Could we build a wooden skyscraper? - Stefan Al

Explore the viability of wooden skyscrapers, and see how cross-laminated timber (CLT) helps make these once impossible structures possible.
--
Towering 85 meters above the Norwegian countryside, Mjøstårnet is the world’s tallest wooden building, made almost entirely from the trees of neighboring forests. But as recently as the end of the 20th century, engineers thought it was impossible to build a wooden building over 6 stories tall. So how do wooden structures like this compare to steel and concrete skyscrapers? Stefan Al investigates.
Lesson by Stefan Al, directed by Franz Palomares.
Support Our Non-Profit Mission
----------------------------------------------
Support us on Patreon: bit.ly/TEDEdPat...
Check out our merch: bit.ly/TEDEDShop
----------------------------------------------
Connect With Us
----------------------------------------------
Sign up for our newsletter: bit.ly/TEDEdNew...
Follow us on Facebook: bit.ly/TEDEdFac...
Find us on Twitter: bit.ly/TEDEdTwi...
Peep us on Instagram: bit.ly/TEDEdIns...
----------------------------------------------
Keep Learning
----------------------------------------------
View full lesson: ed.ted.com/les...
Dig deeper with additional resources: ed.ted.com/les...
----------------------------------------------
Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Petr Vacek, Rhys Patterson, Dennis, Olivia Fu, Katrina Adams, Regina Post, Mary Collins, Kari Teffeau, clumsybunnie, Adam Leos, Jeremy Laurin, Cindy Lai, Liz, Bhargav Pandravada, Rajath Durgada Manjunath, Dan Nguyen, sarim haq, Chin Beng Tan, Alejandro Gomez, Tom Boman, Karen Warner, Isorn Sookwanish, Iryna Panasiuk, Diane Gallin, Aaron Torres, Vasundhar, Eric Braun, Denka Wee, Daru Bhargav, Sonja Worzewski, Amy, Michael Clement, Ghaith Tarawneh, Nathan Milford, Dhanwanth Varadhan, Tomas Beckett, Alice Ice, Eric Berman, Kurt Paolo Sevillano, Xavi Ramos, Ron Kakar, Jennifer Heald, flóra lili donáti, Megulo Abebe, TAO7 HORUS, isolwi, Vedasheersh, Michael Chang, Waqar Sheikh, Alexander Gruber and Irene Y.

[@TEDEd]

Thanks for watching! If you want to learn more about feats of engineering, wacky creatures, hidden historical figures, weird body questions you don’t want ask aloud, brain-busting riddles (and *so much* more!) make sure to subscribe to our channel ➡️ bit.ly/TEDEdSubscribe Stay tuned and stay curious!

[@lysandroabelcher2592]

THIS IS AWESOME !!

[@bluewhalestudioblenderanim1132]

my problem isn't the idea or design but the animation design feels disconnected and a perhaps a bit Too Cartoony . . . so please try making it more neutral next time

[@doubledownpleasegosubtotte4274]

@@bluewhalestudioblenderanim1132 why have wooden skyscrapers anyway

[@bluewhalestudioblenderanim1132]

@@doubledownpleasegosubtotte4274 that question is the point of this video

[@thegarfunkle]

this has a strange amount of likes for a pinned comment

[@mortengoodwin9973]

“Standardized parts with clear instructions for assembly” The IKEA of skyscrapers.

[@artificial_oysters]

@Pinned by TED-Ed Fake

[@SamJ-kw1xk]

@Pinned by TED-Ed Fake

[@jacob8565]

"Clear introductions" ikea? You need lego

[@camramaster]

Why not.

[@kakalimukherjee3297]

@Tessie Jenny Your account was created on 19th April 2021, that account on 20th April 2021. Hahahaha

[@randomuser6954]

"Wooden skyscrapers" Termites: It's free real estate

[@MrRazmut]

I don't think that wood is too tasty hahah imagine the amount of glue that goes into making a wooden skyscraper

[@bensoncheung2801]

@@MrRazmut Bugs eat glue.

[@shubhajoshi9505]

It's a building so IT IS literally a real estate😂

[@nickharrison1477]

Lmao

[@MrRazmut]

@@bensoncheung2801 damn really? I didn't know that. Cool

[@The40Oliver]

Sweden: Assemble your own Furniture Denmark: Assemble your own Toys Norway: Assemble your own *Skyscrapers*

[@Sonicbro-xx6sg]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5DZgX6ni8xkm6M&lc=UgwRInW_cMx0RMRT4Yd4AaABAg&ab_channel=TED-Ed

[@aaron-sl5hd]

assemblers, assemble

[@MrSigmaer]

A compensation for the lack of population i guess xD

[@Geniusignotus]

Scandanavia: An assembled and organised society

[@chandalore9699]

Assemble or you will tremble

[@BuddysDIY]

With lumber prices you could build them out of gold and it would be cheaper

[@spacekid9680]

That sounds like a good use for all that gold since it's terrible for tools and armour.

