Science by David Feldman

Author:David Feldman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins

Submitted by Nancy Schmidt of West New York, New Jersey.

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HOW CAN HURRICANES DESTROY BIG

BUILDINGS BUT LEAVE TREES UNSCATHED?

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Think of a hurricane as heavyweight boxer Sonny Liston, a powerful force of nature. A building in the face of Liston’s onslaught is like George Foreman, strong but anchored to the ground. Without any means of flexibility or escape, the building is a sitting target. A building’s massive size offers a greater surface area to the wind, allowing greater total force for the same wind pressure than a tree could offer.

But a tree in a hurricane is like Muhammad Ali doing the rope-a-dope. The tree is going to be hit by the hurricane, but it yields and turns and shuffles its way until the force of the hurricane no longer threatens it. In this case, the metaphor is literal: by bending with the wind, the tree and its leaves can sometimes escape totally unscathed.

Richard A. Anthes, president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, offers another reason why we see so many buildings, and especially so many roofs, blown away during a hurricane.

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