WHY IS THE GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE ORANGE?
Since it opened in 1937, this architectural wonder spanning San Francisco Bay in California, U.S.A ., has always been "International Orange," a color chosen because it's easy to spot by passing ships & blends nicely with the land on both sides of the bridge. The name "Golden Gate" was never meant to describe the famous suspension bridge's color. It's the name of the strait that marks the entrance to the San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean.
WHY IS THE STATUE OF LIBERTY GREEN?
Covered in thin copper plates, the Statue of Liberty (a gift from France) was originally a dull brown when it arrived in New York Harbour in 1885. But unlike most things, the statue actually got prettier with age. Over the next 30 years, she slowly took on the greenish tinge you see today. The salty air from the Harbour reacted with the copper to create a thin layer of salt called a patina. Lady Liberty's green sheen is a good thing: The patina actually protects the statue from rusting.
WHY IS VENICE BUILT ON WATER?
Life was no fairy tale in fifth-century Italy. When a wave of invaders threatened the countryside & cities in the northeastern part of the country, the locals needed safe places to lie low. A marshy lagoon between the mouths of two rivers made a good refuge from the barbarians. The Roman refugees spread their settlement across the lagoon's 118 islands, connecting them with wooden bridges and commuting in the canals between them. In the centuries since Venice developed into a thriving city and a wonder of the world. Today, the city faces a new threat - rising sea levels due to climate change.
WHY IS LEANING TOWER OF PISA LEANING?
It's a familiar photo snapped by sightseers in the Italian city of Pisa: The subject was stands in the foreground pretending to prop up a curiously crooked eight-story tower in the background. Pisa's extreme lean tower has been around a lot longer than the art of silly tourist photography. The tower, meant to function as a bell tower, started to sway soon after construction started more than 800 years ago. Its foundation was set on soil too soft to support its weight. The tower began to lean as soon as its builders completed the second floor in 1178. Construction continued off and on for the next 192 years but attempted to straighten the tower only made it worse. By the time the tower was completed in 1370, its lean had increased to 1.6 degrees. Its slow topple continued over the centuries until it eventually reached 5.5 degrees.
WILL THE LEANING TOWER OF PISA EVENTUALLY TUMBLE OVER?
It's stable for now, thanks to some modern architectural mojo. Engineers have shored up the foundation, installed counterweights and cables, and removed soil from the non leaning side - fixes that reduced the lean by about 1.5 degrees. The tower is still 13 feet (4 m) off its center but stable, meaning the Leaning Tower of Pisa won't become the Tumbled Tower of Pisa for at least 300 years.
WHY WAS THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA BUILT?
The largest artificial structure at the time of its completion in the 17th century, China's great wall spans 5,500 miles (8,850 km) across northern China, from the Korean border west into the Gobi desert. It actually started as a series of smaller walls built by Chinese warlords in the seventh century B.C. to defend their individual lands. As China became a united empire, the walls were joined and fortified over the next 2,000 years to repel enemies, particularly the Mongolian and Manchu armies. Built from countless bricks and stones and guarded by watchtowers, the great wall of China is an engineering marvel of the ancient world.
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