[@thecosmonaut9834]

@@spacekid9680 yea

[@kasperarnebergjohnsen5403]

Guessing it’s a good bit cheaper if Iit’s made from lumber from the neighbouring forests. Idk much about Mjøsdalen but if there is any lumber industry, which isn’t unlikely, wood wouldn’t have to cost tooooo much i’m guessing

[@bulletopera409]

What is the actual use for gold

[@bunnybear4437]

@@bulletopera409 ~70% jewelry ~10% electronics and then the left over sits in banks and safes as ingots.

[@dkpsyhog]

"...creating standardized parts with clear instructions for assembly" Trust a nordic country to make IKEA buildings

[@kingchicken8232]

@Pinned by TED-Ed im sorry, i don't know how to read morse code

[@maitrilazaroff138]

It has no word instructions. DO NOT ASSEMBLE ON FLOOR

[@DanielAleksanderJensen]

@@kingchicken8232 This is not TED, it's a virus-spam, don't open WhatsApp

[@bcubed72]

A little late to the party. In the 1950s, you could mail-order a home from Sears and Roebuck in the USA, with numbered lumber delivered, and "insert 'tab A' into 'slot B'" assembly instructions.

[@SwaggMessiah69]

@@bcubed72 Earlier than that, 1800s (somewhere during industrial revolution), same thing, wan't a green house? pick from a book or go to a show yard, choose all the designs and details from the options, colour, etc, and they can ship from the UK to the colonies. Right now the most standard and most common are steel frame systems, where you put architectural drawings on a computer and a machine pretty much "prints" out the metal and builders can put it together like legos in a day or two.

[@acozmicdolphin4941]

So what you're saying is that Mjøstårnet is an 18 story Jenga tower? Epic.

[@domsamuel7039]

@@doodlingmocha5986 he's a bot I reported him

[@dreamywhales]

@Tessie Jenny ok sure scammer...I am drew, and I am danny, and we are NOT the same person 🎶

[@levthelion71810]

Lol you're right, except it's more like a glued jenga tower, so you can't pull the pieces out...

[@macaroon_nuggets8008]

@Tessie Jenny Ok companion bot.

[@MrBerserkinTime]

@Pinned by TED-EdN•O

[@boarbot7829]

I really wish they’d shown us a photo of the building at the start.

[@Oversneeze]

I sAw iT iN tHE bEginNing

[@yoshikagekira8040]

well i see one every saturday in bergen

[@Oversneeze]

@@yoshikagekira8040 Bergen? hvor ser du den ifra??

[@yoshikagekira8040]

@@Oversneeze sentrum tror jeg

[@Oversneeze]

@@yoshikagekira8040 men er ikke Bergen timer unna?

[@mikeveenhuis9160]

There are a few different issues with timber. Wood "lives", which means it expands and contracts under different environmental conditions. Timber is also so lightweight, that it could create issues in high rise construction regarding vibrations. Also, when timber is loaded for a long time, it gets issues regarding creep. Furthermore, the glue in GluLam is far from environmentally friendly. Lastly, detailing is very difficult, because as mentioned in the video, timber is very weak in any other direction than longitudinal. This means that a bolt or nail could easily fail when it is loaded in the "wrong" direction. Now, this doesn't mean that there is no hope or reason to build high rise buildings in timber, but the industry is still a little bit in its infancy.

[@AM-zr7wc]

The Glue is not only enviroment unfriendly, it also questions of the recycability.

[@rossjubic8567]

Yeah this video is very misleading all around. Don't get me wrong, glulams are great if you want some architecturally exposed beams or your building on an existing wood construction and can't use steel, but you really need a unique case in order to go out of your way to specify it from standard cut lumber and other building materials.

[@mreagle8770]

All materials expand and contract under different environmental conditions, accounting for these is part of the design process. All materials creep, accounting for this is also part of the design process. And you cant really compare CLT and glulam to "timber". These are engineered woods, their properties aren't the same as a lone plank of wood. For directional strength, CLT addresses that issue by having the timber planks arranged in both directions, and you would usually use glulam in the longitudinal direction it was orientated, though it can still perform well in other directions if its designed for it. Ultimately, there is no need to make a purely "timber" building. Use an optimal combination of timber (engineered), steel and concrete and get the outcome you want. Timber is another option to use and it's more sustainable so the more of it we can use the better, but that doesn't mean we have to only use timber.

