Have you ever driven over the Golden Gate Bridge and thought, “Wow, this thing is so rigid and safe!”? Wrong. It sways up to 27 feet in high winds. That’s not a flaw—that’s survival. Bridges are designed to dance with the wind like a tipsy ballerina, because if they didn’t, they’d shatter like a dry spaghetti noodle. One famous engineer said, “A stiff bridge is a dead bridge.” So next time you’re stuck in traffic on that wobbly beast, remember you’re just part of a very slow, very expensive roller coaster.
And never, ever ask a civil engineer about the Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse. They will get a faraway look in their eyes, pour you a glass of whiskey, and whisper about “torsional flutter.” Just nod and back away slowly.
