What is Digg?190 Comments
- Henko, on 01/19/2008, -3/+102This is fantastic. If you watch the last 10 seconds or so of the video, they tell you of one more perk too - it's wind powered with fins between the floors to generate power. The electricity generated from one tower is enough to power ten towers. I like sustainable.
- Cwo655321, on 01/19/2008, -4/+98snipers don't chase, they snipe.
- BirdCatcher, on 01/19/2008, -4/+88If I was being chased by a sniper I would want to stay in this building... at least I would know he'd only have a clean shot 25% of the time.
- mrheyguy, on 01/19/2008, -5/+73Dubai needs more crazy buildings.
- inactive, on 01/19/2008, -4/+63Dugg for Blue Danube Waltz. At least one city on earth is trying to sell us the future.
- unearth, on 01/19/2008, -2/+56If a sniper is chasing you, you hunt his ass down Jason Bourne style.
- pimpofpixels, on 01/19/2008, -2/+55Questions about elevators and if it actually claimed to be a wind turbine confound me.
- unearth, on 01/19/2008, -0/+53The center of the building is stationary, so I'm guessing that all elevators / air conditioning / wiring / plumbing would have to run through that section.
Then, you just step on to the rotating funhouse floor from the elevator and walk to your grossly overpriced room. - holmcross, on 01/19/2008, -0/+51I've never seen the Combine Citadel lit up like that before.
- freak3295, on 01/19/2008, -3/+32travel sickness, anybody?
- Suits, on 01/19/2008, -3/+30This has been on the front page a couple of times. Still, wouldn't it be fun be the "Carny" who controls the speed of its rotation? I'd have that building doing barrel rolls nonstop.
- sporg, on 01/19/2008, -4/+30Now class go home and work out all the engineering problems this building faces. Extra credit for anyone who can get them all worked out within the next twenty years.
- TechCF, on 01/19/2008, -0/+17Exactly! You already know the answer. It couldn't possiblt move as fast as a carousel....
It will move slow.. This could be used to keep one room it the sun all day - lex0nyc, on 01/19/2008, -0/+17I doubt it would move at the speed it does in the video, everyone in the building would be airsick.
- inactive, on 01/19/2008, -1/+17go go gadget hotelicopter
- seantubridy, on 01/19/2008, -0/+14JENGA! Oh...crap.
- theragu40, on 01/19/2008, -1/+15Swing and a miss.
- illdourmum, on 01/19/2008, -2/+15Very cool... but when will they actually build it???
- arbouler, on 01/19/2008, -10/+22that kind of structure is very unfeasible and a waste. people who want to live in the building will probably experience nausea if the floors were to rotate that fast (if you think the video represents real life situation). even rotating restaurant diaphragms rotate about three times an hour. tourists will be excited by thinking "oh my we were at the same spot half an hour ago, and the building looks slightly different now, thats pretty cool. lets take pictures from the same spot and show them to people"
then, it looks like the core has to be pretty big and thick to support the cantilevered floors hanging off of the core. and the cantilevered floor will probably be supported by thick and deep girders. then there's the issue connecting the girder to the core and somehow allowing the girder to rotate around the core and not undermining seismic and wind load design criteria.
i'm very conservative when i do structural calculations for buildings (thats my major) but my professor always says: "you never say no to a client". the only issue is if the client has enough money to build this thing. and fortunately for dubai, they do like to spend money on building tall structures, hooray!. however, i dont see this project as efficient or profitable at all.
the more logical structure is similar, and designed by santiago calatrava called the turning torso in malmo, sweden
the exterior looks like the floors rotate freely but the diaphragms are permanently fixed to its spot.
http://www.turningtorso.com
and he's designing a similar one in chicago called the chicago spire
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago_Spire - Cwo655321, on 01/19/2008, -2/+13k, where do you want it?
- smoothmedia, on 01/19/2008, -0/+11How would you like an apartment with a different view each day?
People pay big bucks just to eat in revolving restaurants, imagine what they'd pay to live in a revolving apartment? - uselessexpert, on 01/19/2008, -0/+11From the Dynamic Architecture's website:
The Dynamic Architecture building, which will be constantly in motion changing its shape, will be able to generate electric energy for itself as well as for other buildings. Forty-eight wind turbines fitted between each rotating floors as well as the solar panels positioned on the roof of the building will produce energy from wind and the sunlight, with no pollution. The total energy produced by this inbuilt ‘powerhouse' every year will be worth approximately seven million dollars.
http://www.dynamicarchitecture.net/ - knobidy, on 01/19/2008, -0/+11When the video mentioned wind turbines, it showed a glimpse of what looked like fan blades between the floors. (Right at 1:44)
- Ignitedude, on 01/19/2008, -2/+12There can be no doubt; that's completely insane.
