Subgrade modulus — where it appears
Named by 2 essays across 2 fields — each of them below, with the objects they name alongside it.
The beam that sits on the ground
Every other beam in this collection is held at points. A footing is held everywhere, by something that pushes back in proportion to how far it is pushed — and that single change hands the structure a length it did not choose. Two or three of those lengths from the column, nothing knows the load happened.
The settlement that matters is the difference
A building that goes down half a metre uniformly is undamaged and needs a new front step. One that goes down a twentieth as far, unevenly, has cracked. The superstructure can even the difference out — and the only way it can do so is by carrying the difference itself, as a force.
Named alongside it
The objects these essays reach for when they reach for this one.
Load pathAngular distortionBeam on springsCharacteristic lengthCompatibilityDamage criterionDifferential settlementElastic foundationFoundationRaftRedistributionRelative stiffness