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Engineers Put Wood House to the Quake Test

In Buffalo, N.Y., a team of engineers is sorting through the debris inside a two-story wood-frame house that was struck by an earthquake. It was the only house in Buffalo hit by a quake, because the engineers built the house on top of a pair of tables that simulated a real earthquake.

The house was built to mimic the style of houses in quake-prone California: wood-frame with a stucco exterior. The University of Buffalo engineers want to see whether they can improve the durability of houses in quake zones.

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Christopher Joyce
Christopher Joyce is a correspondent on the science desk at NPR. His stories can be heard on all of NPR's news programs, including NPR's Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition.