It can simply be dismantled and rebuilt on a new site. Requiring only two square meters of foundation, the impact is minimal after the Fincube is moved to another location.





Horizontal ledges provide privacy and assimilate the home into forests, meadows, and let’s also include mountainsides.





The original home was created 1200m above sea level near Bozen in Northern Italy. Made entirely of local wood, the building provides 47 m≤ of living space with a minimal CO2 footprint: local suppliers and local crafts using local long-lasting and recyclable materials manufactured with the precision and care of tyrolese handwork. A prototype of this nomadic housing concept is exhibited in Ritten, above Bozen.

The combination of long-lasting design and portability make for a flexible house or hideaway and a lifetime companion.

Per the designer:

Long-lasting Design: The design is minimal, material-orientated, and in close touch with nature – the wooden space with a 360-degree triple glazing is furnished with a second facade layer, producing shade and giving the building a unique overall mushroom-like mono-shape.

Hospitality Vision: Together with South Tyrolean hotelier Josef Innherhofer, the Fincube was also conceptualized as a vision for future hospitality: a temporary FINCUBE village with minimum soil sealing can be placed in the middle of the most beautiful landscapes without permanently altering them. In contrast to all permanent buildings it could be easily changed, extended, scaled down or removed and the area would soon be re-naturalized back to normal. These qualities turn the unit into an answer to future needs of flexible and smart tourism.

Technology & Space: Technology wise the FINCUBE is a smart house – all vital house-functions are controlled by a central touch panel. The supporting structure is made of local larch and the interior is a combination of larch & stone-pine. The 3m-high space is organized in a helical structure: the entrance area blends into a generous open kitchen with an adjacent sofa living space, around the corner one enters the bedroom and further down is the spacious bathroom.






[fincube]


Designer: Werner Aisslinger – Berlin .
Interior design: Tina Bunyaprasit, Studio Aisslinger .
Wood structure: Markus Lobis – Ritten, Italy
Interior finish: Matthias Prast – Ritten, Italy

[via i am jet]

The iPad pitch is aimed to tap into the hype over Apple Inc.’s sleek tablet computer and will be part of the package for consumers who drive off with Hyundai’s Equus luxury sedan.

People who buy the South Korean automaker’s first venture into the super-premium market will also be able to use one of the tablet’s preloaded applications to make service appointments.

“They are trying to position themselves as a modern, in-touch, technologically savvy brand. It is the sort of innovation you would expect from BMW or Mercedes, but not Hyundai,” said Mike Bloxham, director of insight and research at Ball State University’s Center for Media Design.

Known for budget cars such as the $9,970 Accent and the $14,145 Elantra, Hyundai is trying to break into the high-end market with the Equus, which the manufacturer compares with the Lexus LS460 and Mercedes-Benz S550 sedans. The three are similar in size and have engines with about the same power: around 380 horsepower.

The Equus will sell for $50,000 to $60,000, according to Hyundai executives, with the exact amount to be announced closer to launch. An iPad is $499. Will be nteresting to see how the high-end Hyundai fares against a Lexus or M-B.

ROHO™ is the latest addition to the historically trusted and reputable line of BPA-free Thermos® products. Influenced by global, political, cultural and environmental issues, the new reusable stainless steel hydration bottles feature a variety of vibrant designs to reflect personal style without compromising safety. Offering safety and convenience advantages over current bottles on the market, the ROHO collection raises the bar of what is expected from a hydration bottle.

“Hydration bottles may have a trendy design on the outside, but many are still made with unsafe materials on the inside where attention to detail matters most,” said Kim Flanagan, ROHO brand manager. “The ROHO collection finally combines everything you’ve been looking for in a hydration bottle.”

Uniting innovative design and safety, the ROHO collection hydration bottles are made from 18/8 stainless steel and polypropylene, which means there is no BPA, no aluminum and no interior coating to be concerned about. The long neck shape of the bottle provides an ergonomic hand grip, while beverage capacity is still a generous 24 oz.

The initial ROHO collection will be available in 18 different designs with a variety of colors and graphics offering new ways to express individual style and personality. Each ROHO stainless steel bottle can be identified from other hydration bottles by the distinct leak-proof red flip-top lid.

The striking lid design also features a one-hand push button and an integrated carrying loop.

“The ROHO brand name was inspired by our signature red lid and our global focus,” said Flanagan. “Rojo means red in Spanish, making the brand fun, approachable and memorable.”

The ROHO collection will be available at Target stores and at Thermos.com.
Price: $14.99-$17.99.
Producer: thermos

The prototype, with the wingspan of a Boeing 747 and the weight of a small car, started to a two-hour test flight to examine whether the plane can keep a straight trajectory. The Solar Impulse project aims to circumnavigate the world with an aircraft powered only by solar energy.

Producer: solvay, omega, deutsche bank, among others

Resources:
solar pulse
the guardian

This type of building is called a ZEB, or zero-energy building. ZEBs use solar, wind, and geothermal systems to produce at least as much energy as they tap from the grid. In some cases, a building’s owner can sell excess electricity generated by the structure back to its utility, reducing overall demand for power generated by coal and other greenhouse-gas-emitting plants.

And tall buildings are full of energy-design challenges as they use most of their energy trying to keep their inhabitants cool. Even in the winter towers run their AC systems most days of the year to counteract the heat from lighting, computers, and workers.

The building does this…

It has perforated metal window blinds (image No. 2 below) that automatically track the sun and open and close to minimize solar heat.

It uses its helical turbines (image No. 3 below), which are inside four openings on the skyscraper’s face, to generate power in relatively mild winds from multiple directions. The turbines, tested in winds as high as 140 mph, will generate up to 4% of the building’s power.

Its exterior walls hide an eight-inch air gap inside them (image No. 4 below). When the sun beats through the double-glazed outer skin, the heat–instead of entering the interior–is trapped in this cavity and rises to heat exchangers on the equipment floors.

For this effort the building will use an AC system that is 80% smaller than those in conventional skyscrapers.







above: free energy from wind turbines in face of building.





above: passive wind and solar energy design.





above: integrated photovoltaic panels – solar panels.

 


Designer: som chicago

Resources:
money.cnn
inhabitat
world changing