Steven Holl Architects’ Experimental “Crinkle Concrete”

Developed for Washington DC’s John F Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Steven Holl Architects’ experimental “crinkle concrete” treatment gives walls in the new expansion, known as The Reach, the appearance of crumpled paper. More than an aesthetic development of an ancient material, the cast-in-place concrete diffuses sound and offers additional acoustic support in performance spaces. In a detailed interview with CityLab, Garrick Ambrose, the project …

National Geographic on How Science Fiction Informs the Future

Word would travel of scientist Giovanni Aldini’s electric reanimation experiments on dead criminals in 1803 to author Mary Shelley before the 1818 publish of her book Frankenstein. It was an instance of science informing fiction. In turn, Shelley’s masterpiece would then inspire scientist Earl Bakken to develop the first wearable, battery-operated pacemaker. This is only one example of science fiction triggering the pursuit of scientific …

Orange Juicer Turns Peels Into Cups

Italian design firm Carlo Ratti Associati’s “Feel the Peel” machine takes the beloved orange juicer and turns it into a model for sustainability. The oranges are still freshly squeezed, but their peels are turned into biodegradable, bioplastic cups. The massive machine stands over nine feet tall and can accommodate 1,500 oranges. Each is peeled and its rind is dried, milled, and mixed to form a …