China's Skyscrapers Become the World's Tallest
When it comes to building skyscrapers, China has become the world’s leading country. The Communist nation’s leaders are urging city planners to expand to the sky. By the end of next year, every third building over 150 metres will be standing in China. The Shanghai Tower, which will be the world’ second tallest building, is scheduled to be completed soon.
Suzhou, a city of a slightly over one million people in Eastern China, will be home to the Zhongnan Centre, the third-largest building in the world. Within the next 5 years, 6 out of the world’s ten top skyscrapers will be located in China. The world’s largest building, however, will remain the 828 metre high Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
The Shanghai Tower is definitely a unique building, a skyscraper that has never been planned in such a way before. The 121-floor building has a spiral form, with 9 cylinders placed on top of each other. The huge skyscraper provides not only office space, but also homes, stores and even gardens in staggering heights. It is a futuristic multi-platform city of its own.
In Shenzhen , another new urban project is under construction. City authorities are planning a gigantic skyscraper complex with platforms and connecting bridges. Cloud Citizen, as it is called, will be like a city within a city, able to generate its own power and produce its own food.
The Chinese are not only building such complex structures merely as prestige projects. A growing number of Chinese citizens are moving from the countryside to the cities. By 2030, 70% of China’s 1.4 billion people will be living in urban areas. Authorities say they must plan cities the right way in order to control growth and avoid the creation of slums and shantytowns.
Architects are rethinking traditional methods of building skyscrapers. They no longer plan isolated buildings, but a combination of higher and lower structures that are joined together to make cities a more liveable place.
Related Topics
- Skyscrapers
- China's Skyscraper Boom
- Saudi Arabia Plans World's Tallest Skyscraper
- Cities
- Dubai - An Island Paradise
- Burj Dubai - The Tallest Building in the World
- The Shard – A New Skyscraper for London
Words
- authorities = government organization or department
- avoid = keep away from, prevent
- billion = a thousand million
- citizen = a person who lives in a place and has rights there
- complete = finish
- connect = join together
- expand = grow, become larger
- futuristic = modern, coming from the future
- generate = produce
- growth = development; action of becoming larger
- heights = how high or tall something is
- however = but
- huge = very big
- join = combine
- leading = number one
- liveable = pleasant, nice
- located = to be found
- merely = only, just
- provide = offer
- remain = stay
- rethink = think about something again and find a new way to do something
- scheduled = planned
- shanty town = place where poor people live without running water and electricity
- skyscraper = very tall building, often in a city
- slightly = a little
- spiral = curved, winding
- staggering = amazing, incredible, hard to believe
- under construction = being built
- unique = single; only one of its kind
- urban = city
- urge = advise, recommend