ABSTRACT
Loading is called dynamic if it is not applied 'infinitely slowly' (as assumed in the case of static loading) but suddenly. Such a loading may be caused by impact, caused e.g. by a mass dropped onto the bar. It can be seen by simple engineering consideration that, on the one hand, dynamic loading is more detrimental to structures than static loading because a dynamic load causes greater internal forces than a static load of the same magnitude. On the other hand, the fact that the dynamic load acts only for a limited time may be advantageous, because it may exceed the static critical load without destroying the structure.
