Scientific Colloquium
January 9, 2004
The structure of the Twin Towers
was in some respects unique,
but a number of its innovations
have become widespread in high-rise
construction. Those innovations,
in turn, were the product of a
highly specific series of
technical, political, economic and
bureaucratic decisions. The
presentation will examine that history,
the structure that resulted from,
and how that structure performed -- in
some ways remarkably, in others
poorly -- on Sept. 11, 2001. The most
recent results from the ongoing
federal investigation of the trade
center collapses and the range of
possible failure mechanisms
will be discussed.