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Building Venice: Engineering a Floating City · The Infographics Show Podcast

• 0:10
  Speaker 1: Welcome to beyond infographics. You know, when we see those
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: iconic images of Venice, this amazing city just sort of
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: floating on water, it's really easy to just get lost
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: in the beauty of it all.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's stunning.
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  Speaker 1: But underneath all that beauty, there's this incredible story, isn't
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: there about well, human ingenuity and this constant battle against
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: a really tough environment. That's right. So today we're going
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: way beyond those you know, pretty pictures. We're diving deep
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: into how Venice was actually.
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  Speaker 2: Built and how it sustained. Yeah, the engineering behind it
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  Speaker 2: is just fascinating.
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  Speaker 1: It really, I mean, the whole idea of putting a
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  Speaker 1: major city right in the middle of a.
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  Speaker 2: Lagoon seems impossible almost.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah. So the first thing you think is how how
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  Speaker 1: do they even begin to deal with that unstable, water
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  Speaker 1: logged ground, Right.
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  Speaker 2: It's the fundamental question. And the answer, well, it's literally
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: beneath the surface.
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  Speaker 1: Okay.
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  Speaker 2: They came up with this incredibly clever, though incredibly labor
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  Speaker 2: intensive method, driving millions of timber piles deep into the
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  Speaker 2: soft mud of the lagoon.
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  Speaker 1: Millions timber piles like wooden.
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  Speaker 2: Steaks exactly, but not just any wood. This was a
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  Speaker 2: huge undertaking.
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  Speaker 1: Wow, okay, so millions of wooden steaks. I can barely
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  Speaker 1: picture that scale. And you said the type of wood mattered.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, absolutely fundamental. They mainly used alder, oak, and larch, right,
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  Speaker 2: and these weren't just picked randomly. You know. Alder for instance,
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  Speaker 2: it releases tannins when it's.
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  Speaker 1: Underwater, tannons like in tea.
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  Speaker 2: Kind of yeah, and they act as a natural preservative.
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  Speaker 2: Then you have oak, which is obviously super dense and strong.
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  Speaker 1: Good for holding weight.
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  Speaker 2: Exactly crucial for load bearing. And large, well, large has
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  Speaker 2: this natural resistance to rot, and even marine borers those
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  Speaker 2: little creatures that eat wood in the sea.
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  Speaker 1: So the wood choice itself was already sophisticated engineering.
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  Speaker 2: It really was.
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  Speaker 1: So let's try and picture this. We're talking maybe what
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  Speaker 1: eight million, fifteen million widow states somewhere.
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  Speaker 2: In that ballpark. Yeah, the estimates vary, but it's a
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  Speaker 2: staggering number.
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  Speaker 1: Source from forests all over Europe I read Italy, Slovenia, Croatia.
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  Speaker 2: Even further afield. Sometimes. Yes, it required massive resource mobilization.
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  Speaker 1: All hammered into the mud by hand.
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  Speaker 2: By hand. It's like creating an entire underwater forest. Just
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  Speaker 2: through sheer human effort.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, that is astonishing. Give us a five star rating
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: if you find that as mind blowing as we do.
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  Speaker 2: It really speaks volumes about the early Venetian state, their organization, definitely,
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  Speaker 2: But it.
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  Speaker 1: Brings up the obvious question, right would in water doesn't
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  Speaker 1: it just rot? Ah?
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  Speaker 2: That's the fascinating part, the science behind why it didn't
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  Speaker 2: just rot away? Okay, tell me, well, the key is
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  Speaker 2: the lack of oxygen in that dense submerged mud, right,
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  Speaker 2: no air down there exactly, And the microorganisms that cause
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  Speaker 2: wood decay they need oxygen to thrive. So no oxygen,
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  Speaker 2: very little decay. As simple as that, well, mostly, but
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  Speaker 2: there's more. The lagoon water itself actually helped preserve the wood. Wow,
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  Speaker 2: it's very rich in minerals. Over hundreds of years, a
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  Speaker 2: process called petrification started happening.
