Italian architect David Fisher is building his first skyscraper, the Dynamic Tower, and it happens to be one of the most ambitious construction plans since the Pyramid of Khufu. Every floor of the 80-story self-powered building rotates according to voice command, and nearly the entire construction of the US$700 million structure is pre-made. I caught up with the architect in New York, and he blew my mind again and again.

Read More »

Not feeling enough like a real man with that Bose Portable SoundDock? Well roll up your sleeves past your biceps and grab hold of this Construction Radio and iPod dock. Not only does it snugly hold your iPod, but this 4.5kg US$130 hoss has a spotlight, two power outlets, an SD card slot and a USB jack for charging phones or connecting a music source. Since it's found in the SkyMall catalog, we don't have the full drop-test ratings, but anything with that much metal piping is at least bound to protect your iPod's LCD while you're off soldering or jigsawing or jackhammering—whatever it is you're always doing in that shed of yours. [SkyMall]

Read More »

The following is not the plot to an upcoming Bond film: Russian bootstrap billionaire and Chelsea soccer club owner Roman Abramovich announced that his construction company, Infrastruktura, would spend US$160 million on the world's largest drill. The drill, five meters wider than the current champ, built by the same German concern, Herrenknecht, would be used to improve the grounds around the Black Sea resort of Sochi, site of 2014 Olympics and favourite hangout of both Stalin and Putin. The company says it will not be used to drill a subterranean roadway from Far Eastern Russia to Alaska. Not yet, at least.

Read More »

This is what happens when you mix boredom with heavy machinery: the digger swing. Sure, it's terribly dangerous, but it does look fun. At least it looks safer than the industrial robot arm ride. [Spulch]

Japanese toy firm Gakken has brought out a light-up version of the Tokyo Tower for you to build. And if you don't fancy having a 3'4" red and white version of Godzilla's favourite phallic object owning a piece of your floor, then you can always turn the waffle-shaped bricks into three other things:

Read More »

Ras al-Khaimah &mdash one of the United Arab Emirates, not a relative of Batman's nemesis &mdash is going to install this floating solar island, which will be 0.62 miles in diameter when completed. Due to the lack of space in land, the micro-state contracted the Neuchâtel's Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology to design it, paying $5 million toward the construction of the project. The island will produce electricity by heating up water to produce vapor and will be able to propel itself in case bad weather strikes. [GoodCleanTech]

A 15-story office block in the heart of London is being demolished backwards in order to build a skyscraper in its place. Demolishers are working up from the ground level upwards, dismantling each floor to reveal the concrete core of the P&O building. Find out why, and the new skyscraper replacing it, after the jump.

Read More »

What has 28 wheels, is 20m long, weighs 130 tonnes and has as much power as two Formula One cars? This truck does, and it's been built to haul 115-tonne telescope parts 5,000m up the Chilean Andes. At that height the driver won't be able to breathe, so the seat has been designed so that a person can sit with an oxygen tank on.

Read More »

Wacky straws are fun, but super wacky straws like these DIY Drinking Strawz make boozing even more entertaining. The set ($12.99) comes with 20 connectors and 16 straw pieces, which means you can make contraptions above to suck liquid out of multiple cups at once. Or, just go retro and make one giant chain of straws so it takes about a minute for liquid to get from the cup to your mouth. Either way, it'll keep you and your kids occupied (because you're both drunk). [ThinkGeek via make via Boing Boing]