Investigating the Seismic Behavior of Bridge Piers Subjected to Combined Loading with Distributed Hybrid Testing

The most important goal of civil and structural engineering is to protect against loss of life. Earthquakes are still not completely understood phenomena, and it is these events that pose great threats to human life. Research is necessary to better understand the effects of nature, and it is performed by essentially trying to replicate it. Better methods for simulating natural occurrences are continually being developed and utilized such as hybrid (or pseudodynamic) testing. The George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES) is an organization that supports research attempts at understanding the effects of earthquakes. The coordination of the leading researchers in the field is essential for understanding such complex behavior. It is then critical that we apply what is learned from research to construction because it is as Susan Hough and Lucile Jones of the U.S. Geological Survey have said, “Earthquakes don’t kill people, buildings do.