georgewu5 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

e: there are shamefully so little information about the natural disasters like the EARTHQUAKES. I have tried to research in libraries, one of the few things I learned is the earthquakes gave no warning and it came with tremendous force: one is called SLIDE,which moves horizontally back and forth. Another is called THRUST,which is ups and downs. and there are more to the movement below the surface of the earth! jerking ,shaking with 100,000 tons of TNT or an atomic bomb.---dancewu(dot)net

georgewu5 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

If CCTV was filed with the building department in San Francisco and to be built in that city,mostly likely they would not allow a building like CCTV to be built there. But in Beijing, I remembered only thirty years back, my former boss, Mr. Pei who spoke about there should be a building height limit in Beijing! Although his opinion was based on the relationship to the forbidden city. But the building code is such a new thing that an asymetrical tall structure could be permitted!dancewu(dot)net

georgewu5 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

e: Two slanted towers, 500 feet tall each,came to join together at the top only a few weeks ago. The center of gravity now is somewhere outside of the building mass and below the new joint! when a force of an earthquake, some experts said it is about 100,000 tons of TNT or the force of the Atomic bomb in Hiroshima, started to sway the CCTV,Beijing,which will swing ASYMETRICALLY back and NOT forth, the weakest point is the most delicate joint at the very top that will break first-dancewu(dot)net

eiselekd (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

I'm not an expert in skyscraper building statics at all. But as a novice comment I intuitivly would say that this building stands on 2 legs, so it should be morestable than one that only stands on 1. :-) (maybe this is a silly comment). At least one can think of that it will not swing around when a stong wind blows, again, is this good or bad in terms of building statics?

georgewu5 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

eise: There is nothing new under the sun; so they said. What had been terribly wrong is as I said in my last posting that when some people started copying, they did not think thoroughly, the result of CCTV is disasterious that a 500 foot +/- tall building, asymetrically designed,is built in a known earthquake zone Beijing. All the people involved in that project, to me, are very irresponsible! If Wright did it again, he would never have done it this way! That is my criticism.---dancewu(dot)net

eiselekd (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

Search for "Isamu Noguchi Energy Void" at google and I'd think you'll find the what could have been an inspiration to this building. Copying is no bad thing to do. In fact everybody does it. Even Noguchi must have had his inspiration from somewhere.

georgewu5 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

CCTV looked like the building the architect Peter Eisenman published many years ago before Mr. Koolhaas stole it and simplified the scupltural forms,but still had the recognizable hole in the middle,used it to win the commission from the un-educated government officials from Beijing,as this combination with the blind copying of another architect's design,this ASYMETRICAL tall building just so happened be built in an earthquake zone Beijing! WHEN THE LESS GIFTED COPIED OTHERS;THEY DON'T THINK!

georgewu5 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

z: Next time when you are in the neighborhood of CCTV, please stay away from that building when Beijing has an earthquake again! I do not trust that asymetrical tower, it could hardly stand up by itself even with no earthquake! Please trust me. I am an American trained Chinese Architect,71 years old,my name is George Wu, A.I.A. -Quote me after the next earthquake!---dancewu(dot)net

georgewu5 (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

The two buildings are Beautiful though! Too bad that the CCTV is in the wrong city---Beijing is in an earthquake zone!---CCTV should have been in New York city! I would have loved to have it here where I live.---New York City is not in an earthquake zone!---dancewu(dot)net

LottLottie (November 30, 1999 at 12:00 am)

Stunning and inspiring! Beijing is so lucky Koolhaas chose them for this design.