http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2013/01/08/what-are-you-doing-with-that-sledgehammer-bimzie Comments On: What are You Doing with that Sledgehammer, Bimzie? by Wm.™ Steven Humphrey en-us Copyright 2013 The Stranger. All rights reserved. This RSS file is offered to individuals, The Stranger readers, and non-commercial organizations only. Any commercial websites wishing to use this RSS file, please contact The Stranger. webmaster@thestranger.com (The Stranger Webmaster) Wed, 19 Jun 2013 00:00:01 -0700 Wed, 19 Jun 2013 18:30:00 -0700 Foundation http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss My grandfather felled trees all over SW WA for a couple of decades, not including summers he spent in ID, MT & elsewhere cutting fire lines and the like. So, yes, no matter how many times you've fallen a tree, you have to expect the unexpected, because, DUH, nature doesn't always perfectly conform to mathematical models. That's why lots of loggers end up with nicknames like "lefty".

And because of that yes, I DO respect....
Posted by COMTE]]> Wed, 09 Jan 2013 21:28:09 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Michael of the Green]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 19:48:43 -0800 The Stranger
Yes, good point; a back cut would not only prevent the base of the tree from kicking out away from the direction of fall, but also helps "steer" the tree more precisely.

But in the case of a hollow structure such as an empty silo, there's really not much risk of that, since all the weight-bearing load (and therefore all the potential energy it represents) is evenly distributed around the exterior, and not throughout the entire internal volume, as would be the case with a solid object such as a tree. So, there's really nothing BUT the relatively thin external shell to transfer the kinetic energy and "push off" against in order to change the direction of inertia. That's why these things tend to come straight-down, such as was seen in the video. But taking out one specific side should ensure that IF the structure begins to develop some directional inertia, it's going to go in the direction of least resistance, namely, whichever side has the least amount of support.
Posted by COMTE]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 14:20:12 -0800 The Stranger Posted by SPG]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 14:11:20 -0800 The Stranger
but sadly, oh Stranger urbanists, that farm looked abandoned and on its way to being more suburban sprawl.
Posted by south downtown]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 14:05:12 -0800 The Stranger http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0L1WOnR2K… )
Posted by q]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 13:35:49 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Christy O]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 13:23:43 -0800 The Stranger
Frankly, it makes me proud. New York leads in so many categories. And here we are, not to be left completely behind in the running for Most Impressive Idiot Yokels!
Posted by Brooklyn Reader]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 12:54:17 -0800 The Stranger Posted by beef rallard]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 12:22:53 -0800 The Stranger Posted by scary tyler moore]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 12:22:28 -0800 The Stranger Posted by Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:47:21 -0800 The Stranger
http://blogtown.portlandmercury.com/Blog…

Posted by stinkbug]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:39:50 -0800 The Stranger Posted by COMTE]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:38:58 -0800 The Stranger Posted by T]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:34:39 -0800 The Stranger Posted by NotYourStrawMan]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2013 11:27:46 -0800 The Stranger