news

Environment - Architecture - 18.05.2021

Rising energy demand for cooling
Climate-related temperature rises will further increase the cooling demand of buildings. A projection by researchers based on data from the NEST building and future climate scenarios for Switzerland shows that this increase in energy demand for cooling is likely to be substantial and could have a strong impact on our future - electrified - energy system.

Architecture - 22.02.2021

CEA-Leti & Dolphin Design Report FD-SOI Breakthrough that Boosts Operating Frequency by 450% and Reduces Power Consumption by 30%
J oin t Paper Presented at ISSCC 2021 Shows How New Adaptive Back-Biasing Technique O vercomes Integration Limits in Chip Design Flows CEA-Leti & Dolphin Design Report FD-SOI Breakthrough that Boosts Operating Frequency by 450% and Reduces Power Consumption by 30% GRENOBLE, France - Feb. 22, 2021 - CEA-Leti and Dolphin Design have developed an adaptive back-biasing (ABB) architecture for FD-SOI chips that can be seamlessly integrated in the digital design flow with industrial-grade qualification, overcoming integration drawbacks of existing ABB techniques.

Environment - Architecture - 10.08.2020

Fragmented forests: Tree cover, urban sprawl both increased in Southeast Michigan over the past 30 years
Share on: Share on Twitter Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn The extent of Southeast Michigan's tree canopy and its urban sprawl both increased between 1985 and 2015, according to a new University of Michigan study that used aerial photos and satellite images to map individual buildings and small patches of street trees.

Architecture - 20.05.2020

How organic architecture can shape dense, diverse cityscapes
In a new book, researchers from EPFL examine the history of organic architecture, complete with telling examples of the genre, from its emergence in the early 20th century to the present day.

Architecture - Health - 04.05.2020

Epidiemology and urban planning: the views of Sascha Roesler on the NZZ
What is the relationship between epidiemology and urban planning? Sascha Roesler, assistant professor at the USI Academy of Achitecture (Institute for the History and Theory of Art and Architecture, ISA), explores the subject in a recently published article in the Neue Zürcher Zeitung and with a short video, showing how these two concepts have a common history and future.

Computer Science - Architecture - 23.04.2020

Reducing the carbon footprint of artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence has become a focus of certain ethical concerns, but it also has some major sustainability issues.  Last June, researchers at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst released a startling report estimating that the amount of power required for training and searching a certain neural network architecture involves the emissions of roughly 626,000 pounds of carbon dioxide.

Environment - Architecture - 25.03.2019

X-rays reveal termites' self-cooling, self-ventilating, self-draining skyscrapers
New insight into termites' architectural strategies could help us design more energy efficient self-sustaining buildings for humans. Many species of termite, whose societies are built on hierarchies of kings, queens, workers, and soldiers, live in towering nests that are ventilated by a complex system of tunnels.

Economics / Business - Architecture - 12.02.2018

Star architecture and its impact on the city
Research news The Guggenheim Museum by star architect Frank Gehry led to an economic boom in the Spanish city of Bilbao. This "Bilbao Effect" is appealing to many urban planners and politicians who look to better position their cities in economic and social terms by building exceptional architectural projects.

Materials Science - Architecture - 15.01.2018

Insulating with microscopic bubbles

Architecture - Environment - 30.11.2017

Climate-friendly architecture thanks to natural folding mechanisms
Research news Active components on buildings such as blinds whose design was copied from naturally occurring solutions - that is the subject of the research conducted by a team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM), the University of Freiburg, and the University of Stuttgart. The aim is to equip them with drive elements that can move without any electrical energy input.

Architecture - 20.07.2017

Birds versus buildings: Rural structures post greater relative threat than urban ones
About one billion birds are killed every year when they unwittingly fly into human-made objects such as buildings with reflective windows. Such collisions are the largest unintended human cause of bird deaths worldwide - and they are a serious concern for conservationists. A new paper published in June in the journal Biological Conservation finds that, as one might suspect, smaller buildings cause fewer bird deaths than do bigger buildings.

Architecture - Physics - 09.07.2017

Proximity boosts collaboration on MIT campus
Want to boost collaboration among researchers' Even in an age of easy virtual communication, physical proximity increases collaborative activity among academic scholars, according to a new study examining a decade's worth of MIT-based papers and patents. In particular, the study finds that cross-disciplinary and interdepartmental collaboration is fueled by basic face-to-face interaction within shared spaces.

Architecture - 28.06.2017

High-rise buildings much more energy-intensive than low-rise
Office and residential buildings use more energy per square metre, the taller they are, according to new research from UCL. Researchers at UCL's Energy Institute have found that electricity use, per square metre of floor area, is nearly two and a half times greater in high-rise office buildings of 20 or more storeys than in low-rise buildings of 6 storeys or less.

Architecture - Environment - 03.06.2017

A self-sufficient home with solar panels installed only on its facade
EPFL, in association with the School of Engineering and Architecture of Fribourg, the Geneva School of Art and Design and the University of Fribourg, is taking part in the 2017 international Solar Decathlon competition.

Architecture - Economics / Business - 10.05.2017

"Architecture is the tip of the iceberg"
Research news Architecture clearly reflects societal developments. Prof. Stephan Trüby explains in an interview how financial markets influence the shape of bank buildings and what the impact of digitalization on individual architectural elements is. As a professor for Architectural and Cultural Theory, can you tell us about the relationship between these two fields? Stephan Trüby: Architecture is probably the most complex cultural technology that humankind has produced.

Life Sciences - Architecture - 21.03.2017

Satnavs ’switch off’ parts of the brain
Using a satnav to get to your destination 'switches off' parts of the brain that would otherwise be used to simulate different routes, reveals new UCL research. The study, published and funded by Wellcome, involved 24 volunteers navigating a simulation of Soho in central London while undergoing brain scans.

Environment - Architecture - 23.08.2016

Hidden impacts
Research news How can we improve the sustainability of our cities in the future? Researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have developed a new methodology for determining the overall emissions of cities. In a case study analysis, they examined three house types in the Munich metropolitan region.

Architecture - Environment - 20.04.2016

How to make cities more energy efficient
Many programs encourage owners of homes and other buildings to improve their energy efficiency, sometimes offering substantial subsidies or tax incentives for doing so. Now, planners may have a way to determine where such programs can get the most return for that investment: New research shows how to identify the buildings where retrofitting for energy efficiency will have the biggest impact on a city's overall greenhouse gas emissions.

Environment - Architecture - 01.04.2016

Going green with the commercial lease
New opportunities to fight climate change in these properties are coming from an unlikely source: the commercial property lease. A new study finds that in 2009, only 15% of all leases signed in Sydney's central business district contained green clauses; by 2013, this had risen to over 60%. Traditionally, leases ignore environmental considerations, partly due to conflicting landlord and tenant goals.

Architecture - Economics / Business - 19.01.2016

Innovative tool to revolutionise building airtightness test
The University of Nottingham has developed a novel and easy-to-use test for measuring the airtightness of buildings in order to help eliminate draughts, improve energy efficiency and reduce heating bills. The testing of airtightness is needed to help establish and minimise the infiltration rate of cold air into buildings and the loss of heated air out through gaps, holes and cracks in the building fabric.