A recent experience with the aftermath of an earthquake led to my weighing the comparative values of strength and flexibility.

When we purchased our property on the Caribbean Island of Roatan, Honduras, we debated whether to build our home in concrete or wood. The recommended contractor, a native of Roatan, built island-style homes - only in wood. About the time we completed the two-story structure (which sits on a slope of a protected bay on the Caribbean Sea), we learned that Roatan frequent...
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