It is hard to imagine modern cities without skyscrapers, and in a number of countries it was skyscrapers that became visiting cards. They began to build them at the end of the 19th century in the United States, but Europe in this matter lagged behind almost 50 years. In these days, the countries of the Persian Gulf and Southeast Asia got involved in the «high-rise race».
The main weapon in this race is the technology of monolithic construction, that is, the construction of buildings from reinforced concrete, which makes it possible to create buildings of any shape and size. Many people believe that monolithic construction appeared in the 90s of the XXXITY, however, in the history of mankind there is an example that gives reason to believe that monolithic construction was born in ancient Rome. We are talking about Pantheon, whose architect was Apollodorus, who built it in 120 n. e. It was the Romans who learned to use concrete for the first time in the construction of concrete, with the help of it they learned to create vaults and domes.
Over time, concrete has undergone many changes, for example, aerated concrete began to use in construction. The weight of a gas concrete block is much smaller than, for example, brick. This «porous» material allows the buildings to betray any form. To this, when using concrete, the speed of construction increases.
In Russia, monolithic construction began on September 7, 1947, when the foundation of the “Semi Sisters” was laid in Moscow. The Moscow State University building, 310 meters high, was built on the Vorobyovy mountains, and the Ukraine Hotel 200 meters high and several lower residential buildings became the other high structure.
Today, monolithic construction is actively developing: in Moscow, the construction of Moscow-City has been completed and in the USA the number of such skyscrapers exceeded a hundred.