The hosts introduce this series of podcasts with a definition of the infrastructure and a discussion of why it is important to us. They talk about trends in infrastructure characteristics and condition and consider why the infrastructure has been so much in the news recently. Then they move on to an assessment of the nation’s infrastructure, talking with Casey Dinges of the American Society of Civil Engineers about his organization’s Infrastructure Report Card. This broad assessment of our infrastructure is prepared by the ASCE every 5 years. It grades the condition of our bridges, dams, roads, rail systems, inland waterways, and 10 more systems. Casey describes the most recent Report Card, released in January of 2009