Taiwan Tower

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Originally conceptualized by Romanian architect Stefan Dorin, the tower will be the tallest building in Taichung, Taiwan. At its base, the tower will include a museum, restaurant, offices and a conference center, while the pods—filled with helium and powered by propellers—will glide up and down the tower, tethered to tracks, carrying 50 to 80 people that will be able to enjoy a panoramic view of the island and the sea. Like a Ferris wheel from space, in vertical format.

According to the designers, the floating observatories are inspired by video games. To me, the whole thing seems to belong inside EVE Online. The design will be the base for the real project, which is scheduled to begin in 2012.

 

World’s tallest tent

The world’s tallest tent at 490 feet (150 meters). They are building it in the capital of Kazakhstan, and it will include a leisure park, shops, restaurants and an artificial beach.

The House With the Garden Walls

The Maximum Garden House doesn’t have a lot of garden. In fact, it doesn’t have any garden at all because the building takes over the entire property plot. That’s why the architects moved the garden to the walls and roof.

Energy-Generating Waterfall

Eco Factor: Self-sustaining tower designed for Olympic Games 2016.

RAFAA Architecture & Design has proposed a self-sustaining tower for the 2016 Olympic Games to be held in Rio de Janeiro. Dubbed Solar City Tower, the architecture will help Rio start a global green movement for sustainable development of urban structures.

The project features a solar power plant that by day produces energy for the city and the Olympic village. Excessive solar energy produced during the day will be used to pump seawater into a tower. After the sun sets, this water will be released and energy will be generated with the help of turbines.

During night the renewable energy produced by the tower can be used for lighting systems on the towers or to power the city. On special occasions, this tower can also turn into a spectacular urban waterfall, symbolizing the forces of nature.

The tower’s entrance area and the amphitheater can serve as a place for social gatherings and events. The cafeteria and other shops will be situated beneath the waterfall and offer a breathtaking view. The urban balcony, which is situated at the top of the 105m-tall tower, will provide visitors with a 360-degree view of the landscape.

Defunct Ferris Wheel Envisioned as Giant Energy-Generating Windmill

Last year Melbourne’s iconic Southern Star Observation Wheel found a sad turn when it had to be shut down due to cracks and buckling caused by the intense summer heat. The $100 million wheel has since been decommissioned, but that hasn’t stopped designers from thinking about what to do next with the landmark. So why reinvent the wheel you ask? Because it could be transformed into an energy-generating windmill outfitted with solar sails!

Buro North, together with photographer Peter Bennetts and Fooch from Squint Opera, came up with a mind-bending way to re-adapt the wheel. They’ve transformed the simple observation deck into a futuristic windmill powered by solar-sail energy, complete with numerous, well-landscaped hubs for a new fleet of flying steam-powered trams. The base also features quite the garden, bringing nature back to the people with free roaming super flamingoes convening near street performers.

While this fantastical endeavor probably won’t be feasible anytime soon – we imagine flying trams are still some years away – the concept itself brings up key issues such as how to efficiently adapt, and re-function outdated infrastructure.

+ Buro North

Glass Concept Home by Santambrogiomilano

The new line by Santambrogiomilano is called Simplicity. It is a collaboration between founder Carlo Santambrogio and designer Ennio Arosio featuring a series of iconic furniture pieces, beds, sofas and bookcases, along with architectural elements such as staircases and kitchens. They are all fashioned from ‘extraclear’ glass.

The release of this line coincides with the launch of their new showroom in the UK. They are currently seeking a permanent location for this incredible concept home.

Camenzind Evolution’s office building in Swiss

Cocoon is located on a beautiful hillside, which enjoys excellent lake and mountain views. The location’s distinctive flair stems from the exceptional park-like setting; a green oasis into which Cocoon as a freestanding sculptural volume snugly nestles. The stainless steel mesh enveloping the building combines visual privacy with restrained elegance, while establishing a strong and unmistakable presence and adds a note of subtlety and sophistication to the overall composition. The bold stand-alone building embodies an innovative conception of interior spatial organisation and interaction with the surrounding environment. With its spiral massing, Cocoon may be conceived as a sort of ‘communication landscape’. The space-planning concept dispenses with the traditional division into horizontal storeys. By eliminating the usual barriers to communication, this generates a unique spatial experience and working environment that unlocks a host of intriguing possibilities for interaction and co-operation. A light-flooded, upwardly widening atrium forms the centrepiece of Cocoon. Around this, the circulation and communication ramp winds its way upwards in gently curving contours, to provide a fluid link between all the internal spaces. Internally, as the ellipses expand with each turn of the spiral, the skylight void opens up in a stunning spectacle.

