So 3D printing didn’t even have much of a chance before the railing began regarding fumes and toxicity and in general, the question of how sick we might be getting while the filament takes its time melting nearby...[A recent University of Texas at Austin] report seems to offer up fairly common sense information, although they do state that more studies should be done regarding exposure to fumes and potential carcinogens, and should be weighed against usage patterns while 3D printing. — 3dprint.com
This health concern isn't brand new, but it's surely something that deserves further research.More on Archinect:3D printing will recreate destroyed Palmyra archMIT presents 3D printer that can print 10 materials simultaneously without breaking the bankESA proposes a village on the moonAmsterdam... View full entry
Moving from one subway car to another is no easy task.
There is the dart-and-hustle option, entailing a sprint between entrances before the doors close, and the perilous — and prohibited — passing between the doors at the end of the car.
But the Metropolitan Transportation Authority wants to examine another route: a new generation of subway trains with open pathways between cars.
— the New York Times
Similar designs already travel through cities like Paris and Toronto, where they have been reported to increase passenger capacity by 10%.Currently, riders can face a steep fine for trying to move between subway cars.Related:Port Authority officially confirms March opening date for WTC... View full entry
The Palace at Versailles has announced that Olafur Eliasson will display his artworks at the palace and its gardens this year. The Icelandic-Danish artist's exhibition will be on view from June through October, following the well-received installations of contemporary art at the baroque symbol of absolute monarchy by Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami, Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos, and French artist Xavier Veilhan... — artnet.com
Related:Olafur Eliasson wins a Crystal Award for "improving the state of the world"Olafur Eliasson opens ship-themed pedestrian bridge in CopenhagenOlafur Eliasson Wants You to Design Utopia (Out of Legos)Olafur Eliasson turns Louisiana MoMA into a 'Riverbed' View full entry
Seven centuries ago, denizens of the Wyre Forest in Worcestershire carved themselves a "rockhouse" from Triassic sandstone. Apparently considered to be among the best of the 40 or so rockhouses currently in earthly existence (including the Kinver Edge Holy Austin Rock) the recently refurbished... View full entry
Need a break from LEGOs or want to refresh your creative process for your next project? Arckit is a choice you wouldn't want to pass up. Irish architect Damien Murtagh created the aesthetically savvy modular kit for architects, students, hobbyists, and design enthusiasts of any age to enjoy and... View full entry
In China each year, the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival features both buildings and sculptures constructed entirely of ice and snow, which are augmented with nighttime illumination. Here are a few highlights from this year's festival: China doesn't have a lockdown on spectacular ice and snow... View full entry
Although the renderings and Twitter pics of Diller Scofidio +Renfro's Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive produced a heated response on Archinect, evaluating the museum from a programmatic standpoint makes it appear as less of a "giant TV on the sidewalk" and more a clever fusion of needs... View full entry
The biggest names impacting New York’s skyline come together to discuss the projects that now epitomize the city, the ever-evolving real estate market and what’s next for New York’s neighborhoods. — 92Y
Sixty years after the Wright Brothers put man in the air, scientists and engineers were grappling with the next major challenge: putting a man in space - and keeping him alive there. As an engineering challenge, it was the most extreme imaginable. Their solution was a rocket and the most complicated piece of personal protection equipment man has ever known: the space suit. — AlJazeera
Al Jazeera's Caroline Radnofsky set out to explore the legacy of her grandfather, the man behind the iconic Apollo 11 space suits.I felt like I knew Grandpa best not through the glowing endorsements, but through the anecdotes that were sometimes least flattering: how he'd get so excited about... View full entry
Although Architecture for Humanity officially closed in 2015, a new international, volunteer organization that was affiliated with AFH called The Chapter Network is following in AFH's sustainable-development footsteps, and has chosen Garrett Jacobs as its executive director. Jacobs attended Tulane... View full entry
Derek Sugden, the dean of acoustic engineers, who has died at the age of 91, remained perpetually surprised that architects could be so concerned with every aspect of the building they were designing ‘but not really with what it sounded like’. According to Sugden, ‘the sound is as important as the surface and the feel. It’s important because our ears define for me the nature of space.’ — London Review of Books
So not everyone can be Yasuhisa Toyota, but still: paying attention to the acoustics of a space should be a vital component of the architectural design process, yeah?Related:Master acoustician, Yasuhisa Toyota, talks about kickstarting his career with the Disney Concert HallDavid Byrne is Playing... View full entry
Graduate students from the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture’s Graduate Design and Build Studio program will officially begin work for the Port Authority of Houston Wednesday.
The project aims to build an open shade structure for a security checkpoint where officers would check I.D.s. under the protection of a canopy.
— The Daily Cougar
Is working for the Port Authority as a grad student like interning for the government, especially when "The $75,000 [grad-student designed] project is more cost effective than the previous designs that would’ve cost between $200,000 to $400,000"? Related: • The school of helpful knocks: the... View full entry
Researchers at MIT have shown that by surrounding the filament with a special crystal structure in the glass they can bounce back the energy which is usually lost in heat, while still allowing the light through...
Usually traditional light bulbs are only about five per cent efficient, with 95 per cent of the energy being lost to the atmosphere. In comparison LED or florescent bulbs manage around 14% efficiency. But the scientists believe that the new bulb could reach efficiency levels of 40%
— the Telegraph
The team advising the Barack Obama Foundation on the selection of an architect for the Obama Center includes the husbands of Caroline Kennedy and Meryl Streep – a designer and a sculptor — with Chicagoans Fred Eychaner and Bob Clark also centrally involved, the Sun-Times has learned.
Known as the Design Advisory Team, the group is helping evaluate proposals from architects for the sought-after commission, with seven firms selected as finalists last December.
— Chicago Sun Times
Related:David Adjaye is the best bet for the Obama Presidential Library – but not because of the color of his skinFirst big-name architects confirmed for Obama Presidential CenterBrad Pitt's "Make It Right" opens LEED-platinum housing complex in Kansas City View full entry
Mumbai’s gigantic slums are one of the city’s most prominent—and problematic—features. Dharavi, located in the heart of Mumbai, is home to upwards of 1.5 million people, giving it the distinction of being one of the largest slums in all of Asia. [...] it will also be home to what organizers are calling the first slum museum. [...]
The museum itself will be a small, flexible mobile structure, which will make it easy for it to be pulled through the slum’s streets on a bike or small vehicle.
— smithsonianmag.com
Related stories in the Archinect news:Mumbai's Dharavi 'slum': Opportunities & challengesThe Slumdog Millionaire ArchitectSteven Holl Architects wins star-studded competition to design Mumbai City Museum North Wing View full entry