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A view of the Map Ta Phut industrial estate is seen in Rayong province, eastern Thailand February 17, 2010.
Credit: Reuters/Sukree Sukplang

BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand's Central Administrative Court said on Wednesday it would allow seven companies on the Map Ta Phut industrial estate to restart construction work suspended due to an environmental row.

Among the seven are [...]

A construction crew works on a white roof in Washington, D.C. (Credit: Copyright American Geophysical Union, photo by Maria-José Viñas)

ScienceDaily (Feb. 2, 2010) — Painting the roofs of buildings white has the potential to significantly cool cities and mitigate some impacts of global warming, a new study indicates. The new NCAR-led research suggests there may [...]

Heat-resistant adhesive in construction. (Credit: Image courtesy of Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft)

ScienceDaily (Jan. 19, 2010) — The "Parasols" in Seville feature components that are designed to be glued instead of bolted together. To prevent the adhesive from melting, it needs to withstand temperatures of up to 60 degrees. Researchers have now optimized the adhesive's resistance to high temperatures.

The [...]

Shipping containers. (Credit: iStockphoto/Claude Beaubien)

ScienceDaily (Jan. 17, 2010) — Resources to solve the housing crisis in Haiti may already be on hand. Some Clemson University researchers have been experimenting with ways to convert shipping containers into emergency housing in the hurricane-prone Caribbean, where a surplus of the sturdy boxes often sits in port yards.

Pernille Christensen, [...]

Porticos are roof-covered structures supported by columns. (Credit: iStockphoto/Nils Kahle)

ScienceDaily (Jan. 14, 2010) — Using texts and images, a University of Arkansas researcher has for the first time reconstructed the time when the use of porticos — roof-covered structures supported by columns — gave way to loggias, or recessed porticos.

In an article in the Journal [...]

BLIZZARD-bound motorists won't have to wait for a salting truck or snow plough to clear the way if a "self-heating" road takes off.

Hoping for an ice-free future (Image: Kent Knudson/PhotoLink/Getty)
While salting disperses ice and snow, the salty run-off corrodes the steel rods that reinforce roads and bridge decks, and also damages vehicles. With the [...]

BaleHaus at Bath is constructed from straw bale prefabricated panels and has a very low carbon footprint. (Credit: Image by Modcell — www.modcell.co.uk)

ScienceDaily (Nov. 23, 2009) — BaleHaus@Bath — built of pre-fabricated straw-bale and hemp panels — has fire resistance as good as houses built of conventional building materials according to new research.

Researchers at the [...]

Growing crops in city skyscrapers would use less water and fossil fuel than outdoor farming, eliminate agricultural runoff and provide fresh food

Kenn Brown Mondolithic Studios
Key Concepts

Farming is ruining the environment, and not enough arable land remains to feed a projected 9.5 billion people by 2050.
Growing food in glass high-rises could drastically reduce fossil-fuel emissions and [...]

ScienceDaily (Nov. 4, 2009) — Scientists have developed a new building material that is fire resistant to temperatures in excess of 1100 degrees Celsius, is made largely from recycled material and is as versatile as concrete.

Liquid Granite offers a real breakthrough in reducing fire risk in buildings as, unlike concrete, it doesn’t explode at high [...]

This shows a conceptual design for the Cannon Beach City Hall, a Tsunami Evacuation Building (Ecola Architects, 2008). (Credit: Photo courtesy of Yumei Wang, Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries.)

ScienceDaily (Oct. 28, 2009) — Some time soon, a powerful earthquake will trigger a massive tsunami that will flood the Pacific Northwest, destroying homes and [...]