[@mikeveenhuis9160]

@@mreagle8770 Yes ofcourse materials change under different circumstances. Timber however is the most severe. Especially considering you can load timber in different directions, longitudinal radial and tangential. Where the latter two are much more susceptible to deformations. Furthermore, timber can draw in moisture, and this also changes the sizes of the elements a lot. This doesn't happen (as much) in steel and concrete. Lastly, creep does happen in all materials, but creep in timber is vastly different than creep in steel or concrete, where it hardly ever is a governing load. It is important to see timber as a difficult and unique material, with a lot of unique properties, which a lot of engineers still don't (they consider it similar to steel). Yes you can design for it, but it has to be done with these properties in mind.

[@billsmith5109]

Has European CLT walked away from the polyurethane glues yet? This was one of the first changes when full scale fire tests were run in North America when considering CLT for use in structure that required a fire rating. Sometimes a term such as ‘softens with heat rise’ is used. Effectively this means no polyurethanes. See APA 320 PRG 320 2019 and elsewhere.

[@RoSoliTaire]

Kurzgesagt: Hey, wanna terraform Venus? TED-Ed: Hey, wanna build a wooden skyscraper?

[@christianweibrecht6555]

Now let's build a wooden skyscraper on Venus

[@moinulislammahin2045]

@@christianweibrecht6555 more like coal skyscraper

[@shreeyamittal1771]

Yeah, they have definitely started collaborating on the timing of their uploaded videos.

[@alastairhewitt380]

Can we please do both?

[@Think_Inc]

“Do you wanna build a -snowman- wooden skyscraper?”

[@sheeps4485]

Can’t wait for Ikea to start producing skyscrapers for self-assembly

[@Sonicbro-xx6sg]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/e5DZgX6ni8xkm6M&lc=Ugys0FkE9MVU1MKOp7h4AaABAg&ab_channel=TED-Ed

[@CadetGriffin]

*Meanwhile, in a parallel universe* Conspiracy theorists: "Jet fuel can't char wooden panels."

[@randomthingdoer3879]

this is so smart i dont even get it

[@hypelake6549]

@@randomthingdoer3879 9/11

[@charlestonianbuilder344]

i was stumped on what this means until the comments cleared i up, if anti vaxxers exist, in that parallel universe where the internet exists, yeah its guranteed someone has that idea

[@runevi]

the fact that people in the comments don't "get" this reference makes me feel old!

[@Fact_core]

lol

[@Mic_Glow]

"would reduce carbon footprint of those structures by more than 25%" Nice, but how long do those structures last compared to concrete/ brick/ steel?

[@TheBlobik]

Lasting is one thing, the other is that wooden support beams tend to flex as they get old. Basically, your floor will be less and less flat over the years. The same might happen for walls in some cases. In 20-60 years it might start to be noticeable. Overall wooden structures need more maintenance IMHO.

[@satanlucifer1003]

Also glues are very toxic to the environment and producing them isn't exactly safe either...

[@spudluver47]

The way they calculate carbon footprint has to be wrong. Cutting down a tree in its prime CO2 capture years is way worse than burning some gas to make Portland cement.

[@hifijohn]

@@TheBlobik Good point ,look at any old wooden house you'll rarely find a level floor.

[@emmaeriksson7155]

Great way to show alternative and effective ways to reduce carbon footprint! Tho another problem by using woods is that often countries have bad forest politics which can results in homogenous forests with lack of diversity which leads to low chances of adapting to climate change and stand against forestfires. That’s why politics is so important in the work of reducing the effects of climate change and why we can’t rely on good technology. But those two working together can really make changes!

[@wowverynice6732]

@Pinned by TED-Ed This is a scam for anyone unaware just report the comment

[@cinnamorollcute7118]

@Pinned by TED-Ed no

[@emmaeriksson7155]

@Dimitar the technology has been around for a long time now the only thing we need now is the politics to take a turn

[@user-pc5sc7zi9j]

@@wowverynice6732 Nah, report the whole channel.

[@micayahritchie7158]

Hello. I'm wondering how well these buildings standup to hurricanes. I live in the Caribbean and we build heavily with concrete and steal (usually more than elsewhere for buildings of comparable size) because of the frequency of such intense winds

[@jenniferlam7482]

The animation is so satisfying to watch paired with the sound effects.

[@oscarpotter2551]

But what is the chart at 4:25 meant to be illustrating? Its seems very unclear and this part was quite jarring, in my experience.

[@hamzamahmood9565]

"Charred panels can be swapped out, unlike melted steel beams" Jet fuel: ....

[@philpetersen4477]

@ཀཱ except stone and some other things.