- monkeyboyhero, on 01/19/2008, -0/+9I think I already did that level on Zelda
- Niek, on 01/19/2008, -0/+9Check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Da_Vinci_Tower
Each floor will rotate a maximum of 6 metres (20 feet) per minute, or one full rotation in 90 minutes. (...) Construction of the Da Vinci Tower, if built, is expected to be completed in 2009. - Scynet, on 01/19/2008, -2/+11Quite the contrary, considering what Dubai has already done or is currently working on, such as "The World".
- Archer007, on 01/19/2008, -6/+15Nice. No practical application that I can think of other than making a cool-looking building, though.
- rome747, on 01/19/2008, -0/+8No, they camp.
- wtfpwned98, on 01/19/2008, -1/+8You're being dugg down because people's interest only goes as far as Dubai's publicity materials will take them.
- kerchov, on 01/19/2008, -1/+8that looks aweful lot like the coming Chicago Spire
http://www.thechicagospire.com/ - djdalai, on 01/19/2008, -0/+7I don't see oil popping anytime soon.
Literally, if you put it inside a balloon and popped it, the oil would just run out of your empty balloon. Your poor, poor, popped balloon.
Oh, and Dubai (or the UAE) has 9.5% of the world's oil reserves. Don't kid yourself that we will release ourselves of our dependence anytime soon. RIght when you think cheaper and better alternatives are becoming available the price of oil will simply reduce and make it the cheaper alternative. I'm not happy about it but this is high school econ (any maybe some balloon physics). - lex0nyc, on 01/19/2008, -0/+7"Jane, stop this crazy thing!"
- jscro, on 01/19/2008, -1/+7Dubai is a human rights *****.
- superjarvo, on 01/19/2008, -0/+6Dubai is becoming more and more messed up every time I hear about it. It's like a 5 Trillion dollar Peewee's Playhouse!
- aamer, on 01/19/2008, -0/+6I read an article on this in an Arabic language newspaper a few months back. They claimed the elevator is in a fixed shaft that runs in the middle; furthermore, each floor will have a single apartment so the apartment owner can individually control the speed of his/her floor's rotation. Also, on another unrelated note, the mentioned it would be partially solar and wind powered, but did not give any specifics.
- oneangrypossum, on 01/19/2008, -5/+11Trying to sell you the future, and any number of kidnapped/abused female slaves!
- Royal0rleans, on 01/19/2008, -0/+5They have the desire, foreign architects and engineers (some of the best in the world) make it happen.
- renagadex2, on 01/19/2008, -3/+8Huh, that's pretty much the most useless feature I've ever seen. (Minus the sustainability)
- inactive, on 01/19/2008, -0/+5Dubai is off the hook
- inactive, on 01/19/2008, -3/+8wont some1 please think of the lattes !!!
- nateIT, on 01/19/2008, -0/+5this is totally why there should be a frickin Diggnation Dubai.
- ordig, on 01/19/2008, -0/+4hell?
- Akraz, on 01/19/2008, -0/+4 this is SIMILAR in LOOKS to the 'Absolute' aka "Marilyn Monroe" building they are constructing here in Mississauga in 2009/10. No, the floors dont rotate, but the shape is what im referring to.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2006/03/29/ ...
For those of you that dont know where Mississauga is, it is a city right outside Toronto.
Have a look, it looks really neat. I wish i could afford living in one of the condos in that building, but all 50 floors already sold out 2 years ago lol - minder49, on 01/19/2008, -1/+4Pillaging? Can you Pillage sand?
- wtfpwned98, on 01/19/2008, -1/+4The problem with "the future" is that workers are shipped in from poorer countries, then have to work for months without being paid (because Dubai isn't as rich as it seems...the building boom only goes on because they have insufficient labor laws) and the ratio of males to females is around 3 to 1, so women can't go out into public without being approached by wealthy men offering money for sex, and a great many of them (even the nice ones) eventually become whores.
- solid12345, on 01/19/2008, -0/+3I know where I am going when my pyramid scheme pays off.
