Originally posted by: kylebisme
Originally posted by: ElFenix
the 105 feet of structure was 'taken out' by the several seconds of internal collapse and warping that happened before the free fall after being weakened for hours and hours by fire following impact damage.
You are choosing to view the removal of 105 feet of structure as an event separate from the rest of the collapse, rather than accepting the fact that as a part of the collapse it required a force beyond that of gravity to accomplish. Even if the fires had been hot enough to weaken the steel to the point of total collapse, that weakling would have been progressive and asymmetrical rather than the near instantaneous and compete removal of structural resistance which was required to allow for the period of free fall.
wow, doublespeak. how is acknowledging the several hours of weakening and several seconds of collapsing that happened prior to the free fall at all able to be interpreted as viewing the free fall as a separate event?
this wasn't like one part of a bridge being able to remain standing even when other parts have collapsed, this was more like a house of cards due to the interconnection of all the girders and supports. take out one part of it and the whole thing starts to wobble. wobble far enough and the rest isn't loaded properly and it all falls.
falling faster than gravity would require a force beyond gravity.
further, the collapse was progressive and asymmetric. the interior of the building started collapsing first, and from one side to another. that's clearly evident in the way the penthouse fell.
here's a simple experiment. build a tower out of sticks, each carefully balanced and supporting the others. build it a few feet high. now, take a blowtorch to a central support in the lower part and see what happens.