[@sg389]

Jet Fuel Can't Melt Steel Beams

[@freevipservers]

@ཀཱ can be resolved by making a tungsten-steel alloy that has a higher red-hot hardness. meaning that it remains hard even at red hot temperatures.

[@dordydude4408]

@@freevipservers Well yes, except that skyscraper would cost more than we could even fathom, so actually no

[@freevipservers]

@@dordydude4408 Yeah I know. But if you want a invincible building then you build it out of that.

[@yooper2186]

Sometimes I’m so caught up in watching the animation I seem to stop listening and have to watch again! Think it reminds me of the cartoons I watched in the 70’s.

[@clarinethro1695]

This is a weird riddle. It’s not even sponsored by Brilliant

[@janessaparallag6873]

It’s not a riddle thats why

[@user-gh1yb2gu8b]

@ Janessa Parallag, you don’t know what a joke is, do you?

[@gpaderx6105]

@@janessaparallag6873 r/wooosh

[@mgenburn5339]

LMFAOOYFSXFA

[@pahoellyyy]

@@janessaparallag6873 * facepalm *

[@catguy5425]

"Nice house! How'd you afford it?" "I got it from Ikea."

[@mnf2139]

Well... I wouldn't be surprised if they do it.

[@christophercripps7639]

In 1902 you could order a pre -fab house from Sear & Roebuck. As if any local municipality would let you assemble anything larger than garden shed.

[@JakeLikesTech]

Not gonna lie, this video for the first 4 minutes was like "this is gonna change the world, no more steel, concrete, or iron. Just WOOD, it's far superior in every single way imaginable." Then the last 56 seconds was like, "yea, what we said, it's not entirely true. It's not a bad building material, but it's still not the greatest."

[@sevret313]

You don't need several 100 meter tall skyscrapers everywhere. So the height limit isn't that much of a problem.

[@chip43]

I immediately thought what about insects and animals?

[@shaikkhader4002]

the narrators voice is soo soothing: feeling sleepy now.

[@Its_just_Avi]

Yes bro me too

[@himouto8625]

NGL I watch every riddle video just to sleep 🤣

[@Alkalus]

Gotta hand it to Addison Anderson

[@mozaarsenal1113]

My fav narrator after David Attenborough..

[@basil8507]

Ted-Ed: Can we build a wooden skyscraper? Stem kids: Say less

[@caratasmr7291]

@Pinned by TED-Ed “bictoin” typo lmfao

[@syedarushda2108]

@Pinned by TED-Ed *Bitcoin

[@GDPlainA]

@Pinned by TED-Ed B I C T C O I N

[@EldhoMidhun]

I live in the second tallest tree building Treet, also in Norway. There's definitely some tree obsession going around in this part of the world!

[@ponpaerostar]

"Wooden skyscraper exist" "That one guy with flint and steel"

[@Chigger]

*"Subwoofer Lullaby" intensifies*

[@themuffincat]

Coffin Dance intensifies

[@potatomatop9326]

Could we build a lego cargo ship?

[@nani.banana]

hmm interesting…

[@J1P2K]

I would love to find out.

[@iuvyne]

that would be fun

[@eshanjadhav265]

Yes

[@mmcsarte]

There is a plastic island floating on the pacific, almost the same

[@yvzbrs]

I love how our perception of eco-friendly changes over time. It was not to cut down trees at first and use concrete, plastic bags and all, now it's more like let's go back to wood and paper bags and all that good stuff.

[@jerrykwan150]

I think it's fascinating because of how we've learned so much. In all our time learning about new materials and techniques to save the earth, we've basically ended up realizing that going back to basics is a pretty good idea and I think it's poetic how we almost came full circle and just went with feeding into the already-existing natural cycles for our latest ideas. We don't really need new things to solve the problem, sometimes it's more like new ways of thinking. Cool, isn't it?

[@pupip55]

fun fact: Paper bags produces more carbon the plastic bags so neither is good

[@jerrykwan150]

@@pupip55 fun fact: trees sequester carbon, so if we use them we don't emit excessive carbon dioxide. Plastic production likely does nothing to absorb CO2 emissions so paper can be a good alternative. Edit: upon reading a Stanford article on the topic to check, I will admit that paper bags are more costly to the environment to manufacture, but plastics have a limited time left because they are made from fossil fuels. The article itself noted that certain reusable plastic bags are much more effective than the conventional thin ones and are both more durable and take fewer reuses to cancel their carbon footprint. They also ended on this important topic: our habits are most important when it comes to how sustainable we can make things. A change in materials (using durable plastic bags for shopping maybe instead of one-time use bags) can help though.

[@pupip55]

@@jerrykwan150 Also fun fact: Trees are one of the biggest producers of methane.

