Some Pretty Awesome Aerials

Andrew Griffiths is an award-winning photographer who has recently released a series of fascinating (and free) interactive panoramas through his website.

source: http://www.lensaloft.com.au/360Pano.html

The aerial commercial photographer captures 360 degrees and offers a unique perspective of the Australian countryside as well as some of our biggest cities.

Originally an architect, Andrew realised the potential of aerial photography after he was asked to survey the aftermath of a fire. He couldn't capture the scene from the ground so he took to the air.

Each of his panoramas requires the months of planning to achieve the amazing results you can see. He requires the experience of skilled pilots, negotiations with air traffic controllers and military precision during his shoots as things can go wrong when you are high in the sky.

As well as Australia's big citiy panoramas, he also has Falls Creek and more recently one of the Grand Canyon.

These aerials look amazing, and the saying goes that a picture tells a thousand words, so just imagine how you could get to know these cities from above!

Read more.

Train-Plane the Future of Air Travel?

When you think of future air travel, does it involve a train that can fly? And if this dream could be made a reality, would it even be a feasible option?

Apparently so.



EPFL Techincal University in Lausanne has created a model for a new type of flying device called 'Clip-Air.' The model produced shows a single flying wing that can be clipped onto interchangeable 'capsules' such as train compartments.

The model, which has capacity to hold 3 capsules each carrying 150 passengers was recently shown off at the Paris Air Show by its Swiss inventors. This is the equivalent of three A320 planes but with half the engines.

As well as economical savings, the capsules could fit into airports of today and can be compatible with rail tracks, allowing planes to leave out of a city centre and integrate with industry.

The EPFL has stated that 'it is more than a new type of flying device, its innovative concept could revolutionise the airports of the future.'

Scientists are also looking for alternative sources of fuel to make it more efficient.

What are your thoughts? Do you think that Clip-Air would appeal to you?

To see footage of the design concept click here.

This article by Kathryn Cuddihy (David Lock Associates)

Private Companies' Private Spaces

Big tech companies often like their buildings and operations to form a closed circuit 'bubble' for their staff (some more literally than others), where staff have everything they need within the premises, which is separated from the outside world.  However, this idea is being criticized for its 'isolationist' bent and the effect such buildings have on the public realm, and on the city as a whole.

An article describes how architecture is used to encourage encounter within the building, but shuns interaction with what is outside.  It uses the computer parts manufacturer NVIDIAs new building in the USA as an example - though Apple is also criticized.

"The idea is to increase spontaneous run-ins between workers—but on the outside, the building turns away from its neighbors, shielded from the surrounding streetscape by a thin, faceted hillocks"

The article implies that this kind of architecture results in a poor outcome for the public realm, and isolates staff from the rest of the city.  

It's also not just building design that can affect the city (for better or worse).  For instance, some business provide private bus services to their staff - which is a good idea to get cars off the road.  However, interestingly, the article states that:

"A strict segregation between public and private transit is emerging. You have a private bus where you can get work done, and then you go to your private office park, and we see that it has a trickle down effect in the larger urban form. And that’s when it starts to be really problematic, and kind of undemocratic.”

"The interest of companies have always driven new growth. Except these days, companies aren't just constructing buildings—they're acting as designers, planners, and policy-makers of entire neighborhoods, too."

What do you think? Is the 'closed-circuit' nature of big tech hubs an essential enabler of innovation? To what extent do you think they are they 'undemocratic intrusions of public life'? 

Thanks to Rupert Dance for sending me this link. Read more at Gizmodo.

Textizen Your Thoughts

Textizen promotes itself as 'citizen feedback for the digital age'. Basically, textizen is a platform that uses posters and other forms of media to ask questions to people, who can then answer via SMS.  It is designed to 'open civic dialogue to new participants with a powerful mix of offline outreach and online engagement.'

I think this could be really useful on (and waiting for) public transport to ask questions about planning - wouldn't you be much more likely to contribute to the dialogue if it were quick, easy and convenient to do so?  People on trains almost ubiquitously have their phones out - so may as well put them to use! Provided the data is appropriately analysed and taken into consideration, this could provide another way to increase consultation and communication between policy makers and the community.

Read more here.