<a href="http://www.brandylion.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Skytree3_610x405.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-full wp-image-828" title="Skytree3_610x405" src="http://www.brandylion.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Skytree3_610x405.jpg" alt="" /></a>
<blockquote>The Sky Tree makes use of a shinbashira, a central column that features in the architecture of Japanese pagodas. The column acts as a stationary pendulum to counterbalance seismic waves, greatly reducing the sway in the surounding structure.

Indeed, there are virtually no records of pagodas being toppled in quakes in Japanese history. The tallest wooden tower in the country, the 55-meter 180-foot pagoda of Toji temple in Kyoto, has been standing firm since 1644.</blockquote>
via <a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-57388126-1/japan-builds-tokyo-sky-tree-worlds-tallest-tower/">Japan builds Tokyo Sky Tree, world's tallest tower | Crave - CNET</a>.