Will Dallas Build a Giant Protective Shield For Its Death Ray Tower?

Will Dallas Build a Giant Protective Shield For Its Death Ray Tower?

For the past two years, Dallas has been locked in a debate over a new class of buildings that have lovingly become known as architectural death rays. In Dallas’s case, it’s a shard of light reflected off a hastily-built condo tower that has killed plants and ruined art at the nearby Nasher Sculpture Center. Now, an architect is proposing a 57,000-square-foot shade.

Read more…


    



SURYA Sunscreen Sculpture: A Creative Way to Deal with Unwanted Solar Glare

This awesome sunscreen looks like it would be at home in deep space, but it’s actually designed for the arts district in Dallas, Texas. The sculpture/sunscreen was commissioned by the police to protect us from brain scans by aliens (NOT!).

surya solar sculpture 1 620x417magnify

Actually, it was designed by REX Architecture as a proposed way to prevent harsh reflected light from bouncing off a highly reflective building into a neighboring sculpture center. The 400-foot-tall installation would generate different designs throughout the year. The shields are designed to open and close like flowers to automatically block sunlight coming in at different angles. Mr. Burns would have been proud.

surya solar sculpture 2 620x417magnify

The sun’s movements were mapped, allowing the team to sculpt SURYA perfectly. Personally, I think they should have included some solar panels in their design so they could harness the Sun’s energy at the same time. That would have been even better.

[via designboom]

Dallas Is the Latest City to Propose Tearing Down Huge Urban Freeways

Dallas Is the Latest City to Propose Tearing Down Huge Urban Freeways

The rest of the country might think of Dallas as an ultra-conservative town. And as some one who spends a lot of time there, I can tell you that… It sort of is. But it’s also home to great art, food, and increasingly, a progressive take on the future of cars. To wit: A proposal to permanently demolish an important freeway that runs through the city.

Read more…


    



AT&T opens second Foundry lab in Plano, Texas, hopes to foster the ‘Internet of Things’

AT&T opening second Foundry lab in Plano, focusing on the Internet of Everything

Carriers need to innovate their way to bigger profits, so AT&T has been opening up foundries — startup incubators that try and recreate the spirit of Bell Labs. While the company already has a software-focused facility in Plano, ‘Ma Bell has now rented the office space directly above it for the follow-up. The second Texas facility will concentrate on hardware for the “Internet of Things,” packing gear like a faraday cage, fast prototyping equipment and 3D printers. Aspiring inventors should just bear in mind that whatever you go there to build will probably need to sell a wireless plan alongside — after all, AT&T is paying the bills.

Filed under: , , , ,

Comments

Aereo continues expansion, plans service rollout in Miami, Houston and Dallas-Ft. Worth

Aereo continues push into new markets, plans September service rollout in Miami, Houston and DallasFt Worth

For a company’s that’s mired in legal red tape, Aereo’s nationwide expansion isn’t showing any signs of slowing. The streaming service, which uses an antenna / DVR system to deliver local broadcast stations, will soon launch in three additional major cities — Houston and Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX; Miami, FL — in a rollout scheduled to complete by the end of September. Interested parties can head to Aereo’s site now to get a leg up on pre-registration for the service, with rates starting at $8/mo for 20 hours of DVR storage. Take note, the first month’s gratis, but after that it’s the same old subscription ball-and-chain just like any other. And, hey, at least this is one way to guarantee Moonves’ content kingdom and his trusty Chenbot still have a home on your flatscreen or iPad or, you know, device.

Filed under: ,

Comments

AT&T to open Foundries in Atlanta and Dallas that focus on home automation, device-to-device tech

AT&T to open Foundries in Atlanta and Dallas focused on home automation, devicetodevice communication

AT&T launched its first Foundries primarily as mobile app incubators, but the carrier is switching focus tonight: it just unveiled plans to open more hardware-oriented Foundries in Atlanta and Dallas. Most Atlanta-based projects will expand AT&T’s Digital Life home automation service, with connected cars and U-verse also receiving a boost. The Dallas Foundry complements an existing presence in the city, but will pay attention to the internet of things and other forms of machine-to-machine chatter. In either circumstance, collaboration will be key. The Atlanta location will sit right next to Georgia Tech, while hardware makers at the new Dallas office can get software help at the original Foundry one floor down. The two new locations won’t open until a few months from now, but the Foundry program’s healthy track record suggests that patience will be a virtue for interested developers.

Filed under: , ,

Comments

Source: AT&T

Boxee hands out free Boxee TVs to its most eager cloud DVR fans

Boxee TV hands-on

If you like the idea of the Boxee TV, you’ll be glad to hear that Boxee is handing units out like so much Halloween candy… as long as you live in the right areas, that is. Those who’ve signed up for product notifications and live in the cloud DVR coverage areas of Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington, DC can get a free Boxee TV just by filling out a survey. They’ll even have the privilege of getting their units ahead of everyone else. Boxee hasn’t said if any new sign-ups will qualify, though it can’t hurt to try the source link and potentially get a welcome treat.

Filed under: ,

Boxee hands out free Boxee TVs to its most eager cloud DVR fans originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 28 Oct 2012 11:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Verge  |  sourceBoxee  | Email this | Comments