Interstory drift refers to the relative lateral displacement between two adjacent floors of a building during seismic activity or lateral loading. This phenomenon is crucial to understand because excessive interstory drift can lead to structural damage, compromised safety, and failure of non-structural components within a building. It is particularly significant in the design and evaluation of buildings with respect to their performance during earthquakes, especially when considering supplemental damping devices that can help mitigate such movements.
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