How good can Swedish nature make you feel in 72 hours?

2017-09-30T17:30:00-04:00

This is the question a new case-study, '72 Hour Cabin', seeks to answer. Launched by Sweden, the experiment will investigate the effects of living in nature on health by taking five participants with some of the most stressful jobs and placing them in a custom-built glass cabin.

During the day, they will have access to common Swedish outdoor activities such as swimming, fishing and cooking. Their well-being, measured by stress-levels, problem-solving capabilities and creativity, will be monitored by two leading researchers, Walter Osika and Cecilia Stenfors, from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, one of the world’s foremost medical universities. Participants include a broadcaster from London, a taxi driver from Paris, an event co-ordinator from New York, a police officer from Munich, and a journalist from London.

The five glass cabins these participants will be staying in were designed by architecture student Jeanna Berger, who enlisted her brother-in-laws, who run a construc...

Two Million Swedes Can't Be Wrong: Populace Helps Design Ideal Home Via Mouse Clicks

2015-05-20T19:59:00-04:00

Although analyzing 200 million data points and 86,000 top-ranked online properties may not sound like the sexiest way to begin residential concept design, this is precisely how Swedish property site Hemnet began the statistically-oriented process for designing the ideal "Swedish home." An estimated two million Swedes participated in the survey by clicking on their favorite design features and ideal property types. Hemnet gave the user-generated information, such as preferred number of rooms, bathrooms, ideal room size and overall price, to architects Tham & Videgård, who took the data and transformed it into a tangible, livable design.

In addition to utilizing the popularly derived statistically-oriented data (Swedes prefer 1.5 floors, 120 square meters, three bedrooms, and an open kitchen, among other amenities), the architects blended iconic Swedish aesthetic concepts to create the final design. The red wooden exterior is meant to recall a traditional Swedish cottage, while the w...

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How good can Swedish nature make you feel in 72 hours?

Two Million Swedes Can't Be Wrong: Populace Helps Design Ideal Home Via Mouse Clicks