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Damper, Baby.
Inside the world's tallest building (the Taipei 101) there is a 660 metric* ton ball to help prevent the top of the building from blowin' in the wind. They call this ball a "damper" and in typical Asian fashion, the iron ball is depicted as a cute, cartoon, baby alien with a big round head, including ascii features such as vertical lines for eyes and a circular nose. Damper has stubby arms, fingerless hands and clown like feet. Fun for the whole family. The gift shop offers the Damper "Baby" in orange, red and yellow. The Taipei 101 (101 being the number of floors and the Zip Code that the building resides in) has an internal observation deck on Floor 89 and an outdoor, gated deck on 91. The building is 508 meters, 1,667 feet. Getting to floor 89 takes 36 seconds in Guinness recorded "World's Fastest Elevator." That's Zero to 37 miles an hour in less than 2.47 floors. That is about as fast as it took to build the beast that is fashioned in what is supposed to be symbolic of a bamboo rod, which 'symbolizes' longevity, strength and grace and the path to enlightenment. Construction began in 1999 and opened to the public in 2004. The search for enlightenment has been going on for years. But the interesting fact about this construction and the 'race' for the tallest building is that from 1990 to today seven of the top ten tallest buildings have been constructed and all reside in Asia (three of which call Hong Kong home). That is a period of just 17 years. Even more amazing that that, the building that held the top spot for tallest 'skyscrapers' for 41 years was the Empire State Building and it took 14 months to complete. The ESB was overtaken by WTC (RIP, GBA) in 1972 and then the Sears Tower in 1974. It was a short period from 1974 to the early 1990's when Asian architects were seeking fame, fortune and enlightenment by erecting the world's tallest structures. But the record holder for time spent as the biggest and baddest will always be The Great Pyramid of Giza, which held its stone high from 2570 BC to 1300 AD at 481 feet, a little more than a football field and a half. By the middle of the 15th Century the Pyramid was measured to be 455 feet, having eroded 26 feet in almost 4,000 years. It isn't scientifically proven, but old people lose relative height in much shorter spaces of time. Well, in two years** a new structure will unveil its tallest-ness. A building in Dubai, called the Burj, will be opened at just under 3,000 feet. Almost double the size of the Taipei 101 and a little more than a half-mile in vertical length. Babylon, revisited? ---- (1*) Not sure of the 'ton' (as we know it) equivalent, but 'metric ton' sounds cooler and heavier. Like kilogram. Cops in Hollywood movies always seem to make a 'kilo' of cocaine sound like a something that would barely fit in a shopping cart at Costco. A quick google search educated me, and now you - a metric ton is the equivalent of 1.10 tons. Heavy ball, baby. (2**) Late breaking. On July 4, 2007 the Burj surpassed the Taipei 101 in height, but will not be the 'tallest' officially until it is open and fully inhabited. Rememberance of things lost:
Some Photos: Hong Kong Coming Soon.
Post - July'07 Back to home...
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