The Iron Ring
- Main article: Iron Ring
The first Iron Ring ceremony was held at the University of Toronto in 1925, with the first rings made of "hammered iron" that Kipling called "cold". Although some say the writer used the adjective because the structural material did not forgive the mistakes of engineers working in it, another poem of his puts it in a different and more positive context:
- Gold is for the mistress - silver for the maid!
- Copper for the craftsman cunning at his trade.
- "Good!" said the Baron, sitting in his hall,
- "But Iron - Cold Iron - is master of them all!"
The iron ring's circular shape has been said to symbolize the continuity of the profession and its methods and the circle is also an appropriate symbol of the iterative engineering design process. The iron ring ceremony has reputedly come under criticism in recent years for being sexist, archaic, and relying on Judeo - Christian principles. The original rings were said to have been fabricated from the wreckage of the Québec Bridge, which collapsed during construction in 1907. Although this is generally thought to be false, the Québec Bridge is still held as significant. That bridge, whose 1,800 foot main span was to be the largest cantilever structure in the world, collapsed under its own weight because of an error in the design engineer's calculations. The bridge was redesigned, but suffered a second accident in 1916, when its centre span fell while being hoisted into place. Finally, in 1917 the bridge was completed and stood across the St. Lawrence River as a symbolic gateway into Canada. The engineers sometimes regard the bridge as a reminder to Canadian engineers to take care with their designs and to persevere in the face of adversity.
Read more about this topic: Engineering Traditions In Canada
Famous quotes containing the words iron and/or ring:
“A shadow has fallen upon the scenes so lately lighted by the Allied victory.... From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent.”
—Winston Churchill (1874–1965)
“Time has no divisions to mark its passage, there is never a thunderstorm or blare of trumpets to announce the beginning of a new month or year. Even when a new century begins it is only we mortals who ring bells and fire off pistols.”
—Thomas Mann (1875–1955)