Researchers are developing a living material that actively extracts carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Photosynthetic cyanobacteria grow inside it, forming biomass and solid minerals and thus binding CO2 in two different manners. In brief The idea seems futuristic: At ETH Zurich, various disciplines are working together to combine conventional materials with bacteria, algae and fungi….
It’s a plant that can build your house, fuel your body, and clothe you. It’s also a plant that looks almost exactly like its notorious cousin, marijuana. This is the heart of a complex puzzle facing Papua New Guinea right now: what to do about industrial hemp? Or should we even be talking about it?…
Nature’s fiber composite Fungi are considered a promising source of biodegradable materials. Empa researchers have developed a new material based on a fungal mycelium and its own extracellular matrix. This gives the biomaterial particularly advantageous properties. The thin mycelial film is almost transparent and has good tensile strength. It could be used as a living…
Engineers have developed a building material that uses the root-like mycelium of a fungus and bacteria cells. Their results, publishing April 16 in the Cell Press journal Cell Reports Physical Science, show that this material — which is manufactured with living cells at low temperatures — is capable of self-repairing and could eventually offer a…
This paper examines Neoclassical architecture, with special attention to some Neoclassical houses in Mytilene, Lesvos, Greece, with a view to articulating the spatio-temporal implications of its characteristic spatial modulations. It is argued that, as the epithet, “Neoclassical”, suggests, its emphasis on geometric forms of a certain kind instantiates an assault on time, and concomitantly an…
On Strossmayer Square in Prague 7, the Technical Road Administration (TSK) has started planting 17 Julian alder trees, selected for their resilience to man-made climate change. I spoke with Katarína Svitková, Associate Research Fellow at the EUROPEUM Institute, about this project as a case study for what Czechia can do differently to combat extreme weather…
Temperatures in cities are rising across the globe and urban heat stress is already a major problem causing illness, death, a surge in energy use to cool buildings down, heat-related social inequality issues and problems with urban infrastructure. Some cities have already started implementing mitigation strategies, with tree planting prominent among them. But a University…
In the fight against climate change scientists have invented some weird and wonderful ways to cut greenhouse gases, stop glacier melt and shade the powerful rays of the sun to reduce the planet’s surface temperature. The future of Earth relies on humankind’s ability to curb our reliance on fossil fuels — and ultimately use fewer…
The depletion of conventional fossil fuel supplies and the growing global population necessitate a significant reduction in energy use and harmful emissions. High sun radiation in the Mediterranean region increases summer overheating, and results in increasing energy expenditures and building emissions. But, this also presents an opportunity for solar energy systems, as building designers see…
On June 12, 2017, an Mw 6.3 earthquake struck Lesvos Island (Northeastern Aegean, Greece). Building damage was observed in its southeastern part with very heavy structural damage limited in the settlement of Vrissa … >>> Mavroulis, S., Andreadakis, E., Spyrou, N.I., Antoniou, V., Skourtsos, E., Papadimitriou, P., Kasssaras, I., Kaviris, G., Tselentis, G.A., Voulgaris, N.,…