Editing Civil engineering (section)

=== Civil engineering as a discipline ===
Civil engineering is the application of physical and scientific principles for solving the problems of society, and its history is intricately linked to advances in the understanding of [[physics]] and [[mathematics]] throughout history. Because civil engineering is a broad profession, including several specialized sub-disciplines, its history is linked to knowledge of structures, materials science, geography, [[geology]], [[soil]]s, [[hydrology]], [[environmental science]], [[mechanics]], [[project management]], and other fields.<ref name="baveystock">{{cite news|last=Baveystock|first=Nick|title=So what does a civil engineer do, exactly?|url=https://www.theguardian.com/careers/what-does-civil-engineer-do|access-date=September 11, 2020|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=August 8, 2013}}</ref>

Throughout ancient and medieval history most [[architectural design]] and construction was carried out by [[artisan]]s, such as [[masonry|stonemasons]] and [[carpenter]]s, rising to the role of [[Architect|master builder]]. Knowledge was retained in [[guild]]s and seldom supplanted by advances. Structures, roads, and infrastructure that existed were repetitive, and increases in scale were incremental.<ref name="Saouma">{{cite web|url=http://ceae.colorado.edu/~saouma/Lecture-Notes/se.pdf|title=Lecture Notes in Structural Engineering|first=Victor E. |last=Saouma|publisher=University of Colorado|access-date=2 November 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110419190641/http://ceae.colorado.edu/~saouma/Lecture-Notes/se.pdf|archive-date=19 April 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

One of the earliest examples of a scientific approach to physical and mathematical problems applicable to civil engineering is the work of [[Archimedes]] in the 3rd century BC, including [[Archimedes' principle]], which underpins our understanding of [[buoyancy]], and practical solutions such as [[Archimedes' screw]]. [[Brahmagupta]], an Indian mathematician, used arithmetic in the 7th century AD, based on Hindu-Arabic numerals, for excavation (volume) computations.<ref>{{cite book|first=Henry Thomas |last=Colebrook|url=https://archive.org/details/algebrawitharith00brahuoft|title=Algebra: with Arithmetic and mensuration|location=London|year=1817}}</ref>