The TAMU GI team hosted Mr. Silas Nicholas to deliver the inaugural lecture in its Seminar Series for the Fall 2022 semester. Mr. Nichols is the Principal Geotechnical Engineer for the Federal Highway Administration's Office of Infrastructure. He is responsible for providing leadership and direction for the FHWA National Geotechnical Team and is internationally recognized for his accomplishments related to design and construction, risk in project delivery, and quality assurance in foundation construction. A Master Trainer for the National Highway Institute (NHI) and a part time professor at the University of Delaware, Mr. Nichols enlightened the group with the challenges of large diameter foundation elements. Currently on a cross country lecture tour, he has been responsible for spreading awareness regarding the recent research efforts of the FHWA on policy changes related to design and construction issues, and standards to address advances occurring with driven pile and drilled shaft foundations. His talk addressed the efforts to optimize drilled shaft design, evaluate design methodologies for large diameter open-ended pipe piles, update guidance for acceptance of large diameter foundation elements, and also the future research needs for the geotechnical and foundations community. The information filled hour was followed by a question and answer round which gave the students an opportunity to interact with the speaker. A great success, the GI team plans to hold similar seminars this semester every other week. Please refer to this page for more details