A visitor walks towards Norway’s dramatic Trollstigen (Troll’s Ladder) overlook, designed by Reiulf Ramstad Architects in 2012. The moment was captured by German photographer Ken Schluchtmann, who took home this year’s Arcaid Architectural Photography Award today. [Ken Schluchtmann]
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Hold on to your knobs while you still can. Humanity is about to embark on an era of doorknob prohibition, and it’s all starting with our friendly neighbor to the north, right in Vancouver, Canada.
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Hanging out in the backyard is a lot less appealing when the sun sets midday and the temperature dips down (and down, and down) not long after—sometimes, all the woolly layers in the world just won’t thaw you out. This is the season when it’s fun to hole up in your apartment, layer on the comfy gear, and hibernate until it’s time to face the world again, but San Francisco-based Galanter & Jones came up with Helios, a furniture collection designed to prolong your al fresco hang into the winter months.
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The Yangtze River is the third longest in the world and it’s served as a critical artery in the beating heart of China’s economic boom. It’s also incredibly wide at points—which has forced China to become a top contender as the builder of the most advanced long-span bridges in the world. Taizhou Bridge is definitely one of those bridges.
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The laptop has made it possible for us to work almost anywhere on earth; from the cramped quarters of a plane seat, to a relaxing beach. But away from the privacy of your office, you often want to keep prying eyes off your screen, which is why this No. 1 leather laptop bag from La Fonction is so brilliant. It transforms into a tiny mobile cubicle, letting you work with adequate privacy no matter where you set up your temporary office.
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You unlock this post with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension—a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You’re moving into a collection of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas.
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Learning how to sign takes time and a whole lot of effort. Others get the hang of it fairly quickly, while some find that practice makes perfect. Of course, it doesn’t hurt to have something like the Sign Language Ring to help you throughout the entire process.
The conceptual device is actually a bracelet and ring combo. The bracelet comes with detachable rings that, when worn, detect the signing motions that are made by the wearer. It then “translates” the signs audibly via the bracelet, which has an embedded speaker. The bracelet can also translate voice to text, which is displayed on the built-in screen.
It shortens the learning curve and makes communication easier between those who are hard of hearing or are speech impaired with those who cannot understand sign language.
The concept was thought up by Cao Zu-Wei, Hu Ya-Chun, Huang Ching-Lan, Liao Po-Yang, Tsai Yu-Chi, and Yang Yi-Hsien, who drew inspiration from Buddha prayer beads for the bracelet’s design.
The Sign Language Ring is a 2013 Red Dot Design Award winner.
[via Red Dot]
Smog is a concern for all big cities, with some being plagued with it on a continual basis, both decreasing the quality of life for residents and posing a health risk. Dutch designer Daan Roosegaarde has decided to tackle this program and designed an “electronic vacuum cleaner” that eliminates the pollution. Presently, the designer is […]
Photographer Felix Meyer captured this shot of the sun setting behind Dresden’s Centre for Energy Technology, an experimental power plant where researchers focus on the future of sustainable energy—from biomass, to thermal, to photovoltaic. While primarily a research facility, the plant generates electricity for the surrounding campus. [Felix Meyer on Flickr/Creative Commons]
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Last Friday, Ace Hotel founder Alex Calderwood was found dead in London, where the chain had just opened its fifth location. He’s being remembered today as a design visionary, the leader of a cultural phenomenon. But his role was also that of a city-builder, reaching far outside hotel walls to build community and instill a sense of place in each neighborhood he touched.
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