Give,Get,Take, And Have

PEOPLE WILL STILL ASK IF THE SEA URCHIN IS FRESH

The World’s First All-glass Undersea Restaurant Opens [Hospitality Net]
Hilton Hotels is opening a restaurant five meters below the Indian Ocean , in the Maldives

THE FIRST RULE OF HOUSES OF THE FUTURE IS WE DON'T TALK ABOUT HOUSES OF THE FUTURE......

The Other Rules Are that each house has to be:
• Pre-fabricated for easy transportation, and to allow erection on site in less than 4 days
• Environmentally sustainable with sensitive use of materials, rainwater recycling, use of solar panels and passive solar design;
• Compliant with the NSW BASIX ratings tool;
• Designed by an Architect; and
• Futuristic in appearance and use of domestic space.
The recent Houses of The Future contest in Sydney's Olympic Park
must of had the three little pigs and a few of their cousins in mind - entries included houses made of concrete, glass, clay and cardboard.
I love the stipulation that the house has to look like it's from the future.
But who's gonna enforce that "Futuristic use of domestic space" rule?
C'mon, that's way too much speculation for on day. You can't expect architects, even uber prescient ones who design concrete houses that weigh 96 tons, to figure out whether or not the kitchen will be in the bathroom in Craptillion, A.D.
What's cool is that they actuall built the damn things and didn't just provide models.
Check out where you'll be living in the future. if you're Australian, that is.

MOSCOW DOES NOT BELIEVE IN DREAMS

A proposed version of the Palace of Soviets. by architects O.Iofan, O.Gelfreikh, V.Schuko. and sculptor S.Merkulov. (circa 1934) from Unrealized Moscow a collection of architectural drawings that never resulted in actual buildings. Maybe because of oh, say, insisting on having a King Kong sized Lenin on top of a skyscraper. Fascinating and beautiful despite the dashed dreams of award winning architects.

HAGGIS AND THE CITY

Best Laid Schemes is a great looking site on the city of Glasgow, it's architecture, city planning, , its' sociology and culture , and the all important Bruce Plan
Another highly recommended feature is BLS' MovieZone where you can download ephemral films from the Scottish Screen Archive.

ONLY PARTS OF PARIS IS BURNING

On July 22, 2003 -The fucking Eiffel Tower was on fire and I don't mean with desire, contrary to that Bow Wow Wow song.

ARCHITECTURE AND ITS DISCONTENTS

STRUCTURES
I am a big fan of Monolithic Domes Part science fiction geek fantasy (think Logan ‘s Run) part parabolic efficiency and conservation of materials and resources. Hell, theyare cool -There’s even some that are built underground for that maximum James Bond Villian or Rich Hobbit effect. I shouldn’t make fun of them because they have an organization.So get yourself a Monolithic Dome today. If you are the do- it -yourself type get thestuff to get back to the egg or find some guys who are licensed to do it. Happy Doming!

METAL BUILDINGS
Hot Damn! do I love metal buildings or what?. Ok I love the idea of metal buildings. Pouring the foundation alone can cost thousands of dollars, and one company offers tin shacks so advanced that they look like a split level ranch house and cost upwards of 100k, at which point you should really consider an actual house ,dude. I don’t actually have the land or the money to make it feasable, but damn do I love metal buildings! Metal Buildings like you can get from Heritage Building Systems or even Pioneer Steel not to mentionSteel Master or Miracle Truss or even Steelspan. “They’re Just sheds dude, calm down:” you might say but the folks at USBuildings beg to differ. As does Ironbuilt Metal Buildings

SMASHING THE STATE JUST GOT A LITTLE EASIER
The literal minded folks at Implosion World have the tips and tricks you need to implode buildings with grace and ease.

LOST IN THE SUPERMARKET
Groceteria is a site about grocery store architecture and history. It's pretty goddamn cool, even if you are anti-consumerism.

