BUILDING BIG Skyscraper Basics
Skyscraper Basics
Tuesdays in October on PBS (check local listings) _  

Bridges | Domes | Skyscrapers | Dams| Tunnels

Skyscraper: Forces


The skyscraper pushes down (compression) into the ground
The skyscraper pushes down into the ground.
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But when the wind blows, the columns on the windy side stretch apart (tension) and the columns on the other side squeeze together(compression)
But when the wind blows, the columns on the windy side stretch apart, and the columns on the other side squeeze together.

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_There's even more to explore at the BUILDING BIG web site, check it out at www.pbs.org/buildingbig.



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BUILDING BIG is a coproduction of the WGBH Science Unit and Production Group, Inc., and is presented on PBS by WGBH Boston.

Major funding is provided by the National Science Foundation. Additional funding comes from the National Endowment for the Humanities, The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, the Corporation for Public Broadcastin, and public television viewers.

National corporate sponsorship is provided by the American Society of Civil Engineers and by Siemens.

The BUILDING BIG web site was produced for PBS Online by WGBH.
BUILDING BIG web site ©2000 WGBH Educational Foundation.