Architect: Manfredi Nicoletti and Luca Nicoletti

This auditorium - one of the largest in the world - was awarded to Studio Nicoletti.Founded in the heart of the steppes only four years after the Independence of the Country, Astana is now a decade old new capital of Kazakhstan.

Founded in the heart of the steppes only four years after the Independence of the Country, Astana is now a decade old new capital of Kazakhstan. Astana's central nucleus occupies a rectangular area whose organizational axis is based upon a system of three piazzas. In the largest of these, dominated by the Presidential Palace, the State Auditorium faces the Senate House. The vastness of the location conjures up an impression of the immensity of the territory. Flying over the arid vastness of the steppes, we felt that what is really missing were flowers.We decided to build the "Flower of the Steppe".

Amidst this monumental void, the structures of the Auditorium rise like the petals of a flower animated through music. They create an envelope which encloses an internal piazza housing shops, balconies, restaurants, exhibition halls, two cinemas and the 3500 seats Auditorium entirely clad in wood inside and outside. Its shape is similar to a "Dombra" the typical Kazak instrument. Such internal multi-levelled piazza integrates with Astana's system of public squares, while providing a space protected from the harsh local climate: a temperature range from -40 to +40 and salty winds. The Auditorium interior space is also reflecting its suspended wood panelled ceiling like following a "whirling" motion, form a cavity above the orchestra to regulate acoustic absorption. To resist against the eroding effect of the salty winds coming from the steppe, the slanted surfaces of the outdoor sails are clad with glass panels reflecting the overchanging environment.

The Taiwan Center for Disease Control’s BioLab conceals a dangerous riddle within its outer skin. Usually only visible to the naked eye, the structure of the outer skin is laced with geometric patterns that represent the four symbols of the DNA sequence of the dangerous bacteria being studied within. If you’re not in awe of the structure itself, you may catch on to the message that Taiwan is trying to deliver: “Epidemic prevention is a war that we intend to win”.

The Biolab Squadron consists of labs sealed within two similar elements evoking Nautilus shells.The two shells, forming the Biolab Squadron, are a metaphoric example of the highest formal and technological sophistication of the most advanced laboratories conceived and the extremely harmful pathogenic viruses of our planet which are studied within themselves

The Biolab Squadron outer skin pattern is made of interlacing geometric incisions reproducing the four conventional symbols attributed to the DNA sequence of the bacteria being studied. The result is a surface perfectly homogenous and uniform in its overall material, but mysteriously engraved by symbols illegible by most people.

The project was jointly tendered by Manfredi Nicoletti and ARCO Architects & Designers receiving an honourable mention from the jury. The winning design was by Ricky Liu & Associates with CUHZA Inc.

Watch Made From Moon Dust ?

Swiss watchmaker Romain Jerome has already shown the world that their creations need attention. The latest from the house is the “Moon Dust-DNA” collection, which includes watches made from moon dust, parts of the Apollo 11 rocket and bits of spacesuits.

"This gives value to the product and the brand. But the material must also be well known and it must be luxurious," Romain Jerome Chief Executive Yvan Arpa said in an interview at the group's headquarters. The watches, which start at $US15,000 and can cost as much as $US500,000, will be launched in Geneva on Wednesday and presented to customers at next year's Baselworld, the largest annual fair for the watch and jewelry industry.

The watches' dials, which feature tiny craters, will have dust in them from the moon rock that was taken from the first visit to the Earth's satellite.

Steel from the Apollo 11 space shuttle will be used for the case and the strap will be made up of fibers from a spacesuit worn during the ISS mission, Arpa said.

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Find More here : bornrich

Treehouse Restaurant

Living in a luxury treehouse certainly brings out the child in you again. Now, the New Zealand Yellow Pages are building a restaurant that is 10 meters up on a redwood tree. A dinner at this tree-restaurant will be a totally fascinating experience. Presently under construction on a site north of Auckland, the design of the restaurant is taken care of by Pacific Environments Architects. A 60m tree-top walkway helps you reach the restaurant. The restaurant has ample space for 18 seating people and staff and it comes complete with a bar. Kitchen facilities and toilets are at the ground level.

WORLD’S FIRST INTEGRATED GSM/WIMAX HANDSET

Scartel (brand Yota), Russian provider of Mobile WiMAX, and HTC Corporation, a global leader in mobile phone innovation and design, today announced the HTC MAX 4G, the world’s first integrated GSM/WiMAX handset. Supported by a broad range of services based on Yota’s Mobile WiMAX network, the HTC MAX 4G delivers a rich multimedia and high quality telephony experience in a sleek and powerful touch screen handset.

