How “The Power" Literally Rocked a Mall



On July 5, 2011, the 39-story Techno Mart mall in Seoul, South Korea, shook for 10 minutes, causing a 2-day evacuation. An investigation performed by seismic experts concluded that “The Power” — a dance hit by the band Snap! — simply rocked too hard. When the shaking occurred, it was felt only in the upper floors of the mall. Investigators learned that several dozen people had been doing an intense Tae Bo workout on the 12th floor, and on that day the instructor had put on “The Power” and urged the class to do their workout "twice as hard." The rhythmic stomping set up mechanical resonance within the building, causing it to vibrate. The mall just happened to have a resonance frequency matching that of “The Power’s” beat. The vibration set up by the Tae Bo exercises coincided with the resonance frequency unique to the building, amplifying it and causing excess shaking from even slight movement. Just in case you’ve never heard it, here’s “The Power.”