Benefits of Biking for the Newbie
I'm in the market for a new bike. It occurred to me that I know how to ride a bike, but there is absolutely no bike in the house. Also, I've never bothered learning how to drive a car. I…
neoli19 August 2013
Why Graphene is Our New Favorite Material
You’ve probably heard about graphene before. It’s this new revolutionary material that’s tougher than diamond, more elastic than rubber, a much better conductor than copper, and it can even repair itself. A perfect hexagonal lattice of graphene. (Image from www.bbc.co.uk)…
neoli11 August 2013
Aircon-less Architecture | Surviving the Heat without Air Conditioning
That precious, sanity-saving technology called the air conditioner celebrated its 111th birthday last July 17. (For a fantastically-detailed and engaging history of air-conditioners, check out Poplorica: A Popular History of the Fads, Mavericks, Inventions, and Lore that Shaped Modern America,…
neoli1 August 2013
New Century Global Center: China’s New Big Building and What It Means for the Rest of Us
China has a new shiny building, and it’s a big one. As in big big. The New Century Global Center: The new largest standalone structure in the world. Set in the city of Chengdu in Southwest China, the New Century…
neoli27 July 2013
LEED Now Encourages Cradle to Cradle Certification
As we wait for the November launch of LEED v4, it’s worth noting that our favorite sustainable building rating system now includes Cradle to Cradle Certification. This is the result of a majority vote (a whopping 85{e3829ec1db02d54faaf9fa2de0d48db26af01d7a7944a63c3b26976124791cab}) by members of…
neoli24 July 2013
Living Simply in a Small, Simple House
A recent trip to Davao, a city in Mindanao, Philippines made us realize the various degrees of sustainable living. As with any city, the farther you get from the center, the simpler the people’s lifestyle becomes. Farther still—in the outer…
neoli20 July 2013
Saving Elephants Through Radioactive Carbon
Yes, this is supposed to be a blog on sustainable building, but once in a while let’s veer away from all that and delve into something about the natural world. Specifically, saving elephants. A baby elephant follows its parent. (Image…
neoli12 July 2013
Green Museum for a Green World
Seasoned travelers know well enough to stay away from museums when visiting a new city. It’s in the outdoors where life and culture thrives, they argue. Not within the safe, enclosed walls of buildings. But there is still something to…
neoli3 July 2013
Quick Green Buildings in a Fast-Paced World
The quest to raise the world’s tallest skyscraper is officially on. Named Sky City, the 220-floor green building is an ambitious well-intentioned project by the Chinese firm Broad Sustainable Construction. After much delay from securing construction permits and other bureaucratic…
neoli11 June 2013
Edible Landscapes for Our Office Building Gardens
We’re used to seeing PETA vegan campaigns featuring celebrities clad only in various produce. This time around, the Virginia-based animal rights organization is giving us an idea of the scope in which veganism is currently embraced by all of America. …
neoli8 June 2013
