the.com/collapse
the moment everything that was slowly true becomes suddenly obvious.
means To fall down or in completely, or to fail and break down all at once, whether a building, a system, or a person.
from From Latin 'collapsus,' the past participle of 'collabi' — built from 'com-' (together) and 'labi' (to slip or fall). That same 'labi' is the slippery root behind 'lapse' and 'lab' words of sliding; collapse is everything slipping together at once. It entered English as a medical and physical term in the 18th century, describing lungs and structures giving way before it described empires and resolve.
- slow then fast
- Hemingway's exact line for how bankruptcy happens
- engineering
- Bridges fail at resonance, not just at weight
- star death
- Stellar collapse forges every atom heavier than iron
- economics
- Bank runs are collapses caused by fear of collapse
- physics
- Wave function collapse turns maybe into definitely
lehman brothers — investment bank that failed september 2008, triggering the financial crisis
weimar republic — german government that collapsed in 1933, leading to nazi rise to power
soviet union — superpower that dissolved december 26, 1991
tacoma narrows bridge — suspension bridge that collapsed november 7, 1940 in washington state