Skyscrapers as international competition during the Cold War
- Thread starter M79
- Start date
I'd like to see Ayn Rand's reaction if the Soviets manage to build the better skyscrapers.
How long does it have to last to qualify?
There will of course be scope for arguments: should it be the highest structure, tallest occupied building, highest occupied floor,
And the less glamorous sides: slowest lift, most alarming swaying in winds or earthquakes, highest floor you can be rescued from, highest floor where water pressure is adequate.
But it does sound like the kind of that could have taken off, and you'd get additional competition from eg China, rich oil states.
345m tall statue of Chairman Mao, 347m minaret in Brunei etc. Shame I lack the drawing skills to sketch these out.
There will of course be scope for arguments: should it be the highest structure, tallest occupied building, highest occupied floor,
And the less glamorous sides: slowest lift, most alarming swaying in winds or earthquakes, highest floor you can be rescued from, highest floor where water pressure is adequate.
But it does sound like the kind of that could have taken off, and you'd get additional competition from eg China, rich oil states.
345m tall statue of Chairman Mao, 347m minaret in Brunei etc. Shame I lack the drawing skills to sketch these out.
For a POD for this, a good POD for this could be Uncle Joe decides to finish the Palace of the Soviets after the war (with German POWs and unfortunate ethnic minorities providing the forced labor for said monument to Stalinist madness)?
Fuzzy Dunlop
Banned
I think there's an upper limit regarding height as if it's high enough the top of the building starts to lag behind the bottom and its foundations due to the spin of the Earth.
If you build up to that point . . . well the sky's the limit.
There will be all sorts of not-quite-cheating with towers, spires,radio masts to gain an extra metre or two, but at some point the laws of physics will come to play as mentioned.
I suspect the projects will fade out eventually when corner-cutting, design limitations or substandard material properties combine to cause a few disasters. I doubt a one-off would do it, but at some point, the cumulative effects of problems, failures and actual disasters will become too much of a barrier when the prestige gain from being tallest will be outweighed by the cost of building and by the loss of prestige from failures.
I was trying to think of what kind of structures I'd like to see created in the competitive stage, but am drawing a blank right now.
I suspect the projects will fade out eventually when corner-cutting, design limitations or substandard material properties combine to cause a few disasters. I doubt a one-off would do it, but at some point, the cumulative effects of problems, failures and actual disasters will become too much of a barrier when the prestige gain from being tallest will be outweighed by the cost of building and by the loss of prestige from failures.
I was trying to think of what kind of structures I'd like to see created in the competitive stage, but am drawing a blank right now.