Amplification factor
The load that makes itself worse
A structure that has leaned carries its weight off the axis, which makes it lean further. The amplification is one over one minus the load ratio, and it runs away long before the buckling load.
The column that was never straight
Euler's load is the load at which a perfectly straight column becomes indifferent to being bent. No column is perfectly straight, so no column ever reaches it — and the load it never reaches can still be measured.
The water that will not run off
A flat roof deflects, the deflection makes room for water, the water deepens the deflection. It is the same equation as a buckling column, with rain in place of the axial load.
Named alongside it
The objects these essays reach for when they reach for this one.
Critical loadImperfectionSecond order effectsBifurcationDeflection limitEccentricityEffective lengthEuler bucklingLimit stateNotional loadP-deltaPonding