Lifeboat Foundation

While hydroelectric dams are capable of generating a lot of electricity, they drastically disrupt the environment. Scientists have now proposed a simpler but still effective alternative, in which electric trucks replace such dams.

In a typical hydroelectric facility, a dam is built across a river, causing a reservoir to form directly upstream of that dam. When a gate in the dam is opened, water from the reservoir flows through and drops down to a lower elevation. As it does so, it spins up turbines which generate electricity.

Unfortunately, formation of the reservoir involves the flooding of land which may previously have contained forests, crops, or even people’s homes.

Paul Berry, the owner of the beautiful Edwardian foursquare-style house, says it takes a “hardy will” to accomplish moving an entire home but it’s viable.

Fabien Cousteau has a vision for how humans can live and work in the ocean. He imagines that long-term stays under the waves could be enabled through the construction of underwater habitats, which would look and feel like houses, as opposed to just sealed, submarine-like bubbles.

These habitats would have a galley, kitchen, workspace, and sleeping quarters, he describes. And of course, there would be windows, or viewports, to the outside world, and a front door in the form of a moon pool that will actually be on the bottom of the house. This would allow easy access into and out of the facility.

Continue reading “Jacques Cousteau’s grandson is building a network of ocean floor research stations” »

A.I. is having a big impact on the PropTech industry, especially when it comes to home renovation projects for consumers.

Following November’s catastrophic flooding events, roughly 600 Merritt residents still haven’t returned to their homes, but a 3D printer may speed up the process. Greg Solecki, the Merritt’s recovery manag.

“Our biggest priority is getting people back to Merritt and into homes and this 3D-printed option is looking like the most viable one right now,” Solecki said.

READ MORE: 3D printing’s new challenge: Solving the US housing shortage

Continue reading “Merritt considering 3D printer to help build homes for evacuees” »

As cities address climate change, they are looking at passive buildings and novel approaches to energy and heating.

Cities are being challenged to tackle climate change through net-zero strategies that include passive homes, geothermal heating, and more.

The Berlin Affordable Housing Challenge is part of Bee Breeders’ Affordable Housing competition series. Run in partnership with ARCHHIVE BOOKS, this competition tasked participants with submitting innovative design proposals for tackling Berlin’s housing crisis.

Germany’s new government, formed in 2021, has vowed to make affordable housing a centerpiece of its agenda. Berlin, the capital city and the country’s center of gravity for entrepreneurship and new business, is in particular feeling extreme housing market pressures. According to an article published by NPR during the period of this competition, eight out of 10 city residents are now renters, where rent has increased 42% since 2016, and where an average of 40,000 new residents arrive each year.

Meta, formerly Facebook, has said that its grand ambition of building the ultimate “metaverse” won’t be possible if there aren’t drastic improvements in today’s telecoms networks.

The metaverse is a buzzword that’s being hyped up as the next big thing in tech. Broadly speaking, the concept refers to a seamless virtual world where people can work, shop and play with their colleagues, friends and family.

Dan Rabinovitsj, VP of connectivity at Meta, told CNBC at the Mobile World Congress tech event Monday that home networks and cellular networks aren’t yet ready for the metaverse.

Designboom speaks with ICON and lake | flato after visiting the 3D printed ‘house zero.’ discover more from the architect and fabricator!