[@jerrykwan150]

@@pupip55 thanks for the interesting fact of the day! I decided to read a little into it, and it's a rather intriguing topic. While trees do emit methane (especially in tropical and wetland areas), they at least absorb CO2 in amounts that can contend with the effects of the potential greenhouse gases they release, and might even absorb some of the methane they release. The overall effect is still noted to be positive, as CO2 is a longer lasting gas than methane, despite methane's much greater potency. If we wanted to control methane emissions, we can study tree emissions for sure, though I believe a more direct action can be taken in the moment by changing agriculture. Cows burp plenty of methane, but studies have shown that a seaweed diet reduced emissions by a massive amount. It's just one way to handle things but it's a start! Yale Environment 360 article talking about trees and methane: e360.yale.edu/features/scientists-probe-the-surprising-role-of-trees-in-methane-emissions Seaweed reducing cattle methane: www.ucdavis.edu/news/feeding-cattle-seaweed-reduces-their-greenhouse-gas-emissions-82-percent

[@thatsroughbuddy1407]

Ted-ED: Wood skyscrapers are more fire resistant than normal steel ones. Me: _Heh?_

[@dracoslayer16]

Yeah...not sure how much thought went into that little bit of trivia.

[@nicolaiherrmann3643]

@@dracoslayer16 it’s true tho

[@coolsceegaming6178]

“Could be build wooden skyscrapers?” Basically every Chinese or Japanese movies set 300+ years ago: *y e s*

[@tangbein]

Me and my family often anchor our boat at the harbor right beside the tower and take a cup of coffee at the restaurant there. It just looks like any random building, but it is in fact the worlds largest in wood.

[@roshanantony64]

Norway is an amazing country isn't it? Earth's utopia.

[@tangbein]

@@roshanantony64 High wealth doesn´t equal Utopia. We got our fair share of problems like any other country. But our nature is great!

[@literalgarbage8014]

@@tangbein Couldn't have said it better myself

[@Cacowninja]

What's the restaurant's name?

[@tangbein]

@@Cacowninja Frigg. It's more of a cafe chain.

[@termit269]

2:28 concrete can also be prefabricated and actually has been succesfully used in this form in the cold war era where housing was desperatley needed for people who lost their house in WW2, and prefabricates housing and buildings were much easier and faster to build.

[@aariz9]

Hi

[@TheAerielT]

Exactly what I was looking for. Concrete can also withstand fire for more than 3 hours, as can intumescent coated/ concrete sprayed structural steel.

[@heavymetalbassist5]

wood also has to be cured, use green wood and itll change shape over time and you risk it cracking as it cures

[@dmisterb]

@@heavymetalbassist5 yeah, and that's probably longer than concrete cures

[@remlok5556]

Shhh you’ll provoke them

[@1999yasin]

Termites: I'm about to end this mans whole career.

[@PCGeines]

As someone who wants to work with the timber civil construction industry, I loved the video. It describes quickly and clearly the pros of the material.

[@Vugen18]

He trying to pronounce Mjøstårnet is funny and cute

[@neinherman9989]

Fellow Norwegian I presume?

[@MarkyTeriyaki]

Sounds Polish

[@romainandrieux5948]

Mjeystornat ?

[@dylancross2925]

Come to New Jersey and pronounce our towns psh. What a joke

[@MarkyTeriyaki]

@@dylancross2925 Jokes on you I used to live in Loveladies, NJ

[@amman272]

kuezgesagt and ted ed uploading at same time me: is this heaven?

[@xray5984]

exactly what I was thinking ;)

[@elemento489]

Yes You're In HEAVEN For Now....:)

[@DanteXChannel]

YES!

[@dogeofgreatness2222]

My name is also Amaan, first time I see someone else with it. My happiness is immeasurable and my day is made as you dear sir/mam deserve all that there is.

[@amman272]

@@dogeofgreatness2222 Ohh awesome:D nice to meet yaaa!!

[@Jun-cc6qs]

Someone: How can we make wood stronger? A random person: Well maybe just glue them together? : Genius.

[@joshteshek1155]

This is my favourite video from the Ted Ed channel

[@1minutelibrary278]

it is eco-friendly but also requires multiple quantity of wood

[@chaoticneutral7573]

If people can reforest cut out woods then it's more beneficial then concrete and steel buildings

[@sidharthsuresh207]

plus it does not release carbon into the atmosphere. it keeps it captured

[@kelvinferreira3767]

@@chaoticneutral7573 Even with proper reforestation damage is done, and if done for too many buildings, the speed at which you can reforest without permanently damaging the environment or replacing healthy ecosystems for wood production wouldn't really match up with the demand. At least for what I know it is.

