Design
Canadians are reinventing assisted living for those with dementia
Taking inspiration from the Dutch village of de Hogewey, developers in Canada are constructing an assisted living complex designed to help people with dementia live independently while also keeping them safe. The idea is that by providing plenty of facilities and activities such as gardening and Read More...
King penguin breeding colonies are structured like fluids
Colonies of breeding king penguins behave much like particles in liquids do, according to a new study by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and international colleagues. This "liquid" organization and structure enables breeding colonies to protect themselves against predators while Read More...
The future of parking garages doesn’t involve cars at all
What would a world in which fewer people own cars look like? I’d never thought about the consequences until I came across this project: the conversion of a seven-story building in Peckham, London, from a dreadful parking garage into cool local business and community Read More...
Li-Fi is set to change the way we access the Internet
You’ve most certainly heard of Wi-Fi, but have you heard of Li-Fi? Li-Fi is high-speed wireless internet transmitted through light. That light can come from something as simple as a desktop lamp. While Wi-Fi works fine, it currently relies on radio waves to work, something that we’re running Read More...
The research is clear: clean, efficient buildings make people more productive
Indoor air quality also is becoming a key determinant of employee productivity. Harvard Business Review published an article on this topic, highlighting a variety of past research reports about poor air quality impacting worker Read More...
Crowded cities are looking to nature to improve residents’ well-being
The proportion of the global population living in urban areas has risen from half in 2000 to 55 percent now, and is predicted to reach two-thirds by 2050. That means more people than ever will be away from nature, which means people are missing the proven health and wellbeing benefits that come Read More...
Solar sidewalks may change the way we generate energy in cities
On a sidewalk in Budapest, an energy startup recently installed a swath of solar panels. The solar panels are nearly completely integrated into the environment, causing no disruptions to the way people use sidewalks while producing electricity to fuel electric cars that are parked in the lot beside Read More...
Stunning sustainability: This hotel fits perfectly with the Arctic scenery
If you’re going to place a hotel amongst pristine nature, this is how you should do it. High above the Arctic circle in northern Norway, a hotel built in the shape of the ring stands elegantly beside the frigid waters of a glacier. The hotel’s main goal is to preserve the environment around it, Read More...
This beautiful floating home is net-zero and cleans the water around it
Having a home that doesn’t negatively affect the environment is one thing, but this couple has raised the stakes. They have created a floating home docked on Washington’s Lake Union that’s net-zero and improves water quality and biodiversity. The home boasts a bevy of eco-friendly Read More...
The building materials of the future are old buildings
Every year, more than 530 million tons of construction and demolition waste like timber, concrete, and asphalt end up in landfills in the U.S.–about double the amount of waste picked up by garbage trucks every year from homes, businesses, and institutions. But what if all of the material used in Read More...