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  Speaker 1: Petrification like fossilized wood sort of.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, Basically dissolved minerals in the water, things like calcium carbonate.
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  Speaker 2: They gradually infiltrated the wood structure, replacing the organic material
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  Speaker 2: cell by.
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  Speaker 1: Cell, so it literally turned the wood into something like.
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  Speaker 2: Stone pretty much, a very hard, durable, stone like substance.
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  Speaker 2: This underwater forest became incredibly strong. It's what's been holding
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  Speaker 2: Venice up for over a thousand years.
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  Speaker 1: That is unbelievable, like natural alchemy or something. But I
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  Speaker 1: guess they didn't figure this all out perfectly on day one,
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  Speaker 1: where they're like early mistakes.
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  Speaker 2: Oh, absolutely, there were definitely setbacks early on. They tried
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  Speaker 2: the more obvious approach, just building heavy stone structures directly
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  Speaker 2: onto the marshy ground.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I can see how that might not work exactly.
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  Speaker 2: The soft soil just couldn't take the weight. Buildings started sinking,
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  Speaker 2: tilting unevenly.
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  Speaker 1: Major structural problems, collapses.
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  Speaker 2: Some collapses, yes, significant damage, certainly. But those failures, well,
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  Speaker 2: they were crucial learning experiences they had to attack. They
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  Speaker 2: had to It forced them to realize they needed a
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  Speaker 2: different kind of foundation, something lighter, more spread out, which
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  Speaker 2: led them to perfect the timber pile system.
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  Speaker 1: And we still see the legacy of those challenges today,
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  Speaker 1: don't we Like the leaning Bell Tower of same.
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  Speaker 2: Marks precisely that lean isn't just a tourist quirk. It's
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  Speaker 2: a very real reminder of the constant shifting and settling,
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  Speaker 2: the dynamic nature of the ground beneath the city.
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  Speaker 1: Didn't the original tower actually fall down?
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  Speaker 2: It did, Yes, in the early nineteen hundreds, it completely
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  Speaker 2: collapsed due to ongoing foundation issues. They had to rebuild
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  Speaker 2: it entirely.
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  Speaker 1: Wow. So it really highlights this continuous need to understand
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  Speaker 1: and manage that environment constantly. Yes, okay, so the timber
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  Speaker 1: piles were obviously genius, absolutely key, But it sounds like
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  Speaker 1: that was just one piece of a bigger puzzle. Right.
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  Speaker 1: What else did they need to do to make it
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  Speaker 1: all work?
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  Speaker 2: You're spot on. The foundation was just the start. They
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  Speaker 2: had to actively manage the water and the land around them.
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  Speaker 2: For instance, they built retaining.
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  Speaker 1: Walls along the edges of the islands.
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  Speaker 2: Exactly to fight erosion from the tides and the currents
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  Speaker 2: constantly washing against the land.
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  Speaker 1: Makes sense, like shoring up the edges.
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  Speaker 2: And then the canals themselves. They weren't just streets for boats.
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  Speaker 2: They're also a really sophisticated drainage system, absolutely vital for
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  Speaker 2: managing water levels, stopping the islands getting completely water logged.
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  Speaker 1: Ah okay, So transport and drainage combined.
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  Speaker 2: Clever very and on top of that, constant dredging, keeping
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  Speaker 2: the canals clear, making sure water could circulate properly. It
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  Speaker 2: was a really holistic approach. They understood they had to
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  Speaker 2: work with the environment.
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  Speaker 1: It's fascinating how that very location, the lagoon, which caused
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  Speaker 1: all these engineering headaches right also gave them huge advantages
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  Speaker 1: from the start.
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  Speaker 2: Right security exactly, the shallow water, the maze like channels,
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  Speaker 2: it was a natural.
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  Speaker 1: Fortress, hard for invaders to navigate, very difficult.
