Unless you’ve been living in a remote land, or maybe under a rock, you’ve heard about the tiny house movement. It’s all about downsizing, reducing the carbon footprint, simplifying life, and essentially living better, so they say, with less. But tiny houses aren’t really new at all. They’ve just switched to a new marketing plan…
Net-zero building design is supposed to be the modern pinnacle of ecologically sound, sustainable living and the pathway to dramatically reduced carbon emissions and waste. So why isn’t everyone excited about it? It’s already been exhibited as realistic. The U.S. Department of Energy hosts its Race to Zero college student design competition each year, and…
A first-person video game designed for civil engineers? Why didn’t someone think of this before? Whether or not you’re a big gamer, the release of INFRA is kind of a big deal. Developed by Finnish independent game company, Loiste Interactive, and available now on Steam, INFRA takes you through a non-violent adventure to solve civil…
They almost sound like distant, and better faring, cousins of the famous corpse plant, but resurrection plants have an entirely different purpose. They don’t bloom once and then wither away. Instead, they have an incredibly high drought tolerance, which could mean a more sustainable food source for the world’s growing population. That’s critical in the…
Because engineering isn’t just one discipline, but many, there’s no individual way to approach continuing education or C.E. units for engineers. More formally known as professional development hours, this regular, mid-career training bridges the educational gaps that appear with each advance in the respective industries. It also helps your education stay fresh so that you…
If you’ve ever wanted to own a piece of authentic Frank Lloyd Wright history, now’s your chance. At least if you’ve got a healthy bank account. His last documented design, the Norman Lykes Home, is up for sale in Phoenix for a cool $3.6 million. This home showcases the organic nature of the architect’s late-career…
When is a smaller house not really small, perhaps not really large, but built exactly right? In a “Not so Big” house. Downsizing gets a lot of attention these days, and the tiny house movement has really taken off. But tiny homes just won’t work for a lot families. There has to be a middle…
Most architects have at least one foot in the ring for community responsibility. But those who go all out and take on pro bono work might find a more rewarding career with a wider range of experiences, even when the meanwhile doesn’t pay much, if at all. Architecture is already tasked with the greater good.…
All engineers have a dream of designing and developing something. That’s so much a part of being an engineer that it’s practically ingrained, and it’s bound to happen at least a few times through the span of a career. But until you’ve been there, really part of a design team that’s trying to bring an…
What if solar energy wasn’t just available, but consistently available on-demand? Researchers at MIT might have found the solution to a longstanding problem, at least as it applies to on-demand heat. This isn’t a development for turning solar into electricity. It’s for using the warmth of the sun anytime, and without the need for a…
