Which outcome results from water accumulation behind Inca retaining walls?

💡 Explanation

Water accumulation increases hydrostatic pressure because pore water pressure reduces the effective shear strength of the soil behind the wall, therefore the additional force contributes to potential wall failure via overturning, rather than seismic or thermal issues.

• Which mechanical consequence arises from a delayed sapping operation?
• Which undesirable outcome plagued some early Inca lithic constructions where dissimilar stone types were combined?
• Which consequence results when winter frost affects Inca stonework?
• Which risk increases for Byzantine artisans when re-twisting low-quality silk filament during imperial textile manufacture?
• Which outcome arises when rapid oxidation exceeds diffusion during Han Dynasty open-mold iron casting?
• Which systematic error appears in historical astrolabe altitude measurements taken nearing the horizon?