Discovery - Man Made Marvels: Taipei 101 (2006)

Taipei 101 is the world's tallest sky scraper. It's 508 metres of the most high-tech engineering and construction on the planet, mixing ancient values with cutting-edge technology and taking the heart of Taiwan into the future. Designing and building the world's tallest sky scraper was no easy task because here in Taipei, two of the most powerful forces of nature - earthquakes and typhoons - combine to make going super tall a super challenge. Using world-leading engineering and construction techniques, Taipei 101 not so much conquers nature but outsmarts it. The result is a man made marvel: a unique mega-structure of unprecedented size, shape, and technology, built to withstand the very worst that nature can dish out. And it's not just as a super structure where Taipei 101 pushes the boundaries. Taipei 101 is a benchmark of technological brilliance and innovation, a record-breaking megastructure that defies nature and puts the small island of Taiwan firmly amongst the giants of global industry.

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BBC - Richard Hammond's Engineering Connections S01E02 Super Skyscraper Taipei 101 (2009) 720p HDTV

Richard Hammond travels to Taipei and discovers the secrets of the world's tallest building, Taipei 101. This modern marvel of engineering stands at a jaw-dropping 1671 feet. Built on top of a seismic fault line and in a typhoon hotspot, its height is all the more impressive given its location. Richard discovers just what it is in the Taipei 101's DNA that allows it be so tall and cope with these extreme natural events, and what all this cutting-edge engineering has in common with a bird cage, bamboo, boat masts and seat belts. Richard embarks on a fantastic journey of discovery that will take him from the mines of 17th-century England via the early skyscrapers of Chicago to the top of one of the most advanced buildings in the world.

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