Design
How to design our neighborhoods for happiness
Biology is destiny, declared Sigmund Freud. But if Freud were around today, he might say “design is destiny”—especially after taking a stroll through most modern cities. The way we design our communities plays a huge role in how we experience our lives. Neighborhoods built without Read More...
The surprising ways neuroscience can help design smarter, more intuitive cities
We have used economics, creativity, and technology to shape the built environment—and now it’s time for science to become the final piece in this puzzle. By integrating aspects of cognitive neuroscience into the design process, we can build cities that are primed for their Read More...
Soon you can get around Paris on an electric water taxi
Taxis stopping to pick up and drop off passengers can clog up streets, especially during rush hour. It’s frustrating for everyone, but what’s the alternative? In Paris, the answer may be silent electric taxi boats. The boats, called SeaBubbles, run on electric batteries that recharge when they Read More...
Germany’s Optionspace wants to be an ‘Airbnb for office space’
Optionspace, a new Berlin-based startup, sees its official launch today with a service that is something akin to an ‘Airbnb for office space’. Specifically, prospective tenants — which, of course, includes startups — are able to rent furnished and unfurnished office space via the online Read More...
Chinese city gets bike highway in the sky
Copenhagen’s Bicycle Snake is a wonderful ride and a fun design by Dissing + Weitling Architecture. Now the firm has completed a 7.6 km (4.7 mi) elevated bicycle path in Xiamen, China that they claim was developed “with a vision to inspire people to prioritize green alternatives, such Read More...
How one of the world's densest cities has gone green
Singapore calls itself the Garden City, and it’s making good on that promise. Singapore’s meteoric rise launched a landscape of towering architecture in the compact city-state, and it’s now a case study in urban density. But as the metropolis continues to grow, urban planners are Read More...
Solar Carve tower in New York will make sure its neighbors have light
The more skyscrapers built in cities, the more potential for leaving people in the shade. It's a serious issue that's sparked protests from New York residents and causes permission to be regularly denied for towers that cast too much shadow. With that in mind, architecture firm Studio Gang have Read More...
Buildings that breathe: Italian architect’s ‘Vertical Forest’ to sprout in China
Italian architect Stefano Boeri has a penchant for designing living, breathing buildings. It began in Milan with the Bosco Verticale (Italian for “Vertical Forest”), two looming skyscrapers covered in thousands of trees, shrubs, and flowering plants. The environmental idea was simple: Read More...
Harnessing the power of nature to improve our cities
People feel happier, healthier, and more social when they engage with nature. Their cognitive abilities go up and stress levels go down. So why is nature so often thought to be found only “out there” in the wilderness, or perhaps suburbia? For Timothy Beatley, a professor at the Read More...
Solutions inspired by nature: Here's the best of biomimicry
With each member of the animal kingdom comes a specific function, crafted after millions of years of evolution. The research and development lab of nature has found many solutions that can help solve challenges for humans. The name for emulating designs found in nature is biomimicry, and it's used Read More...