The latest Student Works: highlighted work from students in UCLA’s 3M futureLAB studio along with collaborators from University of Huddersfield. Reacting to the lonely dystopic 3D printed future of residential architecture, PULPITO quipped "The project makes me feel lonely and depressed"

Plus, Amelia interviewed Ma Yansong of MAD Architecture. She originally spoke with Ma Yansong after he visited Los Angeles in April to launch a new book and prepare MAD's new Los Angeles branch opening. Their discussion ranged from the Chinese version of 'nature' and what New York should learn from China, to his opinion of "the so-called green architecture" and parametric design.

Responding to the critics Olaf Design Ninja_  wrote "I think he explains himself quite well in his first two paragraphs rendering both arguments above not relevant..or more importantly in disagreement with his concept (not western) of nature".


News

BBC News reported the tragic news - the historic Glasgow School of Art building, a masterpiece by Scottish architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh had caught fire....

EKE mourned "This is heartbreaking...I am praying that the Library has been spared, but I fear the worst" A later statement confirmed "the devastating news that the Glasgow School of Art's iconic Mackintosh Library, designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh between 1897-1909, has been lost in fire".

Ayesha Ghosh attended 'How Does the Brain Respond to the City?' a Tech Demo and Conversation hosted by the Van Allen Institute. Her recap touches on; neural cartography, virtual visualization technologies and brain-computer interface. Chris Teeter wondered "is anyone working on developing software that defines space through the basic motor skills picked up by most basic BCI headsets?...Also, anyone taking the neurophenomological approach to this data collection"

The Washington Post reviews ‘Groundbreakers: Great American gardens in the 20th century and the women who designed them’ a current exhibit at The New York Botanical Garden.

Phyllis Lambert was named as 2014 Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement recipient. Said Venice Biennale Director Rem Koolhaas "Architects make architecture; Phyllis Lambert made architects…"
 

Firms/Blogs/Work Updates

ADEPT announced the opening of their Dalarna University library.

While recently, Jaun van Wyk worked on "CONFLUENCE | INSTITUTE FOR INNOVATION AND CREATIVE STRATEGIES IN ARCHITECTURE A new Alternative school based on architecture and research in Lyon, France. www.confluence.eu" and Franco Chen worked on a "Render from midterm. Taking inspiration from the architecture of Piranesi".

Oliver Sweeney in Manchester, UK by Urban Salon and Auckland Art Gallery in Auckland, New Zealand by Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp-FJMT with Archimedia (Architects in Association) were two of the projects found in latest post Ten Top Images on Archinect's "Details" Pinterest Board.

Olaf Design Ninja_ continued relaying his interviews with "a man full of random thoughts and legendary type of architectural experiences" in Interview: June 30, 2013, 10:30am - Part 2 of 3.

School/Blogs

The Department of Architectural Engineers of the University of Thessaly invites all interested students to submit their applications for the Postgraduate Studies’ Program (PSP) 2014-15.

New York City College of Technology is seeking a full-time Technology Specialist to join our dynamic cross-disciplinary programs. The position is Exempt, Full-Time and Salaried.

Kais Al-Rawi invited readers to join AA Jordan "a ten-day computational architecture workshop as part of the Architectural Association' Visiting School Programmes - Location: Amman, Petra and Wadi Rum Jordan".

Over at the Studio 19 school blog for UNITEC, Jessica Hulme shared images from the "third presentation to Ngati Whatua"  of 'mood boards', as well as perspectives and plans.
 

Discussions
dominiond was looking for advice on how to manage Burnout. chigurh advised "Work less. You are working for somebody else, so you don't have to give as much of a shit". gruen added "Talk to the other principals and map out a biz plan for managing the workload and hiring. Remember, you don't want more work, you want more money made in less time".

mightyaa recommended "Learn to say 'no' is a good start. If you are swamped and need the money, you are selling yourself too cheap".

paranoir  has been looking for work and asks Is there a "hiring season" in architectural field? BenC noted "It goes without saying, but their is a huge influx of applicants in the summer when students are looking for their 3-4 month internships...To set yourself apart from them, I found in the past that interjecting in the conversation at some point to bluntly state that you are NOT looking for a summer internship, but are in fact looking for a full-time position".

Though Quizzical argued "there is little, to no, meaningful seasonality to the workload of most commercial or institutional firms".

Sophia and Heather, old colleagues at the University of Oregon, are doing research about the 2030 Challenge and what is holding us back? Gregory Walker was in a snarkier mood than usual and commented "all the 2030 buildings in the world won't make a whit's difference…" Similarly downbeat ReddishEgret wrote "I doubt that net-zero energy will gain traction unless it is mandated from the very top down. Policy will drive economics and these will in turn drive architecture. Net-zero energy may come about, but it will only come about if it's the most economical way to do business".

Getting back to the original question 3tk pointed out "there's a point of diminishing returns (financially, and including money), some 'net-zero' standards are easy to meet for some types of construction, others not so much".
 

Additionally
Check out a Virtual Exhibition by Hsuan L. Hsu (an associate professor of English at the University of California, Davis) over at the Environment and Society Portal.

Titled Representing environmental risk in the landscapes of US militarization the exhibition "examines the environmental impact of US military activities worldwide and how activists have used art and other forms of representational media to convey the harmful effects of militarization on the local population and landscape".

h/t @AlJavieera