Cubicle Coolness

Scott Adams of Dilbert cartoon fame, designed the ultimate cubicle. I suppose it's only natural that the person who spent years drawing little office-themed boxes on paper (his "cubicle farms" cartoons), would eventually want to develop a real-life box, so that real people can actually sit in and operate out of it, in comfort and style. The glowy honeycomb look & feel of this box beats all cubicles I've ever worked in, hands down, bar none.

Is This Building Sinking Into the Ground?

Is this parking lot straight or is it on an angle? You be the judge. According to Flickr's user, jpelletier (who uploaded the image), this stellar piece of modern architecture is located in Seattle, Washington.

Young Designers on the Move in Australia

Andrew Maynard Architects is full of good ideas, including hosting a well thought-out design space called Latitude @ designEX, which showcases the work of young designers.

Tubes and irregular forms are the look of the day, as these contemporary designers develop interesting spaces by changing the line of sight.

Bubble-Wrapped Olympics

Will spectators at the China Olympics swimming events be able to keep their eyes on the sport? Just over a month ago, China unveiled its new "bubble-wrap" swimming arena, capable of seating 17,000 spectators. The honeycomb-like ceiling of the arena will be lit up at night with LED lights, illuminating the structure, inside and out. Concerned about bird droppings? well according to the chief architect (in this Reuters article), birds won't sit on transparent surfaces, and whatever else should fall on the exterior will be cleaned by rain water. As for the interior, they plan on cleaning it by hand, twice a year. That's a whole lot of housework, if you ask me.

Sea and Food

"I'd like to be under the sea In an octopus' garden in the shade" ... Well, Ringo Starr can now eat his heart out, in this underwater heaven on earth known as the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island--one of the more unusual in the Hilton hotel chain. Inside this glass-domed room, one can marvel at schools of fish while dining on fine "Maldivian-Western fusion cuisine".

Clearly, this kind of restaurant would be near impossible to maintain year-long in a northern hemisphere. Indeed, it is located in the Maldives. Make your reservations early, for it apparently fills up quickly. Also, the restaurant's underwater life span is an estimated 20 years, and it has already been in the water since 2004.

Human Goldfish

Care for a little swim? well how about this hotel's cool pool, located in Dallas, Texas. It's part of Hotel Elan's spectacular urban offering. I'd venture to suggest that the splash experience would be much like swimming in an aquarium... So no below-the-water's-surface hanky panky, and... er.... don't loose your trunks, unless you want all the world to see you in your birthday suit!

A Very Gehry Good Idea

Contemporary Canadian architect, Frank Gehry has created giant, out-of-this-world designs. His weird, larger-than life, organic shapes are reminiscent of Paris' Restaurant Le Georges, a top-notch Parisian gem, located at the top of the Centre Georges Pompidou, and boasts one of the best views in all of the city.

Back to Gehry though... his exhibit, an ocean and continent away from Paris, is called Experience Music Project. Located in Seattle, it captures the spirit of enormity... Enormity of thought, and perhaps, making those who wander through it feel rather miniscule. Revel in giant organic shiny shapes.