Google’s Swiss Headquarters

Google’s philosophy that work and play are not mutually exclusive is definitely shown off in form of game rooms and themed.

Klein Bottle House

the klein bottle house by mcbride charles ryan, have won the award for world’s best home
at this year’s world architecture festival awards. located in australia’s mornington peninsula,
the holiday home features a living room perched on a canopy of trees, and celebrates
the country’s traditional beach houses, while still functioning as a practical and useful
home.

The Frame Hotel, Dubai

The Frame Hotel, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
With the walls constructed of dark, solar protected glass, the abundant plant life of this Villamoda Galleries design is clearly visible at the right angles and the neatly kept vertical gardens appear as if they’re part of the hotel’s very structure and are a stunning blend of nature and architecture.

Facebook Headquarters by Studio O+A

San Fransisco designers Studio O+A have completed the headquarters for social networking website Facebook in Palo Alto, California.

Located in a former laboratory constructed in the 1960’s, the building houses over 700 employees.

The designers re-used many of the former lab benches and equipment for the new offices.

The design uses colour-coding to differentiate between teams within the open-plan space.

Some walls are left unfinished so that employees can add writing and artwork to them.

The Facebook website itself was used to consult employees about the new design and to keep them up to date about it’s development.

Here’s some more information from Studio O+A:

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Facebook Headquarters
Palo Alto, California

Employees of Facebook recently moved to a new headquarters that facilitates interaction and connection, reflecting the company’s mission as a social networking website provider.

Formerly a laboratory facility for high-tech manufacturer Agilent Technologies, the 150,000-square-foot structure at Palo Alto’s Stanford Research Park brings together more than 700 employees originally scattered throughout 10 locations in and around downtown Palo Alto.

The design of the space relied heavily on input from the users, appropriate for a flatly structured company that weights every employee’s opinion equally. O+A designers interviewed employees about what they wanted from their new headquarters.

The Facebook platform was used to conduct company-wide polls about design decisions, post construction photos and updates, and keep everyone informed of the thought process behind the project.

An advisory board of employees from every department collaborated with the design team on the design process, from space planning to finishes to final move coordination.

Because the new facility houses employees coming from various locations, the company wanted to maintain each division’s distinct identity. The design takes its inspiration from the patchwork nature of Facebook users and employees, bringing together seemingly disparate elements to form a cohesive pattern and using color and interior spacing to create neighborhoods within the open plan space.

The company’s executives sit in central areas, accessible to all employees. Large lounges and open spaces provide venues for the community to come together.

A kitchen and café continue Facebook’s tradition of providing gourmet meals to staff at all hours, while drinks and snacks are available at micro-kitchens throughout the headquarters.

Reflecting employees’ desire for a green headquarters, the facility is the first commercial project completed under Palo Alto’s 2008 Green Building Ordinance, making extensive use of existing architectural features, recycling millwork from the original lab, and repurposing industrial components for post-industrial use.

Other sustainable features include high recycled-content carpet and energy-efficient lighting.

The design goal for the new facility was to maintain the history and raw aesthetic of the building and create a fun dynamic appropriate for the company’s youthful staff.

Many walls and spaces are left unfinished: employees are encouraged to write on the walls, add artwork, and move furniture as needed, allowing the building to evolve continuously.

A bright orange industrial crane, left over from the building’s previous user, was repurposed by San Francisco sculptor Oliver DiCicco to support a table surface from its heavyweight hoist, offering maximum maneuverability. Referencing the industrial aesthetic of the building, a felt canopy spreads up one wall and onto the ceiling, defining a central meeting area that can double as an impromptu auditorium.

Mounted on threaded rods of varying length to achieve an undulating effect, the canopy absorbs sound and is penetrated at intervals by overhead lighting. An outdoor basketball court and indoor ping-pong table offer opportunities for recreation. And it is not unusual to see employees zipping along the concrete floors on two-wheeled skateboards.