[@nazigorfurher4403]

I think is not good at all. Why? Well the problem is that wood have life expetancy lower than concrete and we have to replace the building again and another deforest. Or do some extensive care that will cost really alot of money and not just that its also way to easy to catch burn. So i am not sure its a great idea.

[@Pvemaster2]

@@kelvinferreira3767 Silviculture is a thing. You're just saying proper management is needed. And any damage done with "proper reforestation" (debatable) will always be better than steel and concrete. The amount of pollution turning iron ore from the ground into steel beams and using concrete dwarfs using wood. Yeah, don't cut down a whole forest in a day (an example of what I mean with "proper management"), but people forget how much pollution steel and concrete create because it's out of mind (a cut-down forest is easy to imagine) but CO2 (and other pollution) are invisible.

[@jewris.art11]

Every Architects dream design is every Engineer's Nightmare

[@pissoffeachother]

And every engineers dream is every construction workers nightmare.

[@rodrigogier]

Yeah, it's a nightmare to get the project from the archtiect and throw it in the engineering software and push enter

[@autumnstar]

I appreciate how almost every video Ted Ed goes back to environmental safety to make sure everyone knows the causes and effects from every aspect.

[@ejoshcoron]

Man what a masterfully produced little video

[@user-ed2pw1ne7ve]

Are wooden skyscrapers safe? Results of the tests were used to demonstrate that light timber frame buildings could meet the functional safety requirements that would be required for non-combustible steel or concrete buildings. ... As a result, the use of CLT has been adopted into the prescriptive building codes in the US and Canada.

[@learninginanutshellclassvi7830]

Can we all give a moment to admire the narrators VOICE !

[@OriginalOrion_]

Kinda sounds like it was AI generated ngl

[@aJaklin]

Respectable effort in pronouncing mjøstårnet

[@warsonohadisubroto4203]

In the tropics, termites would really love these wooden buildings.

[@maddoxmonteza]

that's why we won't build them in the tropics

[@arvojustice]

Ted-Ed: could we build a wooden skyscraper? Red woods: am I a joke to you?

[@solus2074]

I was about to say lmao

[@criticalthinker3262]

Redwoods are super tall, but not quite 40 stories tall

[@FinancialShinanigan]

TED-Ed: Could we build a wooden skyscraper? IKEA: Challenge accepted

[@helenadasilva9371]

Fun fact IKEA actually have a experimental lab called Space10, where they work with everything from cooking to urban planning, and have made a koncept for a eco and social town district where the buildings is in wooden grid system. So them begin to work with a wooden skyscraper isn't that farfetched 😂

[@_egghead]

Traditional engineers might ignore this idea but young aspiring one can be inspired by your video and we can have these buildings all around after 100 years. Good job!

[@sebastiantreloar6045]

I remember holidays in Europe and seeing massive glulam beams holding up the ceiling in huge supermarkets. I didn’t know what it was at the time but I remember it leaving me in awe even at a young age

[@thulasi1798]

Kurzgesagt: We can terraform venus and live there Ted-Ed: Let me help you construct buildings with wood Please make a video together once🙏

[@abhishekpattanayak1443]

"What is now proved, was once imagined." I imagine infrastructure built using wood, glass, diorite, steel and concrete

[@lonestarr1490]

Well, the phrase doesn't work the other way around.

[@aaronchadwick2682]

“A 40 story building the minimal height for a formal skyscraper” Newby-McMahon Building: Am I a joke to you!?

[@monnezzapromizoulin5169]

I remember there was at the begin of the XXiest century a proposal to build for an universal exposition a wooden tower from the size of the Tour Eiffel to demonstrate the possibilities of wooden construction

[@darksoals]

I’m not really sure about this green argument. Not only is wood more expensive but it has a very slow turn over. Meaning that just because you planted more trees, does not mean you have undone the impact of cutting them down, or that those trees will be ready to use again in a timely manner. Furthermore, if the world targeted trees to make its largest structures, would the demand for wood meet the quantity of wood currently available for these multi-layer super large buildings or would we just be adding to mass deforestation? And when you compare it all together, does the slightly smaller carbon footprint have a greater impact than the mass displacement of ecosystems and animals that would be occurring to meet humanities demands, because you are not the only living effector in this decision. I liked the video but I really don’t like Ted Ed trying to convince us to use wood to build skyscrapers, the argument isn’t fleshed out well and none of these points are addressed. You kind of make wood look like a straight benefit, but it’s not.

