engineering

Pikk Hermann

Pikk Hermann is a engineering topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Pikk Hermann rather than just read about it. In short: Pikk Hermann (Estonian lit. 'the Tall Hermann'; German: Langer Hermann) is a tower of the Toompea Castle, on Toompea (Domberg) hill in Tallinn (Reval), the capital of Estonia. The first part of the tower was built in 1360–1370.

Key takeaways

Pikk Hermann belongs to engineering; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Pikk Hermann to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Pikk Hermann from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Pikk Hermann (Estonian lit. 'the Tall Hermann'; German: Langer Hermann) is a tower of the Toompea Castle, on Toompea (Domberg) hill in Tallinn (Reval), the capital of Estonia. The first part of the tower was built in 1360–1370. It was rebuilt (height brought to 45.6 metres (150 ft)) in the 16th century. A staircase with 215 steps now leads to the top of the tower. It consists of ten internal floors and a viewing platform at the top. Pikk Hermann is situated next to the building of the Estonian parliament (Riigikogu). The flag on the top of the tower at 95 metres (312 ft) above sea level is one of the main symbols of the national government in force.

The national flag, a blue-black-white tricolour measuring 191 centimetres (75 in) by 300 centimetres (120 in), is raised and the national anthem is played at the time of sunrise (or at 7 am, whichever is later) and lowered at the time of sunset. While it is lowered, the melody of "Mu isamaa on minu arm" (My Fatherland Is My Love) is heard. For the first time, the national flag was raised to the top of Pikk Hermann in 1918, when Estonia became an independent country. The Soviet troops who later occupied Estonia lowered the flag from the tower in the summer of 1940 and later replaced it with the flag of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic. The original flag was raised back on the tower on February 24, 1989. Since then, raising the flag to the top of the tower is one of the traditions of Estonia's Independence Day. The Estonian flag was also briefly raised over the Pikk Hermann during Otto Tief's brief interim government of Sept 18-22, 1944.

References

External links Media related to Pikk Hermann at Wikimedia Commons

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Pikk Hermann

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Pikk Hermann claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In engineering, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Pikk Hermann before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Pikk Hermann ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Pikk Hermann

In research: Pikk Hermann appears in engineering research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Pikk Hermann in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Pikk Hermann is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Buildings and structures completed in 1370, Buildings and structures in Tallinn, Estonian building and structure stubs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Pikk Hermann outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Pikk Hermann in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Pikk Hermann means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Pikk Hermann out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pikk Hermann in simple terms?

Why does Pikk Hermann matter?

Because it connects several engineering ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Pikk Hermann?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Pikk Hermann.