Mexico’s Mar Adentro Hotel is a Utopian Paradise

In San José del Cabo, Mexico, a futuristic hotel property called Mar Adentro has opened overlooking the Sea of Cortez. Designed by architect Miguel Ángel Aragonés, it features a striking collection of stark white buildings surrounding a vast, reflective infinity pool navigable by winding walkways. The 143-suite space offers guests more than just immaculate architectural and natural views, though. It includes a private beach club, …

How Empowerment Became a Purchasable Product

Originally used by social workers to encourage marginalized communities to rise up from poverty and oppression, the term “empowerment” has taken on completely different definitions in recent years. It’s been transformed into a mass-marketing tactic—especially when pertaining to women—flaunted by corporations (like the #StrengthHasNoGender campaign from Brawny paper towels, a company owned by Koch Brothers who have spent millions funding anti-abortion programs) with the sole …

Researchers Find a Way to Make Wood Translucent

Researchers at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm have developed a translucent wood paneling called Optically Transparent Wood (TW) that could transform the way we incorporate sunlight into architecture. It’s created by removing the chemical lignin from the wood veneer and then impregnating it with a transparent polymer. Lars Berglund, a professor at KTH, believes the new material could be used in anything from …