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  Speaker 2: So for those early settlers fleeing conflict on the mainland,
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  Speaker 2: it offered real refuge, real safety, allowed them to build
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  Speaker 2: their own unique community and relative isolation.
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  Speaker 1: And then that same isolation, that watery environment later became
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  Speaker 1: the source of their power right through.
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  Speaker 2: Trade, absolutely pivotal shift. Its location on the Adriaic Menace
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  Speaker 2: basically became the gateway between the Byzantine Empire in the
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  Speaker 2: East and Western.
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  Speaker 1: Europe, a major crossroads.
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  Speaker 2: A massive hub for trade. Goods, ideas, culture flowed through it,
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  Speaker 2: and they got incredibly wealthy, especially early on, from things
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  Speaker 2: like salt.
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  Speaker 1: Salt really, oh.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, salt was hugely valuable. They sometimes called it the
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  Speaker 2: foundation of their wealth, almost as important as the timber piles.
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  Speaker 1: So from these scattered beginnings, these refugees on muddy islands,
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  Speaker 1: they grow into this dominant republic, this major seapower. Can
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  Speaker 1: you sketch out that transformation first?
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  Speaker 2: Sure, gradual took centuries, but those islands slowly came together
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: formed a unified political entity. They developed that unique system
• 7:07
  Speaker 2: with the Doge at the head, right, the doge and
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  Speaker 2: their location plus their maritime skill just fueled their rise.
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  Speaker 2: They built an incredible navy, especially in the Arsenal Shipyard.
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  Speaker 1: The Arsenal. Yeah, that was like an early factory, wasn't it,
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  Speaker 1: mass production.
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  Speaker 2: Way ahead of its time in terms of organization and scale.
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  Speaker 2: Then their involvement in things like the Crusades expanded, their influence,
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  Speaker 2: brought in more wealth, and then came the Renaissance, the
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  Speaker 2: cultural boom. It all cemented Venice as a major European power.
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  Speaker 1: An incredible story of growth. But as we know, nothing
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  Speaker 1: lasts forever unchanged. What are the big challenges Venice is
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  Speaker 1: facing now in the twenty first century.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, despite all that resilience, the modern challenges are significant
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  Speaker 2: and complex. There's the ongoing subsidence. The city is still
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  Speaker 2: sinking slowly. Just natural settling, partly natural settling of the
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  Speaker 2: lagoon sediments. Yes, but it was acceleration in the twentieth
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  Speaker 2: century when they pumped out groundwater from underneath the city.
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  Speaker 2: That caused it to sink faster for a while.
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  Speaker 1: Ah okay, unintended consequences definitely.
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  Speaker 2: But probably the biggest threat now is rising sea levels,
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  Speaker 2: climate change.
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  Speaker 1: The aqualta, the high tides exactly.
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  Speaker 2: They're becoming more frequent, more severe. It puts immense stress
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  Speaker 2: on the buildings, the foundations, the whole infrastructure, and it
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  Speaker 2: damages priceless heritage.
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  Speaker 1: And what about all the boats. I hear that's an
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  Speaker 1: issue too.
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  Speaker 2: It is increased boat traffic, especially the faster motor boats,
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  Speaker 2: creates wakes, waves that constantly batter the foundations of the
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  Speaker 2: buildings along the canals. It causes erosion. It's another layer
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  Speaker 2: of stress on the system.
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  Speaker 1: It sounds quite grim actually, yeah, So what's being done.
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  Speaker 1: Are modern engineers tackling these problems?
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  Speaker 2: Oh? Yes, there's a huge effort underway. They're using some
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  Speaker 2: really advanced technology now, things like sonar imaging to get
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  Speaker 2: detailed maps of what's happening underwater around the foundations.
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  Speaker 1: Seeing beneath the surface exactly.
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  Speaker 2: And non destructive testing methods to check the integrity of
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  Speaker 2: those original timber piles without damaging them.
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  Speaker 1: And for repairs reinforcement.
