Urban settlements and technology around the world are co-evolving as flows of population, finance, and politics are reshaping the very identity of cities and nations. Rapid and profound changes are driven by pervasive sensing, the growth and availability of continuous data streams, advanced analytics, interactive communications and social networks, and distributed intelligence. At MIT, urban planners and computer scientists are embracing these exciting new developments. — MIT News
Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty recently voted to have its existing urban planning and computer science programs join forces and create a new undergraduate degree, the bachelor of science in urban science and planning with computer science. "The rise of autonomous vehicles... View full entry
The first [journal] came out in 2016 and focused on the countryside and the movement of borders. The most recent, the fourth, titled Dark Matter, is about the invisible and illegal aspects of migration. One feature Christoph shows is a photo essay by Javier Corso, documenting the petrol smuggling trade between Nigeria and Benin. — It's Nice That
Christoph Miller, a founder of Migrant — one of the journals we are proud to feature at the Archinect Outpost — provides insights into the origins and intentions of his journal as it reflects the culture and politics of 21st century migration. View full entry
The NCARB has recently released new data outlining the current state of diversity within the architecture field. The results show that while diversity among licensure candidates is improving, the rate at which non-white individuals are discontinuing their pursuit of licensure remains high... View full entry
Architecture firm billings grew in May, marking the eighth consecutive month of solid growth, according to a new report today from The American Institute of Architects (AIA).
Overall, the AIA’s Architecture Billings Index (ABI) score for May was 52.8 [...]. The ABI also indicated that business conditions remain strong at firms located in the South and West, while growth in billings was modest at firms in the Northeast and Midwest.
— AIA
“Architecture firms continue to have plenty of work as they enter the busiest part of the design and construction season,” said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, Hon. AIA, PhD. “This is especially true for firms serving the institutional building sector, which reported their strongest growth... View full entry
The Architecture Lobby and Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility have issued a joint statement condemning the Justice Department's widely criticized zero-tolerance immigration enforcement policy that has led to the separation of thousands of children from their parents as... View full entry
In a new statement, Kapoor claimed that it was the “solidarity and support” of the public that encouraged him to take action against the NRA, and urged everyone “to stand up to the dark and aggressive forces in society that seek, out of fear and hatred, to lead us backward into a primitive, paranoid, and defensive worldview.” — artnet
After denouncing the National Rifle Association in an open letter this past March, artist Anish Kapoor filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against the group on June 19 for the unauthorized use of an image of his famous “Cloud Gate” sculpture in this 2017 ad titled “The Clenched Fist of... View full entry
The UK’s largest practice, Foster + Partners, says it would consider moving its headquarters from London if Brexit meant it could no longer attract the world’s best architects [...]
Less than a quarter of the architects based at Foster + Partners’ huge Battersea head office are UK nationals – with around a half from EU countries. In total, the firm employs 1,061 staff in the UK including 353 architects.
— architectsjournal.co.uk
In an interview with The Architects' Journal, Foster + Partners managing partner Matthew Streets didn't rule out leaving London if attracting and employing "the globe’s brightest stars to maintain its position as world leaders" in a United Kingdom outside of the European Union became... View full entry
The surviving shell of Glasgow School of Art’s Mackintosh building, devastated by fire last weekend, is expected to be saved from demolition, council officials have said. [...] Fire crews are still working on the last remaining hotspots and are not expected to allow investigators, damage assessors and structural engineers into the structure until Wednesday at the earliest. — The Guardian
After the Glasgow School of Art's Mackintosh building suffered through yet another devastating fire last Friday night, the art school, Glasgow City Council, and Historic Environment Scotland are coming to an agreement that the building should be saved. However, this does not mean a decision... View full entry
Flames ripped through the celebrated Mackintosh building after it caught fire at about 23:20 on Friday. The blaze spread to nearby buildings, including the Campus nightclub and O2 ABC music venue, which suffered "extensive damage". The renovated Mackintosh library had been due to reopen next year. — BBC News
With more options that ever for getting around cities, and finite space, the question of how we use this infrastructure, and who controls it, is more important than ever. By regulating how these new transportation options evolve, cities can potentially bring about a more sustainable, multimodal, and less car-centric transit future. — curbed.com
Our city curbs are transportation battles for space in the flow of traffic. While private tech startups are producing popular transportation solutions, such as Bird's electric scooters, the city is the one paying to build and maintain these public spaces. An upswing in dockless vehicles has far... View full entry
In the wake of the Singapore summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, South Korean builders are planning for a flood of infrastructure projects in the northern half of the peninsula.
The Construction Association of Korea plans to hold a forum for construction companies, research institutes and public entities on 25 June to discuss possible projects and funding arrangements.
— Global Construction Review
While Koreans on both sides of the Military Demarcation Line appear increasingly hopeful in the wake of recent friendly diplomatic exchanges, it's the deep-pocketed South Korean industrial conglomerates that have started to map out the north's opportunities for development. Shares in Hyundai... View full entry
Autonomous 16-passenger vehicles would zip back and forth at speeds exceeding 100 mph in tunnels between the Loop and O’Hare International Airport under a high-speed transit proposal being negotiated between Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s City Hall and billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk’s The Boring Co., city and company officials have confirmed.
Emanuel’s administration has selected Musk’s company from four competing bids to provide high-speed transportation between downtown and the airport.
— Chicago Tribune
Musk's Boring Co. beat out established engineering firms, including Mott MacDonald and JLC Infrastructure, even though it has famously been in business for less than two years and only has a test tunnel near the company's headquarters in the Los Angeles area to show for as construction experience. View full entry
In anticipation of the launch party of the Archinect Outpost, our new retail initiative in Downtown LA’s Arts District, we present part 3 of the curated collection of small-run, independently published architecture periodicals we will have on display: Place-Holder PLACE-HOLDER is a Canadian... View full entry
In case you haven't checked out Archinect's Pinterest boards in a while, we have compiled ten recently pinned images from outstanding projects on various Archinect Firm and People profiles. (Tip: use the handy FOLLOW feature to easily keep up-to-date with all your favorite Archinect profiles!)... View full entry
Over the years we have highlighted many unique firms on Archinect diving into exciting and innovative work being done in the field. Throughout our ongoing investigations into these practices, certain firms may have peaked your interest—now is your chance to join them! This week we have rounded... View full entry
