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    Short WaveRome wasn't built in a day, but they sure had strong concrete
    13 min

    Rome wasn't built in a day, but they sure had strong concrete

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    The Roman Colosseum is a giant, oval amphitheater built almost two thousand years ago. Despite its age and a 14th century earthquake that knocked down the south side of the colosseum, most of the 150-some foot building is still standing. Like many ancient Roman structures, parts of it were constructed using a specific type of concrete. Scientists and engineers have long suspected a key to these buildings' durability is their use of this Roman concrete.

    A team of interdisciplinary researchers have recently discovered one answer to why these ancient Roman buildings have weathered the test of time — while many modern, concrete structures seem to crumble after a few decades.

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    © NPRLength 13 min6 March 2023ScienceFactsEducationalUSAEpisodic

    Introducing Short Wave

    Introducing Short Wave

    This is an episodic podcast, so you can listen to it in any order, but episode one is a great place to start.

    Listen to episode one here
    11+ScienceFactsEducationalUSAEpisodic6 March 2023© NPR

    The Roman Colosseum is a giant, oval amphitheater built almost two thousand years ago. Despite its age and a 14th century earthquake that knocked down the south side of the colosseum, most of the 150-some foot building is still standing. Like many ancient Roman structures, parts of it were constructed using a specific type of concrete. Scientists and engineers have long suspected a key to these buildings' durability is their use of this Roman concrete. But exactly how this sturdy concrete has contributed to the architecture's strength has been a mystery to researchers across the globe.

    A team of interdisciplinary researchers have recently discovered one answer to why these ancient Roman buildings have weathered the test of time — while many modern, concrete structures seem to crumble after a few decades.

    The answer: self-healing concrete.

    Curious about other new discoveries or potential climate solutions scientists are researching? Email us at ShortWave@NPR.org.

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