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Taipei 101Taipei 101 (臺北 101) is a 106-floor skyscraper in Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan. Its original name was Taipei Financial Center, based on its official Chinese name: the Taipei International Financial Building (臺北國際金融大樓). It is the tallest building in the world by three of the four standards designated by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. External elevation Taipei 101 has 101 stories above ground (hence the name) and five under ground. The building holds the records for: - Ground to structural top: 508 m (1667 ft), a record formerly held by the Petronas Twin Towers at 452 m (1483ft).
- Ground to roof: 448 m (1470 ft). Formerly held by the Sears Tower (442 m = 1454ft)
- Ground to highest occupied floor: 438 m (1437 ft). Formerly held by the Sears Tower.
It does not hold the record for Note: Toronto's CN Tower (553 m) is excluded from these records because it is not a "habitable building", which is defined as a frame structure made with floors and walls throughout. The CN remains the world's tallest free-standing structure on land. The KVLY-TV mast near Mayville, ND, is taller still at 629 m (2,063 ft), but is guyed by cables. Taipei 101's roof was completed on July 1, 2003. In a ceremony presided over by Mayor Ma Ying-jeou, the pinnacle was fitted on October 17 2003, allowing it to surpass the Petronas Towers by 50 meters (165 feet). http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/3200160.stm Its records may be surpassed by several buildings planned for completion before 2009, including Union Square Phase 7 in Hong Kong, Shanghai World Financial Center, Freedom Tower in New York City, and Burj Dubai in the U.A.E.. Taipei 101 interior In many aspects, the new building is the most technologically advanced skyscraper constructed to date. The building features fiber-optic and satellite Internet connections allowing speeds up to 1 gigabyte per second. Toshiba has supplied the world's two fastest elevators which run at a top speed of 1,008 meters per minute (63 km/h or 39 mph) and are able to take visitors from the main floor to the observatory on the 89th floor in under 39 seconds. An 800-ton tuned mass damper is held at the 88th floor, stabilizing the tower against earthquakes, typhoons, and wind. The entire tower was opened on December 31, 2004, amidst an extravagant New Year's celebration, complete with live performances and fireworks. President Chen Shui-bian, Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou and Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng cut the ribbon. Several floors are already in residential and office use. Total buildable area will be 450,000 sq. meters with 214,000 sq. meters of office space, 77,500 sq. meters of retail space and 73,000 sq. meters of parking space. The tower includes a six-floor retail mall with shops, restaurants, and other attractions. The architecture of the retail mall includes both retro gothic-style pinnacles and modern industrial structures. Construction The tower is designed to endure earthquakes above seven on the Richter scale, and once-a-century super typhoons. Prior to construction, some worried that the building would be vulnerable to the earthquakes common in Taiwan. On March 31, 2002, a 6.8 earthquake caused a construction crane to fall from the 56th floor of the building (at the time, the highest floor), killing five. The building's designers noted that the building itself reacted as expected. See also External links and references Taipei 101
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