As you may have read in last week’s issue, last Tuesday (USA time), the researchers simulated two of the largest earthquakes in recent decades — the 6.7 magnitude earthquake that struck Northridge, California, in 1994, and the 7.7 Chi-Chi earthquake that struck Taiwan in 1999 and killed more than 2,400 people. First they “played” the Northridge earthquake on the simulator for five minutes before turning to the Chi-Chi earthquake, watching the building all throughout the process. What scientists discovered after simulating an earthquake on a 10-story wood building – the building was “dancing” underneath the simulator, they said.

Tallwood “danced,” Shiling Pei, associate professor at the Colorado School of Mines, told ABC News. It’s a sign the construction was a success. “The building moved around just like a tree in a windstorm,” he added.

Click here to read more and watch a video of the test.