Click for larger image

Designers: Studio O+A

Studio O+A is a San Francisco interior design firm serving companies nationwide. Founded by Primo Orpilla and Verda Alexander during the dot-com boom of the early 1990s, the studio began with a mission to bring sophisticated SOMA design to Silicon Valley start-ups and the venture firms who supported them.

Click for larger image

That start-up mentality is still a key feature of the Studio O+A aesthetic, but through the years, the firm’s mission has broadened to include a range of services for a client base that includes such major American corporations as eBay, Levi Strauss, and Williams Sonoma. Earlier this year, Studio O+A was recognized by the International Interior Design Association with an award for its remodel of the San Jose hairstylist W’s Salon.

SF Bay Area Architects Seek to Re-purpose Bay Bridge as Park, Apartments

“Imagine housing, recreational and cultural facilities connected to a continuous, lushly planted, green strip, floating above the water-an aerial garden, as the city’s newest park through which you could walk and wander and enjoy the most spectacular views of the bay,” reads an excerpt from the proposal by architects Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello.

Colossal Green Volcano Building Rises in Italy

Designed by Renzo Piano, Vulcano Buono is an epic cone-shaped commercial center crowned with a gorgeous sloping green roof. Piano’s “good volcano” contributes a vital new space to the southern edge of the Nola commercial district, which is the most most important freight terminal complex in southern and central Italy.

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Inspired by the surrounding landscape, Vulcano Buono has a gently sloping profile that rises from the earth as a grassy green knoll. The structure’s roof is carpeted with a vegetative layer of over 2,500 plants that helps to insulate the interior spaces and reduces the structure’s visual impact so that it’s barely visible from space. Renzo Piano clearly has a penchant for grassy hills – see also the undulating green roof that tops the California Academy of Sciences.A 150 meter-wide clearing in the volcano’s crater lends space for an outdoor theater, a market, and a sloping pine forest. Rising around this heart is a concentric series of circles that form the center’s commercial areas. The volcano’s slopes are held by structural components meant to evoke trees – each “trunk” sprouts three or four supporting “branches”.

The roof of Vulcano Buono is laced with a series of skylights fitted with solar-control double-pane glass that allows daylight to filter through the mall, reducing energy needs from lighting. The interior of the complex houses shops, a supermarket, a 2,000 seat cinema, restaurants, and a hotel. Renzo Piano describes the building as “a contemporary take on a greek marketplace, a void as a place for events, meetings, dialogue and the gathering of people”.

Perforated House Questions Architectural Symbolism

Quirky and full of unexpected design choices, this Australian residence by Kavellaris Urban Design, asserts that holding onto old architectural aesthetics can be both silly and unsustainable. The Perforated House’s high-tech, translucent exterior is etched with ornamental details to pose commentary on contemporary homes that adhere strongly to traditional architectural typologies — the terrace home, in this particular case. Observing that the dated aesthetic has “a stronger link with romanticized nostalgia rather than good design,” the architects set out to re-work the traditional terrace home, creating this case study house with an ironic and more eco-friendly new aesthetic for building.

The architects mention on their website that the terrace house’s layout and front-facade focus fail to give attention to solar orientation or passive ventilation. So to begin their investigation, the architects relocated the public and private spaces of the home. With the bedrooms downstairs and the public living areas upstairs, the top floor can open up completely without compromising any privacy.

Upper-level bi-fold doors allow the home to transition from public to private, space to void — and then back. Transitioning between different facades, the architects said, “By day, the building is heavy and reflective but by night inverts to a soft, translucent, permeable light box.” To further transform the home, the architects incorporated movable walls throughout the interior of the home, allowing the residents to open or enclose spaces as they please.

As the architects were frustrated by the un-sustainability of the traditional terrace house, they were sure to take advantage of eco-friendly techniques. These include: exterior bi-fold doors that provide the benefits of cross ventilation, a tiny lot at 5.5 meters x 14.4 meters (or approximately 18 feet x 47 feet for us Americans) and the use of solar hot water.

And if you love it — you’ll be happy to know that the house is up for sale!

+ Kavellaris Urban Design

New Orleans Arcology Habitat (NOAH)

Rebuilding New Orleans is an ongoing effort and pitching into the concept-zone is the New Orleans Arcology Habitat or NOAH. Since the details on this structure are in-depth and plenty, lets plunge into them right away. NOAH proposes to be a habitat for 40,000 residents who can benefit from the planned residential units, school system, commercial, retail, hotels, casinos, parking, and public works facilities.