[@silvershadow5652]

All very good points, and many people have brought it up. Im not sure how something like this could be overlooked. With an ongoing deforestation problem where we would need to plant more to break even, we are insisting on making structures of wood? Sounds like we need to fix the deforestation problem first before we consider such measures. Much of the reduction of carbon is handled by trees, and while I hear moss is more effective at this per acre its something that should be used with trees instead of in its place. Every bit helps. Like everyone else I love the idea of going green, but we do need to be a bit pragmatic about it. Can we meet the demand by doing so? Is pushing everyone to do it one way, such as the constant replacement of products for higher efficiency such a good idea when the upfront carbon emissions can be more than you would save? Like more efficient computers or phones- the upfront cost would be more than whats saved from using the device as long as you could reasonably unless it lasts quite some time. Its important to have those debates wherever they occur- cars, construction, electronics, everything. What is the upfront cost, what might be unintended costs, can the infrastructure handle the change, exc? Transport is a good example of this- replacing a car has a huge carbon effect, and so if someones already financially struggling letting them hold out long enough for them to be able to get one instead of price hikes on gasoline would be wise. They wont actually do anything about it except minimize their ability to go out, so they may, instead of stopping by the store thats already en route from work order food which would make someone else travel a greater distance, perhaps multiple times, for them to be able to eat. This is only one scenario Ive seen play out. Its complex and multifaceted and so its tricky. We need to shift what we do overall, but we cant rush those that cant afford the change unless we are willing to foot the bill, and even then repeated upfront costs can be more problematic than the savings we should be getting.

[@joaobello7179]

It's amazing how science keeps suprising us and improving tecniques that existed before and we thought were obsolete. I love the Ted-Ed videos

[@ChanwooPark-me1wc]

나무로 고층 건물을 짓지 못한다는 것을 처음 알았는데, 나무 판자들을 엮어 더 강한 목재를 만드는 방법으로 고층 건물을 짓는 데 성공했다는 것이 놀랍습니다. 또한 이렇게 지은 건물들은 나무로 만들었음에도 불구하고 불에 잘 타지 않는다는 것도 신기합니다. 좋은 영상 감사합니다.

[@jeetusingh3030]

key information missing in video: wood structures need 10 times more maintenance and high maintenance cost than their counterparts (especially if you are living in wrong country with bad weather conditions).

[@ashmanideep6253]

Looks like this is going to be next in how to avoid a climate disaster playlist

[@Pvemaster2]

How to avoid? It's too late. Climate disaster is already here.

[@AmericanIdiot7659]

@@Pvemaster2 not really

[@AgrajDubey7]

Y'all should start making series on different topics just like crash course but I think your script will be better and animation... already the best ❤️

[@blarfnargdestroyerofworlds6710]

1:25: Steel: look what they need to mimic a fraction of our power.

[@shafqatishan437]

Man u guys really can make boring topics into the most interesting subjects!

[@Spsingh5672]

Ted-ed brought up an amazing topic that no one had imagined about.Well done ted👍

[@anhkietduongdo]

@Pinned by TED-Ed get a life

[@AyratHungryStudent]

So that's why the lumber prices have skyrocketed...

[@fluffydragon1525]

Listening to the sound of the skyscraper building up at the very start of the video made me think I was in the terraria dungeon

[@TheFunnyGuy-wc6kp]

Can we build a wooden skyscraper? Me: *laughs in arson*

[@photelegy]

3:31 "... and glas." Perfect, just replace glas windows with wood 👍🏻

[@qo7052]

just follow nilered's video on how to make transparent wood

[@ermimprettysigmaphonk]

@@qo7052 I’m gonna assume it’s not going to be as strong as glass used on sky scrapers

[@arcanine_enjoyer]

5 year old me building with wood in minecraft: I don't have such weaknesses

[@nunyabiznes33]

I hated the random lightning strike

[@NoThrottle]

i had this question 2 days ago and didn't get a good googled answer. Thanks for the video.

[@evank3718]

I like how there are so many small changes we can do to help the environment

[@HoboTango]

We used wooden cities in the past and it ended up with the destruction of entire neighborhood when a fire arrived.

[@Pvemaster2]

Yes, so improve fire mitigation? If CO2 was a visible gas you wouldn't be thinking of any reason against using wood.

[@robertkat]

In China all buildings are concrete and tile. No need for a fire department.

Mold be like: "Let me introduce myself..."

[@dusanrenat5567]

Seem to me like there's one big advantage of this that could have a huge impact if this becomes widespread technology: the material is literally carbon taken from the air, so besides of all the "we have a building we can use" stuff, it would also be "we are lowering the amount of carbon dioxide in the air and putting the carbon in the solid state structures, where it cannot cause the greenhouse effect".

[@TheActualCathal]

I'm curious about the math of how these different buildings are heated and cooled. One rarely thinks of a building's conductivity.

