Get Started for FREE
Sign up with Facebook Sign up with X
I don't have a Facebook or a X account
 Your new post is loading...
Your new post is loading...
Scoop.it!
Athletes competing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will be taking their daily naps on beds constructed from cardboard. 
No comment yet.
Sign up to comment
Scoop.it!
What if there were a local, renewable material that could be used instead of steel in reinforced-concrete buildings? And what if that substitute could be manufactured easily? These questions have motivated Dirk Hebel, an assistant professor of architecture and construction at the Future Cities Laboratory, in Singapore, to investigate a bamboo fiber composite as a possible substitute for steel reinforcement in concrete. The Future Cities Laboratory is a research arm of ETH (Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule) Zürich, in Switzerland, and is the first program under the newly formed Singapore-ETH Centre for Global Environmental Sustainability, which conducts multidisciplinary research to foster urbanization that conforms to the principles of sustainable development.
PIRatE Lab's insight:
There are many "ifs" here, but this is an intriguing approach that may avoid the pitfalls of previous attempts at using bamboo for such a strengthening role in buildings. I suspect that this won't work, and am always worried when press releases go out before a project has even preliminary results, but I very much like the innovative and new idea-type approach these folks are taking here.
Scoop.it!
A retreat designed by Hanrahan Meyers Architects reinforces the Buddhist mantras of simplicity and nature in upstate New York at this beautiful, simple and green meditation center. Located in the Hudson River Valley, New York, the 22,000 sf project was under construction when Chung Ohun Lee, of the organization's leaders, attended the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. She was so inspired by Obama's speech—in which he vowed to cut emissions by 8% over 40 years—that she asked the architects to switch from conventional building systems already ordered to such energy savers as geothermal heating and solar hot water. While many of the building systems were changed after Lee's trip, the architecture itself needed few adjustments- wood framing (dimensional lumber and glulam beams) was used rather than steel, and interiors used locally harvested oak for flooring with furniture made of FSC-certified, formaldehyde-free apple plywood. LEED certification would have added $50,000 to the cost, so the client instead opted to spend the funds on green features. It helps, Hanrahan says, that "reducing their carbon footprint is part of their philosophy." But the real lesson is that even the most advanced systems require the client's participation to achieve significant energy savings... Via Lauren Moss
ParadigmGallery's comment,
April 5, 2013 4:11 PM
while reading the story I wanted to be able to inhale the beautiful space (so immaculate) and the fragrance of the untreated eastern white cedar...a simply inspiring space....TY for sharing
ParadigmGallery's curator insight,
April 5, 2013 4:22 PM
inspiring design, philosophy and implementation...enviable commitment to going greener and owning the responsibility we all have to adapt our approach to new builds....
|
Scoop.it!
More than 50% of water used in US beef production is dedicated to irrigating the row crops that become feed for cattle. By using new irrigation technology, farmers, can greatly reduce the amount of water needed for row crop irrigation and improve the environmental impact of the beef supply chain, the companies say. Via EcoVadis
EcoVadis's curator insight,
June 5, 2018 7:43 AM
The Smart-weather sensor technology - expected to conserve up to 2.4 billion gallons of irrigation water over three years - will enable farmers to make more informed irrigation decisions. A good step to responsibly utilised our natural resources.
Scoop.it!
Using an additive, powder-based 3D printing process, experiments with abundant and renewable salt have created this translucent and lightweight structure.
PIRatE Lab's insight:
Hot damn! Another new 3D printing material to add to our growing list of non-petroleum-based compounds. Although this one won't last long out in the elements. Can anyone say popcorn/potato chip bags made of salt?
|