NOAH is based upon the following preliminary program outline.

1. Residential Units / Rental and Condominium; 20,000 units @ average 1100 Sq ft
2. Three Hotels; Average 200 rooms plus associated services
3. Time Share Units; 1500 units @ average 1100 sq ft
4. Three Casino Facilities
5. Commercial Space / Rental and Condominiums; 500,000 sq ft
6. Commercial Space / Retail; 500,000 sq ft
7. Parking Garage / within foundation; 8,000 cars
8. Cultural Facilities; 100,000 sq ft
9. Public Works; 50,000 sq ft / includes storage
10. District School System; 100,000 sq ft
11. District Administrative Office; 50,000 sq ft
12. District Health Care Facility; 20,000 sq ft

Estimated Total Square Footage : 30 million

Location/ Site Specific:

In reviewing all the options and possible sites for NOAH, the most logical location is on the Mississippi riverfront and adjacent to the Central Business District.

Design Challenge:

1. The first challenge is to overcome both the physical and psychological damages of recurring severe weather patterns. Though re-population has begun, the need to provide a stabilized and safe environment is paramount to a long term recovery and economic well being of New Orleans.
2. The second challenge is that New Orleans has too much water. The city has been built at and below sea levels which creates consistently high water table and makes it prone to flooding and storm surges.
3. The third challenge is that New Orleans is built on soil condition which consists of thousands of feet of soft soil, silt and clay. These conditions make building large scale concentrated structures difficult.
Believing that NOAH is a viable plan, our solution to overcome these challenges is to take advantage of these seemingly conflicting issues with the introduction of a floating urban platform.

Foundation Design / Basin

The NOAH foundation system is twofold. The first part of the system is to create a water filled “basin” within which the urban platform (NOAH) will float.

The second part of the system is to create a multi-cavity “hull” which will be the actual foundation for the superstructure.

Basin/Foundation:

The water basin will be a combination of carving into the existing land and extending out into the Mississippi River.
This man made basin is estimated to be 1,200 feet in diameter with a depth of 250 feet.
The walls and floor of the basin would be constructed of high strength concrete with applied lateral bracing and exterior attached tension rings.
Backup intact valves will allow basin and river water levels to remain constant.

The Foundation:

Noah, at its current height of 1,200 feet will rest up its triangulated foundation constituted
to be a buoyant multi-cavity “hull.” This “hull” will consist of high strength concrete cells, forming approximately a 40×40 matrix. This matrix not only gives buoyancy to the structure, it also becomes the framing matrix for the steel framed superstructure. It is estimated that the combined weight of NOAH will draft 180 feet within the water-filled basin, allowing a minimum 50 foot space between the floor of the basin and the floor of the buoyant foundation.

The hull will accept all land connectors as flexible conveyors to take into account any movement.
A triangulate shape has been chosen as the basis for NOAH. For two reasons:

First, the triangle is inherently the most rigid of all structural framing systems. The system is designed to dissipate gravity and severe wind loads through an all-steel applied (eko skeleton) exterior frame and conventional internal framing methodology.

Second, the triangle is an “open” frame configuration, dividing NOAH into three separate “towers” converging at the top. The intent of this open system is to allow all severe weather /winds to in effect “blow through” the structure in any direction with the minimum of massing interference.

Some Other Features:

1. Sky Gardens will be inserted into the three main towers every 30 floors. These sky gardens provide landscaped glass enclosed atria.
2. Vertical commuting within NOAH will be supported by a series of local and express custom canted elevators.
3. NOAH is geared to an all pedestrian environment. Accordingly, only select horizontally based areas will be fitted with moving walkways and/or electric train carriers.
NOAH is a three phase master plan with a proposed 10 year build out. This time frame can be reduced to an estimated 6 years should demand accelerate.

Eco-Highlights:
The structure is designed to expand the horizon of sustainability and will seek LEED certification.
It will eliminate the need for cars within the urban structure, and thus becomes a carbon neutral entity. Internal electric transport links, vertical and horizontal, create a pedestrian-friendly community,
Some of these elements are secured wind turbines, fresh water recovery and storage systems, passive glazing system, sky garden heating/cooling vents, grey water treatment, solar array banding panels, and river based water turbines.