- gen0x, on 01/19/2008, -0/+3Do you want a cookie for insulting him for insulting an operating system?
- d3lta, on 01/19/2008, -7/+10Sell us the future my ass... Dubai has managed to reduce their dependence on oil exports to only 3% of their GDP, though it should be noted the city has always been better known for trading. Since then they've tried to make the city one of the financial capitals of the world, by introducing business friendly "laws" and tax free zones. But its unlikely that they will achieve that dream, (they plan to introduce VAT and income tax in the near future, and then the already dwindling workforce will reduce drastically since nobody likes living in Dubai - see below). So the rulers have decided to make the city the premier tourist destination in the world, and they are funding ridiculous projects ( and getting fleeced) trying to achieve this... But they can't change the climate despite all their canal constructions the weather stinks, a little less than the attitude of the arab inhabitants, so I can't see it being a successful venture either. So why don't people like living in Dubai?
1) Restrictions: You need an alcohol license, during ramadan you can't eat during the day anywhere near "the locals", you have to watch what you say don't ever get on the wrong side of an arab, almost any arab. Although you can get away with it in some places, in most of the country your internet access is severly restricted... I couldn't get to most digg front page articles, sites like flickr are banned.
2) Racism: Probably the most racist place I've been too. The hierarchy goes - 1) Shiekhs - 2) Local Arabs - 3) All other Muslims - 4) Europeans/Australians/Americans (urm... whites) 5) Anything else (deliberate, to compliment the attitude)... sorry thats the truth, don't believe me, google "Dubai jobs" and check out the descriptions, they clearly describe who can apply for what job based on their nationality.
The value of someone's life is of course directly proportional to this; its not unheard of someone being killed by a rash rich young arab brat, and absolutely no compensation being given to the victim's family while the kid gets away scot-free to try and improve this record the next night.
3) Corruption: Probably at every level... the arabs are fleeced by the MNC companies; and this extends within the companies to every level, since there really are no laws to combat this. Disputes are settled in the Sheikh's court, and they can make up rules as they go along. Its the city's worst kept secret that, although banned, the arabs make up the largest contingent of alcoholics, and prostitution is rampant. Dubai, is in fact the world's third most visited destination for prostitution, after Amsterdam and Bangkok. You can even see this at the airport, which is always flushed plane-loads of arriving and departing young russian, chinese and filipino girls. It makes you sick to the stomach, and I reckon the country has the highest undeclared AIDS rate per population.
4) Weather: Apart from the awfully high temperatures, occasional dust storms and high pollution, it might be alright. Apparently (I wasn't there long enough, I did my project and left) if it rains, the poor drainage system floods the entire city and brings things to a standstill.
5) Traffic: There's always some new road, bridge or flyover being built (in record time, due to the inhuman way blue collar workers are treated - Syriana actually provides a pretty mild but accurate picture of this) and more cars clogging up the insufficient road network. The lack of a public transportation systems shows, though I've heard plans are being made to address this.
6) Rent: If not covered by your employer, you'd better be getting good enough pay to cover $2k a month for a small apartment. A lot has been written about the housing bubble in Dubai, rents have increased 5 fold over the last few years. And if you're allergic to stale air-conditioning units, don't bother going there.
7) Rights: Basically you've got... NONE. Everything depends on the way your employer treats you, and the rulers can change to laws anytime they want and your company will have to comply. Oh, even if you like Dubai, you will never be able to emigrate there... not unless you convert to Islam and are then granted citizenship by the ruler (very very unlikely, unless you marry a local, which could also be deadly- sorry). If you are a local, you get a free house, car, money on demand for your business, free education and even full sponsorship for your education at the most expensive schools in the world.
8) Unethical: The way money is spent, people are treated, the billion dollar projects which damage the environment forever (check out their coastline since the Palm projects were started). With the amount of open land in the desert, surely they could try and plan an efficient means of generating solar energy?
And they don't like Americans too much either, though unlike the rest of the world, this doesn't seem to be related to Bush's policies. I never felt comfortable during the short time I was there, and almost everyday only one thought echoed, as one of my colleagues said "I just can't wait to get out of this *****".
Sorry, this has been a bit of a rant, but every time somebody praises Dubai without having seen the place and everything it represents, my blood begins to boil. - fantafanta, on 01/19/2008, -1/+4Pretty awesome. Those Dubais really knows how to build mind-blowing structures.
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