DIY Builds
DIY Builds
Photo: Ugur Tandogan
Once the tallest building in the world, the 1,454-foot tall Empire State Building is still a colossus of Manhattan and during a thunderstorm often channels heaven's fury. Each year it is hit with lightning about 25 times, protecting the area around it and the people inside its steel frame.
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During this week’s thunderstorms that rumbled through the sweltering summer heat, the Empire State Building was hit by a bolt of lightning. Once the tallest building in the world, the 1,454-foot tall Empire State Building is still a colossus of Manhattan and during a thunderstorm often channels heaven’s fury. Each year it is hit with lightning about 25 times, protecting the area around it and the people inside its steel frame. A copper lightning rod at the top of its spire allows the electricity to travel through a wire into the ground where it is safely discharged. In the mid-1930s, the General Electric Company set up cameras to photograph the strikes and take oscilloscopic recordings of the currents in a study of the power of this new building—completed in 1931—that had reached heights of no other building before. They discovered that tall buildings can actually throw lightning into the sky, producing bolts that travel upwards from ground to cloud. The Empire State Building is one of the most photographed sites in the world: but does it get enough appreciation for its defense of Manhattan from lightning? Find a view of it and walk towards it, notice the height of its spire, get closer until you lose sight of it in the city blocks. Then find yourself right next to it. Step inside the lobby. Discreetly touch a marble wall. Notice how cool the stone feels and think of the incredible heat of the lightning the building channels through its architecture (the air in the wake of a bolt can reach 50,000℉–five times hotter than the sun’s surface). Maybe say a quiet thanks for almost a century of being a guardian in summer storms. An issue of the Adventures in Science comic book series published by General Electric in the 1950s featuring art by artists such as George “Inky” Roussos. The series covered the wondrous range of electricity. This issue on the distribution of electricity featuring a model of the Empire State Building is available online through the Museum of Innovation & Science.
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Best Ways to Block Street Noise Seal Sound Leaks Around Exterior Windows to Block Out Street Noise. ... Reinforce your Windows with Soundproof...
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These are! They guide you every step of the way to complete your dream shed.
Learn More »Remove the topsoil layer from the area to be leveled and pile it to the side. ... Excavate soil from the high side of the yard and pile it in on the low side. ... Spread the excavated soil with a hard metal rake to make a smooth, level surface. ... Spread the excavated topsoil over the surface of the newly formed terrace. More items... •
Place stones at the base of the new slope formed by the fill soil. Stack the stones to create a low wall, preventing erosion of the loose soil. The same approach can be used at the base of the cut slope. The stone wall should be a maximum of 12 inches tall for safety and stability. Concrete and specialized techniques are needed to build larger retaining walls, but terraces created by hand are unlikely to be more than 12 inches in height because of the labor involved in moving such large quantities of soil.
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