The Space Needle was built in one year for the 1962 World's Fair on a lot that held alarm switches

historyWikipedia1962 · Seattle, USA

The Space Needle was built in one year for the 1962 World's Fair on a lot that held alarm switches

the gist

Edward Carlson, chairman of the 1962 World's Fair in Seattle, wanted a tower with a restaurant, inspired by a visit to the Stuttgart Tower in Germany. Architect John Graham made the restaurant revolve, a design he had used before in Honolulu. The investors struggled to find land until they found a 120-by-120-foot lot that held fire and police alarm switching equipment, which the city sold for $75,000. Privately financed, the tower was finished in under a year, with a concrete base that took 467 redi-mix trucks one day to fill. A single small electric motor turns the top, and the Needle opened to visitors in time for the fair in April 1962.

how it works

The top of the Space Needle is balanced so precisely that a small motor can rotate the restaurant. Its heavy concrete base, weighing thousands of tons, anchors the tower against wind and earthquakes. The tower's slender column and wide saucer distribute the weight so the structure stays stable at height.

so what

The Space Needle became the symbol of Seattle and shows how a temporary fair project can become permanent. It was designated a city landmark in 1999, the youngest in the city at that time.

fun fact

The Space Needle's rotating restaurant stopped turning during the 1964 Alaska earthquake.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

historyWikipediaclassic1336–1565 · Karnataka, India

Hampi was once one of the world's largest cities, until its Vijayanagara capital was destroyed in 1565

the gist

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.

how it works

The city was built around a fortified core with temples, markets and water structures along the river, supplied by an extensive network of roads and waterworks. When the empire fell, the city was not rebuilt, so its stone monuments were left standing.

so what

Hampi shows how quickly a great city can vanish after a military defeat, and how a ruined capital can remain sacred. Its ruins give historians a view of medieval South Asia that few other sites can match.

fun fact

The name Hampi comes from Pampa, an old name for the Tungabhadra River.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · text CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons

source: Wikipedia ↗

2 min

politicsshortCNA2:01

False allegations about Singapore’s hand in Indonesia’s markets and a made-up meeting

from CNA

CNA Verify has found close to 400 posts pushing falsehoods tying Singapore to Indonesia’s stock market rout and to a secret meeting that never took place. Together, they drew nearly 12 million views, and some were circulated by accounts that appeared to be working in concert, across multiple social media platforms.

Here’s how the disinformation campaign targeting Singapore was uncovered.

on YouTube: CNA ↗