One-of-a-kind home in Glen Park, San Francisco

Designed by architects Jim Zack and Lise de Vito, partners in life and work, as their family home, it is striking on many levels, and although not even 2 years old, it has won prestigious architectural and building awards.

From the moment ground was broken for the home in 2007, it caught the attention of the design world.

The Chronicle reported on its use of panel construction, as the city’s first factory-made wood-panel home. This method, used by Forma Home Systems, saved the owners money and time – it took six weeks rather than the usual 14 to erect – and minimized the amount of on-site waste.

Perched atop a hill with panoramic views of the city, Laidley Street has more than its share of architecturally interesting homes. But with its boxy light gray facade, a huge square protruding bay window, and the punch of its vibrant, chartreuse front door, this one stands out.

Step inside and the first impression is of an abundance of light and the staggering views through expanses of glass on each story of the house. The core of the home features a three-story translucent staircase crafted from opaque acrylic and steel. A big skylight floods light down the well through to the basement level.

The open-plan kitchen and living area take up the lion’s share of second floor. The bay window that projects over the street doubles as a generous sitting cubby. The kitchen is a blend of stainless steel and custom-made wood cabinetry. Adjoining the kitchen is a flexible space that could easily become guest quarters, as it has a sliding partition and a full bathroom.

Throughout the house, ceilings are as tall as 13 feet – including on the lower levels, which accommodate a master suite, two other bedrooms and a laundry room.

Zack and de Vito, who set out to create a “really modern house,” point to the exposed steel beams as an example of how they like to spotlight a building’s anatomy. “We aimed to create something very open and simple where there was a visual connection between rooms and everything was rationally organized,” said de Vito, who masterminded much of the design work.

Both the home’s steep site and the decision to use a modular building system restricted what Zack and de Vito could do in terms of its architecture. But they found some creative solutions. The cut-out section at the back of the house, for instance, allows their next-door neighbor to have an unobstructed view and, they say, makes for a more interesting interior layout.

Along with its eco-sensitive construction, the home’s other sustainable features include a photovoltaic electrical system, solar-assist hot water panels for the radiant heating system and a flat garden landscaped with drought-tolerant plants.

Soon after it was completed, the home was featured on the 2008 San Francisco American Institute of Architects Home Tour. It also won a San Francisco AIA Design Award. The jury praised the couple’s house for its efficient use of a narrow lot, the “nice use of light,” and its many environmentally friendly features.

And Custom Home Magazine gave the home its 2009 Grand Award in the 3,000- to 5,000-square-foot category, citing its sophisticated design, cutting-edge construction techniques and sustainable approach.

The owners, who are selling out of financial necessity, have loved living in the home and are full of praise for the neighborhood, which borders Noe Valley and is sometimes referred to as Fairmont Heights.

Zack said it is both friendly and convenient. “It’s very peaceful and we know all our neighbors,” he said. “We’re three minutes from the freeway, 10 minutes from BART and five minutes from the J-Church line, and there are parks close by.”

In fact, having lived in the same area with their young family for many years, they have every intention of staying close by when they move.

Address: 147 Laidley St., San Francisco 94131

Details: Three-plus bedrooms, three bathrooms, 3,291 square feet, garage

Price: US $3,350,000

Web site: www.147laidley.com

Maserati, Architectural Digest celebrate best real & concept garages

In a contest Maserati held with Architectural Digest, the home of the trident went looking for the best homes for those cars — not the actual houses, but the garages that house their creations. Entries came in two categories, Existing and Concept, and were judged on “noted architectural element, uniqueness and individuality.”

The winning existing garage could barely be considered a garage — more like a living room where you park your car. The winning concept garage has three turntables that can place cars in three different positions depending on whether you’re coming, showing off, or going. You can read the press release after jump and check out the stunning high-res images of the winners’ designs below.

BMW’s Energy-Efficient Production Plant

In a perfect world we’d all be getting back to our zero energy, prefabricated homes by foot, bike or public transport, but on a planet where cars won’t be disappearing anytime soon, it’s nice to know that some car companies are trying to reduce their carbon footprint when producing new vehicles. In 2003 BMW set out a design competition for a new building and distribution center located in Munich, Germany. The results were more than grand; not only is the new BMW Welt aesthetically pleasing with its sinuous curves and gleaming façade, but it was also consciously designed to save energy in its production of cars through efficient solar heating and natural ventilation systems.

