Hurricane Melissa on verge of historic Jamaica landfall as conditions worsen

  Melissa underwent extreme rapid intensification, strengthening to a rare Category 5 with winds of 175 mph and stronger gusts, making it the strongest storm on the planet this year. Follow live updates.

• When crossing this coastal Maine bridge, your mind may be transported to France

  Similar design conditions and the same bridge type replaced similar old bridges in cities in Maine and France. Bridge expert Brian Brenner draws the parallels in his recurring More Water Under the Bridge series.

• Electric utility expects peak load to grow 45% by 2035, thanks to data centers

  In the first nine months of this year, electric sales grew 1% from the same period in 2024 but were essentially flat on a weather-adjusted basis, says FirstEnergy executive Jon Taylor.

• Webb telescope finds planet that shouldn’t exist – and it’s made almost entirely of carbon

  The telescope found a carbon-atmosphere planet orbiting a pulsar, challenging current models of how planets form.