[@Silver-rm6dr]

"Wooden skyscraper" Fortnite players: this looks like a job for me

[@coloredfox3463]

This comment is definitely getting popular

[@MinogFarted]

@@coloredfox3463 Still waiting for it to do it

[@Ripurlife]

Not that popular, but very close.

[@Kaptenblu]

For those of you who are wondering: yes, he completely butchers the pronunciation of Mjøstårnet

[@UAF1966]

I needed this. At two in the morning

[@Na7lasterone]

My thoughts are: a 25% reduction in carbon footprint will probably be gone, cuz by cutting more trees to build structures, more CO2 will get to stay in the atmosphere. Can the rate of cutting these trees be sustainable without disrupting the carbon cycle? Tried to look for the references in the description, but didn't find them. Thank you for the content, always entertaining and informative.

[@herp_derpingson]

TED-ed: MELTED STEEL BEAMS Conspiracy theorists: * types furiously *

[@alyzzz2827]

Ted-Ed out here asking the most interesting questions I love it

[@muffemod]

2:05 I like the face on the concrete block. That's my boy.

[@johnvillamont]

There’s a couple points this video didn’t touch on that some people seem to miss: 1. Building skyscrapers out of lumber would require a lot of wood, but if the wood is sourced from sustainable forests it would have a massive positive environmental impact. Trees absorb the most CO2 in their early years of growth so having a lumber farm that’s constantly replanting trees would take a large amount of CO2 out of the atmosphere. 2. This would also massively increase the demand for lumber. Which some in the comments think would spike the price of lumber, but stable increased demand would allow the lumber industry to build out production which in turn would have a balancing effect on price. Which over the long-term would bring lumber prices even lower than present cost.

[@shreeyamittal1771]

Considering all the IKEA comments, I wouldn't be too surprised if they actually _did_ start making buildings that way.

[@matsv201]

They alreddy exist. In scandinavia you can buy modular houses and thst been a thing for 20 years

[@pahoellyyy]

Norway: Builds the tallest wooden structure in the world. Sequoias: PATHETIC

[@thenukedgamer65]

What about reinforcing the wood similarly to how we reinforce concrete.even a major reduction in usage would help and the wood can always be fed through termites ect.

[@eggliit]

Wooden Skycraper Tree: *Chuckle* im in danger

[@chanbricks4461]

When the kid who only builds with cobblestone starts to use wood in his Minecraft builds

[@AmericanIdiot7659]

I used to only build with iron blocks lmao

[@Sarwat_Khan]

Ever dreamed of a building made out of chocolate? This is the termite equivalent.

[@bennettrobertlouis8662]

This was really informative It helped me in my science test

[@emilielovesbooks1613]

I was like «wait. Is that Mjøstårnet?» and then I clicked the video and it was. I live nearby and have been there. My aunt works there.

[@kroneexe]

Saaaaamme her, jeg bor i Brumunddal. Ble ganske sjokkert da jeg så thumbnailen.

[@REEEPROGRAM]

There's one time when Japanese builders can build a housr without using a single nail, i am left with questions

[@hicheeeee5003]

It's apparently a type of Japanese ancient art architecture, where you have to built an entire house without a single nail,they should only use woods and and woods.That art is really hard to make.

[@CyanicCore]

This is hopeful, but I'm still doubting it could hold up nearly as well in its state. Yes, panels could be swapped, but the durability of wood could mean damage reaches deeper more easily.

[@JansthcirlU]

A Japanese company is planning to build a 350 metre tall skyscraper that would consist mostly out of wood, it's on Wikipedia as the W350 Project for those who are interested.

[@user-su2ns4ql2p]

Hi, good morning, my name is hakou and I'm a beginner in English, so I decided to watch ted videos to learn more, I'm currently looking for native speakers who have a little time to talk to every day and help me learn better

[@itsjustalf7747]

Everyone who’s made a wooden tower in Minecraft: 👁👄👁

[@iuvyne]

me, building a wooden tower in minecraft: wHAT

[@hagoeditedminagoedited]

ooh seems like the termites ARE going to be eating tonight 😂

[@juanvaldivia8001]

the sound effects in this video are oddly satisfying

[@honeydewof7975]

1:27 Jenga

[@gavrielmusheyev141]

It’s all fun and games until someone starts smoking nearby.

[@diamante8864]

wat?

[@gavrielmusheyev141]

@@diamante8864 if someone smokes nearby, the skyscraper will catch on fire.

[@bv2643]

@@gavrielmusheyev141 watch the video

[@skullz9366]

who does dislikes these videos ?? they seriously have nothing better to do.

[@ekremaziaullah8213]

Awesome animation