Science Commons. Imagine if there were an Architecture Commons … there already are things kind of like that going on at Open Architecture Network. Go check it out. Get involved.

http://www.evolo-arch.com/

eVolo Architecture was founded by a group of international architects in 2003 in New York City. Our goal is to create a form of discussion for the development of new ideas towards excellence in architectural design for the XXI Century.

The following are winners from the >08 skyscraper competition

register now to compete in the >09 competition

Honestly, when I first saw this I got really excited because I thought that OMA devised a way for these huge towers to float by using magnets for stabilization. This whole exciting thought process happened in like .1 second when I saw the rendering. I’m a huge fan of magnets. You can quote me on that. Seriously, how kool would that be if the units that are attached to the side of the core here (sadly, the magnets are nowhere to be found) and could rise and fall as desired? I suppose that may detract from the intentional placement of the towers for views… And imagine it. If the side units were completely autonomous from the core ( with respect to their position vertically ) then this core could be raised to twice the height, the already present units move on up, and construct a few more around the base! this is a good one to think about… imagine a whole slew of these together all corbu “radiant city” style … 

The design strategically maneuvers within the highly regulated building environment to maximize the full potential of the site: Four individual apartment towers are vertically offset from one another and suspended from a central core. The skyline of floating towers directly relates to the surrounding building volumes and explores the most attractive views towards the city center and an extensive green zone to the north. The lifted apartment towers reduce the building’s footprint to a minimum; the liberated ground level provides communal leisure activities embedded in the tropical landscape. 

via world architecture news

Bentley Systems develops Generative Components and systems and resources all therein. Here, you’ll find tons of great stuff on scripting, truss work, BIM integration, etc.

Here and here, and here are a few case studies with the products. Browse the site and enjoy the stuff. there’s way too much to even attempt to summarize what its all about so go see for yourself.

Malaysia is no stranger to iconic buildings. Two of the tallest buildings in the world, the Petronas Twin Towers, are located in Kuala Lumpur, the country’s capital. So it comes as no surprise to us that a stunning new residential development is planned for the Putrajaya waterfront known as Precinct 4, just 30km south of Kuala Lumpur. The design, however, is a refreshing and original with unique, marine-inspired structures – which also draw from traditional Islamic designs – arranged in a permeable, radiating block of bioclimatic architecture. 

via inhabitat

SAN FRANCISCO — In tough circumstances, sometimes all you need is hope, but other times you need a blow-up survival shelter featuring a bed, a couch, freeze-dried food, a 50-gallon water bladder, a first-aid kit, a radio and a cookstove.

And the latter is exactly what the “Life Cube” from startup Inflatable World is designed to provide. Packaged into a four-foot-tall cube, it inflates into a 12-foot-tall structure built from the same thick plastic as a bouncy house.

Designed to provide shelter and basic amenities for people in the days and weeks after a disaster, the instant housing will come with a $3,900 price tag, so the company’s first market could be wealthy survivalists.

“We need a versatile design that is completely self-contained that gives you instant survival,” said Nick Pedersen, business development head of the fledgling startup, based in Santa Barbara, California. “We’ll get you through the critical first 72 hours and beyond.”

Inflatable World isn’t the first company to focus on short-term housing for disaster-struck areas. In fact, a wide variety of architects and builders, notably TED-grantee Cameron Sinclair and Architecture for Humanity, have designed structures to keep people alive in the aftermath of calamity. But Inflatable World sees a market between the long-term FEMA trailers and the tents used in the immediate recovery efforts.

via wired

Maybe this will be available for all kinds of things in the future … like famous architectural sites ? ( cough … google … ) maybe some huge internet monster of a company can do this for all kinds of places all over the whole that have some significance … 

When geologists wanted a better look at a Yosemite rock face in years past, they only had one option: climb the cliff.

But now, thanks to super-high resolution gigapixel images created by a team of 70 photographers using GigaPan robotic imagers and a laser-mapping airplane, park geologist Greg Stock now has unprecedented access to the geological features of one of the world’s most famous parks. And all from the comfort of his laptop.

“When you’re climbing, your primary purpose is just surviving,” Stock said. “You can make some observations, but it’s a lot harder.”

The Yosemite Extreme Panoramic Imaging Project is a Microsoft-sponsored collaboration between Los Angeles-based photography studio, xRez, and the National Park Service, intended to help Stock catalog and understand dangerous rock slides in Yosemite. Printed out at magazine-quality 300 dpi resolution, the photos stretch uninterrupted for 40 feet.

“People have been documenting rock fall in Yosemite for 150 years but we’re doing it now with a precision that other people couldn’t have dreamed of,” Stock said. “Every rock-fall event begins with the basic documentation: Where was it, how big was it, and why did it happen? And sometimes these photos are the only way of ascertaining those things.”

via wired

Professor Culp may teach you how to do it via LEED skills  - but why not just turn off your lights? …

via designboom

Play: Duoc Antonio Varas 
Location: Antonio Varas 666, Providencia, Santiago, Chile 
Architects: Architects Sabbagh - John P. Sabbagh, Mariana P. Sabbagh, Juan Pedro B. Sabbagh, Philip B. Sabbagh, Marcial B. Olivares 
Contributors: Mario Zamorano V. 
Surface of the Land: 9954 m2 
Surface intervene: 6.256m2 
Surface Cover: 12.000m2

Faced with the commissioning of a building as the headquarters of the Duoc presents four themes which were annexed to the program crucial to the resolution of the project. The first, its location in the courtyard of the headquarters Antonio Varas, a former college German typical building and founding of the neighborhood. The second, the coexistence of a program of functions and activities with specific requirements of surfaces and relationships with the corporate image of a building for an educational institution of the Catholic University of Chile. Thirdly, the permanent change of use of the space, itself an institution in permanent renewal and change. Finally, the need for public space for recreation and expansion for the students.

via plataformaarquitectura

Monday, November 10th, 5:00 p.m. Geren Auditorium

Hernan Diaz Alonso is the principal and founder of Xefirotarch, a Los Angeles-based design firm working in architecture, products, and digital motion. For the last several years he has been a thesis coordinator and professor in studio design and visual studies at SCI-Arc in Los Angeles. He is also a design studio professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation. He worked for several years as a senior designer at Eisenman Architects in New York and has lectured around the world.

Hernan Diaz Alonso is hailed as an architect who pushes boundaries and breaks the rules. His recent winning design for the Lexington Courthouse Plaza (though not the design being built)is a close-to-home example of the tension between cutting-edge design and the inertia of the expected.

Alonso, who has also worked with both Enric Miralles and Peter Eisenman, is uniquely primed to contribute to our current cultural discourse. He continues to challenge with each project, such as the Aqua Center in Denmark and the Queens Museum of Art in New York. The PSI competition. etc.

Alonso received his professional degree in architecture in Argentina, his M.Arch at Columbia University.