Ticomaya wrote: Okay, I'm not a physicist, but I understand a "free fall" rate to be 32 feet per second per second. What is the "pancake" rate?
In this context, "Pancake Rate", while for any one specific instance under any one specifically defined set of circumstances at least theoretically actually calculable given mountains of data, pages of formulae, considerable expertise, and major expenditure of time, is one of those "sounds good to me" bits of pseudoscience so eagerly embraced by those most characterized by demonstrated scientific illiteracy and fondness for journalistic integrity of the supermarket tabloid style.
Interesting to note is that the Konspiracy Kook Krowd have neither to their credit nor their support not one peer-reviewed, published article, study, paper, report, dissertation, or the like in any legitimate, relevant professional or academic publication - none, zero, zip, nada, zilch, nothing, not a single example - as in "it just ain't there", while on the other hand, there exist literally reams of articles, studies, papers, reports, dissertations, and the like throughout the gamut of legitimate, relevant professional and academic publications all of which point to the absurdity of the notions forwarded by the Konspiracy Kook Krowd.
Anyhow,
HERE (note: 32 page .pdf download) is an informed, reasoned, well-researched, authoritative examination (extensively peer reviewed, multiply accepted by assorted official, professional, and academic publications, and widely cited across the entire spectrum of legitimate studies pertaining to the issue) of the physics pertaining to the WTC collapse sequences.
Draw your own conclusions.