Japanese architect Kengo Kuma has unveiled a toilet in Tokyo named A Walk in the Woods, which was designed to “to dispel the conventional image of public toilets”. The cedar-clad toilet is Kuma’s contribution to the Nippon Foundation‘s Tokyo Toiletproject, which has seen public toilets designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize winners Tadao Ando, Shigeru Ban and Fumihiko Maki in the city’s Shibuya area. Built to replace […]
Cedar Clad Public Toilet In Tokyo
FedEx Eyes Future of Automated Delivery
Over the past few years, Nuro has been taking some important steps toward a future of autonomous delivery through partnerships with some big names, and it’s just landed what might be its biggest fish yet. The startup has entered an agreement with logistics giant FedEx, which has committed to using the startup’s autonomous delivery vehicles in the long-term and at […]
Rotating Floating Catchers
Norway’s Wind Catching Systems (WCS) has made a spectacular debut with a colossal floating wind turbine array it says can generate five times the annual energy of the world’s biggest single turbines – while reducing costs enough to be immediately competitive with grid prices. Standing more than 1,000 ft (324 m) high, these mammoth Windcatcher grids would deploy multiple smaller […]
Budget OS Wearable
Google has promised big improvements for its Wear OS wearable platform later this year, but in the meantime Mobvoi has launched a new device that could be the best value smartwatch on the market right now: the TicWatch E3. The star of the show is the Qualcomm Snapdragon Wear 4100 processor powering the smartwatch, the best wearable CPU that you […]
Studies Shows Caloric Restrictions Beats Fasting
A trial led by researchers from the University of Bath is questioning the value of popular fasting diets, finding a simple calorie-controlled diet is more effective at reducing weight. The trial also found fasting can lead to greater losses of muscle mass. Intermittent fasting is a popular dietary phenomenon that can take a wide variety of forms, from time-restricted feeding […]
Sit More Comfortably With This
Getting back to working full-time is tough, and it’s made worse by sitting in an uncomfortable chair all day. Make sure you’re giving your back, shoulders, and neck the love they deserve while cranking out spreadsheets with the Core-Tex Sit. Ready to get your body back in gear and tackle whatever life throws at you? Let’s talk about the Core-Tex […]
Porous Membrane Battery
By substituting graphite for high-density pure lithium metal, scientists may be able to dramatically improve the performance of battery technology, but there are hurdles still to overcome. Scientists at Germany’s Friedrich Schiller University in Jena have now demonstrated how a finely tuned carbon membrane can prevent these types of batteries from failure, and enable them to be safely charged over […]
Triggering Rain With Electricity
A new method of triggering rain in water-scarce regions will be tested in the United Arab Emirates, according to research published in the Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology. The method involves catapulting small autopilot aircraft into the sky that then jolt the clouds with an electric charge. In search of freshwater alternatives, the UAE has been funding scientists from […]
O Shaped Building
Designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), the new headquarters building for Chinese electronics company OPPO will highlight energy-saving design and green landscaping. The company is currently one of the country’s largest smartphone manufacturers and has its sights set on an overarching vision of sustainability within the industry. Known as O-Tower, the HQ will be located in Hangzhou’s Future Sci-Tech City, […]
See Through Cells?
With a view to one day developing transparent solar cells that can double as windows in homes and other buildings, an international team of scientists has demonstrated a new type of transparent electrode that can function as a key building block. The breakthrough overcomes some performance issues with previous efforts in this area, and lays the groundwork for advanced tandem […]