ASSORTED LINKS:
Archinet
Structurae; International Database And Gallery Of Structures
Radical Urban Theory
The Scourge Of Modernism
Modern Ruins
Sears Modern Homes
Abandoned Stations
Animated Manhattan
The Futuro House
Do Design
Shelter
Sydney Olympic Park Houses Of The Future
The Venus Project
Freedomship:The City At Sea
Till death us do part:A new market for floating hotels [From The Oct 28th 2004 Economist print edition]
Expanded PolyStyrene (EPS) Housing System
Japanese Architecture Terminology
Bejing Municiple Commision Of Urban Planning
shows competition results for the proposed 2008 Olympic Stadium. So it's New York and China in the running for Olympic Hosting? Somebody please tell me there are other countries in the offing. Both those choices suck.

YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT MEN WITH TINY HOUSES........

1) Jay Shafer of Tumbleweed Tiny House Company
Makes no "bones" about the fact that porn puts him in a trance.

2) Semi Alert photographer Jay Krieger instantly documents Shafer, Magrittelike, gazing at his own image in the act of porn parusal.

3) Elated with the awesome power of his own gaze, Shafer immediatly phones "Big Titty Jones" aka Tia Woodward, to say, with great conviction: "Hey, I'm Lookin' at porn!"

Jay Schaefer almost never gets laid. I mean he does, but with constant interruption.
It's just that people want to get a glimpse of the architechtural marvel that is his tiny house at all hours of the day and night and feel that it is their divine right to come check it out even when Jay is trying to "get it on".
40 year old Shaefer is CEO of Tumbleweed Tiny House Company an outfit out of Iowa City that sells plans and kits for making tiny houses.
His Hobbitlike condo ideas have been featured in the Iowa City Press -Citizen, Natural Home Magazine, and even inspired the The Small House Society.
But there are challengers to the "King of Tiny Houses" Title (which I just made up).Jay should be able to kick that guy's ass, tinyhousewise.

Additional Tiny House Resources:
Tiny Houses Net
Tiny House Company
Tiny House Plans
Lester Walker
Daphne’s Caravans
Free Spirit Spheres
Are like giant gourds suspended from trees. If you're an Ewok or one of the fairy folk, you might want to check this out.
Warner And Asmuth Architects
Built a "wee house" for a client. It's pretty cool. And it's not full of wee , by the way.

REAL ESTATE

::: WHEN THE BIG ONE DROPS,YOU'LL BE THANKFUL YOU DROPPED ALL THAT CASH :::
Subterranean Fortress
20th Century Castles Sells abandoned underground missile bases.

:::ISLANDS :::

Carribian Islands For Sale
Private Islands Online
Tropical Islands
Vladi Private Islands

WHO KNEW?

The Atlantic Tunnel , running 3261 miles long, at a depth of 3,202 metres.(At its deepest point) is set to open in 2009, 65 years after it started. They have a contest where you can be one of the first hundred people to ride it from New Jersey (what exit?) to Swansea, Wales. Oh, and it's a hoax.

WORKING ON A BUILDING

Lewis Wickes Hine: The Construction of the Empire State Building, 1930-1931

Courtesy of The New York Public Library. the Library is cool! So is the empire state building. What's not to like?
Fun facts:
Architects: Shreve, Lamb & Harmon Associates.
Builders: Starrett Brothers & Eken, Inc.
Managing Agents: Helmsley Spear, Inc.
Height: 1,472 feet (448 meters) to top of antennae. 1,250 feet (391 meters) to 102nd floor observatory. 1,050 feet (320 meters) to 86th floor observatory.
Volume: 37 million cubic feet.
Area of Site: 83,860 square feet.
Cost including land: $40,948,900.
Cost of building alone: $24,718,000 (expected cost of $50 million did not materialize due to the Great Depression)
Construction schedule:
Excavation: Begun January 22, 1930, before demolition of old Waldorf-Astoria Hotel completed.
Construction: Begun March 17, 1930. Framework rose at the rate of 4 1/2 stories per week.
Cornerstone:Laid by Alfred E. Smith, former governor of New York, September 17, 1930.
Masonry completed: November 13, 1930.
Official opening: May 1, 1931, by President Herbert Hoover, who pressed a button in Washington, D.C. to turn on the building's lights.
Total time: 7 million man hours, 1 year and 45 days work, including Sundays and holidays.
Work Force: 3,400 during peak periods.
Building Materials:
Exterior: Indiana limestone and granite, trimmed with aluminum and chrome-nickel steel from the 6th floor to the top.
Interior lobby: Ceiling high marble, imported from France, Italy, Belgium and Germany.