“Yota was established to provide a unique set of mobile communication services to millions of people in Russia and today we have launched the first device and services to realise its full potential,” said Denis Sverdlov, General Director of Yota’s parent company, Scartel LLC (brand Yota). “We really believe that these innovative services, high-speed Internet and stylish HTC MAX 4G will completely change the communications industry, just as the introduction of cellular communications did many years ago.”

The Yota Mobile WiMAX network offers high-speed wireless Internet access that opens a new realm of entertainment and communication possibilities. The basic Yota Home package will provide subscribers with instant access to online games, maps, messaging and file exchange applications while on the move. In addition, the high-capacity Mobile WiMAX network with traffic prioritisation algorithms, allows online films, video and TV programmes to be viewed on the large WVGA screen. Broadcasting 14 free channels at launch and 23 channels by the end of 2008, Yota TV introduces a powerful mobile television experience. The vibrant, 3.8 inch 800x480 screen of the HTC MAX 4G can display up to nine TV channels simultaneously, allowing quick and easy channel surfing and programme selection. Thanks to the device’s TV-out capability, users can also watch content on the big screen, putting the HTC MAX 4G at the very heart of the mobile entertainment experience.

For music-lovers, Yota Music offers an extensive online music catalogue of more than 50,000 titles, including a wide range of music from both international and independent music labels. Users can choose to either play the tracks direct from the online catalogue, or download them to the HTC MAX 4G’s 8GB of onboard flash memory.

Key HTC MAX 4G specifications:

• Processor: Qualcomm® ESM7206A™ 528 MHz
• Platform: Windows Mobile® 6.1 Professional
• Memory: ROM: 256MB / RAM: 288MB / Flash: 8 GB
• Dimensions: 113.5mm X 63.1mm X 13.9mm
• Weight: 151 grams (with battery)
• Display: 3.8-inch TFT-LCD flat touch-sensitive screen with 480 x 800 WVGA resolution
• Network:
• Tri-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE:900/1800/1900 MHz
• Yota Mobile WiMAX 2,5-2.7 GHz
• Device Control: TouchFLO™ 3D
• GPS: Inbuilt GPS
• Connections:
• VoIP
• Wi-Fi®: IEEE 802.11 b/g
• Bluetooth® 2.0 with EDR
• HTC ExtUSB™
• Main camera: High-resolution with autofocus
• Second: VGA-camera
• Additional:
• Motion G-sensor (automatically rotating picture)
• Proximity sensor (saving energy while talking due to the switching the display off)
• FM-radio
• Audio: Ring tone formats:
• AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR-NB, AMR-WB, QCP, MP3, WMA, WAV
• 40 polyphonic and standard MIDI format 0 and 1 (SMF)/SP MIDI
• Battery: Li-Pol, 1500 mAh
• GSM: up to 350 hours
• VoIP: up to 50 hours
• AC Adapter: Voltage range/frequency: 100 ~ 240V AC, 50/60 Hz
• DC output: 5V and 1A

Source : HTC

Video-Processing Technology Enabling World's First Wraparound View of Vehicles in Real Time

Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. announced today the development of a new video-processing technology that enables a complete wraparound view of a vehicle's perimeter in real time, to enhance the driver's field of view. The new driver assistance technology adapts to different driving situations, enabling the driver to peripherally view the entire surroundings of a vehicle, from the point of view and field of view that is most appropriate for each driving situation. The technology improves driving safety by assisting the driver in a variety of situations, such as parking, passing on a narrow street, and seeing around corners at intersections with poor sightlines.

Details of this new technology will be presented at the 15th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems & ITS America's 2008 Annual Meeting and Exposition, being held from November 16 to 20 in New York.

Fujitsu Laboratories developed the world's first video-processing technology that enables the supplement of a field of view that can show any perspective and any sightline on the vehicle's periphery, and which can instantaneously smoothly transition from one view to another.

Four cameras were installed around the vehicle's perimeter, and their video images of the vehicle's surroundings were synthesized by a "3-D virtual projection/point of view conversion technology" developed by Fujitsu Laboratories, comprised of the following: projection of the video images onto a virtual 3-D curved plane as a virtual 3-D video, and conversion of the the video images into views from any desired perspective of the vehicle's surroundings ("omni-view"). This technology enables drivers to easily check views from any direction or from any perspective desired, thereby alleviating the cognitive burden involved in recognizing the view that is being displayed. Additionally, when switching between different views as the driving situation changes, this new technology makes a smooth transition from one view to another by continuously interpolating points of view, fields of view, and sightlines. This helps to quickly orient the driver to the new view currently being shown, when the driver makes periphery checks.

Source : Fujitsu