In this weeks reading, Ching went in depth with many of the fundamental building materials we use today. Some of which are wood, masonry, concrete, steel, and stone. Each material has its own benefits when used and some or used instead of others because of there qualities. Concrete is made by mixing various aggregates with sufficient water and is very useful when combined with steel. Masonry is basically stonework and is very useful when stacked on top of each other. Steel has qualities of strength and hardness therefore why it’s used with concrete to make it more preferable. Wood is good for convenience where the material itself is strong, durable, light in weight making it easy to work with. Stone is a combination of many materials and in order to become stone, it needs to meet all these requirements: strength; hardness; durability; workability; density and appearance. As stated before each building material needs to meet certain criteria for selecting the use when building a structure.