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Interesting Stuff on the Internet

Interesting stuff on the internet is an article sharing my favourite recent online inspiration and distractions.

A swarm of 3-D printing, concrete mixing robots called “Minibuilders” explore the possibility of rethinking construction building processes in the near future. 3-D printing architecture is not new, but this method seems more realistic than the other gantry-based systems. Read the full article here. 

It is not just the price of land, the cost of building and tax regimes that are behind Australia’s housing affordability crisis. Social stigma and misunderstanding also play a role in delaying and derailing projects, according to recent research by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute. Read the full article here.

When we think of Fitzroy, Collingwood, Richmond and Carlton (MELB, Australia) we think of expensive houses, trendy cafes and hipsters. Yet only 60 years ago these suburban areas were inner city slums, checkout these these haunting images of the streets that were once decrepit and destitute.

Starships, swords, and the faded grandeur of science fantasy: This interesting article proposes the idea of “super science” whereby the improbability of science fiction comes together with the impossibility of fantasy.

The plastic reef: Corals in the Great Barrier Reef (QLD, Australia) are now ingesting micro-plastics at the same rate as feeding on marine plankton. This article explores the implications.

Architecture Invasion by French artist Charles Pétillon seeks to change the way we see the things we live alongside each day. The installation seeks to go beyond practical perception to aesthetic experience. Each balloon has its own dimensions but remains part of a bigger and fragile composition.

Bob Mazzer On The Tube: Underground London in the 1970’s and 80’s is captured in a series of intriguing photographs by Bob Mazzer. Mazzer spent two decades commuting to work and back on the tube using his Leica M4 to collate a unique perspective of Londoners, commuters and tourists as they journeyed through the capital’s network of tunnels.

1965 -Sidewalk surfers on the streets and in the parks of NYC: More photographs, this time from 1965 capturing the skateboard culture of New York City. The stunning photographs are alongside an equally interesing article describing what skateboarding represented at the time; “Today’s skateboarders are founders in this sport – they’re pioneers – they are the first. There is no history in Skateboarding – it’s being made now – by you.”  John Severson, the Quarterly Skateboarder, 1964.

The Mad Genius Paradox: Researchers love to argue about whether there is a link between creativity and mental illness. This article is suggestive that both camps are right by tying creativity to both sanity and madness.

The Architecture of Dr. Seuss: Theodor Seuss Geisel, also known as Dr. Seuss, was a prolific architectural thinker. His experimental drawings show speculative domestic houses and pueblo-like villages with oddly sloped roofs, multiple off-set levels, and wild colour schemes, always looking as if they were on the verge of falling over. They were something like a cross between an overgrown victorian house and a small shanty made of tin and wood. This article explores the history of his drawings and his influence on the profession.

Deep in the remote hills of rural Chile, there lies a brilliantly bizarre settlement with a unique history: Ciudad Abierta, or ‘Open City,’ is an ode to experimental design, formed by a group of students and teachers working at the intersection of poetry and architectural exploration. The history of the Open City dates back to the 1960’s when an increasing number of artists and urban thinkers were attracted to utopian European philosophies pertaining to localism and a desire for urban populations to get back in touch with nature. Checkout the full article here.

America’s Failed 1979 Supertrain: On February 7th, 1979, thousands of Americans were introduced to the Supertrain, which ran from New York to Los Angeles. Nuclear-powered, the super-wide-bodied train topped out at 190 miles per hour and boasted on-board luxuries like a swimming pool, a discotheque, a shopping center and a movie theater. The train only made nine voyages in three months…The Supertrain wasn’t a real vehicle at all, but a fictional NBC television show, the most expensive ever produced at the time.

The Transformation of Subway Cars into Artificial Reefs: In a moment of inspiration, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority stumbled on a way to help the environment and its own bottom line by donating retired subway trains to the little-known cause of creating artificial reefs. Sinking the subway cars cost about half as much as selling them for scrap.

The Rise Of The Niche Manufacturer: Entrepreneurs are starting up their own small manufacturing companies, making unique products at low affordable prices in popular hubs. The phenomenon continues to grow changing the way be develop and manufacture new products.

The marvels of 3D printing continue to amaze. Dutch designer Michiel van der Kley spent three years developing and building this egg-shaped pavilion with the help of 3D printers. Project EGG is constructed of 4,760 3D printed “stones”, each slightly different, to form the 60 cubic meter organic module. Checkout the full article here. 

I hope you found inspiration from my distractions. I’d love you to share your own interesting distractions in the comment section below.