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The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

nytimes.com

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Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#51

Post by tasuki »

kevin_thibedeau wrote: post #43
nefitty wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I get the schadenfreude. I used to dismiss the suffering of people who were “beyond” the survival levels of Maslow’s hierarchy. This changed for me when I read that Peter Singer himself focuses on influencing survival-level needs for those in poverty because they are more immediate and are more quantifiable. He said something like, “Well-off people suffer, of course, but those types of suffering are more difficult to…

Having to take the freight elevator to your unfinished $20M apartment isn't suffering. These are spoiled brats grown up.

> Having to take the freight elevator to your unfinished $20M apartment isn't suffering.

It might be? Suffering is entirely subjective...

> These are spoiled brats grown up.

Yes indeed.

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#52

Post by pmontra »

kevin_thibedeau wrote: post #41
choeger wrote: post #40

> Initial findings showed that 73 percent of mechanical, electrical and plumbing components observed failed to conform with the developers’ drawings How is that even legal? Let alone technically possible? How does construction of these monsters work? "Yo, Bert, I need some 5x5 high-elastic steel framing for the 72th floor!" "Sorry man, we ran out of that when we 'redesigned' the elevator shaft, how about you take thi…

It's going to get even better when the concrete starts spalling off in 40 years of swaying in the wind.

Do they use concrete in those towers or is it all steel?

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#53

Post by tasuki »

mmanfrin wrote: post #38
sam_bristow wrote: post #11

Ignoring the content of the article for a second - how exactly was the author pronouncing that title in their head? Leeks creeks breeks? Lakes crakes brakes?

Leeks, Creaks, Breaks -- they're not all meant to rhyme. The last element is pronounced differently. I don't know what the term for it would be, but it's reminding me of 'Planes, Trains, and Automobiles'. Rhyme, Rhyme, Schema Deviation.

Adding to the confusion is that the "ee" is pronounced the same as the first "ea" which in turn is pronounced differently than the second "ea".

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#54

Post by OJFord »

pmontra wrote: post #52
kevin_thibedeau wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's going to get even better when the concrete starts spalling off in 40 years of swaying in the wind.

Do they use concrete in those towers or is it all steel?

Generally concrete slabs form the rough shape of it, on top of a framework of steel. At least from what I see in the UK. I know NY & London do have, at very least historically but I assume now too, quite different heights and construction methods, due to differences in the geology.

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#55

Post by rtx »

RodgerTheGreat wrote: post #34
vmception wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

interesting. from the article > making clear that even multimillion-dollar price tags do not guarantee problem-free living this reiterates that you can make a living simply catering to wealthy people's problems instead of dismissing them pick and choose your battles

You can make a living in organized crime. You can make a living polluting the environment. You can make a living defending corruption, helping the rich grow richer and the poor grow poorer. The problems of the wealthy are as the problems of a tick sucking the lifeblood from a host. Rest assured that extending them empathy and compassion will be a strictly one-sided arrangement when push comes to shove.

>strictly one-sided arrangement

Because we are going to eat the rich, right?

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#57

Post by pmontra »

Erlich_Bachman wrote: post #47
S53Vflnr4n wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Call me crazy but when I rent a condo, I try google street maps and go back in history and if I am lucky I get to see the construction phase. That will give an idea about how thick the concrete and the overall structure is. Another way is to look at the balconies. The floor will be as thick as balconies. The walls are a hit or miss. But if you knock on them and press your ears you can get some idea. Apartments near t…

I feel like this is why we're on HN for :P Where do you find the button for viewing the history of street view? Is it on the normal street view interface, or do you have to use an additional service/hackery?

Top left corner, the box with the address of the place you're looking at. Its bottom line is a clock icon and "Street View". Click on it and you get a slider with the available pictures. Place the slide on a date and click the thumbnail image to update the main view.

If there is no clock icon, there is no history for that location.

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#58

Post by dschuler »

RodgerTheGreat wrote: post #34
vmception wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

interesting. from the article > making clear that even multimillion-dollar price tags do not guarantee problem-free living this reiterates that you can make a living simply catering to wealthy people's problems instead of dismissing them pick and choose your battles

You can make a living in organized crime. You can make a living polluting the environment. You can make a living defending corruption, helping the rich grow richer and the poor grow poorer. The problems of the wealthy are as the problems of a tick sucking the lifeblood from a host. Rest assured that extending them empathy and compassion will be a strictly one-sided arrangement when push comes to shove.

I've worked with and lived around both poor and relatively rich people, but I can't say that the rich stand out as lacking empathy or compassion specifically. From my experience I would say the opposite is true, creating "anti network-effects" for many poor people.

There seems to be growing resentment of "the rich" recently, but I believe that's misplaced. Things will get worse for "the poor" until the cause is diagnosed correctly.

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#59

Post by taneq »

GeorgeRichard wrote: post #46
chuckSu wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Making a living off “rich people problems” has nothing to do with empathy. If their problems put food on my table you best believe I’m going to cater to their bullshit. If it makes me rich even better

Big parasites have little parasites.

So, Nat'ralists observe, a Flea

Hath smaller Fleas that on him prey,

And these have smaller yet to bite 'em,

And so proceed ad infinitum

Re: The Downside to Life in a Supertall Tower: Leaks, Creaks, Breaks

#60

Post by amelius »

choeger wrote: post #40

> Initial findings showed that 73 percent of mechanical, electrical and plumbing components observed failed to conform with the developers’ drawings How is that even legal? Let alone technically possible? How does construction of these monsters work? "Yo, Bert, I need some 5x5 high-elastic steel framing for the 72th floor!" "Sorry man, we ran out of that when we 'redesigned' the elevator shaft, how about you take thi…

> How is that even legal?

I suppose an engineer has to sign for it.

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