A tall building has a longer natural period than a short one.

The concept of a building’s natural period is central within the broader context of emergency management, particularly in the design and construction of structures in seismically active areas. For example, during the 1964 earthquake in Anchorage, Alaska, and the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, the devastating impact on taller buildings was attributed to the resonance effect, where the natural period of these buildings matched the period of the ground motion.