Question: A 20-ft-tall post is used to support advertisement signs at various locations along its height, as shown in the accompanying figure. The post is made of structural steel with a modulus of elasticity of E = 29 x 106 Ib/in2. Not considering wind loading on the signs and using linear elements, we determined that the deflections of the post at the points of load application are
Determine the deflection of point A, located at the midpoint of the middle member, using
(a) global shape functions,
(b) local shape functions, and
(c) natural shape functions.