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  Speaker 2: They're using techniques like encasing the vulnerable wooden piles in
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  Speaker 2: concrete for protection, sometimes adding new supplementary piles alongside the
• 9:15
  Speaker 2: old ones made of modern materials like steel or reinforced concrete,
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  Speaker 2: stronger stuff, more durable in that environment. Yeah. And then
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  Speaker 2: of course there's the huge Mossy project.
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  Speaker 1: Ah.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, the flood barriers, those massive mobile barriers designed to
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  Speaker 2: seal off the lagoon entrances during extreme high tides. A
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  Speaker 2: colossal engineering project in itself.
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  Speaker 1: It really makes you wonder, though, if you are starting
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  Speaker 1: from scratch today, knowing everything we know now about materials,
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: about geotechnical engineering, how would you build venus.
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  Speaker 2: Huh, that's a fascinating question. It would look vastly different.
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  Speaker 1: I imagine no timber piles problem, not know.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, you'd likely use high strength steel, maybe advanced concrete composites,
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  Speaker 2: things designed specifically for marine environment. You'd do incredibly detailed
• 10:02
  Speaker 2: soil analysis beforehand, geotechnical surveys exactly design foundations specifically engineered
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  Speaker 2: for those soft soils. For the tidal forces, you'd probably
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  Speaker 2: see much more robust sea walls, maybe using things like
• 10:14
  Speaker 2: sheet piling.
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  Speaker 1: And flood defenses built in from the.
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  Speaker 2: Start, definitely sophisticated, maybe automated barrier systems and a really advanced,
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  Speaker 2: maybe digitally monitored drainage network. Plus you'd embed sensors everywhere
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: for real time.
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  Speaker 1: Monitoring, proactive maintenance based on data.
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  Speaker 2: Precisely.
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  Speaker 1: It's quite a contrast. But thinking about that, it actually
• 10:34
  Speaker 1: makes what the original Venetians achieved even more impressive, doesn't it.
• 10:38
  Speaker 2: Absolutely, Working with the knowledge and the materials they had
• 10:41
  Speaker 2: back then, it's just staggering. The ingenuity is remarkable. Get
• 10:45
  Speaker 2: beyond infographics of five star rating.
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: If you agree, Yeah, I completely agree.
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  Speaker 2: The fact that this city built on what seems like
• 10:51
  Speaker 2: impossible foundations has lasted for over a millennium. It's just
• 10:56
  Speaker 2: an incredible testament to their skill, their foresight, their adaptive
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  Speaker 2: It really is an enduring legacy, isn't it?
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: A powerful example of humans adapting, innovating, overcoming huge challenges,
• 11:09
  Speaker 1: and it feels so relevant.
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  Speaker 2: Today, especially now. Yeah, with rising sea levels affecting coastal
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  Speaker 2: cities everywhere, there are real lessons there, kind of lessons well,
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  Speaker 2: just thinking about the sheer creativity, the perseverance it took,
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  Speaker 2: not just to build Venice, but to keep maintaining it
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  Speaker 2: for centuries. It makes you think, doesn't it about? What
• 11:27
  Speaker 2: about what other challenges ones that seem maybe insurmountable now
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  Speaker 2: we could potentially tackle if we applied that same kind
• 11:33
  Speaker 2: of innovative thinking and relentless adaptation.
• 11:36
  Speaker 1: Maybe looking at Venice's resilience could inspire new ways to
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: approach the environmental problems we're facing globally today.
• 11:43
  Speaker 2: Exactly, it's a provocative thought.
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: Perhaps it is a good one to end on. We
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: really hope this deep dive into Venice's foundations has sparked
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: your curiosity. There's just so much more to uncover, isn't there?
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: The history, the art, the ongoing preservation efforts.
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's an endlessly fascinating city. We definitely encourage you
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: to explore further.
• 12:03
  Speaker 1: Thank you for joining us on Beyond Infographics. We really
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: try to get beneath the surface on these topics, and.
• 12:07
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• 12:10
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• 12:12
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• 12:15
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• 12:17
  Speaker 1: deep dives. Thanks for listening.