Structures and Defying Gravity

Structures and Defying Gravity

viaduct, France (2005)

Cable-stayed design, 2.5 Km long, 340m high

Great pyramid, Egypt (2560BC)

Height: 139m

Lincoln cathedral, England

(1300) Height: 160m

A brief history of structures

Eiffel tower, France (1889)

Height: 384mPetronas Towers, Kuala Lumpur (1998)

Height: 452m

A brief history of structures (cont.)

Some engineering mistakes

Shanghai-2009

Engineering mistakes (cont.)

Montparnasse, Paris 1895

(different kind of engineering)

Materials

Brick: Vilnius Cathedral

Glass: Crystal Cathedral, California

Cast iron: Arica, Chile

Wood: Borgund, Norway (about 1180)

Materials (cont.)

Stone: Notre Dame, Paris Steel: All-steel Basilica San Sebastian,

Philippines. (2nd steel structure after the

Eiffel Tower

Materials (cont.)

More materials--spaghetti?

Compression? Tension? Bending?

Compression?

Tension?

Structure in stone-- Compression? Tension?

The Parthenon, Greece (447BC)

Stonehenge, England (~1400BC)

Compression? Tension?

Roman arch--Pont du Gard,

France (100AD)

http://www.makingthemodernworld.org.uk/learning_modules/maths/02.TU.03/?section=4

Arches--all in compression

Thicker is better in bending and compression

No No

Yes

Yes Yes

but short thin pieces can be connected together to

form a long thick truss (very strong)

A long thin piece will

bend

Trusses within trusses within trusses

Form-resistant structures:

cylinders, domes, saddles

Pantheon, Rome (126AD)

Outdoor market, Morocco

(glass)

Pavilion, Mexico City (concrete

roof 1.6cm thick)

Form-resistant structures:

folded plates

Tensegrity

Readable references

Gordon, J. E., Structures, Da Capo Press, 2003

Levy, Matthys, and M. Salvadori, Why Buildings Fall

Down, W.W. Norton & Co., 1992

Salvadori, Mario, Why Buildings Stand Up,

W.W. Norton & Co., 1990