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Stories filed under: "skyscrapers"

DailyDirt: Really Tall Buildings in China

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Although China has been historically known for building lengthy walls that last for centuries, the country is now constructing skyscrapers at an incredible pace. It might seem logical that a country with a huge population would need to start building vertically, instead of horizontally, but these huge buildings have some unimpressive occupancy rates so far. Here are just a few interesting links on big buildings in mainland China.

• A 74-story building in China isn’t finished yet, but the locals are already complaining that the huge archway looks unflatteringly like a pair of giant pants. The British-designed skyscraper was supposed to be the largest gate-shaped structure — representing a “Gate to the East”, but Chinese bloggers have nicknamed the building “Giant Underpants” instead of “Arc de Triomphe of the East”. [url]
• Buildings more than 152 meters tall can be considered skyscrapers, and four of the ten tallest buildings are located in China. There are now hundreds of skyscrapers in China, outnumbering those in the US, but there are concerns about how sustainable these towers will be with low occupancy rates and questionable safety and building management. [url]
• The Sky City project is expected to be complete in January 2013, taking the title for the world’s tallest building away from the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. The more impressive feat, however, is that this building will be fully constructed in just a few months. [url]

If you’d like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post.

Filed Under: buildings, burj khalifa, china, sky city, skyscrapers

DailyDirt: More Tall Buildings

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

The prestige of owning huge construction projects has existed for a long time. The Great Wall, the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge… However, modern architecture doesn’t seem quite as remarkable (since there’s no big secret to how the work is done). Still, the race for creating the tallest building in the world is on-going. Here are a few quick links about building the next enormous skyscrapers.

• The age of skyscrapers is not over — not by a long shot. Architects are simply revising their standards to make taller buildings that are safer and stronger by design. [url]
• The plans to build a 1.6≥1.0-kilometer-high tower in the city of Jeddah are going ahead. The project was first announced in February 2008, and at almost a mile high, it should be the tallest building in the world when it’s completed. [url]
• The annual Skyscraper Competition from eVolo named some winners for 2011. The first place winner is a giant turbine that could help clean up polluted air above New Delhi. [url]
• If you’re looking for more architecture projects, check out what’s currently floating around the StumbleUpon universe. [url] ?

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Filed Under: architecture, skyscrapers, tallest
Companies: evolo