Most of us view stress as a negative pressure that should be avoided altogether. On the other hand, stress and strain of materials is a fundamental topic of study for structural engineers. The comparison between those two views is especially interesting.

Understanding the response of a construction material under high stress is an important consideration in the design of structures. Structural engineers routinely stress test structural materials and components to study their response under gravity loads and natural loads such as wind and earthquake loads. In doing so, we gain an important insight to better design and improve the performance of structural systems.

Resilience to resist a break down under high stress is a good character that can make a person stronger. Likewise, the capability of a material to tolerate high stress by yielding and returning back to its original shape without damage, called ductility, is a valuable structural property. Our resilience and the the ductility of a material under high stress are both admirable and desirable, while the opposite is obviously true.

The notion that stress is always bad for us is questionable. We can all learn a thing or two from concrete and steel.