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can be analyzed in terms of how they dealwith downward forces created by gravity. They are designed to withstand theforces of compression (pushing together), tension (pulling apart), bending, ora combination of these in different parts of the structure.
Even development in architecture has been the result of major technological changes. Materials andmethods of construction are integralparts of the design of architecturestructures. In earlier times it was necessary to design structural systemssuitable for the materials that were available, such as wood, stone, technology has progressed to the point where it is possible to invent newbuilding materials to suit the type of structure desired. Enormous changes inmaterials and techniques of construction within the last few generations havemade it possible to enclose space with much greater ease and speed and with aminimum of material. Progress in this area can be measured by the difference inweight between buildings built now and those of comparable size built onehundred years ago.
Modernarchitectural forms generally have three separate components comparable toelements of the human body: a supporting skeleton or frame, an outer skinenclosing the interior spaces, and equipment, similar to the body’s vital organs and systems. Theequipment includes plumbing, electrical wiring, hot water, andair-conditioning. Of course in early architecture—suchas igloos and adobe structures—there was no suchequipment, and the skeleton and skin were often one.
Much of the world’s great architecture has beenconstructed of stone because of its beauty, permanence, and availability. Inthe past, whole cities grew from thearduoustask of cutting and pilingstone upon. Some of the world’s finest stonearchitecture can be seen in the ruins of the ancient Inca city of Machu Picchuhigh in the eastern Andes M