The BMW Welt was designed by architects Coop Himmelb[l]au in five thematic blocks: Hall, Premiere, Forum, Tower, and Double Cone, where areas have been reserved for car production, exhibition space, restaurants, shops, and even a business center. Coop Himmelb[l]au, not unfamiliar with designing large and complex spaces, developed a totally integrated and ecologically friendly air system combining both low and high tech methods to create optimal air circulation.

The multifunctional Hall, which sits as the centre point of the complex, was designed as a solar-heated, naturally ventilated sub-climatic area, removing the normal requirements for building heating and ventilation. Instead, a natural air supply is generated by thermal currents, wind pressure and turbulences when air accumulates in the area of the façade and roof projection. Air intake and outflow take place through automatically controlled and strategically placed vents providing the Hall with all its air needs.

The system proves to be especially beneficial to the Premiere section where BMW Welt produces its cars, and which directly opens up to the Hall. Because of the intensive exhaust gases that are released during the delivery process, and the subsequent energy heavy regulation typically required for air cleanup, the system was further fine-tuned to adjust the volume of air intake and outflow and to extract the exhaust fumes directly and pump in fresh air. A considerable feat given that BMW assumes a turnover of about 40 cars per hour, for a total of 250 cars per day.

On top of all this, the Forum, Tower and Double Cone are definitively public spaces, and have specially incorporated air systems to meet the comfort needs of their occupants while utilizing natural ventilation when possible.

1028 Natoma Street / Stanley Saitowitz | Natoma Architects

Architects: Stanley Saitowitz | Natoma Architects
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA
Project year: 2004-2005
Photographs: Natoma Architects

This project, on a twenty-five-by-eighty-foot lot next to 1022 Natoma Street, continues the investigation of San Francisco infill buildings. At the street level are parking and entrance lobby; above are four stacked units. One thickened party wall provides vertical access and a light court. The other acts as a service zone, condensing kitchens, bathrooms, laundry, and storage behind sliding glass doors.

Floating walls divide the free space in the center, which is finished with a variety of materials all in different shades of white. The front facade has a bay-window silhouette constructed of horizontal aluminum bar grating, which provides both shading for the southern exposure and a veil shielding the city beyond. The surfaces behind the bay are sheathed in perforated metal.

via archdaily

Futuristic Pyramid House

This house might look like it’s straight out of the future, but it’s actually based on the oldest house design in Japan: the pit dwelling.

Pit dwellings were built by placing a steep thatched roof over a hole dug in the ground. That’s just what architect Makoto Tanijiri did for a family in Saljo, Japan.

As you can see, what appears to be a solid pyramid sticking out of the ground from the street actually sits on a room with windows on all sides.

Swarovski Sparkling Lake of Shimmer

Three stories tall standing aside the Swarovski swan on gray, this lake of mirrors makes up the majority of the temporary Baselworld face of the luxury lead crystal glass company. Take a look at the video included in this post for mirrors in action.

“Lake of Shimmer” – Swarovski stand at Baselworld 2009
Concept Design: Tokujin Yoshioka
Construction: Expomobilia

Beautiful Ceiling

Check out the collection @ [Deputy Dog]

First Spaceport Ever Begins Construction on June.19.2009

This newly-released image shows the sun rising over Spaceport America. It hasn’t been built yet, but construction starts this Friday. It will be the beginning of the real future, the stuff dreams are made of.

Spaceport America will be the first spaceport in history, and it will host commercial operations by private space travel companies, like Virgin Galactic.

Capsule office

Ever wonder what kind of office a cutting-edge architect actually works in? If you’re employed at the Selgas Cano architectural firm near Madrid, it looks something like this. One edge of this long, tubular office is made entirely of glass, simultaneously helping workers feel closer to nature and a bit like they’re slaving away in a hermetically sealed research station on a faraway dystopian planet. A unique experience, to be sure.

Check out Iwan Baan‘s full gallery here.

Student proposes bacterially-grown wall across Saraha.

To combat the Sahara Desert’s ongoing growth, student Magnus Larsson has proposed a 6,000km wall that will be—wait for it—constructed by letting a bacterium have its way with the sand, forming sandstone.

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